Clarksville daily chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1884-188?, 1884-11-06
A BIRD FANC1ER.
Chats with a Reporter About Pets
That Talk and Sing.
The Demand for CanarIes, Parrots,
Robins, and MOeking Birds
Traknfng Pekrm RobAn
60 sing.

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Washington Post.l
Walk ia, sir; walk in, followed by q
discordant burst of laughter was the I'm
vitation rendered reporter one morning i.
as he was walking up the avenue a few
squares from the capitol Turning
sharply around, he failed to discern any.
one on the sidewalk or on the thresholds Of
the neighboring houses, and was conse.
quently somewhat puzzled. A glance up
ward, however, quickly solved the
mystery. Hanging in rough-looking
cage, suspended from a first-story window
OF combination store, was Mexican
parrot The combination consisted of
a window full of bird cages and
birds, interspersed with coats, trous
efs, and vests. In other words,
the parrot belonged to an old man
who made clothes and sold birds for liv-
ing. The window from bird point of
viewg recalled the words of Charles Dick
ems, in martin Chuzzlewit: i" ain every
pane of glass there was at least one tiny
bird in tiny cage, twittering and hop
ping his little ballet of despair, and knock
ing his head against the roof while one
unhappy goldtinch, who lived outside a
red villa with his name on the door, drew
the water for his own drinking and mutely
appealed to some good men to drop far
things worth of poison in it. British
birds, they say, are inserparable from low
associations, and they are always to be
found in poor and immoral neighborhoods
In this country, fortunately, the reverse
is true.
Dropping all thoughts of Dickens and
British birds, the reporter entered the
store while the parrot gave louder laugh
than before. On a table behind the win
dow the reporter found gray headed
man of rather plethoric proportions
seated cross-legged and busily engaged in
sewing buttons on a diagonal coat, while
around and about him were birds from
almost every cline The canaries sang
the parrots screamed and talked the
robins twittered, and the mocking. birds
whistled merrily, making the place liter
ally alive with music II have not many
birds now, said the old man, "but such
as they are they are marketable
"Yes, said the lady of the house, who
had just entered after taking the parrot in
from the upper story, I'VE have canaries
and parrots here to supply all probable
demands, and besides you see we are not
short of robins or hooking birds
What species of birds are most in de-
mandP"
"Canaries, of course; they are easily
kept and their sweet notes go far to cheer
and enliven many q household. Then
again they are longlived, many of them
surviving 30 or % years. have known
canary to sing when certainly not less than
"a years old; That, however, is an excep-
ton.
"Doyou sell imported as we'll as domes
tic birds?"
1--WE sell few of the latter, but the ma
jority of people want canaries of the Harz
mountain species. Those are imported
and bring prices from $3.50 to $500
each, while the cages range from $500 to
$500"
"What about parrotsR"
speaking qualities, They sell from So to
African and the double yellow head from
Mexico comes next; Brazil follows next in
order, and then comes the little West India
parrot. Some of the latter make remark
ably good speakers We feed them on
corn, sunhower seed, hemp seed, bread,
etc. They will eat nothing that will in
jure them.
"How do the hooking birds stand in
public estimation?"
almost as high as the canaries and par.
rots, and after the mocking-bird comes
the robin. We get the majority of mock
ing-birds from Havana, but still many
come from Virginia. Young birds sell
from $5 to $t5 each. Like children, mock
ing birds and parrots must be trained when
young.
"That little fellow yonder, said the
bird fancier, us a regular acrobat" He
pointed, as he spoke, at a Japanese robin
which was INDUCING In every conceivable
kind of contortion in his cage. He jumped
from perch to perch with lightning rapid
ity, then sang a sweet song, and wound
up the act by standing on his head. "We
have good demand for robbins, said the
old man, "but nothing like that concern
ing the parrots and canaries. For myself,
like the robin as well rs the best of them.
In all lands no Is favorite, and he sings
as sweetly Gagged as in his wild state.
Wordsworth, am told was an ardent ad-
mirer of the bird The Pekin robin would
not sing when young, but the old saying
has 1t that a bird that won't sing and can
must be made to sing, We therefore train
the Pekin youngsters by placing a song
ster within hearing distance When he
learns little all you have to do Is to place
Chinaman In front Of him. He reoog.
nizes his country at glance and puts
forth his best efforts.