264 



KIDD'S OWN JOURNAL. 



HOTICK. 



All the numbers of this Journal are in print ; and 

 may be had from No. I. inclusive, price 3d. each. Also, 

 Parts 1 to 10, price Is. Id. each; post-free, Is. 4d. 



As due notice was given to our Subscribers, early in 

 June last, to complete their Sets without delay, it is 

 hoped they have done so, as the Stock is now made up 

 into Sets, and very few "odd" numbers are on hand. 

 The price of the first two Quarterly, and the first Half- 

 yearly Volumes, will remain as before— until December 



26th. 



TO CORRESPONDENTS. 



Communications Received.— D. F.—Bojibyx Atlas. — 

 H. H.— Ebor. —Frances. — John.— Isabella. — Wil- 

 liam W., Poplar. We have forwarded your letter to 

 the owner of the Nightingale. — S. B. Many thanks. — 

 Eliza L. T. Separate the ailing birds fiom the others ; 

 and give the former some boiled milk for two or three 

 days. Read what we have already written about " the 

 asthma" in Canaries (see Index to Vol. I.); and dis- 

 continue the bath immediately. If you cannot trust 

 us with your name and address, we cannot give you 

 early advice. Many people confess to us their losses, — 

 all caused by their own faults ! — Fanny. You are quite 

 right. The account of the black Redstart building 

 in the locomotive, and there rearing its young, is purely 

 farcical. At this season, such remarkable things con- 

 stantly get into the papers. These fictions are paid for, 

 at per line. 



To Correspondents. — As we always print one number 

 of the Journal in advance, such of our Correspondents 

 as may not receive replies to their questions in the cur- 

 rent number, must bear in mind that they are not for- 

 gotten. We pay marked attenton to all favors. 



KIDD'S Oil JOUENAL. 

 Saturday, October 23, 1852. 



TlIE LATE VERY HEAVY RAINS, TERRIFIC 



gales, and a few sharp touches of Frost — 

 have well nigh stripped our gardens of their 

 autumnal liveries ; and we become forcibly re- 

 minded that Old Winter with his hoary locks, 

 is not very far distant. 



Fires, we observe, are now generally patron- 

 ised; and we confess that we are delighted on 

 our return home to be welcomed by such a 

 guest. There is an air of comfort about a 

 fire-place, when the tea is made and the urn is 

 heard hissing on the table, that is peculiarly 

 English. The brilliant jet of gas issuing from 

 a coal, the purring of a cat, and the. joyous 

 bark of a dog rushing out to greet you on 

 your arrival — these are sights and enjoyments 

 of which we hope always to be fond. 



There is a great difference between our 

 rural retreats in the Country, and the large 

 houses which are found in London. The 

 difference consists in the presence or ab- 

 sence of the word " comfort." In the 

 Summer, large airy rooms are to be coveted ; 

 in the winter give us, say we, moderate-sized 

 rooms warmed with a small quantity of fuel. 

 Large fires, and over -healed apartments de- 

 stroy all the vitality of the air during the day; 

 when candles are introduced, in addition, 

 what must be the consequence ! Perpetual 

 illness, colds, &c, &c, follow as a matter of 

 course. Plenty of exercise in the open air, 

 and moderately - warm rooms when the 



elements are unfavorable from without — ■ 

 these are the essentials of life in a well-regu- 

 lated family. 



Now that the evenings are getting long 

 and the days are becoming shorty we would 

 recommend great personal attention to your 

 canaries, linnets, goldfinches, robins, and 

 other domesticated and " petted" songsters. 

 Let their cages be suspended above and be- 

 low each other — so that they can hear, but 

 not see each other. This Avill keep up the 

 necessary rivalry. These little fellows should 

 be consigned to the apartment where tea is 

 provided. The paraphernalia of the tea- 

 table, and the preparations for operations 

 thereat, will keep them in a state of delec- 

 table anxiety and enjoyment. 



The bringing-in of candles and the family 

 lamp ; the stirring of the fire and consequent 

 blaze thereupon ; the rattling of tea spoons ; 

 the salutation of saucers, and bread and 

 butter plates ; added to the indescribable 

 flutter and agreeable bustle so peculiar to this 

 loveable meal ; these united, will soon call 

 forth a song ; and such a song ! the harmony 

 of which, by candle-light, is truly delightful. 

 They begin to sing early : they sleep ; they 

 wake and sing again ; and so on till the hour of 

 separation arrives. Their song is soft ; not 

 loud — mellow, but not overpowering. 



We have some first-rate canaries, just 

 " coming out" as winter vocalists. They are 

 clean moulted; in rude health; and unmis- 

 takeably jolly. The invocation of "tea° 

 drives them half crazy with delight. They 

 watch every movement of Maria, as she si- 

 dles in and out ; and know better than we do 

 what is in the back and foreground. Then 

 comes the blaze of the family lamp ; then 

 the stir of the fire ; then the urn ; then 

 the toast ; and then, those nameless delecta- 

 bilities that ever adorn a well-spread table. 

 To see all this going forward ; and to hear 

 the musicians aloft, playing and singing the 

 delicacies in — are what we call pleasant 

 things. We love so to pass an evening. 

 Whilst we read ; whilst the Goddess of 

 Home works ; and whilst the choristers are 

 chanting — " old time" passes merrily away. 

 But these joys are only just beginning. 



There is yet much to do in the garden. 

 The winds have committed sad havoc with 

 the tender trees. These must be tied up. 

 Most of the seeds are ripe ; and should, 

 when the sun has dried the pods, be col- 

 lected and stowed away against next season. 

 Now too, is the time for propagating plants 

 by means of suckers, offsets, cuttings, ^ part- 

 ings, &c. Our perennials are so lavish in 

 their increase, that not one twentieth part of 

 ground sufficient can be found to accommo- 

 date them Our dahlias are still blooming ; 

 the convolvulus too, golden rod, china aster, 

 and mignonette, are saucily bidding defiance 



