rough a fine hose
every morning, but in the winter do so only when he asks for a bath by
trying to get into the water basin. As to talking, parrots will pick
up far more readily any words they hear by accident than any that you
set yourself to teach them. They will also get by heart in this way a
few bars of a whistled tune. When parrots are apparently spiteful it
often proceeds much more from nervousness than from vice. If
frightened they will peck anything near them. It is important to have
a thick baize cover for your parrot's cage, and to put this over it
directly the lamps are lit.

Smaller Cage Birds

Before coming to the different kinds of birds which you can keep, a
few general words about their care ought to be said. Remember that
with them, as with all pets, the most important of all rules is
perfect cleanliness. The best cages are wooden ones with unpainted
wires, and the perches should be of different thicknesses, as, if they
are all one size, the bird is likely to get cramp in his feet. Once in
a week at least the perches and tray should be scrubbed with very hot
water with soda in it, but they must be dried thoroughly before they
are put back into the cage; therefore if possible it is best to have
two sets of perches and to use them alternately. A thick layer of red
sand or shell gravel should be sprinkled on the tray, and occasionally
a pinch of maw-seed thrown on it.

Baths

All birds should have a bath given them. They like best a shallow
glass dish, which should be put in the cage when the tray is out. It
is a good plan to put a biscuit-tin lid on the floor of the cage to
prevent the bird from making the woodwork wet. Other rules in the care
of all birds are--never let them be in a draught, but do not keep
them in a very warm place. Cover them with a white cloth at night, and
in cold weather put a shawl over that.

Food

Seed-eating birds do best if they are fed on canary seed and a little
summer rape, with now and then a few hemp-seeds, some Hartz mountain
bread, and a bit of groundsel or water-cress that has been well
washed. If they look dull and sit in a puffed-up little heap, a drop
of brandy in their water often does good; and, should they show signs
of asthma, try chopped, hard-boiled egg, with a few grains of cayenne
pepper, and a bit of saffron or a rusty nail in the water. These are
also good when the bird is moulting. For insect-eating birds you must
buy meal-worms and ants' e