The Savannah morning news., 1901-10-25
QUEENS PET BIRDS.
RANTAMs, HAMBURGs AND PIGEONS
ADMIRED BY ALEXANDRA.

ADMIRED BY ALEXANDRA.
Royal Aviary at Frogmore-Ehor-
nous Cages Containing Ingenious
Tree ARRANGEMENTS to DeIude the
Occupants Into Thinking They Are
in Their Forest Home.
From the Milwaukee Sentinel
One of Queen Alexandra's obiter dicta
is that those who do not know how to
take care of pets ought not to be al
lowed to keep them.
How does her Majesty keep hers?
The royal aviary at Sandringham is
che of the most delightful in the world.
Close to the kennels there stands a
dainty house of brick and glass with
verdure clad, and with its entry half
concealed by a glory of rose blossoms
Within its cool walls there may be
seen wire cage, resting upon pedes-
tai two feet from the ground. By this
means its inhabitants are brought
within easy reach of the fair hand OF
their mistress, who ever delights TO
visit them when making her morning
rounds, enswathed in a useful linen
apron, whose roomy pockets are cum
ningly contrived to hold enough bread
and biscuit and sugar cubes for pet
army. Within the cage there is an in
genious arrangement of tree stems and
branches for the comfort of the score
of snow-white doves that have lived
there for many a year, and seem to
look forward with affectionate loyalty
to the hour when they are permitted
-. ,~arf, har- CHI ND 20 a
i'll her arms.
Home of the Doves.
BY the side of this cage there is an
ether, once a monkey house, which was
diverted to it's present more charming
use by the wish of the queen. 1t is
the home of some more of her doves,
and also of colony of tiny twittering
Australian birds.
When the Princess Charles of Den
mark was a tiny child she was photo
graphed one day with a stuffed dove
in her hand, and few portraits of the
queen herself have been more popular
in their time.
The tanning of her pets in one of her
Majesty's especial hobbies. Once there
stayed with her as guest at Sandring-
ham young girl, who, when seeing
the then Princess of Wales feeding her
birds, was stricken with a remoreful
memory of forgotten duty. She had
omitted to give directions for a pet
"bulie' to be cared for in her absence.
She unburdened herself to her august
hostess, who at once caused a telegram
to be dispatched for the bird to be
sent over post-haste to Sandringham.
Cookie"
All the world has heard of the auda-
cious cockatoo, answering to the sob
riquet of Cookie" who for many a
long year was installed in solitary
state in her Majesty's dressing room
But it's screeching was a sore trial to
the household generally, and home
was accordingly found for it in the
residence of Mr. Brundsdon, the capa-
BILE kennelman.
This bird, which should not be con-
founded with a still more famous one
that lived many years ago at Sandring-
ham and was relic from the Georgian
era, would not permit no familiarities
except from the hand of its sympathe-
tic owner, who would gravely stroke
its denuded poll and chide it for the
dissolute habit it had of plucking out
it's feathers in summer time. Cookie
used to amuse himself in battle royal
of oratory aimed at the little green
parrot which was picked up by his
Majesty one day from a boy who was
offering it for sale in Trafalgar square.
Now Raises Poultry.
In recent years, under the incentive
of Lady Alington's enthusiasm, her
Majesty has devoted her attention to
poultry. Her bantams have won many
a prize at Watford and elsewhere, and
it is a charming custom of hers TO
foster cottage poultry rearing by send
l. 1T
shows in Norfolk. Her Majesty does
not encourage the destruction of rare
visitants, and they seem to understand
that they have nothing to fear from
the keepers of the Sandringham de-
mesne. Hence it is that the woodlands
round Wolferton and the leafy glades
by Appleton House are the home of
many feathered songsters. Their ma
jesties have never cared to surround
themselves with stuffed specimens
merely because of their rarity, and all
specimens of geological value are pre-
scented to the Natural History Museum
The royal aviary at Frogmore now
comes into the possession of the Queen
and it's resources are to be developed
along the lines of her own preferences
| Two hundred feet in length, 1t COM
| prises eighteen poultry runs, and the
| upper part of the building is designed
as a pigeon loft. Here, perhaps his
Majesty may keep some of the racing
| pigeons to which he has been devoting
some attention of late. and the pouters
| tumblers and turtles which are at pre-
sent in residence to the number oil
about seventy. may be to some extent
gradually displaced. The fowls include
pen of silver-spangled Hamburgs
The egg production of the royal aviary
for many years has averaged an an
nual out put of 10000.
|
KINGS AND THEIR DINNERS.