, 1888-05-20

ibis, the cat bird and the humming bird, OF
which there are said to be sixty varieties
in Cuba. All of these birds were to be
seen or heard hereabout, and besides |
passed many u charming hour in the &C.
quaintance of as many more, all of which
regarded the plantation trees, shrubs and
hedges theirs as surely as their human
owners. Among these were the follow
ing:
The solviros, which live by sucking
honey from the flowers. They have
brilliant green Jackets with yellow vests.
As large as our robin, they live in gourd-
shaped, double-windowed nests attached
to the under side of large tropic leaves.
The male is r%uminative; but its mate is
full of joyous song. The mayitos are as
large as our southern mocking-bird. and
in form and action resemble them. Their
backs are blue BLACK; and they have
gorgeous yellow breasts, and a yellow
slashing along each wing. Their songs
are precisely like those of the canary, but
holder and stronger. The negritos are
here called the black canary birds. Their
wings have a few dainty white feathers
and their singing is marvellous. The
are delightful inhabitants of the
shorter Cuban grasses, and have the form
of our thrush, with dark puce- brown
feathers, delicately notified, clinging. close
to the frame; and their CHEEKY chatter is
endless. Other frequenters of the ground
and grasses about plantation houses are
the totises and the chinchin-guacos. They
are alike black, and in their resemblance
to the American black bird in form and
movement. Both are melodious but noisy.
They flock in great numbers and cry
"Ki-ee-iRgl i XII zee ing l-ki-ee mgl"
with the rythmic modulations of silver
bells. First, the totises sound their
triple notes, with rising scale, as if ques
tioning. Then from hundreds of hidden
places answer is made in descending
scale, by the chinchinguacos. The
notes are almost identical; simply
reversed. A singular fact is that
when the former sing their tails
spread laterally, and the latter, perpen-
dicularly. Thousands at one time will
flock about these home-spots, ringing
these bird-voice chimes until the din is
often startling. The cabreros are between
the mocking bird and the canary in size
and are very beautiful. They are a mot
tied black, yellow and red in color. One
of their interesting characteristics is to
eat so freely as to barely enable them to
remain Upon branch of shrub and then
twitter and sing with wondrous and plain
tive sweetness. Two dainty species are
the tomegrines del pinar and the pioreras.
Both are much smaller than tie small
lest canary, and but n trifle larger than
the humming bird. For its size the for
mer is the most striking plumage of all
Cuban birds. With a Robin Hood jacket
of the brightest green, its breast is set
with a silver crescent, while a cleaning
black, plume-like comb surmounts its tiny
head. Its notes are similar to those of
the American robin, but with more of the
picolo in them than the flute. The pic.
rera is smaller with a black and white
back, a white breast and a red neck. He
is an incessant singer, with a pretty vari.
ETY. of trilled notes.
But the %zorales are the buffoons OF
these plantation choristers. They are the
size of our wrens, of ash color, notified
with black and yellow, with yellow bills
and feet. Their impish activity is as
founding. Differing from the crow, mag
pie and hooking bird, they possess many
of the qualities of each; though their
gibes, taunts and teasings seem directed
against other birds, rather than humans.
Their initiative powers are marvellous.
They will mock the notes of all song birds
to a nicely of tone and meditation, and
their range Of mimIcry reaches to fair i'm,
itation Of the whinneying of a horse; whilt
their saucy pranks are supported by NOR,
than bravado, for while each is a con
firmed barrator in bird strife, the rascal
are without exception undaunted fight
ers.
The old homestead of my host was @
the average pattern of hundreds of other
in this portion of Cuba.
So far as one could see, the structur
itself and daily life within and around ii
could not have been more disturbed b
the uprisings and revolutions which hav
so long rent the unfortunate island, thai
by the present state of seige which tn
tyrant Marin recently declared upon fou
of the most important Cuban provinces
One fancies it could have been seen Jus
as It now is centuries ago, and that centu-
ries can bring it no change. This one and
all Others of pretension hereabout arr
built of the porous Cuban stone, which
hardens from exposure. They are i'm.
mensely large in ground area, and but
n lofty story in height, though under
the center of the roof there is a guardilla
or garnet, which the great New England
"hipped' roof cannot anywhere equal.
Set up a few feet from the ground on
large square stone pillars, permitting free
passage of the air underneath, as with
many olden Southern plantation houses,
huge beams of guabrahaca wood rest upon
these, and upon this foundation walls are
laid.
From the high peak the roof descends
in a long concaye sweep not only to the
side walls, but twenty feet beyond for the
covering of porches so broad that, en-.
closed as they are, at will, by immense
reed woven bilimbos or screens, they
practically become spacious additions to
the living rooms of the house. At the
two other sides the same sort of bellying
roofs curve downward and outward, GOV.
ering other immense verandas, so that the
already large house is entirely surrounded
by these extraordinary porches. From a
distance the structure seems all roof; and
this roof, which is laid with alternate con
yex and concave thing, is the quaintest
thing you ever saw in its MOSES, puces
and browns, flecked here and there by
dapples of sunlight occasionally breaking
through the laurels and plants.
In these great country dwellings, the
a