Our  Canaries 
89 
pen  on  the  subject  of  exhibiting,  show  that  this  successful  breeder  of  Greens 
is  an  atdent  advocate  of  the  usual  form  of  preparation.    He  writes  us  : — 
"  In  getting  the  Greens  ready  for  the  show  bench,  I  know  a  lot  of  Green 
fanciers  do  not  advocate  the  washing  of  Greens.  Personally  I  wash  mine 
every  second  or  third  show,  and  I  find  I  benefit  accordingly.  The  day  I 
intend  washing  them  I  spray  them  first  thing  in  the  morning,  with  a  little 
glycerine  added  to  the  water,  as  I  find  by  doing  this  that  after  the  birds  have  been 
washed  the  feather  is  more  soft  and  silky.  After  washing  the  bird,  I  get  it  as 
dry  as  possible  with  a  silk  handkerchief,  and  then  put  it  into  a  steam  drying 
cage,  and  when  the  fourth  bird  is  washed  the  first  one  is  ready  to  come  out.  I 
FOR  PRACTICE  IN  WASHING,  THE  NOVICE  SHOULD  USE  GERMAN  HENS. 
then  well  rub  him  down  with  a  silk  handkerchief  until  I  get  a  good  shine  on  him, 
put  him  back  in  a  show  cage  till  next  morning,  and  then  let  him  have  a  bath. 
I  usually  wash  them  five  days  before  a  show.  I  do  not  believe  in  rolling 
the  birds  up  in  flannel  as  soon  as  they  have  been  washed,  as  I  found  when 
I  tried  this  that  the  feathers  about  the  neck  had  a  twisted  appearance,  and  put  it 
down  to  the  bird  moving  his  head  about  when  wrapped  up  in  the  flannel. 
"  I  may  say  that  I  manage  to  keep  my  show  birds  in  hard  condition  during 
the  show  season,  and  anybody  who  has  followed  the  Green  Canary  Association's 
competition  during  the  first  eleven  weeks  of  the   show  season,   knows  that 
