KIDD'3 OWN JOURNAL. 



183 



general management, I have succeeded in keep- 

 ing my birds in good health ; whilst others have 

 lost theirs in great numbers. One person who 

 had thirty canaries last Autumn, at the present 

 time has not one left. They have all died. Out 

 of eighteen, I have only lost one ; and that was 

 one I had received from London a few days before 

 its death. Your receipt for cold, huskiness, in- 

 fluenza, wheezing, or whatever else it may be 

 called, I have frequently tried ; and the boiled 

 milk has been successful in every case but one. 

 An asthmatical old fellow, who I am afraid 

 nothing will cure, sits on his perch like a roll of 

 feathers, — puffing, blowing, and occasionally 

 screaming ; yet he eats, drinks, _ and _ sleeps 

 well. Having noticed many inquiries in our 

 Journal for directions as to taming birds, 

 I extract the following from " Bechstein's Cham- 

 ber Birds," and may add, that I have repeatedly 

 tried the experiment with various degrees of suc- 

 cess, according to the natural temper and disposi- 

 tion of the birds. "A siskin, canary, goldfinch, 

 or chaffinch, is taken (either of which admits of 

 being tamed in half an hour); or a bullfinch or 

 nightingale, which is more difficult and takes 

 longer to tame. In proportion to its wildness, 

 more or less of the inner web of the pinion feathers 

 is cut away ; taking care that the bird shall have 

 sufficient power left to fly from the hand without 

 injury, and the natural shape be not affected. It 

 is then smeared near the nostrils with essence of 

 bergamot (or any other powerful essential oil), by 

 which it is rendered for a short time so insensible, 

 that it can be subjected to the training. This 

 consists chiefly in accustoming it to sit tranquilly 

 on the finger, in teaching it to hop from one finger 

 to another, and in preventing it from flying away. 

 It may, it is true,fly away a few times ; but this it will 

 not continue to do, especially if taken into a dark 

 place behind a curtain, and it is thus also secured 

 from the risk of injury by flying against the walls 

 or windows. If it at once sit quiet, the finger of 

 the other hand is held beneath it in front, and it 

 is made to step from one to the other ; when, the 

 distance being gradually increased, it will speedily 

 hop to it. This being accomplished, the chief dif- 

 ficulty is over ; for, if once the bird hop quietly from 

 one finger to the other, it will, on recovering 

 from its insensibility, and observing that its 

 trainer does it no harm, speedily familiarise 

 itself with all kinds of tricks. If it is wished 

 to teach it to eat out of the mouth, it must be 

 kept for a time in the cage without food ; and then 

 when sitting upon the finger, its favorite food 

 must be held to it on the tip of the tongue. Hunger 

 soon teaches it to peck. Such tame birds learn 

 also speedily to sing upon the finger. To accom- 

 plish this, nothing more is necessary than to in- 

 duce it, by certain tones, motions, and fondling. 

 The chaffinch will do so, if at its singing time 

 "Yaik, yaik," is piped to it, and its neck patted ; and 

 the bullfinch, also, if stimulated by friendly looks 

 and a motion to and fro of the upper part of the 

 body. But it is still further requisite to observe 

 in this process of training, that to be effectual it 

 should be continued for a longer time than is here 

 laid down. May we not presume that the bird 

 will, in the course of a few weeks, do that freely 

 which has been taught, or rather forced upon it 

 in this short space of time ?" — One bird that I sub- 



jected to this process, became so tame after two 

 operations, that I can now carry it up and down the 

 house on my finger, and I hope before longtohearit 

 sing while perched on the edge of a cup at tea- 

 time — a seat it is very fond of, as it has plenty of 

 good picking from many little fingers. I will 

 conclude, by mentioning a plan I have adopted 

 for keeping the feet of my birds free from dirt, viz., 

 covering the perches with green baize. This 

 I do by winding a narrow strip of baize spirally 

 round the perch. Before I tried this plan, I found 

 it almost impossible to keep their feet clean, though 

 I used every means I could think of. This an- 

 swers admirably ; I have taken two cages, exactly 

 alike, and put three birds in each. One had the 

 perches covered, and the other had not. They were 

 cleaned at similar intervals ; yet all three birds 

 in one cage had to be frequently taken out to have 

 their feet cleaned, while the others with covered 

 perches never had a particle of dirt on their feet. — 

 Alpha, Liverpool. 



The Tortoise. — I have just purchased a very 

 fine tortoise. At present he is in a state of 

 lethargy ; but that, no doubt, is usual at this sea- 

 son. Can any of your readers tell me what these 

 animals consider as luxuries? I am naturally 

 anxious to make him " happy " in his new quar- 

 ters. — J. J., Gloucester. 



Talc as a Substitute for Glass. — I notice in 

 your Second Volume, page 379, an inquiry by 

 John E., Camberwcll, relative to Talc. This 

 differs from glass, inasmuch as it is a natural pro- 

 duct, found among schistous, serpentine, and clay- 

 slate rocks. It varies in color, from silvery white 

 to green, greyish and blackish green, and red. It 

 easily separates into layers ; and though not very 

 elastic, will bear a blow better than a pane of 

 glass of equal size and thickness. Though it ex- 

 hibits generally a pearly lustre, I do not like it so 

 well as glass ; and I doubt much if it could be had 

 in sufficient quantity, and at so low a rate, as that 

 commodity. Among the many and divers forms 

 in which it occurs, there are three which stand 

 conspicuous. Crystallised Talc occurs in rhom- 

 boidal masses, and presents a straight clearage. The 

 usual color is white ; often inclining to light green. 

 This is found in serpentine rocks in Saxony, Tyrol, 

 Silesia, Cornwall (in England), and Glen-tilt (in 

 Scotland). Massive Talc is less elastic than the 

 foregoing; and often quite opaque. It is found 

 in micaceous schist, and gneiss. The color is fre- 

 quently apple-green. This is a common form. In- 

 durated Talc is massive ; of a grey or greenish 

 color, with a curved clearage. It occurs in primi- 

 tive formations, as clay-slate, in many countries of 

 Europe. It is also found in Banffshire, and the 

 Shetland Islands. I have been informed by a 

 Russian friend, that he has seen it very commonly 

 used in his country in lieu of glass ; but it must 

 be borne in mind that the latter article was very 

 expensive at that time — particularly in the de- 

 mesne of the Czar. — D. 



A beiutifid Discovery, connected with the 

 Cocoons of the Silk-worm. — I send you, my dear 

 Sir, some very curious particulars, which have just 

 been brought under my notice ; and which I con- 

 sider of sufficient importance to warrant their 



