30EKHANDCL
THE LIBRARY
OF
THE UNIVERSITY
OF CALIFORNIA
PRESENTED BY
PROF. CHARLES A. KOFOID AND
MRS. PRUDENCE W. KOFOID
FANCY PIGEONS.
THE POUTER,
FANCY PIGEONS:
CONTAINING
FULL DIRECTIONS FOB THEIR BREEDING
AND MANAGEMENT,
WITH
DESCRIPTIONS OF EVERY KNOWN VARIETY,
AND
ALL OTHER INFORMATION OF INTEREST OR USE
TO PIGEON FANCIERS.
ILLUSTRATED WITH COLOURED PLATES AND WOODCUTS,
BY JAMES C. LYELL.
THIRD EDITION.
LONDON :
L. UPCOTT GILL, 170, STRAND, W.C,
PRINTED BY A. BRADLEY, 170, STRAND, LONDON.
PREFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION,
E previous editions of this book having met with a
favourable reception, and being out of print, I have been
induced to revise it. A considerable amount of new infor-
mation has been added, as well as Coloured Illustrations of
the principal varieties. The work being the result of the
experience of a fancier who has studied domestic pigeons
from his earliest years, the fancier as well as the naturalist,
will find that it contains an exhaustive account of them.
M362318
CONTENTS.
CHAP. PAGE
I. HISTORICAL 1
II. ORIGIN OF FANCY PIGEONS . 8
III. THE PIGEON HOUSE, LOFT, AND AVIAKT .... 14
IV. SELECTION OF STOCK 26
V. FEEDING, BREEDING, AND MANAGEMENT 30
VI. COLOURS OF FANCY PIGEONS : 44
VII. EXHIBITING PIGEONS 50
VIII. DISEASES 55
IX. VARIETIES OF DOMESTIC PIGEONS 67
X. COMMON PIGEONS 70
XI. PIGEONS DISTINGUISHED CHIEFLY BY THEIR COLOUR
OR MARKING 73
XII. PIGEONS OF PECULIAR FEATHERING 103
XIII. THE RlNGBEATER Ill
XIV. THE TRIGANICA 115
XV. SEVERAL VARIETIES OF EAST INDIAN PIGEONS . . 120
XVI. OTHER DISTINCT KINDS OF ASIAN PIGEONS .... 131
XVII. THE RUNT 133
Vlll CONTENTS.
CHAP. PAGE
XVIII. PIGEONS or PECULIAR VOICE 144
XIX. PIGEONS WITH SHORT, ERECT TAILS 157
XX. THE FANTAIL . . * 164
XXI. THE JACOBIN 175
XXII. SHORT-FACED FRILLED PIGEONS . . 190
XXIII. POUTING OR CROPPER PIGEONS 223
XXIV. WATTLED PIGEONS 276
XXV. THE TUMBLER 311
XXVI. VARIETIES ORIGINALLY TUMBLERS ........ 330
XXVII. THE SHORT-FACED TUMBLER 335
XXVIII. HOMING PIGEONS 355
XXIX. TURKESTAN PIGEONS 374
APPENDIX PIGEON LITERATURE 381
CONCLUSION 412
FANCY PIGEONS,
Chapter I.
o< HISTORICAL.
Egyptian Records.
IGEONS must have been domesticated at a
very early period. They figure on Egyptian
monuments forty-six centuries old. Mr. H.
Villiers Stuart, M.P., informs me he has seen
pigeons represented on Egyptian bas-reliefs
of the Fourth Dynasty, at least 2700 B.C., though some
Egyptologists put it further back. He says they occur
frequently in tombs of that and the following dynasties,
being represented as borne in cages on the heads of slaves,
or carried in their hands by the wings. He has also seen,
on bas-reliefs of the Nineteenth Dynasty (about 1350 B.C.),
pigeons being liberated in triumphal processions and flying
away, possibly to convey intelligence of the event to the
limits of the empire.
I find, in "Records of the Past" (1873), in the Annals of
Thothmes III., of the Eighteenth Dynasty (about 1500 B.C.),
2 FANCY PIGEONS.
mention made of " 258 pairs of pigeons and 5237 pigeons of
another kind." It may be inferred that the former were of
some special or choice description.
The Annals of Rameses III., of the Twentieth Dynasty
(about 1200 B.C.). contained in the " Great Harris Papyrus," now
in the British Museum, detail his donations to the temples of
Thebes, Heliopolis, Memphis, and elsewhere. Plate 8, line 10,
says : " Its barns had fatted geese, its poultry yards had fowls
of heaven." The domestic fowl was then unknown in Europe
and Africa. The pigeon was called by the Egyptians the bird
or nestling of heaven. Again, on Plate 27, line 6 : " I made to
thee stables containing young oxen, apartments to bring up
fowls (pigeons, or birds of heaven), with geese and ducks."
Reference by Grecian Authors.
Homer (about 950 B.C.) refers sometimes to " silver " doves,
as in the line
Messe's towers for silver doves renowned,
which may refer to albino or white pigeons, as found in
almost every colony of semi-wild ones.
The carrier pigeon may have reached Greece from Egypt.
Anacreon (563-478 B.C.), in his ode to it, so beautifully
rendered by Thomas Moore, shows its early use there.
Socrates (469-400 B.C.) seems to refer to pigeons in his
dialogue with Plato's brother Glaucon (Plato's " Republic,"
Book Y., chap, viii.), when he says:
" ' Tell me this, Glaucon for in your house I see both sport-
ing dogs and a great number of well-bred birds have you, by
Zeus, ever attended to their pairing and bringing forth
young ? '
"Glaucon. 'How?'
" Socrates. ' First of all, among these, though all be well-
bred, are not some of them far better than all the rest ? '
" Glaucon. ' They are.'
3 HISTORICAL.
" Socrates. ' Do you breed, then, from all alike, <>r are you
careful to do so, as far as possible, from the best?'
" Glaucon. 'From the best.' "
This passage, so pregnant with truth to the experienced
breeder of all domestic animals, is the earliest record of
what may be called scientific breeding, and shows the observa-
tion of one of the wisest of mankind. It refers, without any
doubt, I think, to fancy pigeons; for what other birds, varying
so 'much in excellence, would be kept indoors, in pairs, at
that time ?
Xenophon (455-355 B.C.) says, in the " Anabasis " (Book I.,
chap, vi.) : " After these occurrences, Cyrus proceeded four days'
march, a distance of twenty parasangs, to the river Chalus,
which is a plethrum in breadth and full of tame fish, which
the Syrians looked upon as gods, and allowed no one to
hurt either them or the pigeons."
Aristotle (384-322 B.C.), in the many references he makes
to pigeons in his " History of Animals," appears to have had a
practical knowledge of them. He writes of them in a way
that shows he had either carefully observed their habits, or
got his information from an experienced fancier.
On account of its gentle nature, the pigeon has been
protected in all ages. It is yet, as in Russia, and in most
Mahomedan countries, considered a sacred bird. In this
character, Tibullus (54-19 B.C.), the Roman poet, refers to it
in his eighth Elegy: "Why need I tell how the sacred
white pigeon flatters unmolested about the numerous cities
of Syrian Palestine ? " or, as an English poet renders it :
Why need I tell how sacred through the skies
Of Syrian cities, the white pigeon flies ?
which he doubtless learned from the works of Xenophon
and others, who assert, as above, that the Syrians considered
pigeons and doves sacred to their goddess A.starte, whom
the Greeks identified with Aphrodite (Venus).
B 2
4. FANCY PIGEONS.
Reference by Latin Authors.
The best evidence that the pigeon fancy existed in ancient
times much as it does to-day, is found in the Natural
History of Pliny (23-79 A.D.) (Book X., chap, lii.-liii.), where he
says : " Many persons have quite a mania for pigeons, building
houses for them on the tops of their roofs, and taking
delight in relating the pedigree and noble origin of each.
Of this there is an ancient instance that is very remarkable :
L. Axius, a Roman of the Equestrian order, shortly before
the civil war of Pompeius, sold a single pair for four
hundred denarii (about 13), as we learn from the writings
of M. Yarro (114-26 B.C.). Countries, even, have gained renown
for their pigeons ; it is thought that those of Campania
attain the largest size."
Columella, a contemporary of Pliny, also quotes from M.
Yarro as to the value of fancy pigeons, from which it
appears that pairs were often sol at about 8, and occasionally
for four times as much.
The use of domestic pigeons in time of war, to enable the
inhabitants of besieged towns to communicate with their
friends outside, was known at this period, as we learn from
Pliny, who states that they were so employed at the siege
of Modena (43 B.C.). Since then they have been often em-
ployed in like manner, as I shall mention hereafter.
Juvenal (3-83 A.D.), the Roman poet, refers to the keep-
ing of pigeons in the garrets of Rome, just as they are kept
to-day by fanciers in all large towns. Describing a fire in
the city, he says:
For if the lowest floors already burn,
Cocklofts and garrets soon will take their turn,
Where thy tame pigeons next the tiles were bred,
Which, in their nests nnsafe, are timely fled.
From this period there is not much information available
on the subject till about the year 1600. Gibbon states that
5 HISTORICAL.
the Emperor Honorius (384-423 A.D.) amused himself witli
the rearing of " poultry ; " and that Charlemagne (742-814)
was careful to encourage this branch of rural economy, so
ably carried out by the French to the present time. He
says: "I touch with reverence the laws of Charlemagne, so
highly applauded by a respectable judge. They compose not
a system, but a series of occasional and minute edicts, for
the correction of abuses, the reformation of manners, the
economy of his farms, the care of his poultry, and even the
sale of his eggs." Yataces John Ducas, Emperor of Constan-
tinople, who reigned about the year 1250, presented a crown of
diamonds and pearls to his empress, which, he informed her
with a smile, had been purchased with the money derived
from the sale of the eggs of his innumerable poultry. Per-
haps something of more interest to the pigeon fancier than
the above might be discovered from a perusal of the edicts
of Charlemagne. Gibbon relates that carrier pigeons were
employed during the Crusades, at the sieges of Acre in Syria
and Mansourah in Egypt.
Early Pigeon Flying.
The sport of pigeon flying is known to have been practised
in Modena for a long time, as historical evidence carries it
back to the year 1327.
