The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1882-07-09
PARROTS As LINGUIsTS.
spanish, Fronch, and German Speaking birds
-DOmbroMskIs Pet-An Arm stio Pnrrot.


spanish, Fronch. and German Speaking birds
-Dombrowskps Pet-An Agno stic Parrot.
young lady advertised, a few days since,
liberal reward for "a young parrot. speaking
little Spanish" and. IL il to be hoped got the
desired bird. In fact" said an old bird fan
| cer. nothing would be easier. in our line,
| than to supply her with any reasonable guam
| tity OF parrots speaknga great deal Of Spanish.
| II parrot has any other mother tongue than
an informal saunwk that mother tongue Is Span
ish. at lenst with those that come here from
South America. which IL our main source OF
| supply. 1t Ia. you understand. tho language
Of the people who capture the bird and give
1t the rudments of education. Very natu-
rally the first words u parrot learns from
| them are likely to be "bonito papagayo"
| and "caramba." Just rs IL English speaking
people got him first ho would begin by saying
| Pretty Polly" and some familiar and prob
| ably moro vigorous words than those Spanish
| ones. Spanish oa,hs. by the way. are unsatis-
| factory. and don't amount to much. IA q rule,
| any moro than tho Frcnch sacre pomme de
terrc." or tho German bonner and bitten"
But the noble Castlian tongue is not altogether
devoid of ingenious oxpletivos Some of them
arc strong enough to curl the hair on "A mule. and
not infroaucntly We get parrots that have had
their conversational powers developed in that
| direction to a startling extent. 1t doesn't hurt
| the value of the bird for people who don't I'M
| dorstand Spanish. They may innocenty
| imagine It his wild sweet native song whom he
| is making tho most frightiully ornate remarks
| about their lights and livors and things and
so no harm is done. BY and by. too. he will
learn the language of tho people he is with
| will gradually drop 1t. II is open to doubt
however, whether,a parrot ever wholly forgots
| Whnt he has once lCarned-a really good one,
mean. Several months ago a gentleman who
! was going abroad. not expecting to return for
fine parrot that. he said. no had had a 70 Tor
| over five years. The bird spoke English ex-
traorinarily well and. As he subsequently as
| thing else. as he had bought it from an English
lady, who had not told him that it knew any
couple of ladies entered the store ono day and.
while looking aboutwero ehattcring in Spanish
@ 26r EhGn 6 aSyS tone startled Of by the
.GaIa%6a!5 il %es the parrot They talked
to IT IN Spanish. For some little time It either
Curamba!" and always with, the proper in
tonaion as an exclamation Of astonishment;
| ii began utterng II variety OF Spanish words
! with great volubility; Tho ladies assured me
that 1t spoke Spanish exceedingly well. and
was-what was. still more remarkable-a very
| decent bird. with good moral training. Ono
Of them bought it and paid me good price for
| it, parrot learns very quickly. If 1t is going
to learn at all. One that speaks Spanish only
| when 1t leaves south America Will pick up
three or four weeks by a sailing vessel to this
port and as parrots are generally brought
| say the least. lacking in refinement. usually
pi29r Poly Is likely to have good many unde-
Sl,ap,e Woius III heT VOCABULARY wheh she goes
some Of the ne, gray parrots that come here
from A A.! speak Portuguese iipently, that
| them: and occasionally we strike one that jab-
bers gibherish nobody understands. doubtless
| tllk r.Nta frsst, oil
also speak Portuguese Minos arc the
same as parrots. talking any language that
idea about the mno that ' he Simply fires of
| shrek like steam whistle every five minutes
orso. But that is wrong. He can be taught to
parrots. Parrots learn German and French.
Or indeed any language. the same as they do
plishments gain them from private owners
who value them as pupils. as we'll as pets. and
cident. I was aboard an outgoing French
steamer recently; on business. Just before, she
French woman-one OF party-who was man
| Testing great soiicitude about a parrot that
she had in 4 cage 1t was hard to tell which of
she or the bird. | don't suppose she would
have taken avo hundred dollars for that
sicay worth about fifteen. I don't know that
| have ever encountered German parrot but
Another bird fancicr. German. said upon
that branch OF the subject: German parrots
| BloSS me! yes, lots oil tnem. Tut / can hardly
say that the parrot seems to be specially
adapted to speaking German. 1t il rather too
| heavy for his tongue, and as n rule he only
takes in the shorter and easier words, and not
| great many of them even. He would have to
be a very bold parrot who would undertake to
swear in German. One of the best German
! speaking parrots l have ever met was owned
| by Dombrowski. the German actor. who came
| over here u dozen years ago to support the
| great Nine. Seebach. 1t was ayillainously ma
| licious bird toward everybody except him. but
| he had spent much time in petting and train
! ing 1t, and with surprisingly good results. He
| carried ii about with him in all his travels.
! brought il here from Germany lugged it
around from place to place. and finally
took it. back With him; 1 don't think
time, to find FOR customer q German
! perfectly educated one, but ono that could
| speak n little OF other language. 1t Is not
| seldom that a parrot knows II good many
| words out of two or three languages, but is
| likoly to get them mixed up in his talking"
| 1t is no longer II matter for question that
| parrots at least seem very often to know the
| meaning OF tho words they use. and apply
| Thorn intelligenty, appositely. in whatever
! language they speak. Poor Virginia Whiting,
| whose brief and brilliant career was that of ono
| Of our best native prima donnas. had very
| line green parrot. of unusually amiable and
| Intelligent character: that was poisoned by
| malicious servant The wretched bird lying
| upon its back in its mistross's lap with its
! claws cOnvulSivc!y drawn up to its breast in its
| dying aEonieS. whinel out with really human
intonation of pain and anxiety: oh my God!
what's goin to become Of poor Polly '