94 FEATHERED 'FRIENDS. 



One gentleman who was rather successful in breeding 

 Siskins in the house attributes his good fortune in this 

 respect to the use of a nest built by a Chaffinch placed 

 in an open wire basket made to hook on to the wires 

 of the cage, which the hen re-lined according to her 

 own fancy. She laid five eggs, and hatched three 

 young ones one day, another the next, and another 

 on the following day. For the first ten days the little 

 ones were fed entirely on gentles in the pupa or chrysalis 

 state, when the old birds began to make use of seed. 

 The young left the nest fully feathered at fifteen days 

 old, and soon afterwards began to feed themselves on 

 soaked seed, which my informant adds should not be 

 too suddenly withdrawn. 



The scientific name is Chrysomitris spinus. 



