PASSERES. TROCHILID^E. 



rather late in retiring to roost, frequently hawking 

 and sporting till dusk ; and when settled for the 

 night, were restless, and easily disturbed. The en- 

 trance of a person with a candle, at any hour, was 

 liable to set one or two upon the wing ; and this was 

 always a matter of regret with me, because of the 

 terror which they seemed to feel, incapacitating 

 them from again finding the perching line. On 

 such occasions they would again nutter against the 

 walls, and sink down, as when first captured, with 

 the same danger of accident, if not closely watched, 

 and picked up when exhausted. After having in- 

 habited my specimen-room for some time, (those 

 first caught almost four weeks,) I transferred them, 

 five in number, all males, to a large cage with a 

 wired front, and two transverse perches ; I had 

 much dreaded this change, and therefore did it in 

 the evening, hoping that the intervening night 

 would calm them. I had in some measure pre- 

 pared them for the change by placing the cage 

 (before the front was affixed) upon the table some 

 days previously, and setting their syrup-cup first 

 close to the cage, then a little within, then a 

 little farther, until at length it stood at the remotest 

 corner. And I was pleased to observe that the 

 birds followed the cup every day, flying in and 

 out of the cage to sip, though at first very shyly 

 and suspiciously, many times flying in and suddenly 

 darting out without tasting the fluid. After I had 

 shut them in, they beat and fluttered a good deal ; 

 but by the next day I was gratified to find that all 

 had taken their places quietly on the perches, and 



