FANCIERS’ JOURNAL AND POULTRY EXCHANGE. 
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Hird and Small Let Department. 
(For Fanciers’ Journal.) 
CAGED SONG BIRDS. 
THE Cardinal Grosbeak deserves a prominent place among 
American caged song birds. It sings well in confinement, 
and thrives upon such seeds as are used for the Canary. 
It has been termed the Virginia Nightingale, in con- 
sequence of its singing by night as well as by day. Its 
varied song is musical andclear. Both sexes sing; the female 
quite equals the male in compass of voice. There is a pecu- 
liar richness in the vermilion plumage of the male. The 
female is of a rich brown, tinged with red. Both have 
crests, which they elevate at will, giving them a gay and 
spirited appearance. They are geographically distributed 
from New England to Central America, and are particularly 
numerous south of Pennsylvania, where they are found the 
year round. In the Northern and Eastern States they are 
migratory. They build their nests of small dry twigs and 
dry grass, and usually place it in shrubs in the vicinity of 
a small rivulet. They lay four dull white eggs, marked 
thickly, but irregularly, with spots of olive brown. Their 
young are easily reared by hand, and old trapped birds are 
easily domesticated. 
The Rose-Breasted Grosbeaks are allied closely to the 
Cardinals, though differing in color, the general color being 
black, white, and rosy crimson; the last is confined to the 
breast, narrowing in width as it descends on the belly. It 
is a northern bird ; winters in the middle States, and wanders 
in the summer into high northern latitudes. Its song is 
remarkably sweet, and its notes clear and mellow, singing 
by night as well as by day. The prevailing colors, white, 
black, and crimson, contrast richly, making it a desirable 
cage bird, though unfortunately it is scarce, and seldom 
seen confined in cages. 
The American Goldfinch, popularly known as the Yellow- 
bird, is held in high esteem, although very commonly seen. 
Its lemon-yellow body and black and white wings contrast 
nicely. They are docile in confinement, and sing sweetly, 
though their notes are weak. They afford fine amusement 
for the boys during the pairing season, as they are easily 
taken by means of a call-bird and trap-cages. They sing as 
happily confined as in the wild state, and eat freely the same 
seeds as the Canary. The female is less gaudy in plumage 
than the male. They construct a neat nest, lay five dull 
white eggs, spotted at the larger end. 
The Indigo Finch is much admired on account of its beau- 
tiful indigo-colored plumage. Its song is sweet and vigorous, 
though short, and it continues to sing during the hot months, 
when most birds in the wild state are silent. The female is 
brown, tinged with -blue. They are usually shy birds, and 
it requires one well skilled in the business of trapping them 
to succeed in catching any considerable number in a single 
day. For this purpose a decoy bird is employed, and then, 
by frequenting the vicinity in which they are found, by a 
little manceuvering they are taken. They are usually found 
on the line of a railroad; and by a roadside not much fre- 
quented the adept will soon hear the familiar song of the 
Indigo Finch. The cage containing the decoy bird is then 
held in front of the trapper, as he advances in the direction 
of the songster, occasionally flirting his fingers against the 
wire cage, which causes the decoy to flutter and chirp. This 
attracts the attention of the outside bird ; the cage is imme- 

| diately set upon the ground, and before the trapper has gone 
many yards from the cage the stranger is upon it, if not 
caught. The Indigo Finches are always found in pairs, 
though the female is seldom caught. She does not sing, but 
only twitters. They are hardy and easily reared. In con- 
finement during the winter they lose their beautiful plumage. 
though in exceptional cases it is not at all changed. They 
build their nests in low bushes, suspended by two twigs. 
They lay four blue eggs, having a blotch of purple at the 
larger end. In confinement their diet should be the same 
as the canary’s. They are very fond of beet leaves. 
Jas. S. Barty, M.D. 


Htems Huteresting and Amusing. 

pe@s> Flowering plants have been discovered in eighty-two 
degrees north latitude, the regions of eternal winter. 
g@s~ Rabbits are ruining hundreds of farms in England 
and Scotland by their depredations. They are kept by the 
landed gentry for sport. 
R@= A million dollars worth of ostrich feathers are im- 
ported into England every year from the Cape of Good 
Hope. Every pound of these feathers is worth fifty guineas, 
or $250. 
pas ‘‘ A horse! a horse! my kingdom for a horse!’’ cried 
a celebrated tragedian. ‘‘ Wouldn’t a jackass do as well?” 
inquired an affected young man, rising in his seat. ‘* Yes,” 
triumphantly exclaimed the actor, ‘just step up this way, 
sir.” The young man sat down. 
p@s> A gentleman from Philadelphia let loose a carrier- 
pigeon at the depot in Elizabeth at 10.20 A.M. on Thursday. 
Upon his arrival in New York he ascertained by telegraph 
that it had reached home at eleven o’clock A. M., thus fly- 
ing a distance of eighty-three miles in forty minutes. (?) 
f@s An ingenious dyer out West uses a poodle dog as an 
advertising agent. The variegated creature, through the 
art of his master, shows purple ears, an azure body, black 
fore legs, and yellow hind legs, head emerald, and tail sol- 
ferino. That dog should be named either Rainbow, or 
Prism, or Joseph. 
p@s~ At a Louisville hotel, on Saturday night, a large rat 
sprang from the money-drawer, on its being opened by the 
barkeeper, with a new crisp, ten-dollar note in its mouth. 
For the next ten seconds the atmosphere behind the bar was 
disturbed with boots, brooms, brushes, mop-handles, and 
sundry loud noises, but the Jarcenous rodent escaped from 
the storm of missiles and expletives under the ice-box ; for- 
tunately for the owner, leaving the abstracted note on the 
floor. 
pa@s> A young gentleman of this city walked into a barber- 
shop, got shaved, and had his boots cleaned. He gave the 
barber twenty-five cents, and was handed by the boot-black 
five coppers. He told the boot-black to brush his new spring 
hat, and keep the coppers, and turned to wash his hands. 
The boot-black did brush that hat as never hat was brushed 
before, for on turning around to get a towel, the gentleman 
to his horror saw his $7 spring style undergoing the manip- 
ulations that are required to polish a pair of cow-hide bro- 
gans! That hat now looks like a ruffled chicken.—Rich- 
mond Whig. 

