The Canary Bird

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXXVI, Issue 17, 30 April 1908, Page 30

The Canary Bird

About ' 350 years aco & ship, returning from the islands in the Atlantic whiich people then called the Fortunate isles, but which were undoubtedly the Canaries, went ashore on the coast of- Italy near ' Leghorn. A case of beautiful/ tirds captured in those islands was tiro 1 era and the birds were liberated: Through some; caprice they did hot take refuge on themainland, but wemt up to the island of Elba, where in" due time they nested and bred and increased. in numbers. The Italians discovered that they were admirable singers, and le^an to capture them and sell themin cages'. This gave rise to a traffic which "soon complettty cleared! the island' of Elba of '' canary birds, "so that not! one was left there in a wild state. ' From that time the history of the canary has been a* record of perpetual Imprisonment and! transformation- ,of its appearance aaid character. In their natural state, as they still exist in the Camary and Madeira and! other Atlantic itlands, the- bar-ds are of a- grayish green or greenish brown color and they are not remarkable for beauty, but they have been known to burst "the membrane of their throats in pouring forth their songs.