IX 



HIS MUSIC LESSON 



To think of music lessons for a bird seems 

 rather odd, for song is nature's gift to the 

 feathered folk. Undoubtedly one hatched in 

 solitude, and never allowed to hear the voices 

 of his kind, would express his emotions in 

 some sort of musical fashion. But, as a mat- 

 ter of fact, many, perhaps all, birds are taught 

 to sing. I have myself heard several of them 

 at what I believe to be their singing lessons, 

 notably the American robin and the whip- 

 poorwill. In both these cases the old bird 

 sang his full song, and waited while the little 

 one, with more or less success, imitated it. 

 Over and over the parent repeated the notes, 

 and the infant tried to copy them. 



These are the native teachers, but birds des- 

 tined to the life of parlor musicians, as the 

 bullfinch and some others, have human teach- 

 ers, when their music lessons are as regular as 



