96 THE BULLFINCH. 



The bullfinch can also imitate the songs of other birds ; but in general it 

 is not permitted to do so, that it may only learn to repeat the airs which 

 are taught it. 



Different degrees of capacity are shown here, as well as in other animals. 

 One young bullfinch learns with ease and quickness, another with diffi- 

 culty and slowly ; the former will repeat, without hesitation, several parts 

 of a song ; the latter will be hardly able to whistle one, after nine months' 

 uninterrupted teaching. But it has been remarked that those birds which 

 learn with most difficulty remember the songs, which have once been well 

 learnt, better and longer, and rarely forget them, even when moulting. 

 Mr. Thiem*, bird-seller, at Waltershauseu, near Gotha, sends annually 

 to Berlin and London one or two hundred bullfinches, instructed in this 

 manner, at from one to several pounds sterling a* piece, according as they 

 are more or less accomplished, whilst a wild one would cost only two or 

 three pence. These, however, are also kept in the room and prized, both 

 on account of their beauty and the great ease with which they are tamed ; 

 they soon learn to fly on the hand, to receive their food, or will even take 

 it from the mouth, and become at last as familiar as if they had been 

 reared from the nest. The following are the means which are employed 

 to tame them : As soon as a bullfinch is caught and brought into the room, 

 it must be put into a cage with food sufficient for the first day only ; for 

 the loss of its liberty does not prevent its eating as soon as it is disengaged 

 from the lime twigs or noose. The next day a band must be put round 

 the body and wings, like that which bird-catchers put round a decoy bird, 

 which they let run about out of doors ; by means of this band the bullfinch 

 may be fastened by a piece of packthread, a foot in length, to some place 

 from which it cannot fall ; this will prevent its beating itself to death with its 

 wings ; a little bell may be fastened to a box, which when filled with food must 

 be given to the bird, at the same time ringing the bell ; it must be then left 

 that it may eat ; this must be repeated several times in the day ; the same 

 must be done when it is given anything to drink. The poor little captive 

 will not at first either eat or drink in any one's presence ; it is therefore 

 necessary to retire for the two first days after having given it the box, and 

 only approach it by degrees, till it is accustomed to eat in the pre- 

 sence of its master, which it will soon be, for generally on the third day, 

 as soon as it hears the bell and sees the box, it hops forward, and eats 

 without the least shyness. Then the distance must be increased by degrees 

 to make it come farther and farther, when, as soon as it has eaten, it may 

 be taken on the hand and carried here and there, though it may seem a 

 little frightened, but not being able to escape it will soon become used to 

 this treatment, and will even begin to come to eat on the hand by con- 

 tinuing to do this for the third and fourth days ; it will fly of itself at the 

 sound of the bell to the hand which holds the box ; after this the fastening 

 may be loosened, and if one only move from the bird gradually, it will 

 fearlessly approach and perch on the hand. Should it escape, however, 

 it must be again confined and left without food for some hours. By this 



* Mr. Thiem, son of the Mr. Thiem in the text, arrives annually in London in 

 April or May, with birds for sale. TRANSLATOR. 



