

* 
e 
310 A TRUE STORY OF A PET BIRD. 
grasshoppers and flies until he was able to catch them for him- 
self, which he learned to do about a week after he could fly. 
The little fellow appeared to be always hungry, and during 
the day followed me about, continually teasing me for grass- 
hoppers until he had eaten enough, after which he would re- 
main quietly upon my shoulder, or my hat, or fly off to his 
favorite perch— a rope running from the top of the tent to 
a stake in the ground. At night "Chippy" roosted upon a 
rope inside the tent, or frequently under an umbrella, which, 
for the purpose of shading a thermometer, hung at the corner 
outside. When wishing to go to sleep, however, he would 
seldom roost in these places voluntarily, but alighting upon 
my shoulder would hop up close to my neck and settle 
cosily down, and repeated removals were necessary to induce 
him to remain upon the perch provided for him. In the 
morning as I lay wrapped in my blankets, generally the first 
thing that awoke me would be Chippy fluttering about my 
head, for he would invariably select me from the dozen per- 
sons who lay around upon the ground. 
Chippy soon became a general favorite, and every one fed 
and caressed him. First among his many peculiarities was 
his almost insatiable appetite, which excited the greatest won- 
der and comment, and many were the conjectures as to the 
number of good-sized grasshoppers he could dispose of m 
one day. It was finally agreed that this should be settled 
by an experiment; each person was to keep account of all 
he fed Chippy, and in the evening, upon comparing notes, 1 
was found that during the day he had made away with the 
almost incredible number of one hundred and twenty fat 
grasshoppers, all however, with their legs pulled off. 
Our little pet possessed scarcely a trace of timidity, and 
even soon learned his own name. At least, when he was 
wanted we had but to call “Chippy, Chippy,” and he imme- 
. diately appeared, even if out of our sight, joyously twitter- 
ing as he approached, and alighting upon the shoulder of 
: _ the person who called him. He soon began to catch insects D 


