Cocks and hens, partridges and pheasants, etc., 



dust themselves, using that method of cleansing their 



feathers, and ridding themselves of their vermin. 



As far as I can observe, many birds that dust themselves never 



wash ; and I once thought that those birds that wash themselves 



would never dust ; but here I find myself mistaken ; for common 



house - sparrows are great dusting - birds, being frequently seen 



grovelling and wallowing in dusty roads ; and yet they are great 



washers. Does not the skylark dust ? G. W. 



How Birds Bath 



BIRDS spend a great part of their lives in attempts 

 to keep themselves clean a task demanding immense 

 care and trouble. The preening of feathers goes on 

 almost continuously ; and besides this, baths are 

 regularly and frequently taken, whether in water or 

 dust, and must be taken on pain of sickness and death. 



Watch a barnyard fowl dusting, and afterwards 

 basking in the sun. She is the very picture of a bird 

 abandoned to luxurious pleasure as she wallows in the 

 dust of a cart-shed, spraying herself by napping her 

 wings, opening and fluffing out her feathers, working 

 with her feet to give an extra shower-bath, and 

 gradually settling down into quite a hollow in the 

 ground. Time passes heedlessly ; for half an hour or 

 more the happy fowl dusts and basks, and her one 

 hope, no doubt, is that nothing may disturb her. 



When on her legs again, she gives herself a thorough 

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