702 
FANCIER S’ JOURNAL AND POULTRY EXCHANGE. 
to the poultry interests, and we hope to see such an increase 
to your subscription list as will soon again convert it to a 
weekly. It is the best poultry paper extant. 
Respectfully, .T. H. Walton. 
Doylestown, Pa., Nov. 18, 1874. 
Friend Wade: 
Please say in the next issue of the Journal, to my many 
friends and correspondents, that I am laid up with a sprained 
shoulder and therefore am obliged to neglect my corre- 
spondents for a time. My arm aches with even this little 
exertion. Yours truly, 
Rye, N. Y., November 10, 1874. A. M. Halsted. 
SfW^LL PeJ DEp^F^JJV!E[Jj. 
^ All communications and contributions intended for this depart- 
ment should be addressed to HOWARD I. IRELAND, Concordville, 
Del. Co., Pa., or care of Joseph M. Wade, 39 North Ninth St., Philada. 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
[ Under this heading we will cheerfully endeavor to answer any question concern- 
ing small pets or other matters interesting to our young folks.] 
Frank Weston writes : “ My young guinea pigs are cov- 
ered with sores caused by the old male pigs biting them. Is 
there a cure? ” We see that the guinea pigs at the Phila- 
delphia Zoological Gardens are in the same condition. For 
a remedy we would advise an ounce of oak wood administered 
behind the ears of the offender, without it was a valuable 
animal ; then we should separate the young from the old. 
Fish admirer says: “I had a globe containing thirty 
minnows and every morning I find one or more dead ones 
floating on the surface, until now I have but twenty; what 
shall I do?” Reduce your number to ten, or even five. 
Overcrowding is the cause. 
(For Fanciers’ Journal.) 
THE DISEASES OF PETS. 
SORE FEET. 
This most troublesome disease principally attacks parrots, 
and to these do I confine my suggestions. Generally the 
first cause that gives rise to diseased feet is letting the cage 
get very dirty, and then not effectually cleaning it; or for 
want of proper bathing the feet become hard and horny. 
Un perceiving the condition of the bird remove it imme- 
diately and place it in a cage of smaller dimensions, so that 
the parrot cannot climb about ; fill the bottom of this cage 
with warm (not hot) water, and set it near a fire, not close 
enough to burn the bird, but near enough to keep the water 
from getting cold. Remove the water in about fifteen min- 
utes, and place a dry planed board for the parrot to stand 
on. Rub glycerine on the bird’s feet. One operation will 
generally effect a cure, and if one does not “ try, try again.” 
By sore feet I do not mean a species of gout or rheumatism, 
to which parrots are sometimes subject; treat these as a 
cold, as they are generally caused by this. 
Parrot Fancier. 
(For Fanciers' Journal.) 
WILL CANARIES LIVE IF LIBERATED? 
Mr. Howard I. Ireland. 
Dear Sir : I often see it stated in books on the subject 
of Natural History, etc., that canaries when liberated will 
linger among the trees for a short time then perish of hun- 
ger ; and, that, by confinement for so many generations, tho 
natural instinct is stifled, so that on being set at liberty, they 
cannot procure the food necessary for the prolongation of 
life. Now, I want to relate what I have seen concerning 
canary birds at liberty, which I think will knock this theory 
all in the head. In the spring of 1874, a canary, owned by 
a lady of this neighborhood, escaped from its cage, and 
flew about the house and yard for some time, eluding all 
efforts to effect its capture. At length it joined a flock of 
American goldfinches, that were building in a wood near 
by, and has ever since associated with them. I could never 
discover whether it mated with one of them or not, but I 
am inclined to think it did. I have seen it repeatedly, and 
know I am not deceived, and at the present time it is still 
at large. S. H. T. 
Tuckahoe, Cape May Co., August 4th, 1874. 
[The writer must be laboring under a mistake, as we can- 
not remember ever seeing it stated in any Natural History 
that canaries starve to death on being liberated. However, 
can any of our readers give us information on the subject? 
—Ed], 
(For Fanciers’ Journal.) 
TO MAKE GERMAN PASTE. 
This composition may be made in the following manner, 
of much better quality than that which is sold in the shops : 
Take four fresh eggs, boiled very hard, a quarter of a pound 
of white peas meal, and about a tablespoonful of good salad 
oil (if the least rancid it will not do). The eggs must be 
grated very fine and mixed with the meal and olive oil, and 
the whole then be pressed through a tin cullender, to form 
it into grains like small shot ; it should next be put into a 
frying-pan, set over a gentle fire, and gradually stirred with 
a broad knife, until it be partially roasted and dried, the 
test will be its yellowish-brown color. All insect-eating 
birds may be kept upon this food throughout the year, except 
when they appear drooping and unwell, or at moulting time, 
when a few meal worms may be given to them twice or 
thrice a day. — Boys’ Treasury. 
(For Fanciers' Journal.) 
WOUNDED SPARROW. 
The New Brunswick, N. J., Times, of the 2d instant, 
relates the following : “ The myriads of sparrows that nestle 
in the ivy, which clings to and almost entirely covers the 
walls of Christ Church, occasionally display a surprising 
amount of intelligence in their little acts of kindness to each 
other. This was beautifully illustrated yesterdaj 7 morning 
about ten o’clock. From a tree located about opposite to 
Northrop’s in Church Street a sick or crippled sparrow fell 
to the ground and fluttered about the sidewalk in vain efforts 
to regain a place of safety. Several of its little companions 
gathered around it and seemed greatly concerned for it, and 
by their incessant chirping attracted a swarm of the little- 
winged converts from the church walls. Efforts were then 
made by several of the number to lift the helpless bird by 
catching its wings in their beaks, but there seemed to be a 
difficulty in getting started together, and the effort was 
futile, and then the chattering increased perceptibly, as if 
there was a general scolding going on. Presently several of 
the birds flew away, one shortly returning with a twig about 
four inches long and an eighth of an inch thick. This was 
dropped before the sick one, and at each end was picked up 
by a sparrow and held up so that the sick bird was enabled 
to catch the centre of the twig in its beak, and with the aid 
