Match IMG the Finches. 269 



dark ones when paired with an ordinary Finch. We do not advance this as being an argument 

 in favour of the Cheveral, but only as a fact to be taken for what it is worth, for many of the 

 best Mules in exhibition have been bred by men who never had a Cheveral in their cages. 

 With Goldfinches, however, " handsome is as handsome does " is the test, and unless it be a 

 "breeding" bird, or one which will mate readily with the Canary, all his beauty counts for 

 nothing. Some .will not look at their hen, and these little Josephs, these paragons of ornitho- 

 logical virtue, are worthless in the breeding-cage, as nests of " empty " eggs only too often 

 testify. 



It will be inferred from the foregoing that the Finch must always be the male bird. The 

 reason is that from such an alliance there is a greater chance of obtaining Mules resembling 

 the Canary, and also because the Canary hen, being the more domesticated, is likely to prove 

 the more reliable mother ; but as a matter of fact the hen Goldfinch will breed readily in con- 

 finement mated with a Canary or with her own kind, or even with other Finches; and 

 we have known several nests of Mules obtained in this way, though all were veritable sweeps, 

 not very shapely and not very brilliant, and resembling the Finch too closely to be of much 

 value from a fancier's point of view, however interesting in other respects. The Cinnamon 

 Mule in the coloured illustration was bred from a Cinnamon cock and a Goldfinch hen, and is 

 a cockAiirA — a result not in harmony with Cinnamon law in Canary-breeding. 



It is well, when it can be done, to procure Finches early in the year, so that they may be 

 tamed and thoroughly domesticated by breeding-time — a matter of some consequence. Fresh- 

 caught birds, captured late in the season, will breed readily ; but when used for the purpose 

 they are frequently short-lived, and often go off after the first nest. Sound over-year birds 

 which have been moulted in captivity and have proved their ability are much prized ; and a 

 breeder who wishes to have more than one string to his bow will generally manage to secure 

 a few reliable birds in the course of a season or two, and very old-fashioned little fellows they 

 become. Some breeders house-moult a few " grey-pates," that is, Goldfinches in their nestling 

 plumage ; but mature birds are such a plentiful commodity in the market that a good selection can 

 be made by purchasing, as opportunity presents; an extra Finch or two being very necessary, as 

 they have a little way of their own of making up their minds very quickly when they think 

 of departing for the happy hunting grounds. 



Some Finches become "fresh" early in the spring, but it is not desirable, and a breeder 

 likes nothing less than to see a beak turn prematurely white, the sign of fitness for breeding. 

 When such does occur, the bird seldom lives through the year, and no practised hand would 

 give a long figure for a forward bird out of season, though the rule is not infallible. The month 

 of May is quite soon enough for the little fellow to begin to show such signs as are required 

 previous to introducing a Goldfinch to his future spouse. His first work usually is to take 

 stock of the furniture, the nest-box coming for its due share of critical examination. Then 

 he sets to work to clean his feet, selects his own corner on the perch, and calmly waits the 

 course of events, seldom making more advance at first than indulging in a sly snatch at 

 his hen when she comes within reach. To get him into blooming condition he must be fed 

 with stimulating diet — a little egg, maw-seed, summer rape, and hemp-seed, of which he is 

 inordinately fond and will soon learn to take from the finger. 



When the last tinge of black has disappeared from his beak and it begins to assume 

 that delicate, transparent pinky-white colour, the admiration of muling men, it is time to think 

 of running him to the hens, which by this time will probably have brought up one or more nests 

 of Canaries. Here we take the opportunity to remark that a belief in the development of 



