Little Bird 
Friends. 
(84) 
THE BIRD WORLD. 
Little Bird Friends. 
A HISTORY RELATED BY MISS H. B. RUTT FOR YOUNG BIRD LOVERS 
( 1 Continued from p. 36.) 
CHAPTER III. 
DAVID, THE GREEN SINGING FINCH. 
This is a very elegant, graceful bird about the 
size of a Redpoll. His back, wings and tail are 
olive-green, his breast and part of his head a 
lovely gamboge-yellow. I daresay you know 
what gamboge is, as it is found in most paint¬ 
boxes. The top of his head is a pale lavender 
colour. He has yellow eyebrows, and a narrow 
stripe of black both sides of his face, giving the 
effect of a long moustache. 
A Sweet Songster. 
He is a beautiful singer, so you can guess why 
I named him David—after King David, who, as 
you know, wrote most of the Psalms, and sang 
them, playing upon the harp. For this reason he 
is sometimes called the sweet singer of Israel, 
and my David is certainly the sweet singer of 
Chateau Chez-les-Oiseaux. He sings all the 
year except for the few weeks that he is moult¬ 
ing. His is a clear rich voice, with a very joyous 
ring in it. It puts me often in mind of a Robin, 
and yet more often of a Song-thrush, although of 
course it is not so powerful as the song of this 
large bird. 
Sacrificed Music. 
What a great deal of pleasure we should lose 
if we had no singing-birds. We are so acous- 
tomed to it here in England, that we can scarcely 
realise what a sweet spring morning or evening 
would be without their song. In Italy, some few 
years ago, nearly all small birds were shot indis¬ 
criminately for food, and one saw bunches of 
Goldfinches, Linnets, etc., hanging in the 
poulterers’ shops. Here in England we are not 
guiltless in this matter, as the bunches of dead 
Skylarks offered for sale show. But the national 
feeling is to a great extent against it. In Italy, 
at the time of which I am speaking, one could 
saunter amidst the most lovely scenery and 
scarcely hear a bird’s voice. All hushed for the 
sake of a dainty dish ! I would much rather eat 
cold mutton than a dainty dish made of pretty 
singing-birds, wouldn’t you? 
One of Nature’s Gentlemen. 
' I think there is a difference in rank among 
birds, the same as there is among ourselves. 
Though all mine (with one exception, of whom 
you will read presently) are well bred and have 
good manners, yet David is superior to all, and 
I should think moved in the highest bird society 
in his native land. Indeed, I am inclined to 
think that he may be of royal blood. He is 
invariably courteous. Of course, like the rest of 
the world, he is sometimes a little put out, or 
wakes up cross in the morning, in a nasty 
temper. Our old nurse used to call it “getting 
out of bed the wrong side.” But even so, he never 
seems to forget his dignity or high breeding. 
Instead of scolding or saying rude, rough things 
to any other bird that annoys him, he just opens 
his beak wide and stares. This seems to answer 
quite as well, and is quieter and more dignified 
than quarrelling. 
All my birds live chiefly upon various kinds 
of seeds, but David’s favourite little dainty is a 
piece of stale sponge-cake. » 
At Home m the Tropics. 
The Green Singing Finches come from the 
south-eastern coast of Africa, and from the large 
island of Madagascar, separated from the main¬ 
land by the channel called the Mozambique. The 
climate is very unhealthy there, and few English 
people can stand it. It is within the tropics, 
south of the equator, and is intensely hot. It is 
also extremely damp, and it is this that makes 
the heat so trying. Madagascar is more than 
twice as long from north to south as Great 
Britain. In the centre rise some mountains 
10,000 feet high, but even at this height, where 
in Switzerland there would be perpetual ice and 
snow, ice is only occasionally seen. The greater 
part of the island is low and swampy. The 
natives are dark and are not a happy race. I 
do not feel much inclined to “ imagine ” about 
David’s birthplace, for I am sure I should not 
care to visit it, and I do not think you would 
either. The French name for the Green Singing 
Finch is Chanteur de Mozambique. 
(To be continued.) 
Photo copyright by] [tl~. S. Berridge, F.Z.S. 
Australian Night-Heron. 
