cage should be strewed every morning with clean sand, or rather, fine
gravel, for small pebbles are _absolutely essential_ to life and
health in cage-birds: fresh water must be given every day, both for
drinking and bathing; the latter being in a shallow vessel; and,
during the moulting season, a small bit of iron should be put into the
water for drinking. The food of a canary should consist principally of
_summer_ rape seed that is, of those small _brown_ rape seeds which
are obtained from plants sown in the spring, and which ripen during
the summer; large and _black_ rape seeds, on the contrary, are
produced by such plants as are sown in autumn and reaped in spring. A
little chickweed in spring, lettuce leaves in summer, and endive in
autumn, with slices of sweet apple in winter, may be safely given; but
bread and sugar ought to be generally avoided. Occasionally, also, a
few poppy or canary seeds, and a small quantity of bruised hemp seed
may be added, but the last very sparingly.
Cleanliness, simple food, and fresh but not _cold_ air, are essential
to the well-being of a canary. During the winter, the cage should
never be hung in a room without a fire, but even then, when the air is
mild, and the sun shines bright, the little prisoner will be refreshed
by having the window open. The cage should never be less than eight
inches in diameter, and a foot high, with perches at different heights.
2160. Bullfinches.
Old birds should be fed with German Paste, (_See par_. 2164), and
occasionally rapeseed. The Germans sometimes give them a little
poppy-seed, and a grain or two of rice, steeped in Canary wine, when
teaching them to pipe, as a reward for the progress they make. Bird
organs, or flageolets, are used to teach them. They breed three or
four times a year. The young require to be kept very warm, and to be
fed every two hours with rape seed, soaked for several hours in cold
water, afterwards scalded and strained, bruised, mixed with bread, and
moistened with milk. Not more than one, two, or three mouthfuls should
be given at a time.
2161. Linnets.
Cock birds are browner on the back than the hens, and have some of the
large feathers of the wings white up to the quills. Canary and hemp
seed, with occasionally a little groundsel, water-cress, chickweed,
&c., constitute their food.
2162. Skylarks.
The cock is recognised by the largeness of his eye, the length of his
claws, the mode of erecting his crest, and by marks of white in the
tail. It is also a larger bird than the hen. The cage should be of the
following proportions:--Length, one foot five inches; width, nine
inches; height, one foot three inches. There should be a circular
projection in front to admit of a fresh turf being placed every two or
three days, and the bottom of the cage should be plentifully and
constantly sprinkled with river sand. All vessels containing food
should be placed outside, and the top of the cage should be arched and
padded, so that the bird may not injure itself by jumping about.
Their food, in a natural state, consists of seeds, insects, and also
buds, green herbage, as clover, endive, lettuce, &c., and occasionally
berries. When confined, they are usually fed with a paste made in the
following manner:--Take a portion of bread, well-baked and stale, put
it into fresh water, and leave it until quite soaked through, then
squeeze out the water and pour boiled milk over it, adding two-thirds
of the same quantity of barley meal well sifted, or, what is better,
wheat meal. This should be made fresh every two days. Occasionally the
yolk of a hard-boiled egg should be crumbled small and given to the
birds, as well as a little hemp seed, meal, worms, and elder berries
when they can be got. The cages of these birds should be kept very
clean.
2163. Parrots.
Parrots may best be taught to talk by covering the cage at night, or
rather in the evening, and then repeating to them slowly and
distinctly, the words they are desired to learn. They should not be
kept in places where they are liable to hear disagreeable noises, such
as street cries, and the whistling and shouts of boys at play, for
they will imitate them, and become too noisy to be tolerated. Parrots
may be fed upon soaked bread, biscuit, mashed potatoes, and rape seed.
They are fond of nuts. They should be kept very clean, and allowed a
bath frequently. When parrots appear sickly in any way, it is best to
keep them warm, change their food for a time, and give them lukewarm
water to bathe in.
[SHORT RECKONINGS MAKE LONG FRIENDS.]
