Tue ZooLtocisr—Aucust, 1872. 3157 
Memoirs of my Bird Cage. By Evwarp Newman. 
I HEARTILY wish that those who cultivate birds, so to speak, for 
their own delectation and that of their friends, would record their 
experiences, their failures, and their successes, for the benefit of 
others; and I may add, in doing this, the value of their lucu- 
brations would be vastly enhanced if they will consider themselves 
addressing elderly aunts or pious grandmothers, and so introduce 
no word, or sentiment, or thought, for the purpose of diverting 
attention from the birds to themselves. There is an enormous 
amount of useful knowledge on birds and bird-keeping afloat, 
especially among ladies, but the larger moiety of this is lost through 
want of record; and the lesser moiety through the disposition to 
indulge in fine writing, and, shall I say it, the disposition also 
to attract attention to self rather than to the subject under 
consideration. 
It is really astonishing how great and how general is the thirst 
for this very knowledge which is so abundantly possessed, yet so 
grudgingly or so injudiciously imparted. This combination of 
riches and poverty, of plethora and need, abundance and hunger, 
reminds me of nothing so much as the advertising columns of a 
newspaper: borrowers and lenders, men with too much money 
and men with too little, seem equally to abound, and absolutely to 
jostle each other in their struggles to obtain attention. How is it 
the borrowers and lenders cannot come together? Leaving these 
subtle questions for solution at some distant day, I would caution 
my readers against partaking too freely of viva voce advice, although 
given gratuitously. In the instance of the little parrakeets called 
betcherrygahs, grass-parrakeets, or warbling parrakeets (Melopsit- 
tacus undulatus), you will be certain to have this largely offered ; 
and as I intend to commence the “Memoirs of my Bird Cage” 
with these little beauties, I have to caution my readers against the 
too free use of such stimulants. Everybody has seen and admired 
these little birds, and therefore everybody has a right to advise. 
“You should give them plenty of green food ;” “ you should keep 
them ina hot room;” “you should not give them hemp-seed ;” 
“you should always keep a lump of sugar in the cage;” “you 
must take care to avoid draughts.” Turn a deaf ear to all this, or 
politely inquire how long your kind adviser has kept the particular 
SECOND SERIES—VOL. VI. 20 
