BREEDING.--A very important branch in the history of the canary is its education, which is not without difficulties, but these are augmented by all the refinements and artificial plans which some persons follow with so much parade. A male of from two to five years of age should be chosen for pairing; for experience has taught, that if a young male is placed among older females, they will produce more males than females. A bird is known to be old by the blackish and rough scales of his feet, and by his long and strong claws.
Good males are valuable and scarce. Some are dull and melancholy, always sad, and seldom singing; indifferent to their mates, which are equally so to them; others are so passionate, that they beat or even kill their mates and their young; others are too ardent, and pursue their mates while they are sitting, tear the nest, destroy the eggs, or excite the females so much that they voluntarily abandon them.
The females have also their defects. Some, too ardent, only lay without sitting; others neglect to feed their young, beat them, and pick out their feathers, so that the wretched little creatures die miserably; to others, laying is so painful that they are too much fatigued to sit, or they lay each egg only after a long interval. Quacks (for we find them on this subject as on others) pretend to have specifics for the cure of these defects; but their pretended remedies are mere deceptions, and the use of them causes much trouble. The best plan is to remove the vicious birds, and to retain only those which have none of the above-named bad qualities.
To obtain the most brilliant colours, those birds which have them clear, and whose spots are distinct and regular, are paired together. This, of course, can only be done in separate cages. In aviaries, where the birds pair by choice, the offspring are generally mixed and blotted. A greenish or brownish bird, placed with a bright yellow one, often produces dim white, or other admired colours. It is better never to place together two crested birds, because the offspring is apt to have a part of the head bald or otherwise disfigured.
The best time for pairing canaries is the middle of April. Either one male, and one or two females, are placed in a large cage, or many of both sexes are united in a room or aviary, having the advantage of a south aspect. Nests made of turned wood, or osiers, are given them, as straw ones are too easily torn. It is a good plan to place in the room or aviary slips of pine, which being cut in February do not lose their leaves. If a little enclosure of wire-gauze can be fixed over the window, where the birds can enjoy the fresh air, nothing will more effectually contribute to render the young healthy and robust.