ORDER PASSERES. 273 



with food, for the purpose of partaking it with his companion ; 

 but he did not suffer himself to be taken, although he 

 approached very near his mistress, and appeared to take 

 pleasure in fluttering over her, and repeating the lesson 

 which she had taught him. At last he ceased, all of a sud- 

 den, to make these little journeys. The lady, uneasy about 

 the birds, having sought them everywhere, without success, 

 believed that they had fallen victims to some bird of prey ; 

 but ten days after these fruitless researches, the couple 

 reappeared, accompanied by their young family, and esta- 

 blished themselves in their ancient domicile, where they 

 resumed all their former familiarity ; "as if," says the 

 writer from whom these observations are taken, " they were 

 endeavouring to make atonement for the pain which their 

 temporary absence had occasioned." 



The canary is as docile as familiar. One of these birds 

 has been seen, at a signal, to seize a match in its claw, light 

 it, set fire to a little cannon, fall, as if dead, at the explosion, 

 rise suddenly again, and place itself as if on duty. 



Bingiey in his " Animal Biography," says that " In the 

 month of May 1820, a Frenchman, whose name was 

 Dujon, exhibited in London twenty-four canary-birds, many 

 of which, he said, were from eighteen to twenty-five years of 

 age. Some of these balanced themselves, head downwards, 

 on their shoulders, having their legs and tail in the air. One 

 of them, taking a slender stick in its claws, passed its head 

 between its legs, and suffered itself to be turned round, as 

 if in the act of being roasted. Another balanced itself, and 

 was swung backward and forward on a kind of slack-rope. 

 A third was dressed in military uniform, having a cap on its 

 head, wearing a sword and pouch, and carrying a firelock in 

 one claw ; after some time sitting upright, this bird, at the 

 word of command, freed itself from its dress, and flew away 

 to the cage. A fourth suffered itself to be shot at, and falling 



VOL. VII. T 



