Middletown transcript., 1869-07-03
Canary Islands and Canary Birds,
BY JAMES PARTON.


Many when they hea anything about
the Canary Islands, think of the pretty
birds which bear the sarbe name. | used
to myself, being fond VI canary. and
always liking to have one in the house to
fill it with cheerful melody. There was n
time, too, when / used TO wonder whether
the birds gave their name to the islands,
or the islands to the birds. Neither is
true. The word Canary (from the Latin
Caaaria) signifies doggy, and that name
was given them because on one of the is
lands, when it was visited in the days Of
the Romans, great number Of large dogs
were found, some of which were carried
away, and given to one of the African
kings. This breed of dogs has long ago
disappeared, and only skeletons of them
are occasionally found.
But there are plenty Of canary birds in
all the Canary Islands, as well as in other
groups off the African coast. Not yellow
ones such as we have in America, but of
an olive-grccn color, dappled with black.
or yellow or both About three hundred
and twenty years ago, a small vessel from
LeghOrn came to these islands, and car
ricd away as many of the little green
singing birds as it could well accommodate
the captain thinking, no doubt, that the
people of Italy would be willing to pay
good price for such sweet musicians. But
on his way up the Medit tprranean the ship
was blown ashore upon the island of
Elba, where it went to pieces, and many
of the birds escaped to the land. They
found Elba pleasant abode, reared largo
families there, and thus the canary was,
introduced into Europe.
BY careful breeding, their color has
been changed frem olive-green to light
yellow, although am told that among
nest full of young birds, there will often
now be found one almost as green as its
forefathers. In these latter days, the
green birds have come into fashion again
in Europe, and some of tho bird-dealer.a
take as much pains to breed green canaries
as they once did to get rid of the green
An English gentleman told me, the other
day, that very nice green canary, of q
certain shape, will sometimes sell for fifty
pounds in London, which is equal to more
than three hundred of our dollars For
my part, am satisfied with three dollar
yellow one. .f
1t is not, however, of chnary birds that
[ now think, when | read or hear of the
Canary Islands. | think how fortunate it
the Cape Nerdcs, the Madeiras and the
Azores-wcre upheayed from the bottom
of the Atlantic, just where they were, off
the coast of Africa, to enc cburage the brave
sailors of Portugal in their attempts to
discover unknown lands and explore the
unknown sea- just look ut them, as they
lie on the map. See he w conveniently
the Azores are situated, almost ON lino
with Lisbon and Philadelphia. What n
nice halting-place they were for the bold
nayigators who first made their way to
America Being eight hundred miles
from the coast of Portugal, Columbus was
nearly one-third of the way across when he,
had lost sight of the island farther west;
and without that assistance and encourage
ment another century, or many centuries
might have passed away before America
had been discovered.
Then look at the Canaries. They were
even still more useful to tile earliest nayi-
gators, who did not dare TO sail far out
into the broad acean, but generally crept
cautiously down the Africa N coast, happy
and proud if they could 60 little farther
south than any one had gone before.
From the African coast to the nearest of
the Canary Islands, is only ffty-seven
miles so that captain who was within
ten miles of the continent could often see
one of them, and had only to sail a little
farther to come i'll sight of the wonderful
Peak of Teneriffe, towering aloft more
than two miles above the level of the sea.
What an encouragement to the gallant
men who first ventured so far from home.
it must have been, to discover n group of
islands containing land enough to make
two States as large as our Delaware and
lying so close to Africa that they could be
reached without losing sight of that conti=
ncnt , Look at the AIadtiras, too-two
large and fertile islands, three hundred
and eighty miles from Africa, and six
hundred and sixty miles Fl ON Portugal
just far enough from both to make their
discovery at once possible and glorious to
the first explorers of tho ocean Our
Young Folks.
In thirty-one words how many 'thats"
can be dramatically inserted Fourteen
lie said that that that that man said was