The Emperor Akbar (1542-1605) appears to have been a
keen pigeon fancier. His prime minister, Abul Fazl, has
made this apparent in the " Ain-i- Akbari " (Institutes of Akbar),
where he devotes some pages to a description of the sport of
pigeon flying as practised by his Majesty, and which is still
in vogue in India, Persia, Turkey, and many parts of
Europe.
The Nawab, M. Alaooddeen, of Loharoo, has written for me,
at the request of my relative, Sir Charles U. Aitchison, Lieu-
tenant-Governor of the Punjab, an essay comparing the sport,
as presently carried on in Delhi, with Abul Fazl's account,
6 FANCY PIGEONS.
from which it appears that it remains very much the same
as it did in Akbar's time.
In the Middle Ages.
Ulyssis Aldrovandi, the naturalist, who began the publication
of his history in 1599, devotes considerable space to the pigeon,
and gives figures of some varieties, but they are so bad as to-
be almost unrecognisable.
Francis Willoughby's "Ornithology," edited by John Ray, was
published in London, in Latin, in 1676, and afterwards, in
English, in 1678. He is the first English writer who gives a
detailed list of fancy pigeons. He says he saw carriers in
the aviary belonging to the King (Charles II.), in St. James's
Park. He corresponded with Mr. Phillip Skippon (Cromwell's
General ?) on the subject of the barb, or Barbary pigeon, and
derived information about croppers, carriers, and jacobins, from
Mr. Cope, an embroiderer, living in Jewin Street. Skippon
and Cope are the earliest English fanciers on record, so fai*
as I have discovered.
Recent History.
John Moore, an apothecary in Abchurch-lane, London, pub-
lished, in 1735, an octavo volume of 60pp., entitled, " Colum-
barium; or, the Pigeon-House," which was the foundation of
all English works on the subject published in the eighteenth
century. Moore, who may be considered the father of the
pigeon fancy in this country, was proprietor of a vermifuge,
which is humorously referred to by Pope in some verses
addressed to him. He is also referred to in the same character
by Swift, in "A Letter from a Gentleman in the Country to
his Friend in Town."
I have noticed some of the principal dealers in pigeons
advertising that they have supplied birds to her Majesty
Queen Victoria. Lady Bloomfield, in her recently -published
book, " Reminiscences of Court and Diplomatic Life," speaks
7 HISTORICAL.
of visiting her Majesty's aviaries at Windsor, in the year
1843, where there was " a beautiful collection of pigeons of
rare kinds."
The ancient pastime of pigeon breeding continues to
nourish throughout Asia, North Africa, and Europe, as I know
from experience, and from the works of many recent travellers.
It is also spreading in America and in all English colonies.
In this country choice pigeons have become greatly enhanced
in value during the past twenty-five years, mostly on account
of the numerous exhibitions, held somewhere almost daily,
where prizes are offered which enable the best birds to win
considerable sums of money in the course of a year; so that
prices of from 10 to 100 are constantly being paid for good
specimens, according to the standards of excellence well under-
stood among breeders.
In the present work I shall give an account of how to
keep pigeons in the way that experience has proved to be
best; how to match up and breed them; how to treat them
in health and disease; and describe every knosvn variety. I
shall also give, in an Appendix, a list of books on the subject,
ancient and modern, with remarks thereon.
Chapter II.
THE ORIGIN OF FANCY PIGEONS. X>
Probable Progenitor.
ATURALISTS look for the original stock of
all tame pigeons in some wild variety, and
for a long time the stock dove was regarded
as their progenitor. This idea is now ex-
ploded, as the stock dove (Columba CEnas]
is not a bird capable of domestication. The only wild
pigeon now believed capable of being the originator of our
domestic pigeons is the blue rock (Columba Livia), sub-
varieties of which are found in Europe, Asia, and Africa.
The British blue rock inhabits the rocks and caves on our
sea coasts, as well as precipitous inland rocks, and certainly
the difference between this bird and a common blue flying
tumbler is very little. Their colour is identical, their size
almost so. The head, beak, and iris of the tumbler are
somewhat different from those of the rock pigeon, and the
pinions of the latter are longer and stronger, as must
necessarily be the case from its mode of life. In the West
of Scotland, where fanciers keep and show common pigeons,
the wild blue rock domesticated is the bird so called.
9 ORIGIN.
I think the best argument in favour of some common
ancestor for the whole of our fancy pigeons is the fact that
they all breed freely together, and that they are only kept
up to their best forms by the guiding hands of experienced
pigeon fanciers. They constantly throw back, to some remote
ancestor, stock that are unfit to go on with. The worst of
these, if bred together, would no doubt breed young in some
cases better than themselves, but also others still further
removed from the desired type, and so the breed would soon
become almost unrecognisable.
Supposing the more distinct varieties of pigeons to have
been separate creations, then they must certainly have been
so distributed in the world as not to come into contact with
each other, or they would in a short time have got inter-
mingled. And, again, if not from a common stock, then man
must have, from time to time, captured the whole original
stocks, or they must have died out, for I have never yet heard
of anything like a fancy pigeon being found in a state of
nature. In fact, if able to exist in a state of nature, and
protect themselves from birds of prey, fancy pigeons must
have been so modified in their fancy points, such as crops
and fan-shaped tails, as to be but little removed from what
we call common pigeons.
Variations in Form, &c.
Some fanciers, who never in the course of their lives
observed the least variation in the forms of their fancy pigeons,
are of opinion that the more distinct kinds, such as pouters,
carriers, jacobins, and fantails, were separate creations, and
owe their origin to birds having, probably in a modified form,
the peculiarities of these breeds. They have even offered
silver cups or other rewards for the production of a new form
of fancy pigeon other than a mere feather variety, in the
belief that such could not be produced; but the life of a fancier
who may have kept pigeons for even half a century, is but a
10 FANCY PIGEONS.
little wliile compared to the time pigeons have been kept in the-
world as domestic birds ; for we know they have been carefully
bred for thousands of years. No other domestic animal I
know of has branched out into such variety of form and
colour, from which I infer . they have been long and ex-
tensively cherished by their admirers. Every leading fea-
ture of the bird seems to have been already played upon,
so that one might almost be unable to suggest any new
variation from what already exists ; and yet, even lately, a.
quite new variety of pigeon appeared. This case occurred
about thirty years ago, and is recorded in the pages of
the Poultry Chronicle (1854-5). The bird in question was-
a sport from common baldpate tumblers, and a reference
to the illustration, which will be found in the Chronicle,
will show what its peculiarity was. From the crown of its-
head rose a crest of rather long waving feathers, quite
different and distinct from the peak or shell crest of many
breeds. The account of the bird, as given at the time by its
owner, Mr. W. Woodhouse, was as follows: "This curious
pigeon is alive, and in my possession. It is a pure-bred
baldpate, of which it has the properties viz., clean cut,,
pearl-eyed, clean-thighed, and ten-a-side. It is the only one
in the world, and is a cock bird. Several competent judges-
have seen it, and consider it a freak of Nature ; but, what-
ever it is, it is a wonder. Several of my friends wish me
to breed from it to get more, but of this I am doubtful.'*
A few weeks after the above was published, Mr. Brent, the
well-known authority on pigeons, wrote as follows in the
Poultry Chronicle : " A month or two back, Mr. James Pryer,
a neighbour of mine, and a tolerable judge of pigeons, in-
formed me he had seen something curious in that line at
Sevenoaks. He described it as a common chequered dove-
house pigeon, with some rather long feathers growing from
the head. Seeing Mr. Woodhouse's description of his crested
baldpate, I showed him the cut, and he assured me that, so-
11 ORIGIN.
far as lie could see, the pigeon in question was crested just the
same. We have both made inquiries respecting the bird, but
have not succeeded in discovering whence it came, or where
it is gone. Mr. Woodhouse's pigeon is certainly a curiosity."
It will thus be seen that, twice within a short time, the said
peculiarity was observed in separate breeds of pigeons. Un-
fortunately, Mr. Woodhouse's baldpate does not seem to have
produced young like itself, or we should now be in possession
of a variety quite distinct from anything that has come under
my notice, either here or abroad. To such sports, coming
unexpectedly, must, I think, be referred all the strange types
of pigeons now existing on the globe. The whiskered owl,
whose frill is so much developed that it divides at the top
and runs quite round the neck in some birds, seems also a
recent introduction at least, I can find no notice of this
type in any old book on the subject of fancy pigeons but
this can scarcely be called a new variety; it is rather an
extraordinary development of an old one.
Animals in domestication, and also in a wild state, are
subject to variations. In the latter state, such variations are
likely soon to disappear, but in domestication the guiding
hand of man fixes them on account of their originality.
By pairing any curious specimen of a breed with one of
the common type, the young may not prove uncommon;
but they, paired with their uncommon parent, are then likely
occasionally to reproduce the desired peculiarity. In this-
way, I believe, every fancy pigeon, however now far removed
from the blue rock, has been produced; and, judging from the
following analogous case, it does not seem to take very long
for Nature, guided by the reason of man, to produce the
greatest differences in form.
Effects of Domestication.
It is well known that the canary bird was first introduced!
into Europe about 300 years ago. The difference between
12 FANCY PIGEONS.
the Belgian or Lancashire coppy in form, and the lizard or
cinnamon in feather, and the wild canary, as still yearly im-
ported into this country, is as great as the difference between
the pouter in form and colour and the blue rock pigeon.
Such results, in a comparatively short time, from canary
breeding, have led me to suppose that, were bird fanciers to
persevere with goldfinches, linnets, and siskins, all of which
have been bred in confinement, we should ultimately see
similar variations in them. Variety of colour constantly
occurs among them in a wild state, and such has been noticed
by naturalists for 200 years.
Foreign Varieties.
Besides the blue rock pigeon inhabiting our coasts, others
differing from it slightly are known to exist in Asia and
Africa. Any of these that may have been domesticated may
have been progenitors of fancy pigeons. One of them, the
{Jolumba Leuconota, inhabiting the Himalayas, is marked on
the head and tail like a nun, and, in addition, the wings are
marked something like those of a swallow pigeon. But
whether or not it is a true rock pigeon, capable of domestica-
tion, and able to produce young with a common blue rock
or tame pigeon, themselves in turn fertile, is what I cannot
say. This subject, however, is one more for naturalists than
pigeon fanciers, who have generally their hands full with the
work of keeping up, and possibly improving, the interesting
forms of pigeon life handed down to them from of old.
