Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-09-08

] ,M@NNt many times when b
| MNW&WRUWH man would rather go
| ~ tASN - out and talk to his
| f,t CYSHt-3 horse than listen 40
| Ky the conversation of
| ~ his next door neigh
| Dor. and plenty of women lavish more time
and affection, it is said. on their poodles
1 than they do on their husbands and children.
+ One advantage about an animal is that 1t
can't talk back. Furthermore a persons
animal friends never bother him in uh-r
| pleasant and embarrassing ways They
never touch him for the use of a v, advise
/ him how to shake off his cold nor harrow
! him with description and detailed treatise
| on the beauties and accomplishments of
| their latest infant. tr-.
A writer for The Star had a talk with a
| bird dealer the other day and picked UP
| some entertaining facts about cage birds
and other pets of the household. Few per-
sons, it seems, really understand much
| about the birds which they care for. Ignor-
| ance and neglect is the cause of many
deaths among cage birds, which might
I otherwise have been avoided. AS the lion
| is the king of beasts so the canary is the
| king of tanned birds. Its sweet singing
wins its way to the hearts of thousands
and ii can be found anywhere and every
where. The canary has been a pet ever
since the commencement of the sixteenth
century, steadily increasing in popula -ity
from the first. There Is no bird which has
proved easier to domesticate and raise.
The Canary Islands. as all know, were the
original home of the canary, and they ARE
now found to some extent in wild state
on the islands off the west coast of Africa,
but are rarely brought to civilized coun-
tries on account of their inferiority. in
every way to the domesticated bird. 1t is a
common belief with some that the wild
birds are Imported t0this country and else
where but this is inettthe case. The canary
of today is domessc bird, bred in local
titles where The people make their living by
the business. EaehD variety has in that
tway a nation alitygh and the birds Of one
are easily distingutshrbe from those of an
fother. evss '''.''-"
|, Where Cnnss rE&s Are Reared. ,.f.
[ Most of the can9ries of the world come
f,cm Germany. and the most of these
| from the Hartz ITpyntains. All through
that section the Inhabitants earn their
bread in raising Gagsyies, and the industry
is Carried on by persons who have made 1t
| a lifelong study, anA whose fathers were
engaged in it before them. The raising of
canaries Is no easy Task. and in order 20
produce sweet sinaertD great pains must- 10
| taken with each 'tDdiyidual bird. The little
Village Of ST. Ambassadors, perched almost
at the summit OF the Eartz mountains,
| sends out the most wonderful singers of
any place in the world. and is known by all
| bird lovers. The village itself has long been
! a resort TO- persons with lung and throat
troubles. and its air has done marvels with
the voice OF the canary. The St. Andreas-
| berg canary has nothing in the way of an
pearance to recommend itself. 1t Is smal,o
and poor-looking. but when once it opens
| its throat the conquest is made. The pure,
| liquid and widely ranging notes of these
birds when rightly trained make them
| sought for everywhere, and they command
| large sums Of money in many cases. The
revenue of the village is derived from the
| breeding and training of these famous sing
| ers and their training has been brought
down TO a very fine point
Each bird, when young, is put with some
other bird with a perfectly developed voice
simple tunes are commonly played to il on
the piano or flute and great care is taken
that 1t hears no harsh or dscordant sounds
The birds are fed on rape seed and most
attentively watched. Only about 10 per
cent OF them ever become perfect singers.
however. Although the German canaries
have no rivals singers, the English or
Norwich canaries are valued by some peo-
pie on account of their good size and beau
Etui piumage, although they are very in
different songsters.
The question Is sometimes asked. said
the bird dealer. AS to whether a canary
can be made to sing at night by gaslight
Ibis can be accomplished in many cases by
simply covering the cage of the bird during
the day and letting it remain in darkness
until night. 1t can be trained in this wav
to sing by gaslight In the same way. If
the singing of a bird should for any reason
be annoying during the day. 1t can easily
De stopped by darkening the cage with a
cover.
Care of the Birds
canary bird will usually live to be about
ten years oil They have been known to
live as old as twenty. but this is rare More
canaries are lost every year, according to
the bird man. from being hung up in
draughts than from any other cause Care
should always be taken in regard to this as
canary easily catches cold and dies. Many
birds, too are lost during tie moulting sea-
son, often ftom ignorance as to thei- care
or proper feeding. Good bird seed for ca
na:ies should consist OF German rape mixed
with Sicily car cry seed. In the cheap seeds
there Is great quantity of millet, which is
worthless. and is never touched by the
Dirds. In mounting time canary should be
supplied with the right So. of food and in
addition, with some special tonic prepared
for that purpose canary should not be
given any meat, but should have frequently
such things as lettuce, celery. apple, boiled
egg, crackers, and the like Candy and 9TH
er dainties are apt to be injurious. Cutie
iish should always be kept in cage and
| there sh ould be plenty of sand in the bot
food. 40 e'nl
Many canaries Eth e fail to sing at all, o.
| sing some harsh ana Unpleasant notes and
nothing eise. and H9fsAs due 20 the fact that
| they were not traHtaa' as they should nave.
been when they Wtres young, but were al
lowed lowe to-, to learn frsla 3hperfect singers kept
There are some 5er96ns to whom the ca
nary, with its swtset Singing naturally ap-
peals, hut, again, there are others for whom 4
1t has few charms, and who would vastly
prefer the company of a parrot With Its
powers of convers9ti4n and it's queer ways.
The singing of i icaiqary bird is pleasant
and sometimes rearlSartistic. and it holds
,ts ground by the eawer Of its voice.
- Popularity al the Parrot.
Next to the canAryG however, comes the
parrot in point of Popularity. The parrot is
especially the pet cit her of chiidrea or Of
elderly people. The human clement about a
parrot is undoubtedly what has paved its
way to the heart of most people. 1t has no
rival in this respect, unless it be the mon
key and its powers of conversation place IL
above the monkey. AS a taiker, 1T stands
practically alone. In addition to its powers
of conversation, the parrot is a delightful
companion in many other ways. IL; droll
appearance, its keen understanding, its love
of fun and habit of playing tricks. apparent.
ly, with malice aforethoIght, make 1t al
ways amusing, and sometimes equally an
noying. Taken all in all, the parrot is "a
queer kind of bird. The parrot is a trCpi-
cal bird, the most of those that come to this
country being imported from Cuba, Mexico
in M ham