86



Correspondence , Notes, etc.



cooked meat most carefully scraped, a bit of plain biscuit crumbled, etc.

The latter may also be offered in the form of rather dry sop.


You should be very careful about spraying your Drongo in its present

condition, but little by little yon must get it clean. A very little spray in a

warm room may encourage it to preen what feathers it has—but a chill

might be fatal.


A little sulphate of iron, in flakes, placed occasionally in the drinking

water may be beneficial. If placed conveniently, the Drongo would

probably wash its face in the water-glass, but do not let it wet itself too

much yet.


vScatter a little common white millet seed at the bottom of the cage.

It may pick it up for grit instead of something injurious.


A female Sliama is smaller than the male, and the tail is not so long

and sometimes much shorter; but a good hen Shama is by no means so

very small. Both males and females vary in size, song, and other details,

partly according to age, but more so perhaps according to the part of India

from which they come. Reginald Phillipps.



THE ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS.


The fine new aviary near the Elephant-house is now practically com¬

pleted, and should prove a source of interest to aviculturists next summer.

Whether the money expended upon this aviary has been wisely used seems

doubtful. Foreign birds which are less hardy than Gulls or Waders need

more shelter than is provided by the foliage of a few trees even dirring a

fairly warm summer in our climate, and should next summer be anything

like that of 1903, we fear the new aviary will prove to be a great failure.

If, instead of erecting this huge exposed aviary, built as it is on the north

bank of the Regent’s Canal, the same money had been spent in the

erection of a range of smaller, properly sheltered, aviaries, with wire¬

netting of small mesh, it would, in our opinion, have been far better.



THE COUNCIL.



Dr. W. G. CRESWELL having resigned his seat on the Council, Mr.

T. H. Newman has been appointed to take his place.



