Tandem : 
A Bit of a Pickle. 
(203) 
THE BIRD WORLD. 
Tandem: A Bit of a Pickle. 
A Story for the Children, 
By MISS H. B. RUTT. 
Now I am going to tell you about a 
naughty little boy, a very naughty little 
boy. “ Oh! did I hear someone say, 
“ How nice! I like to read about 
naughty boys.” This sounds rather 
shocking, but I think I know what you 
mean. You don’t like reading about 
really ^^-naughty boys who tell lies, 
and cheat, and steal, and do all kinds 
of mean, horrid things. That is not 
pleasant reading. But you rather like 
hearing about a mischievous- naughty boy, 
a boy that is just a little bit of a pickle. 
Well, perhaps I do too, so I will tell 
you about “ Tandem,” and I can safely 
say that he never told a lie in his life, 
neither did he steal or cheat. 
A Very Red Race . 
His father was a fine, handsome gentle¬ 
man, with a very red face; but this only 
added to his good looks, for he was a 
Goldfinch. His name was “ Puck,” 
and he was a very knowing bird indeed. 
Before he was married, when he lived 
alone in a cage, he used to be a per¬ 
forming bird, and draw up his hemp- 
seed. Some people train their birds to 
draw up all their seed and water, so 
that they can get neither food nor drink 
without working for it. But I think 
this is cruel, because perhaps J:he bird 
is not feeling quite the thing one morn¬ 
ing, and really not fit for the exertion, 
or perhaps the arrangement has got out 
of order, and won’t run smoothly. The 
bird’s owner may be away all day, and 
the poor little creature, with seed and 
water in sight, may be slowly starving. 
Goldie’s Bread and Butter. 
Canary and rape seed are to a Gold¬ 
finch the same as bread and butter, a 
little meat, and rice or suet pudding, are 
to a child, just plain, sufficient food for 
a time, and neither bird nor child need 
grumble if nothing else were provided 
for a week or two. “ Hempseed is 
nicer,” says Goldie. “ Fruit, sweets, 
and cakes are nicer,” says the child. 
Perhaps so, but it is no hardship for a 
bird, nor would it be for a child, to 
have to do a little work for such things. 
When “ Puck ” was in a “ hempy 
humour,” however, he would get 
through a good deal. 
His Wife, “ Biddy .” 
He was my sister’s bird, and in the 
spring she found him a nice Canary 
named “ Biddy,” for a wife, hoping that 
they would build a nest, and bring up 
a family of little Goldfinch-Canaries, or 
hybrids, as they are called. But she 
had some disappointments, as most 
people have before a family of these 
charming birds rewards their efforts, 
because there are difficulties in the way. 
Domestic Troubles. 
Sometimes the husband and wife 
quarrel. But I am sure “ Puck and 
“ Biddy ” did not do this. Sometimes 
the hen, after sitting on the eggs for 
a few days, will suddenly begin dash¬ 
ing about the cage shouting out, “ I 
won’t sit on the horrid things any longer. 
I am stiff and tired, and they are very 
lumpy and uncomfortable.” But I am 
sure that “ Biddy ” could not have done 
this, even had she wished to, because 
“ Puck ” would have put down his foot 
at once and have said to her, “ Now 
don’t talk nonsense, my dear, go back 
to the nest directly. You have still 
more than a week to sit. If you are 
hungry, I’ll bring you anything you 
want, but you must do your duty.” No, 
“ Biddy ” behaved herself very well, so 
it was not that. 
