IN FEATHERS AXD FUR. 
125 
BIRDS OF PARADISE. 
I told you that no birds were more beautiful than the humming 
birds in colors, but in that family the feathers are close to the body, 
while the Birds of Paradise — as they are called — have the most 
wonderful plumage, added to the exquisite colors of the humming 
birds. 
Very little has been known about them till lately, for they are 
only found in one or two places in the w T orld. There are not many 
kinds either, but almost every one is very odd and striking in the 
arrangement of its feathers, and the feathers themselves are some- 
times the most lovely plumes, and in others the strangest streamers. 
Strange stories were told about these birds, by the savage 
