CAREFUL FEEDING. 289 



Both of the foregoing preparations must be made fresh 

 every day, and no more of this, nor indeed of any moist 

 food, should be given to birds than they can eat in a day. 

 Every morning, before a fresh supply is put in, the vessels 

 should be carefully washed, in order that no particles of 

 stale food remain about them. Bechstein says: 1 1 use, 

 in feeding my birds, a long earthenware trough, at which 

 there is room for at least half of the birds of my aviary; 

 and of earthenware, from its being more easily cleansed 

 than wood, and also because wood accelerates the food 

 getting sour. My birds, of which I have always from 

 thirty to forty at large about me, thrive so well upon the 

 first kind of food, that they are not only plump, but also so 

 fully feathered, that their confined mode of living does not 

 seem to affect them. Almost all birds, whatever be their 

 natural food, eat it readily, and thus with me Chaffinches, 

 Goldfinches, Linnets, Siskins, Canaries, Fauvettes, Red- 

 breasts, Larks, Quails, Yellow-hammers, Buntings, Blue- 

 breasts, and Eedstarts may be seen eating out of the same 

 dish.' 



Every morning, both for drinking and bathing, the birds 

 should have fresh water. Where there are several together, 

 one vessel will do for all, but it had better be divided in 

 compartments to prevent their plunging entirely into the 

 water, and so making the place constantly damp and dirty. 

 A similar kind of vessel, but without partitions, will also 

 do for the paste. 



Some birds are very indiscriminate feeders, and swallow 

 almost anything which may be thrown to them ; great 

 care, therefore, is necessary that nothing deleterious is 

 given them, pepper or putrid meat especially. To those 

 kinds which feed only or chiefly on seeds, it is best not to 

 give more than a day's supply, as they are likely to waste 

 and scatter it about, or to pick out the best at first, and 

 having only husks or bad seed at the last, they are likely 

 to pine and get sulky. 



For the soft-billed birds, such as Nightingales, Black- 

 caps, Whitethroats, &c., besides the before-mentioned pot- 

 ted-flies, a supply of insect food may be obtained from 

 bakehouses, where there are generally plenty of meal-worms, 



