The Concordia eagle. [volume] (Vidalia, La.) 1873-1890, 1884-12-13
Concerning Canary Birds.


ty married couples as necessary evils,
hnd by the young lady who wears her
hair down her back and has it tied with
a big red bow as 'tOo sweet for any
thing" 1t is the sentiment of the latter
class that creates SO great a demand and
30 exorbitant price for those little birds
which thrilled the old Carthagenians
with song when they first placed foot
upon the Canarics and named them
the Islands of Good Fortunes. A report
er called at the store of bird fancier,
and found him surrounded with an at
mosphere which trembled with the trills
and quayers that were sent out upon it
from the hundreds of little wooden
cages which stood piled on all sides.
Canary BIRDS" the bird-fanccr began,
"are my delight, frequently come in
here after business hours and sit listen
Ing to these little songs,erS by the hour.
j have few birds whose calls ] can dis
tinguish from the rest, and who know
me as well as my children do. Look at
that fellow. He is q genuine canary
He was born in Madeira, and was sent
to me from that island. He is pure
yellow, without a spot of darker color
on his feathers, and yet it is the popular
superstition that pure yellow birds can't
sing. Hear him! Did you ever listen
to q German-bred bird which had those
octavcs in his voiceP At one time his
call is as mellow as a flute note, at
others it ascendS the scale until it be-
comes 50 piercing that one can scarcely
bear it. That bird wouldn't sell for
one hundred dollars. All these Younger
birds about him are his children and
grandchildren. lie is ten years old
and has only five more years to live,
but when he dies am going TO have a
regular funeral for him.
1.-The best canary birds that are i'm
ported from Germany come from the
Tyrol. where the peasants, during tho
long winter nights, amHse themselves
by mating the birds in the fancied
spring time of the cabins interior, and
when the little ones have broken their
shells, send them to the nearest town
and sell them for about ten cents in our
money This may seem cheap, bnt it
isn't to the SPECTATOR, for the little
birds frequently die as soon as they
leave their familiar surroundings, and
the few that are saved cost the dealer
about one dollar each. I'm this city an
imported bird costs five dollars, and n
bird from either of the Canaries, with
all the freshness of their song. ~ valued
at from eight dollars to ten dollars.
The darker colored birds come from
Germany, and are cross-breed of
canary and inch. and as strange as that
may seem, can be taught to whistle al
most anything. A pure blooded ca
md al.
ANYTHING but the recollections of his
own native woodlands. In Germany
the cross-bred birds are taken by few
Of the peasants when just from tho
shell, and arc put into dark closets
Then the peasant whistle no air but one
he has chosen that all the birds should
sing. 1t sometimes requires year of
almost constant whis1ing to effect the
desired result, and in the meantime the
birds becomes blind. But they sing the
one song with mournfuf pertinacty
that is curious reproach 10 the man
that taught il To them. Yes, they enler
this market in the regular course of
trade, and are by no means as rare as
their owners try to make them out
This one you see in the little house
over there can whistle The Linden
Tree, an old German song, perfectly,
but the poor little creature can't do
anything else, and it is indescribahlv
pitiful sometimes to hear that same old
song, repeated with marvellous eXacti-
tude about hundred and fifty times
day. Still there is demand for the
birds, and | sell them at fifty dollars
each. We order these birds from the
other side, and when any lady comes 10
us and says, Mr.. Blank, ! want you to
get me y bird which will sing Sweet
Niolets, or any new song, Isimply have
a bird trained or if have one on hand,
! sell 1t 10 her for double the ordinary
price.
''Not all of these little birds that are
trained in this way live through the or
deal of darkness to which they are sub
jected. Sometimes they actually 90
mad and strangle themselves through
the bars of their cages. This is a fact.
however strange it may seem, and of n
dozen birds that are put to school, as
we call 1t, we seldom succeed in train
ing more than two. In South Germany
they have regular nurseries of these
birds. where they are bred all the year
around. One nursery in Slesia turns
out scyenty-eight thousand birds year.
which allowing ten per cent. for deaths,
and twenty-five cents each for exp0rta-
ton, leaves a gross income of nearly
eighteen thousand dollars a wear, which
is very fair income to be derived from
canary birds alone. There are also
several of these canary factories in the
Tyrol. The bird breeds four or five
times each year, laying about six eggs
each time, so YOU see that from one
pair of birds the breeder can get nearly
thirty others each year under favorable
circumstances. Even in the city large
number of German families who have
brought their pets with them to this
country add considerable to their in
come by breeding and selling these
charming little birds. How long have
| known tbam to livnp WhV I hoI ono