The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1873-06-28

II A Mir Merely had been employed by
II gentleman who had heard of his knOwlcdg
D. of birds, to purchase for him white coCkG
Il too. The price was OF less importance thai
the health. disposition and the breeding o
c the bird She was to hse no bad language
Is be subject TO no fits of passion, have beer
l. trained to be handled by women and chill
a dren, and to be clearly in her habits Morel,
e took great pains to please his employer, ant
Il at last sent him home perhaps the most per
y feet specimen of the breed ever seen In Lon
l don Beauty as she was called, stood un
c rivalcd. When she was sent home there wa
5, perfect satisfaction the employer was pleased
d as well he might, the family OF daughters il
e ecstacies of admiration, and Merely richl,
d remunerated for his trouble. But the birc
C would not talk. This was attributed first t
r fear then to change of diet; and, at last, t.
absolute inability. OF course there was grea
c disappointment. Beauty's cage hung at the
dining room window; every visitor saw il
: admiration her spotless plumagc and fault
less shape, and, of course, everybody sympa
\ thzed in the disappointment. at her irremcdi
able defect.
What a pity It is she docs not talk" re
marked "a person one day at dinner. "ShC
would be worth her weight in gold"
'Shc almost cost it as she is" said patcr
familias. The creature is a cheat Fine
feathers don't make fine birds, certainly not
fine parrots. | paid ten guineas for her ald
she cannot say one word"
"Ah, but | think the more, What's the
use of talking If you have nothing to say
came in clear articulate sounds from the
cage, to the amazement Of the family and
guests.
That settled forever "Beauty's" supremacy
Happy as the rejoindcr was, it by no means
r,,1l Ill Al,
bird. She would not learn what she ought
torily discharged a servant, After shutting
the door of the study, the latter exclaimed
in anger:
oh him, Dr. Hall is a great rascaln
The bird heard and caught the words and
could never be made to unlcarn them. DR..
Hamilton Roe waited one morning in Dr.
Halls antc.room, observed Beauty" and
jocularly says:
"Who are you
"Bcauty's DR. Halls trumpet tototo.toOw
replied the bird; but Immediately becoming
grave, and edging cOntidentially toward the
side of the cage, she added in a low voice,
Oh him! DR.. Halls great rascal"
This habit of using protane and filthy Ian
guage is generally caught by parrots on their
sea voyages from the sailors. When good
flagship to congratulate him on his great vic.
tory, she was attracted by gray parrot
which hung in the forecaste The bird was
singing "God save the King" Every note
and word was given with such perfect accu
racy that Her Majesty, surprised and delight
ed, requested closer interview, and during
lunch the parrot was consequently swung inI
her cage on the quarter deck. No sooner
had she reached the place of honor how.
ever, than she forgot all her good manners |
A torrent of immodcsty, unfit for royal, or
even plebeian ears, was poured forth, and the !
creature unconscious of indeCOrum, was hur-
riCd back to the sailors quarters
1t is said that the maCaws are the best talk |
crS of the whole Species provided they are
reared from the nest And not only are they
able to talk, but they also sing in peculiar
soft voice. In sweetness, though not in com
pass OF musical notes. they are, however, eX.
cclled by the grass or green paroquet While
the COCkatOO Is the hardest of the parrot
tribe, and the most easily tanned, it is at the
same time the most difficult to teach to talk
at all well Its disposition is more gentle,
however, and its obedience more implicit
than any of the other species. The gray AL
rcan parrot from its docility and aptitude
ranks everywhere first as a tavorite, though
of late years the common green Amazon
from the little attention it requires, and its
quick Sagacity, is sharing the general favor
a gentleman residing in Wilmington, Della.
ware, owns one of those Amazon parrots. I'll
possesses tluency and variety of language
rarely if ever equaled by the African gray.
AS soon rs her master returns from the office
for dinner, Polly begins to salute him in
fondcst expressions: Papa, dear come and
kiss your pretty green beauty? Come in,
come in, papa, and give us a kiss and a
thousand morcw When the footman enters
The room she says to him, but never to any
one else, Fetch my dinner, James, | am
hungry, Stupid fellow! | can eat my head
Off" To Il bachelor friend, who frequently
spends several weeks at the house, Polly had
but one question, and never puts it to any
one else: "Oh, you gay deceiver, why did
you promise to marry me, and didn't" ToI
Il gentleman, a near ncghbOr, whom she had
once overheard saying, at the dinner table
The birds invaluable; five hundred dollars
would not buy her if owned hcr-would it,
Polly?" she always addressed the salute the
moment he appears, Five hundred dollars
would not buy Polly, if you owned her
FiAe hundred dollars Why the birds in.
valuablew
This Wilmington Parrot certainly discrim.
mates between the sexes and between condi- |
tons of life. To well dressed young man
the remark is: What get up, What a |
swell you are" To young lady, on the
contrary, fondling and kissing, she says, with |
great Difference, as she not nice? so nice :" |
Whereas, to Il clergyman, who is detected by |
his dress, she is exceedingly offensive, calling
out, Let us pray" GLORY be TO Godr',
Amen She was once lost, stayed out over
night, and grief and searches ruled the dis. |
consulate household. At daybreak, however,
a workman, going to his job, was hailed by
Polly from pile of bricks with the cali. |
take me home, take me homer Whether
the night-chilled bird did or did not attach |
meaning To the words, il is certain that the |
workman did, and that he made a good thing
in bringing her home.