The laudable attempts of the late Mr. C. Buxton, of Mr. Sydney Buxton, of the Hon. and Rev. Mr. Dutton, and of other amateurs to naturalize different kinds of Parrots, Parrakeets, Lories, and Cockatoos in this country, having failed, mainly in consequence of "those vile guns", it is to be feared that connoisseurs who wish to obtain an intimate acquaintance with these birds without going abroad, must content themselves with studying the manners, habits and peculiarities of the various species of Parrots in captivity, since to do so at large would appear, for the reasons stated above, and in the following pages, to be impossible; and it is a terrible pity that it should be so, for few sights are more attractive than a flock of these grand birds, the Macaws especially, wheeling around in the bright sunshine, when their variegated coats glisten like living jewels, and then settling down among the tops of some patriarchal trees, where they show themselves off to even greater advantage - their brilliant colours contrasting boldly with the dark green of the surrounding foliage - than when sporting freely in mid air.

Nevertheless, to observe them in captivity is not without its advantages, for it is undoubtedly true that a "homing" instinct is not characteristic of the race, and when permitted to fly abroad at their own free will, too many of the Psittacidoe are unable to find their way back again to their owner's grounds, and die miserably, either killed by birds or beasts of prey, such as hawks, foxes, weasels and so forth, shot by ignorant sportsmen (?), or starved to death from inability to find food for themselves: again, Parrots allowed to enjoy full, or even partial, freedom, seldom become so tame as individuals of the same species that are kept in the house, or, if ever so familiar when permitted to fly abroad, soon become more or less wild when allowed a wider range; so that after all the seemingly cruel plan of putting them in a cage, is, undoubtedly, the kindest in the end, and a Parrot that is well looked after by a kind and sympathetic owner, not only soon becomes reconciled to its fate, but actually so attached to its prison that it cannot be induced to leave it, and if taken out forcibly, returns to its familiar perch with evident satisfaction.

Fortunately there is a mode of keeping these interesting birds intermediate between that of confining them to a cage, and permitting them to range at freedom through the country round, namely, in a bird-room, or a good-sized aviary, appropriately furnished with an adequate number of rotten logs of wood: in the latter situation they can be seen almost to as great advantage as when flying freely abroad, and infinitely better than when shut up in a cage; they will also, at least many of them, breed freely in an aviary, and to study and observe their domestic habits, adds very materially to their owner's pleasure, and forms, in many cases, the chief incentive for keeping Parrakeets at all.

In the following pages we have entered into full particulars of the treatment necessary for preserving Parrots in health, and have expatiated at some length upon the strange and unnatural prejudice that yet lingers in some high quarters against allowing them water: we have also given ample details of the various modes of nidification peculiar to the different species, and pointed out the course of treatment necessary to induce them to perpetuate their kind in captivity, which most of them are ready enough to do - so ready, some of them, that under the most adverse conditions they will occasionally lay their eggs, and even rear the young.

It is by no means a long time since that to breed Parrots, or Parrakeets, of any kind, in this country was looked upon as a thing impossible; but to-day we find Budgerigars, Cockatiels, Red-rumps, Turquoisines, and some other species nesting as freely as our Domestic Pigeons, and bringing up large families with much less fuss than our Canaries: the experience thus gained should tempt connoisseurs to try some other kinds, the different Lories for example, and the smaller sorts of Cockatoos.

In Germany, where bird-keeping has been pursued as a study, if not as an avocation, for very many years, amateurs and aviculturists have succeeded in rearing almost every kind of Parrot hitherto imported; but with us the pursuit is yet quite in its infancy, and we believe that the species bred in this country might be counted on the fingers, if not of one hand, certainly on those of both hands; but every year adds to our knowledge of the delightful family of the Psittacidae, and in the course of a few years more we hope that we shall not be so very far behind our Teutonic friends in this respect.

As we have said elsewhere, we do not believe in the "Diseases of Birds", concerning which so much is usually said in books treating of the subject we have in hand. Bechstein notwithstanding, we are of opinion that birds in their wild state seldom suffer from any ailment; hunger, cold and old age are the foes they have to combat, excepting, of course, predatory birds and beasts; and in captivity, these, with the exception of old age, which will find us all out at last, should we escape the attacks of every other enemy, should not enter into our calculations at all. In a properly regulated aviary our birds should never die except from age or accident. Draughts and unnatural food are what too often kill captive birds, and both surely can be avoided.

