CANARIES AND OTHER CAGE-BIRD FRIENDS 



781 



HERE, LITERALLY, THE GREEKS ARE BRINGING GIFTS 



Pertinent are phrases from Vergil's Aeneid when jovial sailors of the Greek steamer Koumoun- 

 douros, berthed at Walsh Bay, Sydney, Australia, flaunt caged birds purchased in South America 

 and prohibited in the continent "down under." If any of the pets escaped, their owners would be 

 subject to a heavy fine. Australia, still battling the pest of immigrant rabbits, has passed strict 

 regulations against the introduction, without special permit, of exotic birds and animals. 



house are the vine-clad ruins of an older 

 building dating back hundreds of years. 



Several conservatories, crowded with trop- 

 ical plants grown in moist atmosphere under 

 glass, form the homes of scores of little birds 

 of kinds seldom seen in captivity because 

 of the difficulty of keeping them without 

 special provision for their maintenance. 



A dozen kinds of brilliant hummingbirds 

 dart back and forth through open windows 

 from the shaded greenhouses to outdoor 

 flights enclosed by wire where they enjoy 

 the sun. With them are even more brilliant 

 sunbirds from the Orient, tropical orioles, 

 bright-colored pittas, and dozens of other 

 small birds, all living in evident health and 

 happiness. 



As I walked through, one afternoon last 

 May, I heard constant outbursts of song 

 from birds familiar as museum specimens, 

 but whose songs and calls were entirely 

 new to me. 



On a slope beyond, I found a row of 

 gaudy, long-tailed macaws living in the 

 open air, chained to poles in such a way 

 that they could climb about with ease. A 

 pair or two flew about completely free. 



Among the trees covering the hill above 

 the house are extensive aviaries filled with 

 birds of many kinds. Here I saw lories and 

 other strange and curious parrots from vari- 

 ous tropical lands, an unusual jay from the 

 Ryukyu Islands of Japan, flycatchers from 

 South America, yellow-billed magpies and 

 mountain bluebirds from California, and 

 scores of unusual birds from other parts of 

 the world, living here in spacious, shrub- 

 grown quarters side by side. Many were 

 nesting and rearing young. 



As we strolled about, viewing strange 

 birds at every turn, a white mother gibbon 

 came down from the trees to walk along 

 the top wire of a high fence, with arms ex- 

 tended to maintain her balance. Her two 