Of late years we have received from abroad many kinds
of pigeons of the highest excellence, showing such breeding
that what we had before of the same types seemed but
half-bred beside them. Still, no quite new or distinct forms
have reached us, entirely different from what we knew of,
though many distinct varieties of colour have appeared, as
in the short-faced frilled varieties from Asia Minor. Since
the first edition of this book was published, in 1881, a variety
13
ORIGIN.
has been brought from China with an extraordinary develop-
ment of gullet. I have named it the Chinese Dewlap pigeon.
A recent Russian traveller writes of a mandarin in the in-
terior of China, who kept his fancy pigeons with great
care; it is possible we may still get from that country, or
from the interior of Northern Africa, some variety hitherto
unknown here.
Chapter III.
< THE PIGEON HOUSE, LOFT, AND AVIARY. x>
Wall Boxes.
HE majority of pigeon fanciers, who com-
mence their pursuit when young, begin by
keeping a few common birds or flying tum-
blers in boxes fixed to some wall, out of
reach of cats or other enemies. This was
the way I began the fancy, and some narrow escapes I had
when up the ladder inspecting what was going on inside
my pigeon locker; and I would advise all guardians of
pigeon-keeping boys, who have no other means of housing
their pets than in wall boxes, to see that these are not only
properly secured for I have known them to give way from
improper fastening but fixed at no great distance from the
ground. Keeping really good pigeons in wall boxes is,
however, almost out of the question, for little control over
them -can be exercised, and, sooner or later, if the young
fancier means advancement in his pursuit, he must find ways
and means for the better housing of his birds.
When, however, no other means of keeping pigeons than
in wall boxes is convenient, then such should be made of
15
THE HOUSE OR LOFT.
some kind of durable wood, and well jointed, so as to allow
the wind no entrance except from the holes at which the
birds go in and out; and they ought to be fixed in the most
sheltered position available. The box space necessary for
each pair of all small pigeons, such as tumblers and turbits,
is about 12in. by 12in., and lOin. high. This is the measure-
ment inside, and, in addition, there is the landing board,
which will project about 4in. Unless each pair is provided
with two such apartments, there will be little peace in the
-colony, for pigeons do not like to lay in their last nest.
^iwNiiiiiiii
FIG. 1. PIGEON HOUSE FOR FOUR PAIRS.
They usually go to nest when their young ones are about
three weeks old; they therefore require two nesting places.
Fig. 1 represents a wall dovecote suitable for four pairs,
each pair having two apartments, in which they will nest
alternately. The young ones will leave their nest when
between three and four weeks old, but can easily be pre-
vented going into the adjoining apartment and disturbing
16 FANCY PIGEONS.
their sitting parent, by fixing a temporary division between
the doorways.
No one, however, will continue to keep pigeons in wall
lockers if he can by any means avoid it, and some vacant
building, shed, or loft, will be appropriated for the purpose.
Such a place a fancier ought, with the assistance of a few
carpenter's tools, to be able to fit up himself. Cat and rat-
proof he must have it, and mouse-proof also, if possible; for,
while the former will destroy the birds themselves, the latter
spoils their food.
Open-air Flights.
The great majority of fancy pigeons may be allowed their
liberty in the open air with safety to their lives and positive
advantage to their health; but choice pouters, carriers, short-
faced tumblers, jacobins, or fantails, 'are not so able to take
care of themselves. Still, it is surprising how wary even
such varieties as these become, if flown when young. In
granting them their liberty, however, which must only be
occasional, according to the weather, the owner must be
entirely guided by circumstances, such as the surroundings
of his place and the special character of each bird. There
must always be a certain amount of risk encountered, and it
is for the owner to consider whether the advantages to be
gained will outweigh it. Choice pigeons no doubt live a long
time in close confinement when treated with reasonable and
ordinary care, for many fanciers have no other means of keep-
ing them. If occasional entire liberty cannot be given them,
an open-air flight, inclosed by wire netting, will be of great
advantage. This should always be roofed in, and only open to
the less exposed aspects. The larger it can be made the
better; but even a very small open-air flight will materially
assist in keeping the birds in good health. "When pigeons
are kept in a room or loft with no outside liberty, an open-
ing, covered with wire netting, for the admittance of light
17 THE HOUSE OR LOFT.
and air, should be provided. It should face the south, to
admit the sunlight, and have a wide board adjoining, for the
birds to rest on. The most domineering of them will mono-
polise this place as much as they can, but their domestic duties
will prevent their being always there, so that all will have
some advantage from it.
Feeding Boards.
Pigeons may be fed either from a flat board that has a mar-
ginal edge running round it, raised about an inch, to prevent
the scattering of the grain, or from a self -supplying hopper.
By the exercise of due care in not putting down more grain
each time the birds are fed than they will eat, there need not
be much waste of food. Giving them too much at a time,
and then grudging to throw away any that becomes soiled,
is but poor economy, and a likely cause of disease among
them. If a flat board be used for their feeding on, it should
be covered with sand or gravel to the depth of half an inch,
which should be renewed weekly.
Hoppers.
In the breeding season, when a constant supply of food is
more necessary, hoppers made of zinc or wood, such as shown
in Fig. 2, will be useful. They can be made of any desired
length. The lid, or lids, if they are intended to be divided
inside, open with hinges, and should be at such an angle as
will prevent the birds resting on them. A wire run along
the ridge, raised an inch and a half, will keep them from
settling there. As the food is eaten from the trough, the
bulk inside will continue falling down, thus insuring a con-
stant supply as long as it lasts. By an inside division,
separating the hopper into two parts, two kinds or two
separate mixtures of food may be supplied. Fig. 3 represents
a very useful feeding box, which I have used for some years.
The inside wires are 2in. apart, and prevent scattering of the
C
18 FANCY PIGEONS.
grain. Hoppers of various designs may be bought from
manufacturers who make a speciality of them. One was
brought out a few years ago in which the food is exposed
FIG. 2. GRAIN HOPPER.
by the pigeon stepping on the board in front of tB box;
this prevents waste from mice or sparrows, their weight
being insufficient to open it.
Water Fountains.
Water fountains may be bought complete, of various
patterns; but a good one may be improvised by carefully
FIG. 3. FEEDING Box.
punching a hole in a two gallon stone jar, near the bottom, and
hermetically sealing the mouth. This, placed in a flower-pot
19 THE HOUSE OR LOFT.
saucer, the edge of which is higher than the orifice made
in the jar, will complete the fountain. But a better kind of
jar, made in various sizes, is that shown in the illustration
(Fig. 4), which, being without a bottom, can be better cleaned
out. When the pigeon-house has an outside flight on the
ground, or when the fancier has more than one such place,
supplying the birds with drinking water can be better per-
FIG. 4. WATER BOTTLK FIG. 5. WATER DISH.
formed from the outside. I made for myself a pattern in
wood, like Fig. 5, from which I had several casts in iron
taken, and then galvanised. These saucers are placed outside
my nights, with the projecting part put through a hole cut in
the wire netting. By this method, from the arrangements of
my pigeonry, I can supply my birds with drinking water in
half the time it would take to carry it inside.
Small Pigeonry.
As a specimen of a pigeonry extensive enough for one man
to attend to who has to do everything connected with it him-
self, before and after business hours, I have prepared a plan
of my own place (Fig. 6), which, though not perfect by any
20
FANCY PIGEONS.
means for almost every day brings forth some new want
is now tolerably complete. Its arrangement may be carried
out .on a greater or smaller scale by anyone either erecting
a columbarium, or adapting some existing building. P is
the entrance door to the court, which measures about 80ft.
by 60ft., and is surrounded by high walls. The build-
ings are placed against the north wall, which is about 12ft.
high, and they slope down to about 7|ft. in front. The roof
is slated, but about one -third of the open-air nights,
-<r f
GfiASS
C ft ASS
w!
DD
FIG. 6. PLAN OF SMALL PIGEONRY.
marked BB, CO, and DD, are roofed with glass, to admit
light, and are wired in front. E is the entrance door
to the whole; I adopted this plan from having often lost
birds in other places by the doors in the open-air flights
being left open accidentally, being blown open by the wind,
or by the birds dashing past me when entering; and it may
happen that, not only may the birds themselves be lost in
such cases, but any young ones they may have may die for
want of a suitable change to another pair being handy at
the time. The room A is about 16ft. long by 12ft. broad,
21
THE HOUSE OR LOFT.
and has a table running half round it, about 2ft. broad,
capable of holding ten bell-shaped wire show-pens for train-
ing pouters. Below this table are two tiers of matching pens,
each pair having a sliding wired frame dividing them, which,
when withdrawn, enables the birds to go together. Two large
corn chests for holding food are also shown, on the top of
one of which are more matching pens; and the top of the
FIG. 7. NESTING BOXES.
other is used as a carpenter's bench, quite a necessary in
such a place, and never long out of use. The rooms A, B, C,
and D are lighted by roof lights, opening, when required, for
ventilation. B is a room about 9ft. by 12ft., for small pigeons,
such as tumblers, turbits, owls, and jacobins, and is fitted
with four tiers of nesting places, constructed on the principle
shown in Fig. 7.
22 FANCY PIGEONS.
Each nest box (Fig. 7) is about 14in. long by 12in. deep,
and llin. high. A door, hinged at the bottom, covers two
nests, which suffice for a pair of birds, and each nest is
numbered for reference. About one-fourth of the door is cut
away for entrance, and a landing board, supported by a
small bracket, is fixed to it. A button screwed to the wood
that divides each pair of nests keeps the door secure, and,
if made so as to have no play, will never be accidentally
forced up. The pair of nests numbered 7 and 8 are shown
closed, and those marked 25 and 26 partly open. I find this
style of nesting place answers very well for small pigeons,
each pair of birds having all they require; they nest first
in the one and then in the other, and by the time the young
ones are able to come out they are strong enough to fly.
The single landing boards have the advantage of keeping
each pair entirely to themselves, and they are generally
able to hold their own against all comers, as there is little
room for fighting on them.
