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Miss E. Alderson,



interpretation, viz., inaccurate, but one of the most scientific mem¬

bers, Dr. Butler, who has done and still does so much for us, and

to whom we should be very grateful, is at the same time as

keen and ardent an aviculturist as anyone, rejoicing in his living

birds, and quite content to call a spade a spade, or a bullfinch a

bullfinch, instead of Pyrrhula pyrrhula pyrrhulco. Is that the sort

of thing that frightened people, or caused them to spread it abroad

that our magazine was merely scientific ? I wonder ! and maintain

that the Avicultural Society has never swerved from its original

style and objects, that it should be just as helpful, as indeed it is, to

lovers of birds in freedom or captivity, from England or from foreign

climes, just as good a journal for advertising birds for sale or for

acquiring birds that are wanted.


Let our members store up these points, not throwing off the

old love in order to be on with a newer one, not crippling the journal

that was first in the field on its own particular lines; not detracting

from what was founded in the interest of aviculturists, who can ill-

afford to place their eggs in more than one nest, in spite of any

advice to the contrary. When the old bank keeps to its original

ways of doing business, one does not leave it for a newer one.


Hubert D. Astley, Ed.



DIAMOND DOVES.


By Miss Alderson.


Amongst the smaller doves the diamond seems by far the

most popular. It is deservedly a favourite, for it is both beautiful

in colour and graceful in form. What is better still, it is a harmless,

quiet bird in a mixed aviary, and this cannot be said of many of

the dove family.


My first diamond dove—a hen—bought in 1899, cost me 10/6,

but in 1911 they could be had for 10/- a pair. The last few years

the price has again risen and a pair of birds fetch from 25/- to 30/-,

the former price being a low one.


For some reason hens always seem scarcer than cocks, and

are worth double the value of the latter, so that in buying birds

singly you would expect to pay 20/- for a good hen and 10/- to 12/-



