a solace and joy during our life on earth.

The taming of pets requires a good many different qualities--much
patience, a very quiet manner, and a cheery way of talking to the little
creatures we desire to win into friendship with us; it is wonderful how
that prevents needless terrors.

There are no secrets that I am aware of in taming anything, but love and
gentleness. Directly a bird flutters, one must stop and speak kindly;
the human voice has wonderful power over all animated nature, and then
try to see what is the cause of alarm, and remove it if possible. In
entering a room where your pet is, always speak to it, and by the time
you have led it to give an answering chirp, the taming will go on
rapidly, because there is an understanding between you, and the little
lonely bird feels it has a friend, and takes you instead of its
feathered companions, and begins to delight in your company.

A person going silently to a cage and dragging out the bottom tray will
frighten any bird into flutterings of alarm, which effectually hinders
any taming going on; but approach gently, talking to the bird by name,
pull the tray quietly a little way, and then stop and speak, and so draw
it out by degrees and the thing is done, and no fright experienced. A
better way still is to have a second cage, and let birdie hop into that
while you clean the other, and then it is amusing to see the pleasure
and curiosity shown on his return when he finds fresh seed, pure water,
and some dainty green food supplied; the loud chirpings tell of great
delight and satisfaction, and the dreaded process is at last looked
forward to as a time of recreation. It is much best that one person only
should attend to the needs of a pet; indeed, I doubt if taming can ever
go on satisfactorily unless this rule is observed; a bird is perplexed
and scared if plans are changed, and, not knowing what is required of
him, he grows flurried, and the training of weeks past may be undone in
a single day.

Only those who have tried to educate birds can have any idea of the way
in which their little minds will respond to affectionate treatment shown
in a sensible way. They have a language of their own which we must set
ourselves to learn if we would be _en rapport_ with them. Their
different chirpings each mean something, and a little observation will
soon show what it is; for instance, my canary fairly shrieks when she
sees lettuce on the breakfast-table, and her gratefu