BB (Fig. 6) is the open-air flight of B, and has resting
boards, 3|ft. from the ground, 18in. wide, and close to the
wall running round it. When there is a space between the
board and the wall it is dangerous for pouters, fantails,
and such pigeons. I like the broad resting boards, as they
give plenty of room for the birds to pass each other. WW
are the water fountains for the open-air flights, placed out-
side, with their saucers projecting through the wire. G
is a room, 12ft. by 12ft., fitted up with three tiers of nests
for pouters. The shelves are 18in. deep and 18in. high,
divided into nesting places 3ft. long, which, in the breeding
season, are darkened at each end by boards, behind which
the birds nest alternately. Like others I know, I could
never be satisfied with so few birds as I could find accom-
modation for on the ground, so must run certain risks
from the young ones falling from the higher nests, and be
as careful in guarding against such mishaps as possible. D is
23 THE HOUSE OR LOFT.
another room, 10ft. by 12ft., fitted up with nesting places as
in C, and has a flight of 18ft. long, marked DD.
There is a great advantage in having several compartments
in a pigeonry, for without them it will sometimes be found
almost impossible to unmatch certain pairs, when it is
desirable to do so. Besides the buildings shown, I have
several others for my birds, which, being outside the court,
cannot be shown on the plan.
Earthenware or wood nest pans, of from 8in. to lOin. in
diameter, are used by some fanciers, but they are not required
in such nesting places as shown in Fig. 7. The method I adopt
is to spread sawdust to the depth of half an inch, and place
straw on it, which the birds form into a nest. There is a
danger of young birds falling out of nest pans and dying
of cold. In the breeding houses I have used sawdust over
the floor, to the depth of lin. or 2in., and have found it very
suitable. This, if passed through a riddle of iin. mesh once
a week, will last for several weeks, but should be renewed
oftener if the place be troubled with insects. Pine sawdust
soon loses the pungent smell, which helps somewhat, though
not entirely, to drive away vermin.
Cleaning Pigeon Houses.
Unless pigeon houses are often cleaned out, the smell
arising from the dung soon becomes unpleasant. I clean out
FIG. 8. STEEL SCRAPER.
my own places every morning, and as, from their extent, the
time required for doing so is considerable, I have been obliged
24 FANCY PIGEONS.
to find out the most suitable tools for the purpose. These
are, a triangular steel scraper (Fig. 8), as used by shipwrights,
and a steel hand shovel (Fig. 9). The former is good for all
corner places, and the latter for broad surfaces, such as the
floors and resting boards in the flights. When held at the
proper angle, the shovel removes everything opposed to it as
fast as one can walk along. It should be of the best steel,
and kept sharp; those made of sheet iron wear but a short
time. A stable broom set with stiff Brazil fibre is also neces-
FIG. 9. STEEL SHOVEL.
sary for sweeping all up, when the scraper and shovel have
done their part in freeing the dung from the wood. I have
given up using sawdust on the floors for some time, not that
I disapprove of it, but merely because I could not procure it
conveniently. *The labour in cleaning out the houses is as
great when sawdust is used as when it is not, for the
renewing and riddling of it takes up much time ; if the
floors are scraped daily the dung has no time to harden and
adhere to the wood, when it become more difficult to remove.
Covering for Floors of Flights.
The best covering for the floors of outside flights is small
25
THE HOUSE OR LOFT.
gravel; such as can be got from sea beaches, mixed to some
extent with broken shells, is very useful, the birds using
much of it to aid them in digesting their food. It should
be raked together now and then, and renewed when it gets
soiled by the droppings.
Chapter IV.
o< SELECTION OF STOCK. X
Early Experience.
the selection of stock the pigeon fancier
has many varieties to choose from. Not
only do the forms of pigeons vary much,
but their plumage is diversified to an ex-
traordinary degree, and the disposition or
temper of the birds themselves varies greatly in different
breeds. Most, if not all, who begin pigeon keeping early in
life, commence with common kinds, with which they learn
the rudiments of the fancy, and so gain the experience
necessary to enable them to keep the more choice breeds
with success. Of all who do so begin pigeon- keeping, how-
ever, but few follow it up in after life, either from want of
the necessary accommodation in the places to which their
destiny may lead them, or, more often, because the pursuit
has no real hold on their minds. Whether the fancier begin
early or late in life, it is necessary for him to spend some
probationary time in mastering the rudiments of his pursuit,
and to do so with expensive birds, the beauties of which he
cannot, probably, realise, is a waste of money, unless he
27 SELECTION OF STOCK.
has some experienced friend often at hand to direct him in
their management.
As a beginning, no better pigeons than common tumblers
can be put into the hands of a young fancier. They are
neat and tidy in appearance, of varied and beautiful colours,
and their performances in the air are a constant source of
pleasure to their owners. There are few fanciers, however
select their pigeons may be, who, if they can find accommo-
dation for them, fail to keep some pairs of these engaging
birds. They breed freely, are very hardy, and are serviceable
feeders for other pigeons.
Characteristics of Breeds.
The pigeons that look best on the wing are those of pro-
nounced markings, su9h as baldheads, turbits, and nuns. As
they wheel round in their flight, the contrast between the
white and coloured part of their plumage is very striking.
Pouters, of what might be called a second quality, for the
choicest are scarcely to be trusted at large, Norwich croppers,
pigmy pouters (such as Austrians and Isobels), and pouting
horsemen, or half-bred pouters and carriers, are all capital
flyers, and sail through the air in fine style.
The pigeons that become most familiar with their owners
are pouters and fantails. It is necessary for the former to
become very tame if intended for exhibition, as otherwise
they lose much of their beauty and chance of success in
competition. On the other hand, carriers look best wild
and alarmed, familiarity on their part spoiling their fine
shape and statuesque appearance.
Bunts, though they look quiet and sedate in the loft, are
often of a spiteful disposition, making the feathers fly by the
dozen from birds that happen to encroach on their preserves.
Carriers, also, are very vicious, and play sad havoc with
each other when they fall out.
Trumpeters, such as were in England before the so-called
28 FANCY PIGEONS.
Russian ones were introduced, were noted for their quarrel-
some disposition, and I have seen an unruly cock of this
breed monopolise a whole loft to himself, preventing, till his
removal, the least chance of success in breeding from the
birds associated with him.
Owls, the Oriental frilled varieties, and turbits (the latter
in a less degree), are shy and reserved in their demeanour,
leaving their nests and young ones on the slightest alarm;
but this will be of little consequence if the cause of their
disquietude be soon removed, when they will generally return
without delay to their nests.
If pigeons of varied and striking plumage be required,
they may be found in archangels, almond tumblers, the
Eastern frilled varieties, and in many of the German toys ;
contrasts of colour among nuns, magpies, swallows, and
such kinds ; while pouters, carriers, short-faced tumblers, barbs,
jacobins, fantails, owls, turbits, and trumpeters, present ab-
normal conformation, and are denominated high-class pigeons,
in distinction from those having little but curious colour
and marking, because such conformation is more difficult to
produce, and therefore thought more of, when obtained in a
high degree, than mere feather.
Keeping Several Varieties.
But though a genuine pigeon fancier may have a prefer-
ence for some particular variety, he will not be insensible
to the beauties of others ; and during an extended career
in the fancy, he will most likely become possessed of speci-
mens of every kind of fancy pigeon he can obtain. There
is always a charm to the fancier in the acquisition of some
new variety not previously possessed by him, which is taken
up as a kind of extra thing, in addition to the variety on
which his fancy is more permanently fixed, and as he
tires of it some other novelty will take its place; for, as
will be afterwards explained, it is not wise to keep many
29 SELECTION OF STOCK.
varieties at a time, if it is expected to breed any of them
to perfection. Each distinct kind of pigeon is a study in
itself ; still, in addition to the favoured kind, and without
detracting from the attention it may require, one or two
other breeds may be introduced into the loft, when room
can be afforded them, as a sort of by-play.
Homing Pigeons.
In addition to the breeds that are strictly fancy pigeons,
there are those known as homing or racing pigeons, in the
breeding and training of which many find great enjoyment.
The dragoon, long-faced beard, and skinnum, were formerly
used in England for this purpose, but of late the Antwerp
carrier is almost exclusively employed for flying long matches.
The flying fancy is a branch of the pigeon fancy by itself,
and may be more properly denominated as racing, though
in the management of the birds themselves there is no
difference from that necessary for the generality of fancy
pigeons.
Chapter V.
X FEEDING, BREEDING, AND MANAGEMENT. X
Foods.
' HE grain used for feeding fancy pigeons is
wheat, barley, beans, peas, tares, and maize,
besides some other kinds. All of these are
good in their way, and may be mixed together.
The fancier will find that some birds prefer
one kind, and some another. The grain should neither be too
new nor too old, for when used in the year it is grown it is
inclined to be too relaxing, and apt to scour the birds ; on the
other hand, old grain, that has been ill kept, and become
perforated by worms or weevils, will have lost most of its
goodness, and a great part of it will be refused by the birds.
Grain may be kept well for a considerable time if spread on
a wooden floor to the depth of 6in. or 9in., and turned over
once a week or so. The place should be free from damp, or
the grain will become musty. Well-conditioned grain keeps
the birds in good health, and makes a great difference in the
number of young ones reared, for any that has become too
hard from age cannot be easily digested by them, and musty
or worm-eaten stuff being distasteful to them, the young ones
31 MANAGEMENT.
suffer in consequence. When floor space is not available for
storage of grain, it should be changed from one bin to another
as often as convenient, or, if kept in sacks, they should be
shaken up now and then, with the object of destroying moths
and other insects, which will assuredly find their way amongst
it if it be left long undisturbed.
Wheat may be used more freely in the summer than in the
winter. Pigeons are fond of it, and, when given them to the
extent of one-fourth of their supply, it is beneficial during the
breeding season.
Barley is good food for pigeons, and I use it to some extent
all the year round ; indeed, I have known of good results from
pigeons fed on nothing else. It is generally the cheapest of
all pigeon food, and cheapness is an object with many; but
the birds are not very fond of it.
Maize, or Indian corn, is generally as cheap a grain as
can be had, and, being highly nutritive, is in every respect
suitable for pigeons. The small round kind, known as
Hungarian, or Black Sea maize, is generally dearer than
the flat American, but not more valuable as food; however,
the flat kind is not so suitable for the smaller breeds of
pigeons, being apt to stick in their throats and choke
them.
Peas are of various kinds, such as white, blue, and mottled.
The small white, or rather pale yellow, Canadian peas, are
good food for pigeons. The dark brown mottled kind, known
as partridge peas, are also very good ; and the small Baltic
feeding peas, which contain a mixture of white, blue, and
mottled, are serviceable, and generally cheap.
