KIDD'S LONDON JOURNAL. 



220 



out. They close their eyelids ; and when 

 the heat has done its duty, their eyes have 

 become closed for ever! These foreign 

 fiends, habited in the garb of humanity, rarely 

 have the temerity to send any of their birds, 

 so mutilated, over here. All honor be to our 

 nation for " setting their faces " resolutely 

 against any such frightful atrocities. 



When hanging your birds out in the gar- 

 den, or at an open window, avoid as much 

 as possible exposing them to the intense heat 

 of a scorching sun. Although protected 

 from its baneful influence by the covered 

 roof of their cages, to a certain extent, they 

 yet run a considerable risk of being killed by 

 a coup de soleil — the fate of many a noble 

 songster. The bough of a tree, well covered 

 with foliage, is what they delight in. This 

 should be allowed to depend from the top of 

 their cages. So protected, they will not be 

 annoyed either at the sight of a cat or dog, 

 or any other noxious animal — indeed they 

 will be strangers to fear of any kind. 



The proper food for this tribe is Canary, 

 Flax, and a small quantity of Rape seed. All 

 these should be new and of the very best 

 quality. It is miserable economy to pur- 

 chase " cheap " seed. It will assuredly 

 injure, if it does not kill your birds. Every 

 morning the seed should be carefully 

 examined, the husk removed, and the tins 

 replenished. 



The bottoms of your cages should be well 

 cleansed, thrice weekly ; and be kept well 

 covered with red gravelly sand. It is also 

 desirable to have a small quantity of old 

 mortar well bruised mixed with it. In ad- 

 dition to the water supplied in the tin, it is 

 always expedient to have a square earthen- 

 ware bath, fitted in a mahogany frame, ready for 

 daily use. These are so made as to be easily sus- 

 pended on the doors of the cages; when the 

 latter are opened. They are overarched with 

 wire, to prevent the birds escaping ; and are 

 obtainable of almost any dealer. Never let 

 a day pass in the summer season without ad- 

 ministering the bath. It is a grand secret of 

 health, and assists wonderfully in keeping 

 your birds in fine feather. In the winter and 

 early spring, forbid its use altogether. 



To make your pets familiar, give them every 

 now and then a small quantity of yolk of egg, 

 boiled hard ; and a small quantity of " Clif- 

 ford's German Paste," mixed with a stale 

 sponge cake. Put this, lovingly, into a 

 little " exclusive " tin pan, fitted in a sly 

 corner of the cage, and the treat will have 

 a double charm. These innocent little 

 creatures love to flirt with any nice pickings, 

 thus mysteriously conveyed to them ; and they 

 will keep on chattering to you in a language 

 of their own, for many minutes, while view- 

 ing the operations in which you arc actively 

 engaged for their particular benefit. 



THE BRITISH WARBLERS. 



BY THE LATE R. SWEET, F.L.S.— NO. I. 



The great success attending Mr. Sweet in 

 his experiments with our British Warblers, 

 causes his authority to be considered ' great ' 

 on such matters. At the request therefore 

 of many of our subscribers, we propose to 

 transcribe from his little volume (now out of 

 print), the principal part of his observations 

 referring to the elegant little songsters about 

 to visit our land. The task of selection has 

 been kindly undertaken by " E. C," one of 

 our staunch supporters at Liverpool, who will 

 forward us, weekly, what he considers to be 

 worthy of our readers' best attention. We 

 must however reserve to ourselves the 

 right of stating, as usual, that which our own 

 more recent experience has proved to be 

 an " improvement " upon Mr. Sweet's general 

 plan ; also of showing wherein we think he 

 is in error. We shall, of course, hold our- 

 selves responsible for this. 



THE BRITISH WARBLERS. 



The British species belonging to this in- 

 teresting genus (Sylvia), are chiefly birds of 

 passage, visiting this country in Spring, and 

 leaving it again in Autumn. Several of 

 these are deservedly esteemed as the finest 

 songsters of all the feathered race. The 

 nightingale, in particular, has the sweetest 

 and most pleasing note of any bird at pre- 

 sent known. It has been generally supposed 

 that they are very difficult to preserve in 

 confinement ; but I have succeeded well in 

 keeping several of the most interesting 

 species through several winters, in per- 

 fect health, and many of them are in full 

 song all the winter. I have not the least 

 doubt, that all the species might be kept 

 without difficulty in the way I have prac- 

 tised. They will succeed very well in a 

 warm room in winter, or, if convenient, any 

 part of a hot-house will suit them admirably ; 

 but they require a little fresh air, when the 

 weather is mild. They might be preserved 

 in cages, either separately or several to- 

 gether ; or in a small aviary, where all the 

 species might be intermixed. In the latter 

 manner, mine are kept at present. The tem- 

 perature of the room where they are, ought 

 never to be much below temperate, though 

 some of the kinds do not mind a slight frost. 

 The species that I have found suffer most 

 from cold are S. rubetra (whinchat), S. pharni- 

 curus (redstart), and S. hortensis (garden 

 warbler). The nightingale is not near so 

 tender as these. S. cinerea (whitethroat), 

 S. sylviella (lesser whitethroat), and S. atri- 

 capilla (blackcap), scarcely seem to mind 

 the cold at all. 



In a wild state, the species of this genus 