2164. German Paste.
Good German paste for cage birds may be made in the following
manner:--Boil four eggs until quite hard, then throw them into cold
water; remove the whites and grate or pound the yolks until quite |
fine, and add a pound of white pea-meal and a tablespoonful of olive
oil. Mix the whole up together, and press the dough through a tin
cullender so as to form it into small grains like shot. Fry these over
a gentle fire, gradually stirring them until of a light brown colour,
when they are fit for use.
2165. Insects in Birdcages.
To keep away insects suspend a little bag of sulphur in the cage. This
is said to be healthful for birds generally, as well as useful in
keeping away insects by which they become infested.
2166. Squirrels.
In a domestic state these little animals are fed with hazel nuts, or
indeed any kind of nuts; and occasionally bread and milk. They should
be kept very clean.
2167. Rabbits.
Rabbits should be kept dry and warm. Their best food is celery,
parsley, and carrots; but they will eat almost any kind of vegetable,
especially the dandelion, milk-thistle, &c. In spring it is
recommended to give them tares. A little bran, and any kind of grain
occasionally is beneficial, as too much green food is very hurtful.
Care should be taken not to over-feed them. When fed upon dry food a
little skim milk is good for them. Tea leaves also, in small
quantities, may be given to them.
2168. White Mice.
White Mice are fed upon bread soaked in milk, peas, oats, beans, &c.,
and any kind of nuts.
2169. Monkeys.
Monkeys feed upon bread, and fruit of any kind. Do not give them
meat, but occasionally they may I have small bones to pick.
2170. Guinea Pigs.
Guinea Pigs very much resemble rabbits in their mode of living, and
may be treated in much the same manner. They should be kept dry,
warm, and very clean.
2171. To Fatten Poultry.
Poultry should be fattened in coops, and kept very clean. They should
be furnished with gravel, but with no water, except that with which
their only food, barley-meal, is mixed. Their thirst makes them eat
more than they would, in order to extract the moisture from the food.
This should not be put in troughs, but laid upon a board, which should
be washed clean every time fresh food is put upon it.
2172. To Fatten Fowls in a Short Time.
Mix together ground rice well scalded with milk, and add some coarse
sugar. Feed them with this in the daytime, but do not give them too
much at once; let it be rather thick.
2173. Egg Shells for Poultry.
It is a bad thing to give fowls egg-shells. They supply nothing that
is not equally well furnished by lime, and especially bricklayers'
rubbish, old ceilings, &c. Never do anything that has a tendency to
make them eat eggs. They are apt scholars. If they find worms in a
natural way they are good food, but it is a bad plan to give them by
the handful.
2174. Gold Fish.
Great care must be taken of gold fish, as they are very sensitive; and
hence a loud noise, strong smell, violent or even slight shaking of
the vessel, will sometimes destroy them. Small worms, which are common
to the water, suffice for their food in general, but the Chinese, who
bring gold fish to great perfection, throw small balls of paste into
the water, of which they are very fond. They give them also lean pork,
dried in the sun, and reduced to a very fine and delicate powder.
Fresh river-water should be given them frequently, if possible.
Gold-fish seldom deposit spawn when kept in glass-vessels. In order to
procure a supply, they must be put into reservoirs of a considerable
depth, in some part at least, well shaded at intervals with
water-lilies, and constantly supplied with fresh water.
[FIRST BE JUST, THEN YOU MAY BE GENEROUS.]
2175. Dogs.
The best way to keep dogs healthy is to let them have plenty of
exercise, and not to over-feed them. Let them at all times have a
plentiful supply of clean water, and encourage them to take to
swimming, as it assists their cleanliness. Naldire's soap is
recommended as highly efficacious in ridding dogs of fleas. After
using any soap rinse it well off with clean water. Properly treated,
dogs should be fed only once a day. Meat boiled for dogs, and the
liquor in which it is boiled thickened with barley meal, or oatmeal,
forms capital food.
2176. Distemper in Dogs.
The distemper is liable to attack dogs from four months to four years
old. It prevails most in spring and autumn. The disease is known by
dulness of the eye, husky cough, shivering, loss of appetite and
spirits, and fits. When fits occur, the dog will most likely die,
unless a veterinary surgeon be called in. During the distemper, dogs
should be allowed to run on the grass; their diet should be spare; and
a little sulphur be placed in their water. Chemists who dispense
cattle medicines can generally advise with sufficient safety upon the
diseases of dugs, and it is best for unskilful persons to abstain from
physicing them. In many diseases dogs will be benefited by warm baths.
