CANARY BIRDS. (55 



may hear, and so we had better provide 

 them with a good instructor. It is only in 

 rare cases that a bird will sing while moult- 

 ing, and after the first and second moulting 

 season the bird is obliged to re-learn its 

 song, and thus learns to intermix the notes 

 of other birds. Instances have been known 

 in which canaries have been taught to repeat 

 short words distinctly, to distinguish names, 

 colors, letters, and numbers, and to perform 

 certain actions at the word of command. A 

 female, in the possession of a person named 

 Jeantot, selected from an alphabet, and 

 placed in order, the letters of certain words ; 

 added, subtracted, and multiplied in Ger- 

 man, and indicated, by means of numbers, 

 the exact time of a watch. He had also 

 three males with him, which were able to 

 select letters and numbers which were 

 named. Hunger had been the chief means 

 used in the education of all; a species of cru- 

 elty without any excuse, and which should 

 be wholly condemned. 