Beans are of various kinds, such as the small tick bean
and the medium -sized Egyptian both good for pigeons.
The larger varieties are not suitable, being apt to choke
the birds.
Tares either the small foreign or large Scotch are suit-
able food, and may be mixed with the foregoing.
32 FANCY PIGEONS.
A mixture of grain can always be had from dealers who
make a specialty of supplying pigeon fanciers.
Other kinds of grain used by fanciers are buckwheat; dari,
a white, tare-shaped grain from the Levant; rice; paddy, or
rice in the husk ; and mollah, a small East Indian blue-grey
pea mottled with brown spots.
Pigeons are fond of all the seeds given to cage birds, such
as millet, canary, and hemp, but they are too dear for
general use, though they may be given as an occasional treat.
Hemp seed is very stimulating, and should be seldom given to
pigeons kept in close confinement.
As pigeons at liberty eat freely of lettuce and such green
food, this may be supplied occasionally to those kept in con-
finement; but it is not an absolute necessity for them, and I
never give them such in the winter time.
Mode of Feeding.
I have already referred to the way pigeons may be fed in
lofts. When an outside flight, covered with gravel, is pro-
vided for them, the best way to feed them is to throw their
food on the ground, always provided they can see to pick it
up, which trumpeters, and certain heavily wattled pigeons can-
not do. For such hoppers must be provided. Supposing a
good many birds are kept, this will be the most expeditious
mode of feeding. Hoppers, to supply perhaps a hundred
birds, must be rather numerous, to prevent their constantly
quarrelling over them. More food is destroyed by feeding
from a flat board than from the ground, if it be kept con-
stantly supplied with clean gravel a few inches in depth.
During the breeding season the birds should invariably be
fed early in the morning, not later than eight o'clock. If
food be left for them over night, they will go to it much
before this hour in the summer time ; but this is not
absolutely necessary. Forgetting to feed them for half a day
will cause the death of many young ones, not so much for
33 MANAGEMENT.
want of food as from cold ; for in such a case the old ones
will not continue sitting on them, but will leave them and
hang about waiting for their food. Young pigeons, from
their birth till seven days old, cannot long survive the
want of their parents' warm protection, even in the heat of
summer.
Water.
The water vessels should be refilled daily, even if they hold
more than a day's supply; for, if allowed to run dry, the
same bad results follow as from want of food. They should
be frequently cleaned out with boiling water, and such as
have only a hole in them should have some sharp sand
shaken up in them when being cleansed. If placed outside
the flight, and exposed to the rays of the summer sun, they
must either be protected from it by a box in very hot days,
or be frequently refilled with cold water ; for sun-heated water
is prejudicial both to the old and young birds.
Bathing water may be allowed them twice a week, which is
about as often as they will care to use it. If supplied in the
loft, no vessel, however constructed, will prevent them dashing
it about on the floor; but some sawdust, thrown upon the
overflow, will absorb it in a few minutes, when it may be
swept up. If the bath be made with sides inclining in-
wards, much less water will be scattered about than when
they are upright or sloping outwards.
Salt.
Salt in some form is necessary for pigeons kept in confine-
ment, as has been known from the time of Aristotle. It is
required for keeping them in health, and for the successful
rearing of their young. The old writers give recipes for what
they termed the "salt-cat," which Moore refers to as so called,
he supposes, " from a certain fabulous oral Tradition of baking
a Cat in the Time of her Salaciousness with Cummin-Seed
34
FANCY PIGEONS.
as a Decoy for your Neighbours' Pigeons; this, tho' handed
down by some Authors as the only Method for this Purpose,
is generally laughed at by the Gentlemen of the Fancy, and
never practis'd." I have an old book on Agriculture (1687),
from which Moore has quoted when writing of the value of
pigeons' dung, which gives a recipe for the preparation of the
disgusting compound called salt-cat. The author also makes
the following sensible remarks : " There is nothing that
Pigeons more affect than Salt; therefore, do they usually give
10 INCHES
FIG. 10. SALT EARTH Box FOR PIGEONS.
them, as oft as occasion requires, a Lump of Salt, which they
usually call a Salt-Cat, made for that purpose at the Salterns,
which makes the Pigeons much affect the place, and such as
casually come there usually remain where they find such
good entertainment." I have experimented regarding the
necessity of salt for pigeons, and noted the experience of
others, and have ever found, when it has been long with-
held from them, they suffered more from disease, and that a
greater portion of their young died before maturity. One
writer goes the length of saying, that it is necessary for the
35 MANAGEMENT.
successful treatment of their complaints. The avidity with
which they devour salt, when they get a supply after a long
want of it, shows it to be very necessary; but, in such a
case, both the old and young suffer from an overdose, as I
have proved. I have noticed, when it was given in the form
of rock salt, and when the lump had disappeared by melting,
and by the birds eating it, that they greedily ate of the
salt earth where it had lain till they made quite a depression
in the ground.
As pigeons in confinement require lime, not only for the
formation of the shells of their eggs, but for medicinal
purposes, it is best to supply this in conjunction with salt
and small gravel, the latter aiding in the digestion of
their food. Let the fancier, then, proceed as follows in
making up a mixture which will supply, along with sound
grain, all his birds require for keeping them in as good
health and condition as is possible, either in confinement or
at liberty. Let him, when opportunity offers, procure and
preserve in a box or barrel a supply of old lime from some
building in course of demolition. Such rubbish is generally com-
posed of one part of lime to about three or four of sand. Take
of this lime rubbish, two parts; of small, gritty, pebbly sand,
one part; of friable loam, of a clayey kind for choice, one
part: beat all down, so that it will pass through a iin.
riddle, and mix well together. Then add coarse kitchen salt,
to the extent of one-eighth part of the whole, and put the
mixture in boxes, and, as Old Moore would have said, " You'll
find your account in it." As the pigeons consume this, which
they will do quickly, for every bird will visit the box daily,
replenish the store all the year round. Fig. 10 represents a
box, or hopper, suitable for holding the salt earth or gravel.
Pairing.
Supposing the pigeon fancier to have his loft and its
arrangements completed, and to have selected his stock of
E 2
36 FANCY PIGEONS.
birds, the first thing he will have to do will be to pair them
together. In matching them up, with the object of breeding
good young ones, the general rule may be laid down that,
whatever faults one of the pair may possess, its mate should
not possess the same. A pair of pigeons having between
them the properties sufficient to constitute a perfect specimen,
or something approaching to it, are likely to amalgamate, in
some of their progeny, the good points they possess ; and
by this method are the most perfect specimens of fancy
pigeons produced. But, besides the appearance of the birds
themselves, that of their parents and more remote ancestors
should be considered when it may be done, as pigeons, in com-
mon with other animals, throw back to their ancestral form as
much, and often more, than to that of their own parents. It will
therefore be seen that successful pigeon breeding requires con-
siderable study, although good pigeons are not unfrequently pro-
duced from very ordinary stock ; but such chance birds are not
reliable for stock purposes. It is always better that a beginner
should procure his stock birds from a breeder who has proved
his ability to turn out good birds of any particular variety,
than to buy those of whose pedigree he can learn nothing;
for there is much virtue in a good strain, and much dis-
appointment saved by procuring such. And yet the very best
of pigeons will produce plenty of young ones quite unfit
to go on breeding from, as all races living in a strictly
artificial state must necessarily do ; so a fair amount of
quality should be looked for in birds intended to commence
breeding from.
Pigeons are mated together by placing them in contiguous
pens, where they can see each other. When in good health f
they will generally show signs of becoming paired in a few
days, but it is, of course, necessary to keep them from the
sight of other birds, and especially of their last mates, or it
will not be easy to match them up. "When properly paired,
it is always well, when practicable, to place them in a loft
37 MANAGEMENT.
apart from their former mates, should they have had such, for
even when these are themselves rematched, and with young
ones, they will occasionally be inclined to go together again ;
but in this respect, and in many others, pigeons show the
most various dispositions. Two or three lofts save much
trouble to the fancier, and he can always work his birds
about in them, so as to save time in his breeding operations.
When a pair show signs of becoming matched up, they
may be allowed to go together for a day, when the union
between them will become more fixed than if turned into the
loft at once. For this purpose, matching pens have generally
a sliding wire division, withdrawable at pleasure. Once or
twice in my experience I have found it impossible to per-
manently match up a pair of pigeons. Though each would
pair in the ordinary way with other birds, they invariably
separated after being together a short time, seeming to
have some antipathy to each other. In such a case, the only
plan for keeping such a pair together, should there be some
special reasons for doing so, will be to place them in a room
by themselves.
Nesting.
When all goes well, the pair will soon begin building a nest,
if provided with materials for doing so, and, usually in
a week or ten days, the hen will lay her first egg, very near
five o'clock in the evening. She will not sit on it through
the following night, but stand over it ; but next day the cock
will generally be in such a hurry to begin the process of
incubation, that it is always better to remove the egg when
laid, substituting another, so as to insure the two hatching
simultaneously, for when one is hatched a day before the
other, the difference in size and strength of the young ones
seems to get more marked day by day, and to increase rather
than diminish. Many hens are apt to lose the power of their
limbs when about to lay, and such must be carefully looked
38 FANCY PIGEONS.
after. Others do so only at the beginning of the breeding
season, when the weather proves unusually cold. Although
there is no way of knowing an egg to be such as will produce
a healthy young one, it may be told almost with certainty
that eggs of a certain appearance will come to no good.
Those that, instead of being smooth when laid, are very rough,
or of a honeycombed appearance towards one end, are gene-
rally bad, and though they contain the germs of a living squab,
it will generally die in the shell. Very small eggs have rarely
a yolk in them, and very large ones have generally a double
yolk. The latter almost invariably die during incubation,
though instances have been known of two healthy young ones
being hatched and reared from them. Good eggs have a
smooth appearance, and a few hours after being laid a round
air spot, usually at one end of them, will be observed on
holding them up to the light. The hen lays her second egg
forty-five hours after the first, or very nearly at two o'clock
on the third day, and this is an almost invariable rule when
all goes well. The first egg being replaced in the nest,
incubation then commences, and in seventeen complete days,
more or less, according to the weather, breed, and closeness
of sitting, the young are hatched.
