e flew away, and he seemed astounded, stood as if he did not
know what to do next, hesitated several minutes, when a bright thought
seemed to strike him, and he carried it to the nest.

The pair in my room were a most affectionate and gentle couple; no
disputes, not even the smallest difference, arose between them. If one
wished to bathe while the other was using the bath-tub, he stood on the
edge till his turn came. In the same way one usually waited for the
other to finish a lunch before going down himself, though on rare
occasions they descended together for a social meal. If she were
alarmed, and went to the floor, as at first sometimes happened, he at
once appeared in the door, looking anxiously after her, and calling
tenderly. If she did not return, he flew down himself, ran about till he
found her, and, after talking in a low tone for some time, started for
home, when she followed him, showing that she was reassured. They always
sat on the same perch, and on cool days as near each other as possible,
first one and then the other "hitching" a little nearer. After bathing
they sunned themselves together, even when in the cage, where the
sunshine came only into one corner, and they crowded so closely that
there was not room to spread out. Even that discomfort never elicited a
harsh word, though he enjoyed spreading himself very completely, bending
his legs, resting his breast on the floor, and opening his wings to
their full extent.

This bird's anxiety when his mate was out of his sight did not, however,
compare with her unrest in his absence, for her affection seemed to be
of the motherly or protecting sort. Before they became familiar with the
room, and learned that, though unseen, the partner was not lost, the
moment he disappeared from view she began running around the cage
excitedly, looking everywhere, and calling loudly. At first he answered,
but, deciding to try his wings, he swept around the room, came--as some
birds do--against the window, and fell to the floor, when instantly both
were perfectly silent. She looked out apprehensively, and as soon as he
recovered breath he flew to the top of their own cage. Then her
solicitude turned to annoyance; she went to the top perch, and gently
nipped his toes (which she never did to strangers) as a slight reproof.
He became accustomed to going out and in sooner than his mate, for she
was shy and inclined to stay at home, and she suffered much anxiety;
before long s