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who wished to make a public exhibition of her; but this, out of tenderness to the favorite, he constantly refused. The bird was dis sected by Dr. Kennedy and Mr. Brookes; and the muscles of the larynx, which regulate the voice, were found, from the effect of practice, to be uncommonly strong."

The sister of M. de Buffon had a Parrot of this species which would frequently talk to himself, and seemed to fancy that some one addressed him. He often asked for his paw, and answered by holding it up. Though he liked to hear the voice of children, he appeared to have an antipathy to them; he pursued them, and bit them till he drew blood. He had also his objects of attachment; and though his choice was not very nice it was constant. He was excessively fond of the cook-maid; followed her every where, sought for, and seldom missed finding her. If she had been some time out of his sight, the bird climbed with his bill and claws to her shoulders and lavished on her his caresses. His fondness had all the marks of close and warm friendship. The girl happened to have a sore finger, which was tedious in healing, and so painful as to make her scream. Whilst she uttered her moans, the Parrot never left her chamber. The first thing he did every day was to pay her a visit; and this tender condolence lasted the whole time of the cure, when he again returned to his former calm and settled attachment. Yet this strong predilection for the girl seems to have been more directed to her office in the kitchen, than to her person; for, when another cookmaid succeeded her, the Parrot showed the same degree of fondness to the new-comer, the very first day.

Parrots not only imitate discourse, but also mimic gestures and actions. Scaliger saw one that performed the dance of the Savoyards at the same time that it repeated their song. The one last mentioned, was fond of hearing a person sing; and when he saw him dance, he also tried to caper, but with the worst grace imaginable, holding in his toes, and tumbling back in a most clumsy manner.

The society which the Parrot forms with man is, from its use of language, much more intimate and pleasing, than what the monkey can claim from its antic imitation of our gestures and actions. It highly diverts and amuses us; and in solitude it is company: the bird takes part in conversation, it laughs, it breathes tender expressions, or mimics grave discourse; and its words, uttered indiscrimi nately, please by their incongruity, and sometimes excite surprise by their aptness. Willughby tells us of a Parrot, which, when a person said to it, "Laugh, Poll, laugh," laughed accordingly, and the instant after screamed out, "What a fool to make me laugh!" Another, which had grown old with its master, shared with him the infirmities of age. Being accustomed to hear scarcely any thing but the words, "I am sick;" when a person asked it, "How d'ye do, Poll? how d'ye do?" "I am sick," it replied in a doleful tone, stretching itself

along, "I am sick."

Dr. Goldsmith says, that a Parrot belonging to King Henry the Seventh, having been kept in a room next the Thames, in his palace at Westminster, had learned to repeat many sentences from the boat

THE YELLOW-WINGED PARROT.

503

men and passengers. One day, sporting on its perch, it unluckily fell into the water. The bird had no sooner discovered its situation, than it called aloud, "A boat! twenty pounds for a boat!" A waterman, happening to be near the place where the Parrot was floating, immediately took it up, and restored it to the king; demanding, as the bird was a favorite, that he should be paid the reward that it had called out. This was refused; but it was agreed that, as the Parrot had offered a reward, the man should again refer to its determination for the sum he was to receive-" Give the knave a groat," the bird screamed aloud, the instant the reference was made.

Mr. Locke, in his Essay on the Human Understanding, has related an anecdote concerning a Parrot, of which, however incredible it may appear, he seems to have had so much evidence, as at least to have believed it himself. The story is this: During the government of Prince Maurice in Brazil, he had heard of an old Parrot that was much celebrated for answering, like a rational creature, many of the common questions that were put to it So much had been said respecting this bird, that the curiosity of the Prince was roused, and he directed it to be sent for. When he was introduced into the room where the Prince was sitting, in company with several Dutchmen, it immediately exclaimed in the Brazilian language, "What a company of white men are here!" They asked it, "Who is that man?" pointing to the Prince: the Parrot answered, "Some general or other." When the attendants carried it up to him, he asked it, through the medium of an interpreter, (for he was ignorant of its language,) " From wha place do you come?" The Parrot answed, "From Marignan." The Prince asked, "To whom do you belong?" It answered, "To a Portuguese." He asked again, "What do you do there?" It answered, "I look after chickens !" The Prince, laughing, exclaimed, "You look after chickens !" The Parrot in answer said, "Yes, I; and I know well enough how to do it;" clucking at the same time, in imitation of the noise made by the hen to call together her young

ones.

The females of this species lay their eggs in the hollows of trees; and there is no way of getting at them, except by cutting down and cleaving the trees.

THE YELLOW-WINGED PARROT.

The length of the Yellow-winged Parrot is about tairteen inches. The bil is whitish, and the cere hoary. The general color of the body is green; and the feathers on the hind part of the neck and on the back, have black margins. The forehead is of a whitishash color; and the top of the head, cheeks, throat, and forepart of the neck are yellow: the hind head is yellow-green. The thighs and the ridges of the wings are yellow, the remainder of the wings are, in different parts, red, yellow, and green, with the greater quills black. The four middle tail-feathers are green, and yellowish near the end; the others are partly red and partly green. The legs are hoary, and the claws ash-colored. It is a native of South America.

We know nothing respecting the habits of this bird in a state of nature, but Father Bougot, who had one of them for some time in his possession, communicated to M. de Buffon, the following account of its manners and disposition in a tame state:

"It is (he says) extremely susceptible of attachment to its master; it is fond of him, but requires frequent caresses, and seems disconsolate if neglected, and vindictive if provoked. It has fits of obstinacy; it bites during its ill-humor, and immediately laughs, exulting in its mischief. Correction and rigorous treatment only harden it; gentle usage alone succeeds in mollifying its temper.

