158 Mrs. F. W. Brake—In a Little Corner of Cornwall


IN A LITTLE CORNER OF CORNWALL


By Mrs. F. W. Drake

“ Beauty lies in the eye of the beholder ”


Spring arrived with a glorious March, and how busy we all were in

our aviaries with their gardens, turning over the soil, removing large

old shrubs and planting new, small, and sweet-scented flowering

ones in their place. Primroses are also a great joy to small birds,

for all the wee mites love picking off the flower-heads, not only for the

nectar they contain, but for the sheer joy of seeing them strewn on

the ground as a carpet for their loved mates to walk on ; surely no

one could grudge them that, seeing how much we also appreciate

beautiful things around us—our very birds, flowers, etc. In Cornwall

things grow at such a rate that a stick from the hedge stuck into the

ground—as a mark—becomes almost a young tree in a week !

Extremely trying at times I can assure you.


My birds all delight in a flower garden, and it seems to me to

encourage them to go to nest. At present I have Avadavats,

Gold-breasts, Bengalese, Cordon Bleus, Yiolet-ears, Pectoral and

Zebra Finches all sitting, also my St. Helena and Orange-cheek

Waxbills, their third year together. The Lavenders not only fly about

looking very pretty, but are also very mischievous. As for the

Violet-ears, they sit so frequently and so long with never a single

result that they always remind me of the tale of the fisherman, when

sitting beside a stream outside the grounds of an asylum. A head

popped up over the wall and asked, “ Have you caught anything ? ”

“ No.” “ How long have you been at it ? ” “ Six hours.” “ Come

inside then.”


The jolly Pekin Eobins are only now thinking of furnishing their

house. I think seeing the Shamas having the free use of the garden

and orchard has reminded them of the freedom they had last year.

I think at this point I may say a few words on Shamas, my pair being

truly delightful birds. About the end of October last I brought them

into the greenhouse adjoining the sitting-room ; each had its own

cage for eating and sleeping in, but all day long they had their freedom

with a pair of Persian Bulbuls, a Superb and a Scarlet Tanager. The



