Patterns of Show Cages. 



281 



lays the foundation of disease of tlie heart — all of which might be avoided by training the birds 

 from the first to run from one cage to the other of their own accord. 



Show-cages are of many patterns — too many by half ; and their diversity has led to prizes 

 being offered for better designs. Most of the new inventions thus called forth have, however, missed 

 the mark, seeking elaborate but useless contrivances for seed and water, or in other ways missing 

 one very essential point, that of cheapness. That some progress has been made will, however, 

 appear from the annexed diagrams. Fig. 66 is the cage formerly used for showing Norwich and 

 similar birds. It is a plain cage, with open front and bevelled top, thirteen or fourteen inches 

 across the front, and five and a half inches from front to back — the standard depth of all such 

 cages — measured outside. This cage was at first always made with ends bevelled to the back as 

 well as the top, in order to give (as was supposed) more light ; but this was awkward for packing 

 end to end in canvas, as will be easily seen. The square end was therefore the first improvement. 

 The next step was to make the top square also, but with a bevelled lid inside, and thus we have 

 what is known as the Coventry cage, shown in Fig. 6"]. This is a most useful cage, the inside 



Fig. 68. 



being the same as the other, while the square box top enables it either to be packed in canvas or 

 staged in two tiers — a great advantage. It should be twelve and a half or thirteen inches from 

 top to bottom outside, and is one of the cheapest cages made, being obtainable for i6s. 6d. per 

 dozen. Some exhibitors, however, prefer the bevelled top, as less likely, when packed gable- 

 fashion in the way presently explained, to have other parcels placed on top in railway transit. We 

 consider this danger, however, more apparent than real. Fig. 68 represents a cage designed by 

 Mr. Alden, the peculiarity of which is the half-open top, which throws more light on the birds, and 

 hence makes such cages suitable for birds of marking ; also for Lizards and crested birds. We 

 believe, however, that all these various objects may be secured by the cage shown in Fig. 69, which 

 represents a simple square cage, with a lifting lid, wired underneath. The lid can be lifted to 

 throw light on the bird, or even kept propped up at an angle when another cage has not to be 

 placed on the top, while it can be made as cheaply as the Coventry cage, and if made higher 

 would, we believe, suit even Coppies and Belgians. 



Coppies and Yorkshires are generally shown in open cages like Fig. 70 ; and the same cage is 

 not unfrequently used for Belgians ; but the proper Belgian cage is that shown in Fig. 71, with a 

 domed top of open wire. We have seen a perceptible difference in what could be got out of the 

 same Belgian in a domed cage, to what it had shown in a Coppy cage ; but probably this was 

 partly owing to habit, and partly to the greater height of the domed cage we saw employed for the 

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