“She has been in the family ninety years,” answered the gentleman, “and was then probably one or two years of age. It is astonishing how much she knows. Lizzie, run and open her cage, and bring her here.”
“She is, indeed, a splendid bird,” remarked Mrs. Lee, gazing with delight at her richly-tinted plumage. “See, Minnie, how her neck is shaded from the most beautiful green to the richest mazarine blue.”
“And look at her breast, mother; see those elegant red feathers!”
“The parrot,” said Mr. Monson, “is an insulated bird. Its manners and general structure, and the mode of using its feet, as described by naturalists, are different from any other bird. Mr. Vigors, Mr. Swainson, and others, consider parrots the only group among birds which is completely sui generis. A parrot will, by means of its beak, and aided by its thick, fleshy tongue, clear the inside of a fresh pea from the outer skin, rejecting the latter, and performing the whole process with the greatest ease.
“In climbing, I presume you have noticed, she uses her hooked beak as well as her feet; and in feeding she rests on one foot, holding the food to her beak with the other. Her plumage is generally richly-tinted, while in some varieties, like this, it is superb. In all kinds the skin throws off a mealy powder, which saturates the feathers and makes them greasy.”
“Please, papa,” cried Lizzie, “to tell about these birds as you saw them in their own country.”
“I suppose, Minnie,” continued the gentleman, “that you know this is not the home of your favorite bird. You never see them at liberty and flying from tree to tree, as you do the robin or bluebird.”
“Yes, sir, I know that. Uncle Frank was going to bring me another parrot from South America, but mother thought one was enough.”
“I quite agree with you,” said Mrs. Monson, enthusiastically, “I can scarcely be reconciled to the noise of one, rousing me at all sorts of unreasonable hours, and keeping up such a clatter through the whole day.”
“They are confined to the warmer climates,” the gentleman went on, “and are most abundant in the tropics. I have seen a flock of them resting in a grove of trees, chattering and talking like a company of politicians at a caucus. They are indeed very noisy, keeping together in large flocks, and feeding upon fruits, buds, and seeds. At night they crowd together as closely as possible, and hiding their heads under their wings, sleep soundly. As soon as the first ray of light can be discerned, they are all awake, chatting over the business for the day. First they make their toilet, and in this they assist each other, being very fond of pluming each other’s feathers.