
_4g0 «THE NATURAL HISTORY 
_ In confinement when young, they are fed with 
a 1 compolition af fheep’s heart, crumb of bread, 
hempfeed, and parfley, perfectly mixed together, 
and chopped very fmall ; it muft be made frefh 
every day ; afterwards egg boiled hard, and mixed _ 
with crumb of bread, and parley. the whole 
minced mall. : 
Another compofiti tion which fhould.be their ker 
| neral food, when they are full grown, jis made of 
two pounds of Jean beef, half a pound ‘of grey 
peas, half a pound of yellow or purled millet, 
 fome white poppy feed, and fweet almonds ; 4 
pound of honey, two ounces of flower, twelve 
yolks of eggs, two or three ounces of butter, and: 
a dram and a half of faffron, the whole dried by 
a fire, reduced into. a fine powder, and pafled: 
through a fieve; this will keep along time. 
With thefe compofitions, a Nightingale has 
heen kept feventeen years in.a cage ; at feven years: 
of age he began to erow grey, at fifteen, his wing: 
and tail feathers were white ; his knees. were much, 
enlarged:; he had: knots on his. toes like gouty 
perfons, a it was neceflary occalionally to file: 
‘the point cf bis upper mancible; but he feemed 
to feel no other, inconveniences from old age; he: 
was always c heetfal, and. Sarelhings , 
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