138 THE HOUSE SPARROW. 



It is almost superfluous to describe a species so well known. 

 The total length is five inches and three quarters ; the beak 

 thick and blue black ; the feet greyish brown ; the top of the 

 head and cheeks greyish ash-coloured with a broad chestnut 

 streak behind the eyes, elsewhere surrounded with black. 



The female differs a good deal, the upper part, of the body 

 being greyish red, spotted with black on the back, and the 

 under part of a dusky greyish white. 



The young males before their first moulting very much 

 resemble their mothers. 



The varieties known here are the white, the yellow, the 

 tawny, the black, the blue, the ash-coloured, and the streaked. 



HABITATION In its wild state, it haunts the vicinity of houses ; when 



confined, it is allowed to range the room. 



FOOD. If, unfortunately, it is too true that the sparrows cause great 

 injury in ripe fields of wheat, barley, and peas, it must be acknowledged 

 that they are very useful in our orchards and gardens, by destroying, in the 

 spring, thousands of insects, on which they feed their young ones as well as 

 themselves *. In the house, they feed on any kind of food : oats, hemp 

 seed, or rape seed. 



BREEDING. Small openings under the tiles, crevices in walls, empty 

 martin's nests, are the places they appropriate for breeding, and they line 

 their nest thickly with feathers. The female has two or three broods every 

 season, and has from five to seven young ones at a time. 



MODE OF TAKING Sparrows are so cunning that it is difficult to attract 

 them within the net or on lime twigs. They may be caught in numbers 

 however on the brambles in a field where sheep are kept, by sticking plenty 

 of birdlime about them. They may be taken also by placing a net before those 

 that have retired to cherry trees and under the tiles to sleep for the night. 



ATTRACTIVE QUALITIES. The bird-fancier who enjoys seeing several 

 birds running about the room, will, with pleasure, admit the sparrow among 

 them, and may amuse himself especially by observing it breed and produce 

 mules with the hen tree-sparrow. A jar or cup placed in a corner will 

 serve as their nuptial bed. A male tree- sparrow with a hen sparrow does 

 not succeed. 



The sparrow may be easily taught to go and come at command, by choos- 

 ing winter as the time to effect it. It is necessary first to keep it a month 

 near the window in a large cage supplied with the best food, such as millet, 

 meal, or white bread soaked in milk. It will even go there to deposit its 

 eggs if a small box is placed in the cage, with an opening for it to enter 



* The destruction of the sparrows has been so great an evil in the countries where 

 the government had ordered it, that it has been found necessary to rescind the order. 

 The injury they do to the corn is something certainly, but it may be exaggerated 

 besides,ought not these useful creatures to be paid ? TRANSLATOR. 