A knowledge of the habits of birds, to be gained, however, mainly by experience, will tell the aviarist what species he may safely cage together, and a fertile source of loss be thus avoided. The same may be said with respect to suitable and unsuitable food, comfortable dwelling-places, and appropriate nesting accommodation. Upon the question of cleanliness we will not insult our readers by touching; but many aviarists, especially beginners, are too apt to overcrowd their birds, and many, and dire misfortunes spring from this cause alone.

It is eminently undesirable to keep the larger Parrots in the same enclosure with the dwarf members of the race; Rosy Cockatoos, for instance, with Budgerigars, or Blue Mountain Lories with Madagascar White-heads; while the latter will be unsafe neighbours for the pretty little Blue-wings, the smallest and most charming members of the Agapornis sub-family, which had better either be placed in an aviary by themselves, or consorted with the tiny Astrilds, often, but erroneously, named Ornamental Finches.

Few amateurs have facilities for keeping the larger Parrots and Cockatoos in any numbers, so as to ensure the profitable breeding of these in many ways desirable birds; their comparatively huge dimensions necessitate a wide accommodation, and their noisy outcries preclude the possibility of their being kept anywhere but in a remote country district, far beyond the reach of neighbouring sensitive human ears: to keep a flock of Cockatoos in a town, or even village, would entail upon the rash individual who made the attempt, attentions similar to those bestowed upon the cat-loving Countess at Kensington, whose pro-feline proclivities have more than once formed the subject of a judicial investigation. Still the Great Sulphur-Crested Cockatoo has been successfully bred in Germany, and, but for an untoward accident, we have no doubt we should have bred Goffin's Cockatoo. On the whole, however, except in very special cases, the aviarist will do well to confine his attention to breeding Parrakeets, which may be preserved without offence to neighbours of a different taste, and are also more readily provided for in the way of suitable habitations, than the owners of beaks of such formidable dimensions and tremendous power as the Macaws and the greater Cockatoos.

The present volume of Parrots in Captivity is, so to speak, tentative, but should this attempt in the direction of familiarising the public with a most delightful class of birds, have the success we hope for, and which the efforts of our enterprising publisher, who has spared neither pains nor expense to make the work as attractive as possible, seem to warrant us in expecting, we propose to continue the subject, if not to exhaustion, at least to the extent of three or four volumes more.

En attendant, we must express our obligation to the kind friends whose assistance has been instrumental in making the work what it is; nor can we overlook the efforts of the artist, whose life-like portraits of the various birds have added so much to its usefulness and attractiveness: in almost every instance the plates have been drawn and coloured from life, and are scarcely to be exceeded in any ornithological work, at least of a popular character, with which we are acquainted.

In conclusion we would remark that many people now keep Parrots, and many more are desirous of doing so, but very few of those persons understand how their favourites should be treated, and are pained and surprised when the poor things die soon after passing into their possession. An owner of a Parrot bereaved in this sudden and unexpected manner is apt to blame the dealer from whom he purchased the bird, the friend, or book, that advised him to feed it after such and such a manner, in a word, any one but himself, who, in ninety-nine cases out of one hundred, is the only one to blame.

It stands to reason that a Parrot, especially a young one, taken suddenly away from the crowded cage in the dealer's shop, where the warmth and society of its companions, and often their friendly mouthfuls of food thrust generously into its own, will take cold, and mope and pine, when placed in a cage, and too often a draught, by itself. The better plan is to buy at least two birds and place them, at first, in the same cage, open only in front, and by degrees accustom them to more air and freedom; after a while they may be placed in open cages, side by side, and when, at last, they seem to be thoroughly acclimatised, they may, if the owner does not want them both, be separated, and the least desirable of the two sold, usually at a considerable advance upon the purchased price.

Poeta nascitur non fit, said Horace long ago; similarly a true bird-fancier has the love of the feathered portion of creation born in him without doubt; at least such is our own case, and if in the following pages, and our other works on the subject, we have been of even a little use to our favourites, by teaching their owners how to treat them better than they had previously been able to do, we feel that our labours have not been in vain.

W. T. G. Moira House, Surrey.