The Press., 1888-02-16
THE CANARY BIRD.
THE GRAY, THE YELLOW, ,THEsNHlTE,
 RLACKISA AND CHESTNUT.

RLAcKlSA AND CHESTNUT.
 How to Choose Sweet Singer of the
 Fortunate Isles Home Breeding and
 Feeding of the Birdlings-Raising the
 Young by Hand.
 Among the different tribes of song birds the canary has long been established as the favorite, it's melodious song, beautiful plu- mage and domestic habits having won for it place in every household, and gained for it the name of the universal parlor bird.n The Canary Islands are the most frequented haunts of the species According to the obser- vations of Adamson, Labillardie and others the prevailing color of the bird in it's wild state is gray or brown, mingled with other colors, but never reaching the brilliancy of plumage exhibited by the bird in captivity. The introduction of the canary into Europe is stated by some to have taken place in the Fourteenth century, but Bechstein sets it down as the beginning of the Sixteenth.
 The principal varieties are the gray, the yellow, the white, the blackish and the chest nut, and it is from their combination that we derive the numerous varieties known to breeders Those canaries that have the upper part of the body of dusky green or linnet
 
 of the green bird, with dark brown eyes, are the strongest, and most nearly resemble the | primitive bird The yellow and white often have red eyes, and are the most tender. The chestnuts arc the most common, and hold a middle rank for strength and length of time between the two extremes. As the plumage of the intermediate varieties is mixture of the principal colors enumerated, their value depends on the pretty and regular manner in | T. TA mitted by competent authorities that the canary most admired among fanciers is the one with the body white or yellow; the head particularly if crested-wings and tail yellowish dun. The second in degree isof a golden yellow, with the head, wings and tail black, or at least dusky gray. Next follow the gray or blackish, with yellow head and collar, and the yellow, with & blackish or green tuft, which is very much valued Those that are irregularly spotted, speckled or variegated are much less sought after than I the others, and are used to pair with those of one color, such as white, yellow gray or gray brown.
 The canary breeds freely with allied ,spe- cies of birds, aud many hybrids are recog- nlzed by breeders, among them being the following: Mules bred from the hen canary and a goldfnch, male siSkin, greenbird or cltri1fnch, as well as those bred from a hen canary and hnnet or bull1nch, Besides those chafhnches, yellow hammers and other birds have been tried, but have not proved successful In all recorded instances where mules have been bred the canary has al ways been the mother, the reason being that female of the other species could not be in duced to lay her eggs in an artificial nest as the canary does. In order to obtain bright and good plumage, those birds whose colors Vzyh0 cV1<Oku T should be placed together. A brownish gray or greenish bird paired with one of a lively yellow color often produces young of a dim white and other admired colors.
 An eminent authority, in speaking of the choice of bird, says: Sacrifice color to accomplishments; you will never repent it. Nature seldom gives us rare beauty and great accomplishments united" Canaries seldom show @ sulkineSs of disposition. and experience goes to show that this aniability of disposition is quite characteristic of this bird of the Fortunate Isles, whose nature ap- pears to be at sunny and genial as the cline from which it originally came. Although the canary, as a domesticated bird, is the easiest of all others to take care of and his treatment the most simple, there are many persons whose ideas on this subject are very limited.
 As to their food, the more simple and nat ural has been always found to be the most productive of good health and cheerfulness; while, on the other hand, mixtures, intro duced by many, such as hemp, oatmeal, oats, sugar, sweet cake biscuit and such like, so far from being wholesome are injurious The main point is to obtain pure and fresh seed for them. Rape seed, when old or kept too long in damp place, becomes musty, | gets bitter taste and won't agree at all with i birds. The canary seed must be clean and of glossy hue, feel heavy, to be free from musty smell and have sweet taste. | Persons keeping canaries for their singing should keep them in cages of about foot in diameter, either round or square, as in a large cage they will not sing so we'll, having too much room to fly about and amuse- themselves, which, in 8 great degree, takes away their attention from singing. 1t is not necessary to keep these birds in very warm room in the winter season, as they can endure great deal of cold without injury. but they should be kept in as equal a tenn perature possible. A short time before the birds are put to breed they should be fed with higher food, such as hard boiled egg, chopped up fine, white and yolk together, exclusive of their general seed.
 Good birds, when put together, will gener- ally mate within a week, which is essily KnOWn Dy Cnelr aGCenGlOn to each other. After mating they commence building zthe nest, and in about week the hen begins to lay from two to six eggs, one each day in succession, which she will sit thirteen days, when the young ones will come out, one after the other It is wrong to take the eggs from under her while she is laying, for the purpose of matching them at one time; it is best to let nature have it's way in this case.
 AS soon as the little ones are matched they may be fed, beside their general seed with egg boiled hard, chopped up fine and an equal quantity of grated cracker, mixed together with the egg and boiled milk into a9paste. This food must be given to them fresh three or four times day, for the old birds will be more inclined to feed the young when fresh food is handed them. An extra cup should be handed them containing soaked rape seed.
 It is sometimes necessary to bring up young canaries by hand, and then a paste should be made of stale bread or biscuit, pounded very fine, rape seed well bruised, little of the boiled yolk of an egg and some water. They should be fed with quill cut into the shape of a spoon, and should not have less than ten or twelve meals day, four beakfuls consti- tuting meal.
 ''On the thirteenth day, i" says Bechstein, great German authority, ''they will begin to feed themselves, and in four weeks they may be removed to other cages. Care should be taken, however, to supply them for some %ho c%o