64 
HINTS ON CAGE-BIRDS. 
and consequently has ceased to astonish anybody, or even to interest 
those who do not confine themselves to Mnle-breeding. The Red- 
poll-Bullfinch is far more interesting, because much rarer, and, I 
should think, much more difficult to produce. 
What would he interesting at our shows would be a class of 
hybrids between the various species of Weaving Finches, many of 
which have been bred, but not exhibited. The pretty littlo Bicheno 
Zebra Finch hybrids exhibited the last year or two were, I believe, 
far more attractive to the general public than any of the hackneyed 
Canary or British Mules with which all shows abound, and is (as 
1 know from four or five years’ unfruitful effort) as difficult to 
produce as any cross hitherto produced. There is no doubt that 
enough of these Mules between Ploceid Finches are produced to 
form a class, if the breeders were encouraged to oxhibit them ; but, 
as a rule, the judge of hybrids at our shows is a man interested only 
in the Canary or British products, so that the foreigners stand no 
chance whatever in competition. All foreign Mules should, there- 
fore, be judged by a student of foreign birds, even when one parent 
is a canary, as only thus can justice be done. 
Hybridising with foreign birds is by no means easy; when a 
result is attained it is generally by the selection of the cock-bird 
himself in an open aviary, rarely by confining the sexes of different 
species in a flight together. I have tried the latter plan repeatedly 
— Gouldian Finch and Zebra Finch, Gouldian Finch and Mannikin, 
Gouldian and Parson Finches, Waxhills and Zebra Finches, Zebra 
Finch and Bicheno, Bicheno and Zebra Finch, Waxhills of different 
epecies, and so on. As a rule the hens die from egg-binding, or lay 
eggs and do not incubate them. Success is very rare, either in the 
case of Finches or Doves. 1 believe rather better results have been 
obtained with Parrots. 
CHAPTER XII. 
ON TEACHING BIRDS TO TALK, ETC. 
I am frequently asked how to teach Parrots and other birds to 
talk ; how to teach Bullfinches, Starlings, etc., to whistle tunes ; 
also if it is neeessaiy to split the tongue, or nick the frenum under 
the tongue, to enable a bird to talk. 
To maim a bird’s tongue would help it to talk just about as 
much as cutting your leg off would help you to shoot straight. The 
tongue of a bird is not used for speaking as our tongue is ; hut 
all the vocal sounds proceed from the throat, where the vocal organ 
is situated. 
Before teaching a bird, it should be fairly tame and accustomed 
