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Show That Invalid Members Shall Receive the Best Possible Care There Is at; Ambulance Attached to "The Birds." f ' :;' W$i- . K: :',V'-''' 't'y'- 1'J "i ' , , " '., t Treating a Crow's Broken Leg in JL.U at - " ' OstW'SSP the Hospital of the Club. ' ' ; . 'S (And to the Left) . ra ' '. "-i; fls&sgj Coco, President of the Birds' Club, ?V , ' , ,., x'i S - Jlli Taking His Shower Bath in the . ' 7 - ' Club Yard, and Enjoying It Mi$ - ' V V ' ' ?r?' in Unparrot-Like Fashion. fffi'tf:. i-'..;,; -5 -irlv S A MONO the signs that this is an J 1 : , 1 5 - - , A "'ancen age is the establishment ' . - - ' ? of a birds' club in New York. Men Bps ' Yt fpS have their olttb8. Women have their v , . f xi ' clubs. Children have clubs. Dogs have y' W 'rt' &'! parties; monkeys banquets. The need Ws r" r $Wr'"l ' t HBP1 of Wrds for social contact and the 'fLjtr , .r7;,'.. ir.rntal briKlHwii:.g that comes of asso- K, . ' (SS-- ciation is a want that lias been supplied WUmGmJL ' ? v r 1 by that g00d lair' of the bird, Miss Vir- SKv'.i-- ' tvSmWSB 2' Sinia Pope. V''.'- ' Directly around the corner from busy, BsmSV-'' V' ' &"$"!'t''r'tt surging Broadway, on the sunny south PKiKT' . '. ".t. ' A ' "'V. V''.-:. ' 'Vv;KS!.-.v' . side of Sixty-ntth street, is the Bird Club. i .. I, I 2tm'i!'; - ' i' -' - ' 4 11 is the Colony Club of the ornitbolog- K: .'.". -':t toal kingdom. Many features it has in Wff.f . .; common with the smart Colony Club of Iff, ' . : New York, save that the membership of BC';','1 ' v . .. ' the Colony is confined to one sex, while 2jSr" . '', Jf i st f$ '' '! at the Birds' there is no segregation of K , v ' , A the sexes. The aim of the Birds' Club SP?A":-i4 'STV 'fev ' is the same as that of the co-educational IJ' , schools the welfare of both. Like the t ' . . t -, , 1 olony, the Birds' is a residence club. Birds that are aweary, of the home sur- "...-.aWIMHBSu, ..ik.. . .oiaJ..L..s ' . roundings in town, or who find their pxo-w ftv vNT6ruv.Ti'Ji- new sgrv.wce - country homes irksome: those who find The Education of the Club Mem' bers Is Not Neglected. Princess " Virginia, the Belle of the i Club, Is Here Taking a ? Lesson in "Following a f Tune." 1 life anywhere too nearly solitary and are plainly pining for the society of their kind can be sent to join theclub. They can remain there for two weeks, or three months, or a year, according to circumstances. circum-stances. If their owners are hardy enough to sail to Europe in these troublous times the feathered pet need not grieve himself to death at what he deems their desertion. Instead, he can put up at the club for the indefinite term of their stay. He is sure to be entertained, enter-tained, sure to gain culture and accomplishments, accom-plishments, and his physical welfare will be guarded. The club has a president, Coco, a white Malacca parrot, of many human traits and with an air of authority that is never questioned by the members. There is no secretary, the bird members being addicted only to oral speech. Records Rec-ords of the club are mere matters of tradition handed down by one chatterer to another. But there is a treasurer, a little gray parrot that has a magpie-liking magpie-liking lor coins, aud that receives the silver dollars of club dues in her claws, and with her beak deposits them in the club bank. The club auditor is a crow named Pete, once an arrogant fellow in cessantly at war with the aristocratic treasurer, but a forceful tweak by one of the green-coated, red-eyed parrots of the club rendered him lame and submissive. Now -he merely inspects the shining coins, turning his black head first on one side and then on the other, nods his satisfaction sat-isfaction in their splendor, and watches Princess Virginia deposit them in the club bank, safe from his greedy eyes and burglarious claws. The members of the Birds' Club have all the comforts of home. Bach has his or her cage, private bath and menu suited suit-ed to his or her needs. There is a gymnasium gym-nasium fitted with bars ana swings and balls in which they can piaj. t'his play is directed and supervised with, a view to their muscular development. There is a music-room, where their musical education educa-tion is continued. Mounted.on the shoulder shoul-der of a human pianist or cornetist. the bird member learns to "follow a tune." But what the two hundred birds that compose the club like best is to assemble in the back yard, where among perches sand piles, swings and bars they play as they did ' when they were but six weeks out of the egg. The school of music has as adjunct a school of languages, where talking birds are taught proper speech. What is most gratifying to the fond- owners own-ers of the members of the Birds' is that there is connected with the club a perfectly equipped bird hospital. Miss Virginia Pope should use the initials B. D. after her name, for she is the most famous bird doctor in the world.'