There is a great difference in the breeding powers of hen
pigeons, and those that lay oftenest during their first season
without any forcing, generally breed longer than such as lay
only twice or thrice in their first year. When a hen lays
single eggs to a nest, it is generally a sign that her pro-
creative powers are drawing to a close, or that she is being
unnaturally forced.
When the eggs have been sat on for three full days, it
may be determined almost surely whether they are fertile or
not. When held against a strong light, the heart, and
blood vessels branching from it, of the embyro squab will be
clearly seen in a good egg. When no such appearance is
visible, the egg is bad, or, as happens occasionally, it has not
39 MANAGEMENT.
been sat on closely, if fertile ; but, in such a case, another
day or two should determine whether it be good or bad. In
a week a good egg is quite opaque when held against the
light, and becomes of a blue colour.
Should a newly laid egg get chipped by the claw of the old
bird, or by other accident, so long as the skin below the shell
be not broken there is hope for it. A good thing to mend
such a flaw is the marginal gummed paper round sheets of
postage stamps, a piece of which the fancier should always
keep in his pocket. Early in the season, thin-shelled eggs are
often laid, and such generally get broken before being sat on
many days. Should the fancier find his hen pigeons laying
many eggs without shells, or with thin shells, it is time for
him to attend to their supply of old lime and gravel. Some-
times a good egg will get very much indented a few days
before it is due to hatch. So long as the skin below the shell
be not broken, the indented shell may be carefully patched up
with gummed paper, and the young one will often be success-
fully hatched.
Young Pigeons.
As a rule, young pigeons that require assistance from the
egg are not worth the trouble in connection with them.
Short-faced tumblers are an exception; but all other breeds,
if possessed of the necessary strength to develop into healthy
birds, should be allowed to hatch without any interference
whatever.
Young pigeons when hatched are very helpless objects,
but grow so fast when all goes well that a great increase in
their size may be observed day by day. They are born blind,
and covered with a yellow down, which, however, varies much,
according to the colour they are to be. Silvers and yellows
are hatched with scarcely any down on them, and this is a
good indication of these colours. Yellows of the deepest
and richest tint are, however, not hatched so thinly covered
40 FANCY PIGEONS.
as those of a washed-out or mealy hue, such as is too often
the case with many of our yellow pigeons, and attention to
this will be no uncertain indication of the quality of colour
that will be developed in due time in a newly hatched squab.
When a week old, the young ones will be well stubbed over
with feathers, which in another week will have begun to
break, and give a good idea of colour and marking. If,
during this time, a daily increase in size be not observed,
or if one keeps getting behind the other, something is wrong ;
but unless the want is evidently from lack of food or
warmth, nothing can be done with squabs so young. The
bowels or digestive organs are out of order, and they seldom
come right. The young of all small and hardy pigeons are
as big as their parents at from four to five weeks old, when
they will leave the nest and soon begin to feed themselves.
Feeders.
Feeders, such as common pigeons, Dragoons, Antwerps,
and the strong and coarse specimens of fancy varieties, are
used as nurses for the more choice breeds, and, although
there is much misunderstanding as to the powers of even
really good birds in their ability to successfully rear their
own young, feeders may be advantageously made use of in
many instances ; but so long as good birds perform their
natural functions, as the great majority are well able to do,
it is but natural to allow them to do so.
When feeders are employed, the eggs of the good birds
may be given to the feeders, if of the same age, or if one
or two days older; but it is not safe to risk any greater
difference in the age of the eggs, because, if hatched before
their soft meat comes on them, the feeders will not feed
them as a rule. In changing young ones, let them be a few
days older than those they replace, and they will have so
much additional care. When young birds are well feathered
it is often unsafe to change them, as the feeders begin to
41 MANAGEMENT.
know the difference in their appearance, and will occasion-
ally either not feed them or drive them out of their nest.
Some feeders are very valuable, from the care they bestow
on any young ones given them, and a pair, of which the
hen is barren, are often best of all in this respect. An egg
placed in her nest will be taken to; after the interval of a
day it may be removed, and a fresh pair of eggs from
some choice pair of birds given to her, when she and her
mate will treat them as their own, and rear them success-
fully in many instances. Barren hens have this advantage,
that they can be made to wait till their owner has a
use for them. The worst of feeders is, that they look so
bad among good pigeons, and on this account they should
always be kept in some separate loft if possible. A place
for drafting young ones into is also a great convenience,
for they soon become troublesome among breeding birds.
Over Laying.
Unless other eggs or young ones be given to pigeons who
have been deprived of their own, they will often lay again
much sooner than they would otherwise do, and when this is
often repeated nothing but disaster can result. Such un-
naturally forced eggs are often thin- shelled, unfertile, or, if
they contain birds, they very often come to nothing. Bather
than allow good hens to over lay themselves, if they cannot
be supplied with substitutes in eggs or young ones, they
should be penned up for a time, which will give their systems
the needful rest.
Sex of Young Pigeons.
The usual pair of eggs laid by the hen pigeon generally
result in a cock and hen, but so many instances occur of two
cocks or two hens being produced in a nest that it is never
safe to reckon on the sex of young ones. Certain indications
of the sex of his young pigeons will soon present themselves
42 FANCY PIGEONS.
to an experienced fancier ; but, at the same time, where many
young ones are bred, there will usually be one or two whose
sex will puzzle the most experienced for a long time.
Odd Birds.
Odd birds in a loft, be they cocks or hens, are always
very troublesome. Such should always be removed to a place
by themselves, or common mates procured for them, when
they may be used as feeders.
Overcrowding.
Pigeons are so productive that they often increase faster
than accommodation can be provided; but nothing militates
more against success in rearing young ones than overcrowded
lofts, which are a fertile cause of disease, and when such
does set in, the best seem to die first; at least, they are
more missed than the worst, which is about the truth of it.
When every result of an overcrowded loft is considered, such
as extra expense for food, extra trouble in attendance, and
the introduction of disease, it would be found to pay far
better to use an unsparing hand in killing off faulty young
ones, which seldom pay anything like their cost.
Separating Sexes.
Many fanciers separate the cocks from the hens during the
winter season, and where there is every convenience for doing
so it may be a good plan. When all nesting places are laid
bare of their furnishings, there is but little inducement for
the birds to breed during the short days of winter. It is
at least unnatural for the sexes to lose the companionship
of each other during several months of the year, and they
have always seemed to me to thrive much better when left
together. When all facilities for breeding are removed, as the
birds begin to get deep in moult, and not replaced till the
the beginning of spring, there will be no trouble experienced
43
MANAGEMENT.
on this account, from pouters at least, though many of the
small and hardy kinds of pigeons will not take advantage
of such a long rest.
Summary.
The elements of success in breeding good fancy pigeons
may be briefly summed up as follows : Well-bred stock
birds, properly paired in regard to their own and their
ancestral form, supplied with good food and clean water,
provided with proper breeding accommodation, not over-
crowded, kept clean, and tended with all reasonable care
by one who has their welfare and the love of them thoroughly
at heart.
Chapter VI.
X COLOURS OF FANCY PIGEONS. X>
The Wild Blue Rock.
HE colour of the wild blue rock pigeon is
found in nearly all domesticated fancy breeds
of pigeons, and this is regarded as one of
the proofs of their descent from it. The
British blue rock pigeon differs from its
congener in Asia in having a white rump, and this difference
also exists in fancy pigeons of a blue colour, which are,
however, always preferred to the blue rumped for the sake of
uniformity. Many shades of the blue colour are found in
tame pigeons, the one in most request being a rich even
dark blue, neither running too dark and smoky in hue, nor
too light and silvery in tone. The neck of a blue pigeon,
of the best shade of colour, is dark, and sparkles with a
metallic green and purple lustre. Two black bars cross the
wings, and they should be deep black; but as the result
of crossing of colours in breeding, many blue pigeons are
faulty in this respect. The tail and flight feathers are much
darker in shade than the shoulders, and the former are
marked with black across their ends, forming, when the tail
45 COLOURS.
is outspread, a band of black. The outer tail feathers are
margined with white on their outer edge as far as the black
band.
The blue rock pigeon, when partially domesticated in field
dovecotes, sometimes alters in colour, and the wing coverts
assume a dappled appearance, being chequered on each feather
with black. The dovehouse pigeon, as it is called, has been
considered by some a distinct variety from the blue rock ; but
I have always found both the clear blue and blue chequered
varieties living together in all the field dovecotes where I
have observed these semi-wild pigeons. And not only in
this country, but also in India, where semi-wild pigeons
inhabit temples, mosques, and ruined buildings, both varieties
may be found living together. The blue-chequered colour,
like the blue, is found in most kinds of fancy pigeons,
and may be considered to have originated all the curious
spangling and chequering that exist in numerous kinds of
pigeons.
Changes in Colour.
The first decided change in colour of the blue rock pigeon,
after the chequered variety, is where the whole plumage alters
to a red tint. This variation, also found in most kinds of
tame pigeons, is known as mealy. The blue is replaced by a
whitey-brown tint, and the neck and wing bars become dark
red. When the mealy colour is improved by selection, it can
be made into a very beautiful colour, as in the mealy show
Antwerp. As the blue colour becomes chequered with black,
so the mealy becomes chequered with red, and is called a red
chequer.
These four colours, the blue, blue chequer, mealy, and red
chequer, are, then, the most original colours in tame pigeons,
and they are the foundation of all other colours found in
them.
Besides the blue and mealy colours, there is what may be
46 FANCY PIGEONS.
considered an offshoot of the former the silver. In this
colour the body tint assumes a dun hue, and the neck and
wing bars become of a darker dun. There are two show
shades of silvers, known as brown barred and black barred.
They bear the same relation to each other as the whole-
coloured duns, found in carriers and barbs. The carrier dun
is soft and ruddy, while the barb dun is often very deep and
merging into black. Although the dark-barred silver is called
black barred, this is quite a misnomer, for real black bars on
a dun-tinted body colour are, I believe, incompatible with
nature. I have lately seen a silver cushat or ringdove which
was shot in Fife, in January, 1885.
When the reddish tint of a mealy pigeon is changed to
buff the neck and wing bars become yellow, and this colour
is known in the fancy as yellow mealy, a soft and beautiful
colour, found in many kinds of pigeons. Another barred
colour found in pigeons is powdered blue, as in the Mahomet.