2177. Hydrophobia in Dogs.
Hydrophobia is the most dreadful of all diseases. The first symptoms
are attended by thirst, fever, and languor. The dog starts
convulsively in his sleep, and when awake, though restless, is
languid. When a dog is suspected, he should he firmly chained in a
place where neither children nor dogs nor cats can get near him. Any
one going to attend him should wear thick leather gloves, and proceed
with great caution. When a dog snaps savagely at an imaginary object,
it is almost a certain indication of madness; and when it exhibits a
terror of fluids, it is confirmed hydrophobia. Some dogs exhibit a
great dislike of musical sounds, and when this is the case they are
too frequently made sport of. But it is a dangerous sport, as dogs
have sometimes been driven mad by it.
2178. Mange in Dogs.
The mange is a contagious disease, which it is difficult to get rid of
when once contracted. The best way is to apply to a veterinary chemist
for an ointment, and to keep applying it for some time after the
disease has disappeared, or it will break out again.
2179. Cats.
It is generally supposed that cats are more attached to places than to
individuals, but this is an error. They obstinately cling to certain
places, because it is there they expect to see the persons to whom
they are attached. A cat will return to an empty house, and remain in
it many weeks. But when at last she finds that the family does not
return, she strays away, and if she chance then to find the family,
she will abide with them. The same rules of feeding which apply to
dogs apply also to cats. They should not be over-fed, nor too
frequently. Cats are liable to the same diseases as dogs; though they
do not become ill so frequently. A little brimstone in their milk
occasionally is a good preventive. The veterinary chemist will also
prescribe for the serious diseases of cats.
2180. Choice of Friends.
Dr. Blair has said:
"We should ever have it fixed in our memories, that _by the
character of those whom we choose for our friends our own character
is likely to be formed_, and will certainly be judged of by the
world. We ought, therefore, to be slow and cautious in contracting
intimacy; but when a virtuous friendship is once established, we
must ever consider it as a sacred engagement."
2181. Words.
Soft words soften the soul--angry words are fuel to the flame of
wrath, and make it blaze more freely. Kind words make other people
good-natured--cold words freeze people, and hot words scorch them, and
bitter words make them bitter, and wrathful words make wrathful. There
is such a rush of all other kinds of words in our days, that it seems
desirable to give kind words a chance among them. There are vain
words, and idle words, and hasty words, and spiteful words, and silly
words, and empty words, and profane words, and boisterous words, and
warlike words. Kind words also produce their own image on men's souls,
and a beautiful image it is. They smooth, and quiet, and comfort the
hearer. They shame him out of his sour, and morose, and unkind
feelings. We have not yet begun to use kind words in such abundance as
they ought to be used.
2182. Gossiping.
If you wish to cultivate a gossiping, meddling, censorious spirit in
your children, be sure when they come home from church, a visit, or
any other place where you do not accompany them, to ply them with
questions concerning what everybody wore, how everybody looked, and
what everybody said and did; and if you find anything in this to
censure, always do it in their hearing. You may rest assured, if you
pursue a course of this kind, they will not return to you unladen with
intelligence; and rather than it should be uninteresting, they will by
degrees learn to embellish, in such a manner as shall not fail to call
forth remarks and expressions of wonder from you. You will, by this
course, render the spirit of curiosity, which is so early visible in
children, and which, if rightly directed, may be made the instrument
of enriching and enlarging their minds, a vehicle of mischief which
will serve only to narrow them.
2183. Rules of Conduct.
The following rules of conduct were drawn up by Mrs. Fry, who combined
in her character and conduct all that is truly excellent in woman:
i. Never lose any time,--I do not think that time lost which is
spent in amusement or recreation some part of each day; but always
be in the habit of being employed.
ii. Never err the least in truth.
iii. Never say an ill thing of a person when thou canst say a good
thing of him; not only speak charitably, but feel so.
iv. Never be irritable or unkind to anybody.
v. Never indulge thyself in luxuries that are not necessary.
vi. Do all things with consideration; and when thy path to act right
is most difficult, feel confidence in that Power alone which is able
to assist thee, and exert thy own powers as far as they go.
