Mule Breeding. 99 



days old, I effected a second transfer between these hens, on 

 the same plan as the first. This appeared to me to be the 

 most satisfactory arrangement I could make, as the only risk 

 I had was that of losing a moderately-marked mule and 

 a Norwich canary; but I was quite willing to make this 

 sacrifice if I could only succeed in rearing the two mules of 

 such excellence and promise. As I said before, one of them 

 was quite clear, and the other had beautiful evenly-marked 

 wings, seven dark feathers in each in the upper part of the 

 wing, and corresponding exactly, with all the appearance of 

 being clear elsewhere, with the exception of eye marks, which 

 would still further have enhanced its value. At the age of 

 thirteen days, however, this bird died, and the clear mule 

 expired a few days before; so I gave each of the hens their 

 first charges back to them, by no means benefited in appear- 

 ance or condition by the change. 



The loss of these birds was exceedingly mortifying to me, and 

 I do not need to tell those who know anything about mule 

 breeding what a serious one it was; but perhaps I ought to 

 warn those who intend to pursue this pastime that they must 

 be prepared to meet with similar disappointments. 



When the hen which bred me the good mules had reared 

 those under her care, I took a nest of canaries of her, and 

 afterwards another nest of mules, four in number, which 

 consisted of one dark and three marked birds. I twice showed 

 the best of the marked ones, and obtained a "high com- 

 mendation" on one occasion, and a "very high commendation" 

 on the other. From the other hen I got two more nests of 

 mules, and among them were two very good specimens, being 

 nicely marked, although small; both were hens, and con- 

 sequently of little value. In the autumn of the same year 

 some kind of distemper, which proved very fatal, got among 

 my birds, and I lost a great number of them; the only birds 

 I had left to begin the following season with of the mule 

 breeding strain were the two hens, and two young cocks from 

 the hen that produced the best mules. I commenced, as 

 usual, with placing a canary cock with each hen for a first 



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