The Northern Pacific farmer., 1881-10-06
THE AVIARY.
Suppestions On the Selections OF BlrdS'

breast of every lover of birds, and very
strong wish that it were possible for them to
possess such source of pleasure: AK.
vet there is hardly house go constructeo
but that an aviary can be built IN II AZ
trifiing expense, and with but little outlay
in the matter of space.
window with moderately deep ledge
around which cage can be made Is me
place. and the expense OF space is hardy
more than two or three feet. measuring:
from the side of the wall. AT any WIRE
workers can be found or ordered, the Wlre-
net work, which can be put in place m g.
short time, and the aviary is an accom-
plished fact.
But it is rather out of the province OF
the bird -fancier to suggest as to the car,
penter's or wire workers trade, and ne viii
content himself with the statement that an
aviary five feet high, four feet wide and
two and a half feet deep. has been built III
one apartment house, in New York city al
cost not exceeding SIS, including cups
and t1ays.
To make such selection OF birds as
shall thrive well together, live without dis,
cord and not require such a vanety OF 1000
as is necessary for one and injurious to
others is far more difficult than to build
the ayiary. however deficient in space the
house may be.
In making the selection the question OF
food for the different birds should first be
taken into consideration for hard billed
birds, if they get the opportunity, will eat
| food prepared for soft bills, thereby work
ing themselves much injury.
| Although it is done in some av1ar1es, It
is i'll advised to put together the two clags-
es of birds known as hard and soft bllls,
since the food for each class is 30 widely
| -. l. 30 lox,o
assortment of birds, if it is not possible t0
have two ayiaries, rather than run the risk
of allowing some of the inmates to kill
themselves with that which is necessary
to sustain life in others.
! Hard billed birds are generally known
az those whose bills are especially adapted
| for the cracking of food, such as the
numerous family of fnches, linnets.
siskins, canaries, Java sparrows, bobolinkE,
nonpareils--known by some as the painted
fnch-bluebirds, redbirds, and grosbeaks,
| thrushes, larks, warblers,' and s:Hhngs
may be classed under the head OF sett~
billed birds.
| TO keep these two classes of birds to-
| gether, where the food fer each is necessarl-
| " within reach of all, is an attempt IN
which very few are successful, and when 1t
is possible by careful watching to keep all
| in a state nearly approaching perfect health,
injury is done to their song, if IN no other
way. It is both the safest and pleasantest
course to keep the classes separate. Some
very beautiful collections may be made Of
either; there is really no necessity of max
ing them inmates of the same home:
A very pretty collection on small scale,
with large amount OF music, is one made
up of the following hard billed birds, and
that it is q successful one is evident from
the fact that no death has occurred among
them during the two years they have been
together.
their cousins, amandavas; two red-breastnd
grosbecks, two nonpareils: one blue bird,
and two love birds; two male and four fe-
male canarics, and a pair of yellow birds
The cost of such collection, if bought
at the proper season, is from thirty TO forty
dollars, and from no music-box that was
ever made can sucn liberal amount OF
happy melody be obtained.
The care Of them is very light. dish
of rape, one of canaly and one Of millet
seed is all that is necessary in the way of
food, with perhaps the exception OF let
tuce leaf each day during the summer.
Four cups for bathing purposes, and two
for drinking wat. +, and the contents to be
changed night and morning, make up the
list Of their modest wants, in return for
which they sing NIL the day. while the gros-
beaks continue the melody until far into
the night.
If one has space for larger aviary, a
very beautiful collection of hard billed
birds may he made as follows: two cardinal
and two red breasted grosbeaks, pair each
of the wax-bill paradise and amandava
fnches. two siskins, two linnets and gold
finch. For the more common birds add
two Java sparrows, two nonpareils, and six
female canaries. The cost of such col
lection should be about double that OF the
one previously mentioned.
It is not well to put the bullfnch into an
aviary, unless he be an unedncated, stupid
bird, and even then the collection is better
without him. If he is able to whistle a
tune, it IS quite liable to be injured by
placing him with numbers of other birds,
and all that is most pleasing about him
| is best shown when he is in a cage by
himself.
Avoid the purple finch, as he is very
quarrelsome fellow. and will breed trouble
in the best regulated aviary. The tomut
belongs to another class of bad citizens. and
to let him loose among well-behaved birds
is to introduce them to murderer, since he
will often kill his cage-mates.
For small collection of soft billed birds,
at the cost of fifty dollars or less, the fol-
lowing will thrive we'll together: two black
birds, one nightingale, three Baltimore
orioles, two yellow breasted chats, a cat
bird, two blue robins, and one South Amer
lean tropical. For such collection two
cups of mocking bird food, one Of chopped
raisins, with now and then little boiled
lean beef chopped fine, and Of course plenty
of water and gravel, are all that is neces-
sary.
If one prefers to make the food himsel
rather than use the prepared mocking-bird
food, paste, made fresh each day is thus
described by one of the oldest bird dealers
in New York city:
take of stale -four bread two ffths; soak
we'll in; water, and then press the'greater por
ton of the moisture out; two ffths of bar
ley or oat meal, and one fifth of hard boiled
egg chopped fine. Mix with milk and water
to the consistency of paste"
Meal-worms should also be given occa-
sionally, with plenty of green food, and
such fruit as sweet apples, cherries, and
berries
A large and expensive collection of this
class of birds can be made after the style of
one now in the possession of bird -fancier
in Philadelphia. It consists of two night
ingales, two blackbirds, and three wood
arks, four Baltimore orioles, two yellow
breasted chats, two South American
troopials, two cat. birds, and three blue
| robins, two black caps, Two fauVettes, one
bablllard, two starlings, and two skylarks.
No mockipg- bird should be put into the
aviary, unless one has more than he can
conviently keep separate, since the imme-
date companionship of other birds is liable
to make him dull, and careless as to his
singing.
! The thrush family are Objectionable
birds in an aviary. despite the volume of
song the great majority of them have, be-
cause of their slovenly habits If this food
be where a thrush can get at it readily he
will soil his house more in five minutes
than dozen other birds would in week,
and he sets very bad example to the
others. 1t is far better TO keep most of the
thrushes in cages by themselves, and then
they cannot teach the other boarders bad
habits. OF course there are some members
of the family less Objectionable than others
in this respect, but they are all gluttons to
q greater or less DEGREE althouph in such