2184. The Female Temper.
No trait of character is more agreeable in a female than the
possession of a sweet temper. Home can never be happy without it. It
is like the flowers that spring up in our pathway, reviving and
cheering us. Let a man go home at night, wearied and worn by the toils
of the day, and how soothing is a word dictated by a good disposition!
It is sunshine falling on his heart. He is happy, and the cares of
life are forgotten. A sweet temper has a soothing influence over the
minds of a whole family. Where it is found in the wife and mother, you
observe a kindness and love predominating over the natural feelings of
a bad heart. Smiles, kind words and looks, characterize the children,
and peace and love have their dwelling there. Study, then, to acquire
and maintain a sweet temper.
2185. Counsels for the Young.
i. Never be cast down by trifles. If a spider break his thread
twenty times, he will mend it again as often.
ii. Make up your mind to do a thing, and you will do it.
iii. Fear not if a trouble comes upon you; keep up your spirits,
though the day be a dark one. If the sun is going down, look up to
the stars. If the earth is dark, keep your eye on heaven. With God's
promises, a man or a child may be cheerful.
iv. Mind what you run after. Never be content with a bubble that
will burst--firewood that will end in smoke and darkness. Get that
which you can keep, and which is worth keeping.
v. Fight hard against a hasty temper. Anger will come, but resist it
strongly. A fit of passion may give you cause to mourn all the days
of your life.
vi. Never revenge an injury. If you have an enemy, act kindly to
him, and make him your friend. You may not win him over at once, but
try again. Let one kindness be followed by another, till you have
compassed your end. By little and little, great things are
completed; and repeated kindness will soften the heart of stone.
vii. Whatever you do, do it willingly. A boy that is whipped to
school never learns his lessons well. A man who is compelled to work
cares not how badly it is performed. He that pulls off his coat
cheerfully, turns up his sleeves in earnest, and sings while he
works, is the man of action.
2186. Advice to Young Ladies.
i. If you have blue eyes you need not languish: if black eyes, you
need not stare.
ii. If you have pretty feet there is no occasion to wear short
petticoats: if you are doubtful as to that point, there can be no
harm in letting the petticoats be long.
iii. If you have good teeth, do not laugh in order to show them: if
bad teeth do not laugh less than the occasion may warrant.
iv. If you have pretty hands and arms, you may play on the harp if
you play well: if they are disposed to be clumsy, work tapestry.
v. If you have a bad voice, speak in a subdued tone: if you have the
finest voice in the world, never speak in a high tone.
vi. If you dance well, dance but seldom; if ill, never dance at all.
vii. If you sing well, make no previous excuses: if indifferently,
do not hesitate when you are asked, for few people are judges of
singing, but every one is sensible of a desire to please.
viii. To preserve beauty, rise early.
ix. To preserve esteem, be gentle.
x. To obtain power, be condescending.
xi. To live happily, try to promote the happiness of others.
2187. Daughters.
Mothers who wish not only to discharge well their own duties in the
domestic circle, but to train up their daughters for a later day to
make happy and comfortable firesides for their families, should watch
well, and guard well, the notions which they imbibe and with which
they grow up. There will be many persons ready to fill their young
heads with false and vain fancies, and there is so much always afloat
in society opposed to duty and common sense, that if mothers do not
watch well, their children may contract ideas very fatal to their
future happiness and usefulness, and hold them till they grow into
habits of thought or feeling. A wise mother will have her eyes open,
and be ready for every emergency. A few words of common, downright
practical sense, timely uttered by her, may be enough to counteract
some foolish idea or belief put into her daughter's head by others,
whilst if it be left unchecked, it may take such possession of the
mind that it cannot be corrected at a later time.
One false notion rife in the present age is the idea that women,
unless compelled to it by absolute poverty, are out of place when
engaged in domestic affairs. Now mothers should have a care lest their
daughters get hold of this conviction as regard themselves--there is
danger of it; the fashion of the day engenders it, and even the care
that an affectionate family take to keep a girl, during the time of
her education, free from other occupations than those of her tasks, or
her recreations, may lead her to infer that the matters with which she
is never asked to concern herself are, in fact, no concern to her, and
that any attention she may ever bestow on them is not a matter of
simple duty, but of grace, or concession, or stooping, on her part.
