162 THE CANARY. 



the food of full-grown canaries; the young, which cannot feed themselves, 

 require a different diet. 



BREEDING. A very important branch in the history of the canary is its 

 education, which is not without difficulties, but these are augmented by all 

 the refinements and artificial plans which some persons follow with so much 

 parade. A male of from two to five years of age should be chosen for 

 pairing ; for experience has taught, that if a young male is placed among 

 older females, they will produce more males than females. A bird is known 

 to be old by the blackish and rough scales of his feet, and by his long and 

 strong claws. 



Good males aie valuable and scarce. Some are dull and melancholy, 

 always sad, and seldom singing ; indifferent to their mates, which are 

 equally so to them; others are so passionate, that they beat or even 

 kill their mates and their young ; others are too ardent, and pursue their 

 mates while they are sitting, tear the nest, destroy the eggs, or excite the 

 females so much that they voluntarily abandon them. 



The females have also their defects. Some, too ardent, only lay without 

 sitting; others neglect to feed their young, beat them, and pick out theii 

 feathers, so that the wretched little creatures die miserably ; to others, 

 laying is so painful that they are too much fatigued to sit, or they lay each 

 egg only after a long interval. Quacks (for we find them on this subject 

 as on others) pretend to have specifics for the cure of these defects ; but 

 their pretended remedies are mere deceptions, and the use of them causes 

 much trouble. The best plan is to remove the vicious birds, and to retain 

 only those which have none of the above-named bad qualities. 



To obtain the most brilliant colours, those birds which have them clear, 

 and whose spots are distinct and regular, are paired together. This, of 

 course, can only be done in separate cages. In aviaries, where the birds 

 pair by choice, the offspring are generally mixed and blotted. A greenish 

 or brownish bird, placed with a bright yellow one, often produces dim 

 white, or other admired colours. It is better never to place together two 

 crested birds, because the offspring is apt to have a part of the head bald or 

 otherwise disfigured. 



The best time for pairing canaries is the middle of April. Either one 

 male, and one or two females, are placed in a large cage, or many of both 

 sexes are united in a room or aviary, having the advantage of a south as- 

 pect. Nests made of turned wood, or osiers, are given them, as straw ones 

 are too easily torn. It is a good plan to place in the room or aviary slips 

 of pine, which being cut in February do not lose their leaves. If a little 

 enclosure of wire-gauze can be fixed over the window, where the birds can 

 enjoy the fresh air, nothing will more effectually contribute to render the 

 young healthy and robust. 



Birds, which are to be paired for the first time, should be previously 

 placed in the same cage for seven or eight days, in order to become ac- 

 quainted and accustomed to live together. If two females are to be caged 

 with one male, .t is especially necessary that they should be together long 

 enough to leave off quarrelling, and the pairing cage should be divided into 

 two equal parts, communicating by a sliding door. This being done, a 

 lively male and one of the females should be placed in the first division ; 



