32 



THE HUMMING BIRD. 



\_April i, 1 891. 



tweezers, and pricking up the feathers with a needle, 

 tie the legs together, crossed, turn the bird on its 

 breast, and regulate the feathers of the back with the 

 spring tweezers, placing the wing-coverts in their 

 proper places. Make a cylinder of paper, the size of the 

 bird, to keep the wings in position and the feathers 

 from being rough, push the skin in head-foremost, 

 seeing that all the feathers are in place as it goes in ; 

 now is the time to finish with the original body taken 

 out, it is necessary in cases where both sexes of birds 

 do not differ in outward appearance that dissection is 

 resorted to to find out their individual sex, in fact, in 

 all cases it is as well that this should be done, as 

 young males are usually very much like females, and 

 females will sometimes assume the plumage of the 

 male ; the testes in the male are found at the middle 

 of the back, appearing as two little white, black, or 

 black and white specks, the ovaries in the female in 

 the same place, but on the left-hand side like a small 

 bunch of grapes, in the breeding season these organs 

 are very much larger, in the females the egg with shell 

 will sometimes be found ; when this is done the body 

 may finally be disposed of, either thrown away or 

 relegated to the pot if good for eating, as the process 

 of skinning does not at all in.3rfere with its use for 

 gastronomic purposes ; a small label should be tied to 

 the leg of the skin with the sex marked on one side, 

 and a number corresponding to the journal on the 

 other ; then put away to dry. I may mention here 

 that care is necessary to keep the feathers, especially 

 the small, feathers of the head and neck as smooth as 

 is possible, which through the skin being turned 

 inside out are sometimes very rough. 



( To be continued.) 



Reports on the March Public Sale of Ostrich 

 and Osprey Feathers, Bird Skins, etc. 



The sale of Ostrich feathers lasted two days. 



In all, 1405 cases Cape were offered and 1334 

 cases sold. 



There was an advance of about ten per cent. 

 all round. 



The quantity sold realized ,£72,000. 



The next sales are fixed for Monday, 13th of 

 April. Last receiving day, 21st March. 



White Primes, 1st, 2nd and 3rd, were sold from 

 £,£> to ;£i6 according to quality. 



White Femina from £6 5 oto^n 10 o. ; black 

 from 20s. to £8. ; Drab, 12^. 6d. to jQ6 10s. ; Floss, 

 18s. to 505. ; Spadonas, 50^. to _£6 15. ; Boos 

 white, 505-. to g2s. 6d. ; Boos femina and Drabs, 35^. 

 to 65^. 



The sale of Osprey, Peacock feathers and Bird 

 Skins took place on the 6th of March. There was a 

 good attendance and a great competition for good 

 qualities of Long and Short Osprey feathers. Red 

 and Brown Herons were steady, Birds of Paradise 

 increased 2s. per skin for good quality. Bird Skins 

 were very dull. Long Osprey, igs. to 275. per oz. ; 

 Medium, 22*. to 2gs. ; Short selected, 61s. to .£$. : 

 White Paddy, i6.r. 6d. to 2$s. ; Grey Paddy, 12s. to 

 14-r. ; Peacock feathers, Eyes, 2\d. to 5^. per bundle; 

 Impeyan Pheasant fetched 6^., Red Argus Pheasants, 



2S. 2d. ; Parrots, various, id. to 2d. ; Indian birds, 

 various, about id. each ; Birds of Paradise, Male, 

 14s. to 16s.; females, n*. to 14^. 3d.; many wires, 

 igs. 6d. ; green and king birds of paradise, 15-. 6d. 

 to is. gd ; Regents, 3s. 6d. ; Red Tanagers, 8| d ; 

 Blue Creepers, 6\d. ; Orange Tanagers, 6d. ; Seven 

 Colored Finches, io^d. ; Various Finches, 2d. to \d. 

 Messrs. Boucard, Pottier & Co. will be happy to 

 execute commissions for gentlemen who cannot 

 attend the sales. 



Reports on February and March Public 

 Sales of Postage Stamps. 



Messrs. Cheveley & Co. continued their sixteenth 

 sale on Saturday, February 14th, which consisted of 

 a very fine collection of English stamps, collected by 

 Mr. Westoby. Some varieties reached very good 

 prices, a list of which we give hereunder. 



Great Britain, id. black, V.R. unused, £6 15.) 

 i\d. Lilac Rose, block of four, unused, 35 s. ; 3d., 

 small letters, plate 3, with secret mark, unused and 

 imperf., with original gum, ,£38.; id. red, Archer Rou- 

 lette, unused, 65s. ; is. Octagon, unused, original 

 gum, 48jt. 4a., no letters, small garter carmine on 

 blue, unused, very rare, 60s. 4a. small letters, plate 

 4, imperf., unused, original gum, 44X. gd. small 

 letters, plate 3, with hair lines in angles, used, ^15. 



Messrs. Cheveley & Co. lightning like held their 

 seventeenth sale on Saturday, March 7th, the best 

 lots realized good prices. 



Cape of Good Hope woodblock, error, mended at 

 one corner, ^26 10. Woodblock id., red, 26s. 

 Confederate States, Charlestown, entire envelope, 5 

 cents on white, used, 32^. Same on yellow paper, used, 

 one corner off, 255-. Same on gold paper, used, flaps 

 all cut off, 275- Gd. Knoxville, entire envelope, 5 c, 

 dull sap green on cream wove paper, used, 50^., the 

 same on pale green, fancy paper, used, 46s. ; two 

 shades of same on very thin bluish wove paper, both 

 unused, 23s. Lynchburg, entire envelope, 5 c, 

 black, used, the stamp had been cut out and then re- 

 placed, 50s. Dominican Republic (1865) value 

 reading downwards |- rl. pale green, fine, 72s. 6d. ; 

 same issue, 1 rl. straw, J~6 10. Great Britain, lod. 

 brown, and strip of four id. red on blue paper, im- 

 perf., all unused and original gum, 13s. (B. P. & Co.) 

 Hanover: 10 gr. green (two shades), 38^. India, 

 2 a. green, a fine used specimen, 40^. Mauritius : 

 large fillet, 2d. blue (mended). ,£5 5^. Naples : \ 

 tornese, Arms, slightly mended, £4. Arms \ grano 

 and 50 grani, 275. New Brunswick, is. violet, fine 

 copy, but poor margin, £4 17 6. Newfoundland, 

 6d. vermilion, 20s ; ditto but pen cancelled, 14s. 

 New South Wales, laureated, 8d. yellow, 34s. New- 

 Zealand 4 'N.Z." wmk. id. vermillion unused 16^. 

 Oldenburg, 1st issue, complete set, 18s. Prussia, entire 

 envelope. 7s. gr. vermillion, small size, used, rare, 55s. 

 Schleswig Holstein: 1st issue, 1 sch.blue, (two shades) 

 and 2 sch, rose, all unused, 46s. United States, 1869, 

 !5> 2 4, 3° a »d 90 c, 27s.; 185 1, 5 c, imperf., very 

 fine, unsevered pair, 15s. Victoria "Registered 

 Stamp, rouletted, 32s. 



Messrs. Boucard, Pottier & Co., will be happy to 

 execute commissions for gentlemen who cannot 

 attend the Sales. 