Let mothers bring up their daughters from the _first_ with the idea
that in this world it is required to give as well as to receive, to
minister as well as to enjoy; that every person is bound to be useful
in his own sphere, and that a woman's first sphere is the house, and
its concerns and demands. Once really imbued with this belief, a young
girl will usually be anxious to learn all that her mother is disposed
to teach, and will be proud and happy to aid in any domestic
occupations assigned to her. These need never be made so heavy as to
interfere with the peculiar duties or enjoyments of her age. If a
mother wishes to see her daughter become a good, happy, and rational
woman, never let there be contempt for domestic occupations, or suffer
them to be deemed secondary.
2188. A Wife's Power.
The power of a wife for good or evil is irresistible. Home must be the
seat of happiness, or it must be for ever unknown. A good wife is to a
man wisdom, and courage, and strength, and endurance. A bad wife is
confusion, weakness, discomfiture, and despair. No condition is
hopeless where the wife possesses firmness, decision, and economy.
There is no outward prosperity which can counteract indolence,
extravagance, and folly at home. No spirit can long endure bad
domestic influence. Man is strong, but his heart is not adamant. He
delights in enterprise and action; but to sustain him he needs a
tranquil mind, and a whole heart. He needs his moral force in the
conflicts of the world. To recover his equanimity and composure, home
must be to him a place of repose, of peace, of cheerfulness, of
comfort; and his soul renews its strength again, and goes forth with
fresh vigour to encounter the labour and troubles of life. But if at
home he find no rest, and is there met with bad temper, sullenness, or
gloom, or is assailed by discontent or complaint, hope vanishes, and
he sinks into despair.
2189. Husband and Wife.
Being hints to each other for the good of both, as actually delivered
at our own table:
2190. Hints for Wives (1).
If your husband occasionally looks a little troubled when he comes
home, do not say to him, with an alarmed countenance, "What ails you,
my dear?" Don't bother him; he will tell you of his own accord, if
need be. Be observant and quiet. Let him alone until he is inclined
to talk; take up your book or your needlework pleasantly and
cheerfully; and wait until he is inclined to be sociable. Don't let
him ever find a shirt-button missing. A shirt-button being off a
collar or wrist-band has frequently produced the first impatient word
in married Life.
2191. Hints for Husbands (1).
If your wife complain that young ladies of the present day are very
forward, don't accuse her of jealousy. A little concern on her part
only proves her love for you, and you may enjoy your triumph without
saying a word. Don't evince your weakness either, by complaining of
every trifling neglect. What though her knitting and crochet seem to
absorb too large a share of her attention; depend upon it, that as her
eyes watch the intertwinings of the threads, and the manoeuvres of the
needles, she is thinking of the events of byegone times, which
entangled your two hearts in the network of love, whose meshes you can
neither of you unravel or escape.
2192. Hints for Wives (2).
Never complain that your husband pores too much over the newspaper, to
the exclusion of that pleasing converse which you formerly enjoyed
with him. Don't hide the paper, but when the boy leaves it at the
door, take it in pleasantly, and lay it down before him. Think what
man would be without a newspaper, and how much good newspapers have
done by exposing bad husbands and bad wives, by giving their errors to
the eye of the public. When your husband is absent, instead of
gossiping or looking into shop windows, sit down quietly, and look
over that paper; run your eye over its home and foreign news; glance
rapidly at the accidents and casualties; carefully scan the leading
articles; and at tea-time, when your husband again takes up the paper,
make some brief remarks on what you have read, and, depend upon it, he
will put it down again. If he has not read the information, he will
hear it all from your lips, and when you have read, he will ask
questions in his turn, and, gradually, you will get into as cosy a
chat as you ever enjoyed; and you will soon discover that, rightly
used, the newspaper is the wife's real friend, for it keeps the
husband at home, and supplies capital topics for every-day table-talk.
2193. Hints for Husbands (2).