198 
even to labour to keep your souls as a well watered garden, 
where no sins are willingly permitted to grow, and where He 
has promised to bestow the aids of His Spirit as showers 
and dew upon the tender herb, to enable you to bring forth 
much fruit to His glory !—Hortense. 
[You must not say, finally, “ good bye” to us ! We, and 
our readers, have derived too much gratification from your 
hints for us not to request that you trill very soon greet us 
again.—E d. C. G.] 
ENGLISH CAGE BIRDS. 
THE BLACKCAP WARBLER. 
Insessores Dentirostres. Sylviad.e Tnsectivora. 
Sylvia Atricapilla; Ourrucu Atracapilla (Blackcap, Black- 
capped Fauvet); MoUicilla Atricapilla. 
This bird ranks next to the nightingale in song, and, like the 
nightingale, the males arrive here first. They are easily dis¬ 
tinguished by their jet black head, for that of the female is of 
a chestnut brown. These birds are more hardy than the night¬ 
ingale, and less insectivorous, for they feed largely on our 
summer fruits, as witness our currant-hushes and raspberries. 
On its first arrival the blackcap betakes itself to the ivy, where, 
securely hidden from observation, it obtains its food from the 
ivy-berries; and when satiated, pours forth its loud and melo¬ 
dious strains continually. It is often mistaken for the black¬ 
bird, so loud are its notes. It is an extremely shy bird, and 
very difficult to catch. Its capability of enduring cold is 
shewn by the fact of my having had one of these birds, and 
a lesser wbitetliroat, in my large aviary, having a northern 
aspect, but surrounded by buildings (and thus far protected), 
during that most rigorous winter, 1837-38, in which the 
thermometer stood at 18 degrees, as on reference to my 
diary I find it so noted on the 20th January, 1838. If 
the bird be fresh caught, it should be placed in a cage, and 
covered over for a day or two, in order that it may be sooner 
reconciled to captivity, and supplied with the berries of ivy, 
or hempseed, or fruit, such as currants, or even grocer’s 
currants that have been rendered plump by placing them for 
some time in hot water, and of course with water. Owing 
to the difficulty of procuring the old birds, I have generally 
resorted to the expedient of rearing them from the nest, 
which I have done successfully by feeding them on the paste 
of bread, and milk, and hempseed crushed, and well mixed 
together, adding now and then an insect of some kind, and 
fruit, such as strawberries, raspberries, or cun-ants. When 
able to feed themselves, they have fed on the nightingale's 
food already described, and have thriven exceedingly well; 
I will, nevertheless, give you the Rev. W. Cornish’s method 
as well as my own. He says, “My next favourite of the 
summer birds is the Atricapilla, being the healthiest and 
most lively of all the tribe, and their song most sprightly. 
I have six of them—three I have had for eight or nine years 
in perfect health and song. To these birds T give a small 
portion of beef and egg—say one-third; the remainder, 
bread, egg, and hempseed, chopped up together. The other 
tin drawer is filled every day with German paste, of which 
they are very fond. I had almost forgotten (he says) that 
the garden warbler and the blackcap must have every day a 
little fruit—it is indispensably necessary for their health ; a 
small bit of soft apple, or of baked apple, and in the fruit 
season a few red cun-ants, raspberries, strawberries, or a little 
of any nice ripe fruit. They must have it, or pine for it and 
droop : no song without it. I captured them in a net that 
covered my red currants, stealing my fruit, about three 
autumn’s since. I mention this time because it is the best 
season of the year for capturing them, when they have done 
moulting, and submit to captivity most readily. Their food 
should be the fruit they have heen purloining, put into a 
drawer with moistened bread, egg, sugar and milk. In 
[June 27. 
taking out the fruit they find the other food palatable. A 
few very thin bits of raw beef put in with the other meat 
would reconcile them to their new situation. I captured 
three blackcaps by this method. The currant-bush, or 
bushes, should be perfectly covered, leaving an aperture at 
one end of the net. The birds always tty to the opposite 
end to which they entered. This part of the net should 
have a hole, which must be kept tied up till you find some 
captive in it. Now tie up the hole by which the birds 
entered, and open the other end and take your birds. There 
is no cruelty in this mode, as the little pilferers are luxu¬ 
riating on your fruit all the time they are within it.” 
