46 



Caxaries axd Cage-Birds. 



through which hard-boiled eggs are squeezed by pressure with the blade of a dinner-knife, which 

 is another small et ccctera to be remembered when the fancier is quietly confiscating such articles 

 as may be likely to prove useful in his room. It is a most simple and effective contrivance for 

 accomplishing the purpose desired, doing more thoroughly in a few seconds what could scarcely 

 be done in half-an-hour under the old system of chopping, though the egg when thus manipulated 

 is still always spoken of as "chopped" when referring to it in the dietary. The adjunct to the 



FIG. -25. — EGG-DRAWER. 



egg-sieve is a board to place underneath, on which to receive what is passed through it for the 

 purpose of mixing — one clamped at each end to prevent warping will be found most serviceable. 

 A rolling-pin of hard wood is also necessary for crushing biscuit, hemp-seed, or other hard food, as 

 is also a small mill — an ordinary coffee-mill — -for grinding seed for young birds. 



Egg-troughs must be liberally provided. Even if there be small egg-drawers in the cage- 

 front, there will be constant use for the troughs, in one way or another. They are best made 



IP 



FIG. 26. — EGG-TIN I.\ PLACE. 



FIG. 27. — EGG-TROUGH. 



rather shallow, much more so than water-tins, and larger in area ; this is rendered necessary by 

 the use to which they are applied, as soft food is very apt to ferment and turn sour when 

 supplied in deep vessels. They are generally made of tin, square or semi-circular according to 

 fancy, with hooks, by which they can be attached to the cross-bar or to temporary cross-wires 

 interwoven wherever required. As good a plan as any is to weave a wire transversely at the 

 bottom of the door, and hang the principal egg-trough on it ; it can then be withdrawn on 

 opening the door, and hooked on and off without putting the hand inside the cage. We 



