LESSONS IN TALKING. 
the eaves of houses. The fledglings are so exactly of a colour 
that it is impossible to distinguish one sex from the other. 
They should be placed, nest and all, in a basket warmly lined 
with hay, and fed every two hours, from sunrise to sunset, 
with the crumb of white bread moistened with fresh milk. If 
you wish to teach the starling to pipe, he must have his 
lessons very early in the morning, training him from the nest, 
and carefully secluding him from hearing the notes of any of his 
own species. Cover his cage, or place him in an adjoining room, 
and whistle to him ; or, better still, play on the flute such notes 
as you wish him to acquire, taking care that they are not too 
elaborate or too numerous at first, and petting and feeding 
him with tit bits as he goes over his daily task. If you 
want him to learn to articulate words, it may be easily accom- 
plished. Put no faith in the popular error that the starling 
must have his tongue cut before he will talk. The best way to 
teach them is to begin when they are about six weeks old : let 
his lesson consist but of two or three, or at the most four, words 
of one syllable, and if I can make you understand my meaning, 
let the words be such, that in pronouncing them yourself they 
will fall trippingly from the tongue; choose words, which, 
having uttered one, there will be no occasion to alter the 
position in which it leaves the tongue and lips to utter the 
next. For instance, “ good day ” would do very well ; but 
“ good morning ” would necessitate a change in the form of 
the mouth, and would not do. Say the lesson is “ good day.” 
Do not stand before the young starling, or even remain in his 
sight, while you slowly, distinctly, and over and over again, 
repeat it. Get behind a screen or curtain, or even call it 
through the keyhole of the door. The curiosity of the bird 
will be roused, he will wonder 
whence the sound proceeds, and 
consequently be more impressed 
with it. 
However, an uneducated star- 
ling is by no means to be de- 
spised. His music is mellow and 
harp-like, and you may depend on 
it nearly all the year round. He 
will do much better if allowed ^the starling cage (or dove). 
range of the house ; but, unfortunately, he makes too much litter 
to please the women folk, so you had better put him in a cage. 
Let it be a large cage, made of wicker, and at least two feet 
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