23 



useful, because the somewhat leathery skin is ground up with the 

 flour, but "groats or split grits," as this preparation is sometimes 

 called, is quite the correct thing for granivorous song birds when 

 breeding or moulting, and is easily procured. 



Having now shown how the German stock birds are induced to 

 feed their young on seed, as well as on soft food, I must refer to their 

 mode of preventing the loss of the nestlings while under the mother. 

 Sweating them is minimised by the use of Charpie nests as stated 

 above. Starving them is also effectively obviated by the use of a 

 specially made feeding bottle, which I may call 



A PAP INJECTOB. 



This little instrument may be likened to a syringe or small oil 

 tube, such as is genera 1 ly used for lubricating sewing machines, and 

 surpasses any other expedient devised for injecting the warm egg 

 mixture into the very tiniest gullets. A slight pressure upon the 

 bellows-like body of the instrument forces the desired quantity of 

 pap through the injecting tube well into the open beak, where it is 

 appropriated without difficulty, with perfect cleanliness and in close 

 imitation of the mother's action. What is, without such an injector, 

 a very troublesome "labor of love" becomes easy and expeditious 

 when carried on in this way. A thorough examination of the 

 respective nests, say at six a m., will disclose any neglect before it is 

 too late to be remedied, but such empty crops as there may be, must 

 not be more than half filled — never crammed to repletion — and 

 the artificial administration of food need not be repeated before mid- 

 day. In very bad cases two more visits before night are all that will 

 be required to save many young lives. It is well known that the 

 mother will sometimes neglect one particular nestling of her brood, 

 but if the unfortunate youngster has been attended to in the manner 

 described, and has been kept alive without her assistance, she will 

 take to her cast-off again after a day or two, and the keeper's care 

 will be no longer required. Besides, the cock bird is now allowed to 

 see and feed his progeny, instead of being compelled to fill the maw 

 of a too jealous hen only 



The rather limited variety of foodstuffs mentioned hitherto, is 

 really, all that is absolutely necessary to the breeding coterie, but 



