The Black Swans 



Yes, and we have some other pets 

 around the cottage. Billy has three 

 birds, a parrot, a canary and an un- 

 identified wood bird not native to these 

 parts. Fortunately Polly does not 

 talk. She just sits up on her perch on 

 the top of a long stick that Billy has 

 stuck into the middle of a basket of 

 palms and ferns with a snake plant 

 in the center. Here again food con- 

 servation and other economic ques- 

 tions have had due and, it seems to 

 me, most intelligent handling, for the 

 parrot is a wooden one and gaily 

 painted. 



The canary's cage is a rectangular 

 Japanese bamboo creation with arch- 

 ing roof. Billy has painted it yellow 

 trimmed with black. On its tip-top 

 tiny French and British flags are flying. 

 Silk tassels, red, yellow, blue and green, 

 are pendant from each corner. Inside 

 the bird sits in his swinging ring; the 

 outfit suspended from the ceiling by a 

 string turning lazily from time to 

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