The feathers of the head, neck, and shoulders of this bird
are all tipped as if with hoar frost, the bars across its wings
and tail remaining of an intense black. This colour has been
engrafted on the blue owl pigeon, and a variation of it is
known as powdered silver.
The barred colours of pigeons, therefore, include blue with
black bars, silver with dun bars, mealy with red bars, and yellow
mealy with yellow bars. As powdered silvers and powdered
blues are found in owls, though not yet with such an intense
powdering as in the Mahomet, powdered mealies and yellow
mealies might, I think, be bred in time if wished for. Some
of the mealy show Antwerps have already much powdering on
their head and neck feathers. Through inter-breeding with
other colours there are a great number of off-coloured barred
pigeons, such as kite-barred blues, and reddish-barred blues;
but all such are undesirable, each body colour being
required pure of itself, and accompanied with sound bars to
suit it, except in some varieties, such as the Triganica
47 COLOURS.
pigeon, of Modena, where many curious combinations of
colour are found.
Albinos and Melanoids.
"When colour fails altogether in animals, an albino, or
white specimen is the result, and such are found among dove-
cote pigeons. Albinos, when bred with coloured pigeons often
produce particoloured young, and this is the foundation of
all white markings in fancy pigeons. A rarer freak of
nature, however, than an albino, is when the normal colour
of an animal becomes black, which is known as a melanoid.
Melanoids occur in animals living in a state of nature, such as
leopards, jackals, hares, and rabbits. I have not known of this
natural change occurring in field dovecotes, but there can be
little doubt that the black colour in tame pigeons is owing to
this natural propensity, and that it is the foundation of all
whole colours, such as red, yellow, and dun.
Whole Colours.
These colours, to be in perfection, should be uniform all over
the bird, and not fall away to a lighter shade on the rump,
wings, tail, belly, thighs, or vent. They advance in value ac-
cording to the difficulty of producing them, blacks and duns
being easy of acquisition, compared with reds and yellows, which
latter are the choicest colours in fancy pigeons. To be seen in
perfection, they must be seen on a whole feathered bird, or
at least on a bird whose standard of marking does not
require a white flight and tail, for the colour of these in a
whole-feathered red or yellow is the crucial point in judging
of their quality of colour. Black, red, and yellow of the
choicest shades must be lustrous, with metallic sheen, the
black being green, and the red greenish purple, in certain
lights. Yellow has also an orange lustre, interspersed with
light green on the neck feathers, but there are few yellow
48 FANCY PIGEONS.
pigeons that show such rich colour. Dun of the dark shade,
as in barbs, also shows a greenish lustre; but the light or
dull dun, so often seen in carriers, seldom carries any lustre
beyond the neck feathers. This latter shade of dun colour,
which is an off colour in all high-class fancy pigeons, except
carriers, often fades with the advancing year, and when the
bird is getting its new feathers at the moulting season it
has sometimes a mottled appearance till they are all renewed ;
the same thing happens with many silver pigeons to a greater
or less degree. There is a whole blue colour, without dark
neck, nights, or tail, in which the black bars are wanting.
It should be uniform in shade all over the bird, and may be
seen in some Indian pigeons.
In some kinds of fancy pigeons the wing bars, both in
barred and solid-coloured varieties, are changed to white,
or are marked with white on the bar feathers.
Spangled and Laced Birds.
Many German and Oriental pigeons are spangled or laced
on the shoulders, such as hyacinths and blondinettes ; but
all such spangling or lacing is composed of a combination
of the colours I have detailed as belonging to fancy pigeons,
whether accompanied with white or not.
Combinations of Colour.
Some pigeons are clothed in two distinct colours, such as
the archangel. I once bred a pigeon coloured in a way that
has never before come under my observation viz., a mealy,
with black shoulders, a combination that I would not have
believed possible, and it was nearly clean cut, like a good
turbit. There is also the combined colour known as almond,
or yellow spangled with black, besides many others, such as
bronzed kite and golden dun. White markings on a coloured
ground, and coloured markings on a white ground, are legion
in fancy pigeons, the same constituting the claims of many
49 COLOURS.
to be considered as separate varieties, and each will be
referred to in turn. The advance in colour from the normal
blue may be traced as follows :
Blue with black bars.
Blue chequered with black (blue chequer).
Whole black.
Silver with dun bars ; a natural change from the blue.
Silver chequered with dun (silver chequer or dun chequer).
Whole dun.
Mealy with red bars ; a natural change from the blue.
Mealy chequered with red (red chequer).
Whole red.
Buff with yellow bars ; a natural change from the blue or mealy.
Buff chequered with yellow (yellow chequer).
Whole yellow.
General Remarks.
All the barred, chequered, and solid colours are found in
some varieties of fancy pigeons, while only some of them exist
in others ; but wherever blue, black, red and yellow exist,
the other colours may be got if wanted, which they seldom
are, being considered "off" colours, and of little value. The
black, red, and yellow, when in the most lustrous perfection,
have a beauty and richness that is not surpassed in the
plumage of any bird; but it is seldom they are seen in
perfection, and then only in some varieties of fancy pigeons.
It must have taken long ages of careful breeding to bring
the black, red, and yellow colours to perfection.
Chapter VII.
X EXHIBITING PIGEONS. X>
Antiquity of Pigeon Shows.
1 IGEON stows have probably been established
in England for as long a period as any
shows for the exhibition and comparison of
fancy stock. The " Ordinances for Judging
Almond Tumblers" date back to 1764, and it
is likely that, long before then, the pigeon fanciers of the
Metropolis had their meetings for the comparison of their
pigeons. Before the days of railways, such meetings could
only take place in some large centre, near to which there were
resident many breeders, and an instance of this kind may
be found in Lancashire, where shows for the exhibition of
gold and silver mooney fowls have existed for time out of
mind.
Modern Show System.
The show system of the present day has sprung up during
the lifetime of the present generation, and some of the
principal exhibitions draw together birds and their owners
from all parts of the country. The chief of these meetings are
51 EXHIBITING.
the events of the year in the pigeon fancy, and determine
who are the owners or breeders of the best specimens of
each variety. Fanciers look forward to them as opportunities
for meeting such as are like-minded with themselves; where
they may compare their own stock with that of others,
dispose of the good birds they have for sale, and purchase
such as they may be in need of themselves. A visit to at
least one of the chief shows in each season is beneficial to
the fancier in many ways, and may either confirm him in
his good opinion of his own birds, or enlighten him as to
their demerits ; for it is often the case, when one stays too
much at home, that he insensibly contracts exaggerated ideas
of his own birds, having no opportunity of seeing the pro-
gress made by others.
There are now a great number of pigeon shows held
annually in this country, where valuable prizes are offered
for the best specimens; and there can be no doubt that,
owing to this fact, good birds have year by year increased
in value, till the sum of 100 has been paid on more than
one occasion for a choice specimen. Sums varying from 25
to 50 are by no means uncommon for really first-rate birds
of the high-class varieties; and, indeed, it is only the very
best birds that are worth buying for exhibition purposes,
as they alone have any chance of repaying their cost.
Show Boxes.
Pigeons may be sent to shows in boxes or baskets. Boxes
are liable to breakage, and when made extra strong and
heavy are expensive in the way of carriage. Baskets are
lighter, but, from their openness, are not so desirable in cold
weather, unless lined with canvas. Both boxes and baskets,
capable of holding from one to a dozen birds, are made in
compartments. Fig. 11 illustrates a box, of a pattern long
in use in Scotland, for holding two pouters. It measures
16in. long by Sin. wide, and Sin. deep inside. It is divided
F 2
52
FANCY PIGEONS.
diagonally into two compartments, each having an inside
lid, pierced with holes for ventilation. The birds are placed
in it in opposite directions, and a couple of air holes
should be made in the broad end of each compartment , The
inside lids are lin. below the tops of the sides, which
have notches cut in them, so that, when the outside lid is
shut, a free current of air may pass through. The air holes
represented in the figure are sufficient, and none should be
made in the sides of the box, or in the narrow ends of the
compartments. Boxes on the same principle as shown may
be made with any number of divisions, but, for convenience
FIG. 11. TRAVELLING Box FOR PIGEONS.
in handling, six is usually the greatest number. The size of
each compartment may vary, according to the breed they are
to be used for; but they should always be made no larger
than required, for when a bird has the least extra room,
it is apt to turn, or attempt to turn, when its plumage will
become disordered.
Show Baskets.
Baskets are made exactly on the same principle as the
EXHIBITING.
boxes described, and are, I think, on the whole preferable.
When divided into compartments by wicker work or strong
canvas, they form very good packages for pigeons. Good
oblong baskets, measuring about 20in. by 12in., such as
fruiterers sell cheaply, may be made into capital exhibition
baskets, by dividing them into compartments with canvas, as
shown in Fig. 12, which is a plan for a basket with eight
FIG. 12. PLAN FOR DIVIDING PIGEON BASKET.
compartments, each lOin. by 4in. at the wide, and liin. at
the narrow ends, and is suitable for such pigeons as turbits
or owls. Jacobins are better sent in baskets having canvas
instead of basket work divisions, and fantails should have
large and lofty cloth-lined compartments, to save their tails
from being broken or destroyed.
Preparing Birds for Showing.
The greater number of fancy pigeons may be sent to exhibi-
tions without any preparation at home, except that, in cases
where the birds are of an extra wild nature, some preliminary
penning may be of advantage in rendering them to some
extent at home in a show pen. Some, however, and especially
pouters, really require a considerable training to enable them
to be shown with advantage, and this will be referred to
more particularly elsewhere. Pigeons should in all cases be
shown in a clean state, as many judges lay considerable
54 FANCY PIGEONS.
stress on this point ; and although a good bird can never
look very bad, though dirty, one equally good in spotless
plumage looks very much better. A good deal may be done
for dirty birds by careful washing with soap and soft water;
but washed birds have never the finish of those that do not
require it. A practice that cannot be too strongly depre-
cated is oiling or greasing the plumage to improve the colour.
Birds so treated should never receive notice at the hands
of a judge.
Exhibition Pens.
The best exhibition pens for pigeons are those of the bee-
hive shape, made with galvanised wire; and a good thing for
strewing them with is the husk of oats, though coarse pine
sawdust is better than nothing. Each pen should have water
and food tins, so placed that the birds can reach them with-
out trouble. When thrown on the bottom of the pen, food
soon gets soiled, and heavily wattled pigeons, accustomed to
feed from hoppers, are unable to feed from the floor.
