SONG BIRDS—THEIR MANAGEMENT AND TUITION.  
What is called the song of birds is always expressive either of love or happiness; thus the nightingale sings only during the pairing season, and the period of incubation, and becomes silent as soon as required to feed its young; while on the contrary the canary and others sing except when dejected by molting. The males are usually the best singers, in fact the females of several varieties have hardly what could be called a song. Female canaries, bullfinches, robins, and some others may be made to sing to a considerable extent by keeping them in cages by themselves and paying attention to their food and management. All birds should be kept clean, their cages washed out often enough to prevent the accumulation of filth, a supply of sea or river sand furnished, and also fresh water for bathing and drinking. The food of each species varies, but the following will be found adapted to nearly all cage birds:
“Universal Pastes.”—Number One.—Thoroughly soak in cold water a well baked stale loaf of wheaten bread; press the water out and pour milk over the bread, sufficient to moisten thoroughly; then mix with it two-thirds of its own weight of barley or wheat meal, ground fine and sifted.
Number Two.—Grate a carrot and mix it with a moderate sized slice of bread which has been thoroughly soaked in water and the water carefully pressed out. While mixing add two handfuls of the above mentioned barley or wheat meal. The whole is then to be pounded in a mortar.
The above quantities are sufficient for quite a number of birds and must be reduced to suit requirements, as no more than one day’s supply should be prepared at one time. Careful washing of all utensils employed is of course essential to prevent sourness. Canaries should be furnished with a mixture of canary, summer rape, and crushed hemp seed. Goldfinches like poppy seed, with the addition occasionally of a little crushed hemp seed. They also eat thistle seed. Linnets and bullfinches rape seed alone. A little green food, as chick-weed, lettuce, cabbage or water-cress, is desirable about once a week. Quails are fond of bread crumbs and wheat. Larks prefer barley meal mixed with finely cut cabbage, or poppy seed and crumbs of bread, and oats in winter.
Varying the food of song birds has a tendency to make them sing. The very common practice of giving pet birds cake, 191sweetmeats, or sugar, is unadvisable; they prefer more simple food, and their health and musical qualities are impaired by this kindly meant but really unkind practice. A bit of cuttle fish bone is the best dainty. Too much hemp seed is injurious to all birds in confinement, often producing blindness, less of voice, and pulmonary disease.
The songs of cage birds are of two kinds, the natural and the artificial. The natural song is peculiar in each species. The artificial is that which the bird acquires by association with other birds, or which is purposely taught it. A bird is said to “warble” or “quaver” when it always repeats the passages or single notes of its song in precisely the same order. It “sings” when it utters the chirping or twittering interspersed with distinct notes without observing any regular succession. It “whistles” or “pipes” when its song consists of distinct round flute-like notes. Birds to sing well must enjoy good health, be well fed and be placed in a bright, cheerful, situation. The glaring rays of a hot sun can, however, be endured by but few birds. Birds are naturally endowed with a spirit of rivalry, and if placed where they can hear the song of other birds, will often sing better than they otherwise would. Varying their food slightly will often encourage them to sing. A German writer gives the following rules for canaries by which a good singer may be secured: “The first and chief thing is that while young the bird should hear none but a good song, and so not be tempted to intermix the notes of other birds with his own. Care must be taken to attain this object, not only at first, but at the first and second molting seasons, as the bird is then obliged to re-learn his song, and might introduce into it some foreign admixture. It should also be noted whether the bird prefers to sing alone or in company. Many birds are so self-willed as never to sing except they can display their vocal powers alone, while the song of others is always soft and low except when excited to rivalry by hearing the performance of a neighbor. Another very important particular to be attended to not only in the case of canaries but of all cage birds, is to give them their allotted portion of food every day, for if too much be given them at once they pick out the best at first and leave the rest for another day, which impairs their vocal powers.”
The canary is a very imitative bird, indeed its song is mainly artificial, being derived from the birds with which it has associated, many of the original stock of the Canary Isles not singing at all. This fact renders its tuition comparatively easy. If several notes are repeated in succession on any instrument, and this is continued perseveringly, the bird will gradually try to 192copy them, and will finally succeed if both teacher and pupil possess the requisite talent. Canaries are capable of learning two or more distinct tunes. The tunes must be taught bit by bit and each piece thoroughly mastered before advancing farther. A flute is the best musical instrument to use. If desired that the bird should learn the song of another bird, a good singer of that variety may be placed near its cage. The weavers of Cheshire, England, are noted for possessing canaries of rare musical ability, who are the descendants of birds originally taught by a nightingale; the young birds of each successive generation learning the song of their parents. Loss of voice, which in the male is sometimes the consequence of molting, may be cured by feeding with a little lettuce seed.
Some years ago, for several days a pure canary attracted considerable attention while hanging in the publication office of the New York Tribune, on account of his singing Hail Columbia, and other patriotic airs, without mistake or loss of a single note.
If it is desired to teach a canary to whistle, it should be removed from its companion when about two weeks old, at which time it will be able to feed and also to begin to twitter. The pupil is put in a small cage, which should be at first covered with a linen cloth, and afterward with something thicker. A short air should then be either whistled or played on a flute or bird organ within its hearing, five or six times a day, especially in the morning and evening, and repeated on each occasion half a dozen times. In from two to six months, according to the memory and docility of the bird, it will have acquired its lesson perfectly. Unl............