I shall conclude this paper with a receipt for the German 
paste, which is made as follows : I lb. of wheaten meal, 2 oz. 
of fresh butter, 4 oz. of brown sugar, 3 hard-boiled eggs cut 
up veiy small. Rut the meal, butter, eggs, and sugar into a 
wide saucepan, over a clear slow fire, and keep stirring it to 
prevent its burning, and when it becomes dry keep stirring it 
till it becomes crumbly. When this is ready (N.B., it must 
not be burnt, as this would be injurious to the birds) put a 
pint of cracked hempseed to the mixture, and mix them well 
together. While the process of baking is going on a penny¬ 
worth of saffron must be added to it, and mixed with the 
rest. If kept in a diy place it will be good for months.— 
W. Rayner. 
[The song of the blackcap is a compound of those of the 
robin and thrush, but softer, more mellow, and more mo¬ 
dulated than that of the latter, and of more compass than 
that of the robin. It arrives in England early in April. It 
is rather more than six inches long, and nine inches and a 
quarter across the wings when opened out. The male has 
its upper parts light yellowish-grey, the head black, lower 
parts ash-grey, paler behind, and tinged with yellow; wings 
and tail greyish-brown. Female similar, but with head 
reddish-brown. Its nest is built in the fork of some shrub, 
and formed of dried stalks, usually goose grass, put together 
with a little wool, and sometimes a little green moss on the 
outside; the inside is lined with fibrous roots, and over them 
sometimes a few- long hairs. The eggs, four or five, are 
very broad oval, 8§ twelfths of an inch long, and 7 twelfths 
broad, greyish-white faintly mottled and freckled with 
purplish-grey, and a few streaks of blackish-brown ( Mar- 
gillivray's British Birds). No one can refrain from ad¬ 
miring the rich melody of the blackcap's song, and it is one 
of our most frequently heard birds, for its chief places of 
resort are our orchards and gardens. It is one of the few 
birds which seem to have to make a violent effort in giving 
utterance to then- song, and during this effort the throat is 
very largely distended. In Cambridgeshire, Mr. Jenyns says, 
that this bird’s note is usually first heard about April 16tli, 
that its eggs are first found about May 19th, and that its 
song ceases about the 27th of July. It is one of the most 
shy of birds, yet it feeds with such delight, and with an 
appetite so insatiable, upon the currant and raspberry, that 
when engaged on this banquet it suffers itself to be looked at, 
and forgets for the moment its usual timidity. It finishes 
its feast here with the Jargonelle and other early autumn 
pears, and then leaves us for other fruits and milder climes.— 
Journal oj Naturalist .] 
THE MUSCAT OF ALEXANDRIA VINE. 
As many inquiries have been made concerning this ines¬ 
timable grape, we will offer the chief information we possess 
relative to its management; and in order to throw light on 
the subject, it will be well, as a preliminary, to observe, that 
amongst the several difficulties which beset its culture that 
of getting it to answer in a house containing other lands 
stands prominent. It is well-knowm, also, that it is what is 
termed “ a shy setter; ” that is to say, the impregnation 
of the blossom by means of the fertilizing pollen is very 
uncertain under our present course of culture. 
By some, it is considered a shy bearer: this, we think, 
arises from the circumstances of its enormous size and 
highly concentrated flavour. 
With regard to its shy setting, opinions differ much as to 
the real cause. Most of our best gardeners insist that it 
requires a very high and very moist temperature ; and, in¬ 
deed, past experience would seem to confirm the opinion, or 
else why should it be found so difficult to succeed with in 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
