Little 
Bird Friends. 
(77) 
THE BIRD WORLD. 
dozing in the nest. These birds, 
although so pretty and amusing, are not 
very lovable, on account of their ex¬ 
treme selfishness One day soon after 
dark all was quiet in the Chateau except 
plaintive little squeaks from the Wax- 
bills. So I lit the gas to see what was 
the matter. The little trio were 
scattered disconsolately among the 
branches not knowing where to sleep. 
1 looked at their nest and saw that 
“ Coral ” and “ Perch ” had settled 
themselves there. 
Possession Nine Points of the Law. 
They were wide awake, their heads 
stretched out of the entrance, ready to 
snap at anyone who dared to interfere. 
Their own nest was empty. I 
called to them, I scolded at them, but 
they did not move. I suggested to the 
little ones that they might go into 
“ Coral’s ” nest. But no, that would 
not do, and the sleepy little voices still 
wailed. So at last I was obliged to put 
my arm into the cage, and I had 
actually to touch the heads of the 
Ribbon Finches before they would 
move. They flew out in a great bustle, 
but “ Radium,” who was settled off for 
the night on the slenderest twig he could 
find, was the only other bird disturbed. 
In a few minutes the Waxbills were 
happily tucked in, and “ Coral ” and 
“ Pert ” had to put up with other 
accommodation. 
Of course, I spoke to them seriously 
the next morning about their behaviour, 
and what do you think “ Pert ” said ? 
“ We must have a sitting-room and a 
bedroom : it is horrid using the same 
room always.” Don’t you think she is 
well named “ Pert ” ? I reminded them 
that no room was necessary during the 
day; that they were far too lazy. If 
they spent the time flying about the 
cage, then their bedroom would be nice 
and fresh for the night. 
True-horn Britishers. 
Ribbon Finches, I know, come from 
Senegambia. But “ Coral ” has told me 
a little secret. Neither he nor “ Pert ” 
were ever near Africa. In fact, they are 
English-born, and have never been out 
of England. How is this? You shall 
hear about it in “ Coral’s ” own words. 
“ I was born, or hatched as you say, in 
an outdoor aviary, which was built in a 
sunny corner of a beautiful park some¬ 
where in England; I believe, in one of 
the Southern Counties. It was a 
splendid place. The aviary itself was 
the size of many a small garden, with 
about two hundred birds living in it. 
It was sheltered from the cold winds on 
the north and east. by thick trees, and 
the sun was shining upon us nearly all 
the day. 
“ My father and mother had been 
there all the winter, and said it was 
really not very cold, as there was a 
covered- end, where the sun shone 
through glass windows, and it was 
quite cosy. I was born inside this 
sheltered part, and so was my wife, 
There were several pairs of Ribbon 
Finches with nests full of babies. As 
soon as we youngsters were old enough 
to fly about we soon made for the open 
enclosure, and fine fun we had among 
the bushes and little trees that grew 
here. 
Helpless Love. 
“ I was not many weeks old before I 
fell in love with my pretty ‘ Pert.’ Who 
could help loving her for her sweet face 
and winning ways ? But before very 
long there was a rumour that our master 
had too many of us, and was going to 
send some away. And sure enough, one 
evening, when we were getting very 
sleepy and thinking of our roosting 
places, a man came up gently, and 
before we knew what was happening had 
caught both ‘ Pert ’ and me in a large 
butterfly net. 
“It was all right, we were not hurt; 
but the next day were sent off with 
several others to a London bird dealer. 
Very soon our present mistress bought 
us, and introduced us to our new home, 
Chateau-Chez-les-Oiseaux. Many hun¬ 
dred such might be got into our park 
aviary, but we are very happy here, and 
have little cause for complaint.” 
So that is how I came to own a pair 
of birds that I must call “ English 
Foreigners.” 
(To be continued.') 
