On Cages. 139 



does this will it come up to our beau ideal of what a 

 cage should be. Whenever we see a beautiful canary 

 imprisoned in one of these gorgeously got up gimcracks 

 of zinc, we always feel very much what an artist in 

 some picture exhibition, standing near his own produc- 

 tion to hear the criticisms of the public, may be sup- 

 posed to feel, as he hears some unsophisticated party 

 exclaim, " Oh, my ! what a beautiful frame !" No, 

 this is surely putting the cart before the horse, and 

 therefore at once disposes of all these pretty toys, as 

 fit and proper habitations for our pet. No one who 

 has had a bird fit to be called a canary will ever 

 hide him in one of these, whilst those who possess 

 the lowest kind of the species only will hardly think 

 them to be worthy of so expensive a domicile. 



For single birds the two cages we should recom- 

 mend are the japanned bell-shaped cage, and the plain 

 square white tinned sort. The former is light, airy 

 and elegant, and answers well for a single bird, who 

 always looks well in it. It has the recommendation of 

 being easily cleaned, and of affording the least possible 

 screen for those pests and scourges of the canary, red- 

 lice. The only drawback is, that its shape precludes 

 it from being hung up against a wall, but for a stand, 

 or to be suspended from a ceiling nothing can be better 

 for the purpose. In this, as in all other wares, there 

 are inferior kinds, of which I would fain put my readers 

 on their guard, for the cheaper imitations of the real 

 article being badly japanned and painted with the 

 worst of paint, and therefore easily picked off, as we 

 have experienced to our sorrow, are often the unsus- 



