KIDD'S OWN JOURNAL. 



155 



affection ; the rat revelling luxuriously in the 

 warm embraces of grimalkin ; the ferret and 

 weazel frolicking with the rabbit; the monkey- 

 carefully handling the pigeon's eggs, as he 

 replaces them (after first satiating his prying 

 curiosity) under the sitting mother ; and, 

 among other eccentricities, the leveret 

 " polk"-ing with the fox. 



Observing this same fox, some little time 

 since, " cheese"-y on the crow, we bethought 

 us much of the old nursery fable. The fox, 

 it will be remembered, was therein described 

 as a serenader, entreating a song from his 

 Dulcinea in return for his flattery. "While 

 thus musing, we were made aware, by a 

 Dutch-built animated figure, which glided 

 mysteriously round the corner, of the presence 

 of a small saucer, for holding " contribu- 

 tions." A fourpenny-piece was levied from 

 us, voluntarily, for the pleasure we had ex- 

 perienced ; and the figure's parting joke was 

 worth all the money. " That one fox, Sir," 

 said the animated figure, " is equal to any 

 six cunning lawers ; and yet — look at the old 

 rogue ! I took the edge off all his teeth 

 before I had him three weeks."* 



We cannot help remarking here, that we are 

 taught, by these men of low degree, a most 

 salutary lesson — a lesson which might be 

 advantageously studied by our wise senators 

 with reference to " enlarged views " on 

 political economy. 



We are not at this moment prepared — but 

 we hope ere long to be so — to state " how " 

 this naturally-savage colony has been brought 

 to so complete a state of civilisation. There 

 is no doubt that the " eye " of the master is 

 the great talisman ; for it visibly acts as an 

 all-powerful agent on the nerves of every one 

 of the animals. They understand, beyond 

 all dispute, and with a very little drilling, 

 ichat is intended by their master's movements 

 and peculiar expression of countenance. 

 They instantly obey him. We believe " the 

 stick "is, on some occasions, introduced in 

 the background. It enters, no doubt, into 

 combination with the other " effects." 



We have recently witnessed some striking 

 examples of the power of " mesmerism," 

 under certain circumstances, over certain 

 individuals of our own species. The strong 

 "affinity" existing between the operator and 

 the person operated upon, immediately after 

 the state of " somnolency " has been pro- 

 duced, presents one of the most remarkable 

 phenomena ever brought under our notice, 

 and induces to the conviction that we have 

 very often, in times past, " mesmerised" 

 animals — without knowing, sufficiently well 



* Should there ever be a necessity for our again 

 11 going to law," — which calamity may kind 

 Heaven avert ! — this animated figure, if living, 

 shall "assist" our Counsel. 



to explain, "how" we had accomplished our 

 object. This is a curious and an interesting 

 " inquiry," — too curious and too abstruse to 

 be pursued here ; but it is well to " make 

 a note," en passant, of what strikes us as 

 being out of the common order of things. 



The next grand step, with a view to estab- 

 lish harmony in the colony, is to see that 

 each and every animal has provided for it 

 its own natural food. If the pangs of hunger 

 were to come on cruelly sharp ; if the hour 

 of breakfast, dinner, and supper, were to be 

 lost sight of, and the regular supplies stopped 

 — we should have a realisation of the old 

 nursery tale, " The cat began to eat the rat — 

 the rat began, &c, &c." A few hours, or less, 

 would devastate the colony. We can almost 

 imagine we hear the bones of the bounding 

 leveret, being crunched beneath the jaws of 

 the salacious fox. 



Speaking of the leveret, it is worthy of 

 remark that this animal, being ferai natural, 

 is one of the most difficult to tame, per- 

 manently, of all creatures. The late Sir 

 John Sebright called on us, some years ago, 

 to see our collection of robins, of which he 

 had heard so much ; and during a lengthened 

 conversation of great interest to both of us, 

 he put us in possession of many singular 

 facts with respect to animals " by nature 

 wild." To mention only two : — Sir John 

 told us he had procured some eggs of the 

 wild duck, and placed them under a domestic 

 hen. They were hatched in due course, fed, 

 and brought up with the other chickens, 

 ducks, &c, in the poultry-yard. Still they 

 gave early signs of the wildness of their 

 nature. Their flights were cut ; and thus 

 were they made " apparently " tame ; but 

 when the wing-feathers re-appeared, the birds 

 one day, on a slight alarm, took flight, and 

 disappeared altogether. 



The second instance of natural wildness 

 being indomitable, presented itself in the 

 case of some half-dozen wild rabbits, taken 

 from the nest soon after they were kindled. 

 Sir John lavished on them much of his atten- 

 tion ; tried every means to tame them ; all 

 in vain. The animals gave early evidence 

 of the instinct of their nature, and were ulti- 

 mately let loose to run riot in a warren. 



We have been led to pursue this discussion, 

 in order to show how necessary it is to study 

 the habits and dispositions of all birds domi- 

 ciled in an aviary. This brings us to the 

 grand and all important question of Proper 

 Food. 



Speaking of the proper food necessary to 

 be provided for an aviary, we shall take it 

 for granted that the season of the year of 

 which we are treating is summer ; and that 

 the united tribes of granivorous and insect- 

 ivorous birds are together, under one roof. 

 When they are separated and collected into 