- Birds' flesh, she says, has all the afflictions to which human flesh is heir, and should be treated in much the same way. In bird cases, as in human ones, the treatment should, be as speedy as possible, that the malady may not have a chance to progress beyond control. con-trol. Therefore Dr. Pope has attached to the club a little yellow bird ambulance. ambu-lance. Drawn by a plumpr but swift Shetland pony, it darts away upon the call and returns quickly bearing the sufferer suf-ferer from accidents or disease. Whereupon Where-upon it is placed in the hospital and receives re-ceives the bird doctor's most conscientious conscien-tious care. Extraordinary delicacy of touch is needed to search among the feathers for hurts and to manipulate the tiny bones and wee muscles. It needs also exceeding patience, for sick birds are no more tractable than sick men, who have been compared in many households house-holds to bears, with natural ferocity exaggerated ex-aggerated by sore heads. But, on the whole, Miss Pope finds birds no more difficult to manage than human beings. An obstinate old parrot, strong in the wisdom and courage of his eighty or more years, may cause the surgeon some anxiety, but by gentle persistence per-sistence even he is at last subdued to acceptance of his treatment. Anesthetics Anesthet-ics are administered by means of a tiny paper cone, quite as in cases of men and women. Gradually the bird seems to understand that efforts are being made to relieve it, and Miss Pope is sure that the bird tries to make it as easy for her as possible. The convalescent bird is as grateful and demonstrative to the doctor doc-tor as are some hysterical women. At the club the birds are never permitted per-mitted to become dull or bored. Amusement Amuse-ment is continually provided for them. "Birds are much like children in their craving for continuous entertainment," says Miss Pope, B. D. "For parrots, particularly, par-ticularly, objects for playthings must be provided. A buckle with a strap on the end of it, a clothes pin, a bit of tree bark, a ringful of keys, a bright marble too large for him to swallow, or a small bell that he can ring, give amusement to a parrot. Not only do they amuse them Treating a Crow's Broken Leg in the Hospital of the Club. (And to the Left) Coco, President of the Birds' Club, Taking His Shower Bath in the Club Yard, and Enjoying It in Unparrot-Like Fashion. AMONG the signs that this is an advanced age is the establishment of a birds' club in New York. Men have their clubs. Women have their clubs. Children have clubs. Dogs have parties; monkeys banquets. The need of birds for social contact and the mental brightening that comes of association asso-ciation is a want that lias been supplied by that good fairy of the bird, Miss Virginia Vir-ginia Pope. Directly around the corner from busy, surging Broadway, on the sunny south side of Sixty-fifth street, is the Bird Club. It is the Colony Club of the ornithological ornitholog-ical kingdom. Many features it has in common with the smart Colony Club of New York, save that the membership of the Colony is confined to one sex, while at the Birds' there is no segregation of the sexes. The aim of the Birds' Club is the same as that of the co-educational schools the welfare of both. Like the Colony, the Birds' is a residence club. Birds that are aweary of the home surroundings sur-roundings in town, or who find their country homes irksome: those who find but they keep them out of the roisohjete: that idle claws find to do plucking put a . their feathers. A parrot that belongs to;: . this club went to sleep on. his perch"-! carefully holding a little china doll hv . his claw. "Birds should be kept out of a direct ." draught. I never hang one in an open,'., window," warned Dr. Pope. "I am care-,, ful to place flat perches as well as round.."',.-ones round.."',.-ones in the cages of the larger birds,",' J especially the parrots. Perches should : fit a claw of a bird as well as shoes tM feet of persons. za "Birds are very receptive to educa;n tion, especially to the education of asso- -r ciation. Parrots are not addicted to bath .."' taking. Not one in a hundred will vol-J untarily take one. The reason for this::'-is this::'-is found both in heredity and environ--a3 ment, for in their native countries the... heavy dews that fall upon them while they are perched in the trees serve that' "1 purpose. But Coco, the president of this;.:: club, has learned to love a shower bath. ::j. He spreads bis wings and jumps around and chuckles with joy when we turn the' spray upon him. A sprayer with a gOtta-3 b percha or crooked neck makes an ad-.--, mirab;e shower." , Members of the Birds' are the best:'r;; groomed pets in town. Their bills ar-'K filed to an admirable evenness and their -Ve claws are carefully manicured. wv |
