COURTESY IN BIRDS.
LTO THE EDITOR Or THE Spzorerya.")
SIE,--We are all familiar with the delightful gallantry with which a barn-door cock will, on finding food, call his hens, and point out the food, and bow and scrape while they eat it. I witnessed, however, the other day, an act of such perfect courtesy on the part of two little birds, that I think you will be glad to record it. We have a large cage in which are a number of various birds, among them a cock goldfinch and two little mannikins. These latter little sober-coloured birds we con-
sidered very uninteresting. Wishing, however, to provide a mate for the goldfinch, I one evening bought a hen canary, and the next morning tamed it into the cage with the others. None of the other birds took the least notice of the new arrival, but The two little mannikins placed themselves side by side by the seed-vessel, and, the canary being on a perch above, they fed her in turn with seed, lifting up their little black heads, one after the other, and letting her take the seed out of their stumpy white beaks. This appeared to be pure courtesy to the lady stranger. We have seen no repetition of the act ; but, one of -the mannikins having got wet one day, we watched the canary returning the courtesy, by trying to dry its feathers by passing them through her beak.—I am, Sir, &o.,
Wit. WALSHAIL BEDFORD, Bishop Suffragan for East London. _
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