THE BIRD BATH.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XVII, Issue 205, 13 August 1927, Page 4

THE BIRD BATH.

IN A SHADY CORNER. NOT THE MONOPOLY OF THE RICH. “To those who have not a bird bath I would say get one, or make one, and if you nave a soul at all you will never regret it, in fact you will be surprised at the amount of real pleasure it will give you.” T HAVE discovered the secret of • A quiet delight, a resttulness of spirit, and 1 found it in an attempt to . improve a shady corner of our little garden, writes Danton in the ‘Vancouver Province.” 1 placed a concrete bird bath under a tree, aud the rest has far exceeded my hopes. My original idea was to have eome. thing in the nature of a garden ornament, and 1 find 1 possess as Well a treasure far above rubies. In fact I have experienced a magical contentment by its presence, it is not only a thing of beauty but a joy for ever, this bird magnet, and to its tiny wonder pool flock countless birds, big birds and little birds, birds of homely garb and those of resplendent colours. In its vicinity I defy you to harbour thoughts of strife or uncharitableness and when worrying affairs cross my mind, to sit there is to be soothed. It is as if your soul was filled with a gentle esetasy. Every chirp and flutter is like healing balm to your jaded spirit, a balm that not only heals but rejuvinates. You become young again, clean inside, innocent as a child. And anyone can possess this bird magnet. It is not the monopoly of tho rich. There is no need to buy tile expensive bird baths advertised. A little concrete and sand, a very little ingenuity, and you have an article which will give you one of the few lasting pleasures of this life, A basin filled with concrete mixture, into which is pressed another of smaller circumiereuce, a weight to hold the latter, down, and there you are. When set, you have your bath. If you would like a superior article, make as well a mound of a pudding basin aud another of a long narrow box, to form a pedestal. Chip a square cavity about an inch or less deep in the top of the inverted pudding basin mould. Join together all three with concrete, and when set, paint over with a solution of concrete and water the consistency of paint, and you have a graceful, artistic bird bath any Ujd would love to frisk in. Before 1 possessed a bird ba4k birds were scarce around our housa Now at least 100 a day perform they ablutions under our window, aud many build nearby. But you must re. member to keep the bath full, for it they are disappointed they may go elsewhere for water- At times there is such a run on our bath that the birds have to wait their turn, and it is no uncommon sight with us to see several of our feathered friends sitting side by side on a bough whilst one is splashing himself. The robins keep me busy, for their ponderous bodies displace the water to such an extent that half the contents overflow, but it is well worth the trouble involved, and I enjoy it. To those who have not a bird bath I would say get one, or make one, and if you have a soul at all you will never regret it, in fact you will be surprised at the amount of real pleasure it will give you.