THE BEAUTIFUL LADDER. 
255 
tered. Were it thought necessary, abundant 
proof could be given of the truth of these state¬ 
ments ; but facts sufficient to substantiate the 
assertion have come under the notice of almost 
every observer, and evidence need not be am¬ 
plified. In personal experience, at least two 
instances of blue parrots have been met with 
capable of carrying on quite an intelligent con¬ 
versation, and not without some flashes of wit 
which showed a true appreciation of humor. 
“In song these gifted birds have proved 
themselves quite adepts. The faculty is not 
natural to them, as with thrush, sparrow, and 
finch, but they are apt pupils in the choral art. 
Parrots have been trained to sing with much 
correctness many simple melodies, as ‘ Days 
of Absence,’ ‘ Auld Lang-Syne,’ ‘ Old Dog 
Tray,’ and similar airs. In one instance a par¬ 
rot belonging to a devout Methodist family, in 
whose house a class-meeting was held, became 
so familiar with some of the spiritual songs used 
on these occasions that it would join in with 
great glee; but as it was not so careful as was 
requisite to regard the time, it became necessary 
to remove the bird when the meetings were 
held. This treatment poor Poll highly resent- 