"The inclination to gnaw whatever it can reach, is very destructive; it cuts the cloth of the furniture, splits the wood of the chairs, and tears in pieces paper, pens, &c. And if it be removed from the spot where it stands, its proneness to contradiction will instantly hurry it back. But this mischievous disposition is counterbalanced by agreeable qualities, for it remembers readily whatever it is taught to say. Before articulating it claps its wings and plays on its roost; in a cage it becomes dejected, and continues silent; and it never prattles well except when it enjoys its liberty.

"In its cheerful days it is affectionate, receives and returns caresses, and listens and obeys; though a peevish fit often interrupts the harmony. It seems affected by the change of weather, and becomes silent; the way to reanimate itis to sing beside it, and it then strives, by its noisy screams, to surpass the voice which excites it. It is fond of children; in which respect it differs from most other Parrots. It contracts a predilection for some of them, and suffers them to handle and carry it; it caresses them, and will bite ferociously any person who then attempts to touch them. If its favorite children leave it, it is unhappy, follows, and calls loudly after them. During the time of moulting it is much reduced, and seems to endure great pain; and this state lasts for nearly three months."

The power of imitating exactly articulate discourse, implies in the Parrot a very peculiar and perfect structure of organ; and the accuracy of its memory (though independent of understanding) manifests a closeness of attention, and a strength of mechanical recollection, that no other bird possesses in so high a degree. Accordingly, all naturalists have remarked the singular form of its bill, of its tongue, and its head. Its bill, round on the outside and hollow within, has, in somo degree, the capacity of a mouth, and allows the tongue to play freely; and the sound, striking against the circular border of the lower mandible, is there modified as on a row of teeth, while the concavity of the upper mandible reflects it like a palate; hence the animal does not utter a whistling sound, but a full articulation. The tongue which modulates all sounds, is proportionably larger than in man; and would be more voluble, were it not harder than flesh; and invested with a strong horny membrane.

From the peculiar structure of the upper mandible of its bill, the Parrot has a power, which no other birds have, of chewing its food. The Parrot seizes its food sideways, and gnaws it deliberately. The lower mandible has little motion, but that from right to left is most

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perceptible; and this is often performed when the bird is not eating, whence some persons have supposed it to ruminate. In such cases, however, the bird may be only whetting the edge of this mandible, with which it cuts and bites its aliment.

THE MACAWS.

Many naturalists imagine, and with some reason, that the Psittacida ought to be formed into

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an order by themselves. In this family the construction of the bill is very remarkable. As the curved tip of the bill would prevent the bird from opening it wide enough to admit its food, the upper mandible is united to the skull by a kind of hinge joint, of equal strength and flexibility. When climbing among the branches of trees, or about their cages, the Parrots invariably make great use of their hooked bills in assisting themselves both in ascending and descend

BLUE AND YELLOW MACAW.

ing. The crossbills have been observed to climb much in the same way. The Parrots are said to be very long lived, some have certainly been known to live upwards of eighty years in captivity, and may be imagined to exceed that period in a wild state.

The Macaws are natives of South America. The blue and yellow Macaw inhabits Brazil, Guiana and Surinam, living principally on the banks of rivers. Of one of the Macaws, the Carolina Parrot, or Parrakeet as Wilson calls it, the following anecdote is told by that enterprising naturalist :

"Having shot down a number, some of which were only wounded, the whole flock swept repeatedly round their prostrate companions, and again settled on a low tree, within twenty yards of the spot where I stood. At each successive discharge, though showers of them fell, yet the affection of the survivors seemed rather to increase; for, after a few circuits round the place, they again alighted near me, looking down on their slaughtered companions with such manifest symptoms of sympathy and concern, as entirely disarmed me."

Wilson also makes mention of a singular idea, that the brains and intestines of the Carolina Parrot (which lives on cockle-burs) are poisonous to Cats. Why the brains should be so is rather incomprehen

sibie, although we can easily understand that the Parrot might take

CAROLINA PARROT.

some substance into its stomach injurious to Cats. Wilson tried the experiment after being repeatedly disappointed of a patient, but came to no conclusion on the subject.

"Having shut up a Cat and her two Kit tens, the latter only a few days old, in a room with the head, neck, and the whole intestines of the Parrakeet, I found on the next morning the whole eaten except a small part of the bill. The Cat exhibited no symptom of sickness, and at this moment, three days after the experiment had been made, she and her Kittens are in their usual health. Still however the effect might have been dif

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ferent, had the daily food of the bird been cockle-burs instead of Indian corn."

THE RINGED PARRAKEET.

Is frequently seen domesticated in this country, where its pleasing manners and gentle disposition render it a great favorite. It seems to be exceedingly fond of ripe walnuts, divided in halves; and, while it is picking out the kernel, continually utters a short clucking sound indicative of pleasure.

It soon learns to repeat words and short sentences, and to speak with tolerable distinctness. Sometimes when excited, it utters most earpiercing screams, and always appears to practice any new accomplishment when it thinks that no one is within hearing. A Ringed Parrakeet belonging to one of my scholars was accustomed to live in the school-room. At first it used to become angry that it was not noticed during school-hours, and to utter a succession of screams; but after being shut up in a dark closet several times, it learned to behave very demurely, giving an example worthy of imitation to several of its human play-fellows. I am sorry to say, that the bird escaped from its cage, and was shot by an ignorant farmer in the neighborhood.

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