Walking Pens.
For judging pouters and fantails, a large walking pen
should always be provided, as it is impossible to judge them
properly otherwise; and, unless exhibitors see the process of
adjudication for themselves, they should be sparing of criti-
cism afterwards, as pouters, being pigeons chiefly of shape
and carriage, look very different when standing on a block
than when on their mettle in the show-pen.
Chapter VIII.
<K DISEASES OF PIGEONS. X>
General Remarks.
HE choicest kinds of fancy pigeons are sub-
ject to many diseases, no doubt arising
in many instances from hereditary causes.
Where a large stock is kept, the pens set
apart for sick birds will seldom be al-
together untenanted, for whether much doctoring be practised
on them or not, ailing pigeons will have more chance of
recovery when put in hospital than when left among the
healthy birds, who often treat them very roughly. The
eye of the experienced fancier soon detects a pigeon that
is out of sorts ; a disinclination for food or for the bath,
a peculiarity in its flight or walk, and many other signs,
may proclaim something wrong. As delay can only com-
plicate matters, success in the treatment of a sick bird may
often be attained by doing what may be done quickly. For
my own part, I may say that I never had much success in
treating pigeons with medicines, that I have found their
action very uncertain, and that about the same number of
sick ones recover, in certain illnesses, whether drugged or
56 FANCY PIGEONS.
not. For better reference I shall treat of the principal
diseases fancy pigeons are liable to in alphabetical order.
Bowels, Inflammation of.
The disease most fatal to fancy pigeons is inflammation
of the bowels. Many have it at some period of their lives,
and a large proportion before the completion of their
first moult. It may almost be called the distemper of
pigeons, and may be known by the huddled-up appearance
of the bird. The disease is sometimes so rapid in its
action that in a few days the bird is reduced to nothing
but skin and bone. The power of flight is soon lost,
and the bird retires into a corner. When first observed,
the pigeon so affected should be secluded, and have access
to old lime. The best remedy I have found for this disease,
which is known in the fancy as " going light," is to give a
strong purge of common salt, and, a day or two after, from
six to ten drops of laudanum in a teaspoonful of water, for
two or three days in succession. In many cases nothing
seems to do the least good; but when the bird survives ten
days of illness, there is always good hope of its iiltimate
recovery. When this disease attacks young pigeons in the
nest, which it does in some cases, there is no hope of their
recovery; but I have known them, when not attacked till
six weeks old, come through very severe attacks of it.
The most fatal time for them, when once able to fly and
do for themselves, is during their first moult, and those that
pass that period without having this distemper sometimes
take it during their second year, and not unfrequently when
feeding young ones. After this period they are compara-
tively safe, and their systems so hardened that, if they do
take it, they are able more easily to throw it off, though
there are exceptions. Many do not consider a bird safe
till it has passed through this distemper in some form or
other, and after safely passing through it many consider a
57 DISEASES.
bird about twice as valuable as it was before, so many having
to succumb to its effects. Those that recover from very
severe attacks may be reckoned on as good for several years.
In the worst cases, it is astonishing how soon they recover
when they once take the turn for the better; they seem to
get heavy about as fast as they got light. In this disease
it is better to feed sparingly for some days after seclusion.
They have generally a great desire to eat; but when it is
found that the food does not pass from the crop, it can
only do harm, and hasten their death. I refer, of course, to
the worst cases, each of which must be treated on its own
merits, and by careful observation of the state of the crop
each morning. When the dung, from an offensive green
appearance, begins to change to a more healthy state, the
recovery of the bird may be reckoned on. The best protection
against this fatal disease is to keep the salt earth box con-
stantly supplied with the mixture of old lime, gravel, and salt.
Canker.
This disease makes sad havoc in a loft of pigeons when
it becomes established. I have generally found it make its
appearance in overcrowded pigeonries; but it is undoubtedly
most infectious, and may often be introduced by an in-
fected bird, not necessarily suffering from it at the time
of its introduction, but having in its system the seeds of
the disease, which, by the time it shows itself, makes any
measures for the protection of the other birds abortive.
Although foul water may not be the cause of an outbreak
of canker in a loft, the water from which they drink in
common has much to do with the spread of it; but beyond
separating the infected birds, and paying regard to clean-
liness and ventilation, I cannot advise any method of retard-
ing it when once thoroughly established in a loft, for it will
run its course, and, when in a severe form, spoil a whole
season's work in breeding, not disappearing till the advent
58 FANCY PIGEONS.
of cold weather. When this disease has taken thorough
hold in a loft, almost every young bird of choice breed will
become infected with it at from two to four weeks old, even
though the feeders do not themselves have it. Few recover
from it, the strain on their systems when so young being
too great. Canker would sometimes seem to be the direct
result from foul drinking water and dirty food, as pigeons
that are sent long distances by sea invariably become infected
when not kept scrupulously clean. The best safeguards
against an outbreak of canker are strict attention to clean-
liness, no overcrowding in the loft, and great care in intro-
ducing fresh birds during the breeding season. I have
never had a canker epidemic among my pigeons all through
a breeding season, but more than once it has appeared
in my pigeonry about the end of July, and almost every
young one hatched thereafter has become affected with it.
It takes various forms ; first in the throat, in which case
it appears, to a greater or lesser extent, as lumps of cheesy
looking matter, which, if only small, and at the entrance
of the throat, so as not to interfere with swallowing, may
be often cured by touching with nitrate of silver or alum ;
but if of large extent, and deep down in the throat, so as
to prevent swallowing, it causes death from choking or
starvation. Canker sometimes forms in the head, below one
eye, and it will then often grow so rapidly, that in a few
days it will distort the head out of all proportion, and
cause death. I have never been able to cure this form of
it. Again, the upper or under mandible is often affected,
and becomes swollen and distorted, preventing the squab
from being fed. Painting the sores with tincture of per-
chloride of iron, or with glycerine and carbolic acid (six or
eight parts of the former to one of the latter), has been advised
by some; but nitrate of silver, or powdered alum, according
to others, is more efficacious. Canker of the beak and eye
wattles of carriers and barbs may be treated in the same
59 DISEASES.
way, and then covered with starch or plaster of Paris.
Common salt is said to be a cure for the small tumours,
called small pox, that sometimes appear on the wattles
of carriers. I consider that attention to the salt earth
mixture is the best protection against throat canker in
young pigeons.
Cold.
Cold in pigeons may be known by a running at the nostrils
and eyes. It becomes more or less severe according to its
restriction to the upper or lower air passages. More or less
deposit of cankerous looking matter will take place in severe
cases, but warmth and an aperient will generally effect a
cure. What is known as the " one-eyed cold " is a serious
complaint. In this, only one of the bird's eyes is affected.
The lid gets much swollen, and closes over the eye, from
which, and from the nostrils and mouth as well, matter gene-
rally runs for a week or two. The inflammation is severe
while it lasts, which is often for a fortnight or three weeks ;
but seclusion from draught, and bathing with warm water
twice daily, will almost always result in cure, without the
use of any medicine.
Core, the.
This is a tumour that grows in or near the vent, and
is not of very common occurrence. "When in the vent, the
bird will be seen pecking at the part, and on exami-
nation there will be found what looks like a prolapsus of
that organ, wet and bloody. After a few days this will
harden and dry up, and when the scab comes away the
core will come with it. The core was so called by the old
writers on account of its resemblance to the core of an apple.
When it comes on the belly, somewhere near the vent, its
presence will be unsuspected till discovered by accident. A
hard lump will be felt on handling the bird, and on remov-
60 FANCY PIGEONS.
ing the feathers the skin will be found stretched over it like
a net. On cutting the skin, the core, which is like a small
shelled walnut, will come away easily, if ripe. I have not
seen more than eight or ten cases of the core in thousands
of pigeons.
Diarrhoea.
During the moulting season, some birds will for several
weeks be affected with a more or less severe diarrhea,
and pass nothing but fluid matter. The best remedy for this
is a plentiful supply of old lime, and they generally recover
as they get through the moult. If a bird so affected loses
flesh, a change to a more binding kind of food will be of
service.
Egg Bound.
During a cold spring, or when matched up too early
in the season, many hen pigeons become egg bound, and
lose the power of their limbs. Such should be carefully
watched, as they are liable to very rough treatment from
their mates and other pigeons in the loft. If, when placed
on their nests, they do not pass the egg at the time of day
it should come, a teaspoonful of treacle will generally do
good; but a few drops of sweet oil, passed into the vent with
a feather, will also much assist them. Some delicate hens
among shortfaced tumblers are constantly affected in this
way, and the result in breeding from such is so little as to
be not worth the trouble in connection with them. A hen
that loses the power of her limbs from laying too early in
the season, should be kept apart for a month or six weeks, to
enable her to recruit her strength.
Flesh Wen.
This was a form of wing disease according to the old
writers; but, apart from wens in connection with the joints,
61 DISEASES.
such tumours sometimes appear on the crown of the head
and between the beak and eyes of pouters and other
birds. They appear as small pea-shaped, movable lumps,
and should be cut out before they attain large size. The
skin may be slit with a sharp knife, when the tumour is
easily pressed out, unless attached to the bone, which it
sometimes is, when it must be cut away; but it is then
likely to grow again.
Gizzard Fallen.
This was the old term for what is really a displacement
of the bowels. Pouter hens are very subject to it after
three or four years of age, and carriers and barbs also.
There is no cure for it, though birds so affected will live a
few months. I have never known a cock pouter with this
disease, but have seen young ones affected with it in the
nest, when it has always proved fatal in my experience.
Gorging.
This is an ailment of pouters, and more especially
of such as have well- developed crops, the best birds in this
respect having to be carefully watched. The old cure was to
pass the bird through the leg of a stocking, and hang it up
till the food passed off; but the same result may be attained
by placing the bird in a narrow box, padded at one end to
support the crop, so as to allow the food to pass into the
stomach. Large cropped pouters, when allowed to feed their
young, are very apt to gorge, some doing so invariably.
When gorged from drinking too much water, this may be
pressed out of them by gently squeezing the crop till they
disgorge it, when they will be right again in a short time.
When, however, the crop is so gorged as to contain nearly
as much as the weight of the whole bird, it is a bad sign,
and it will then be found that neither the stocking nor box
62 FANCY PIGEONS.
remedy will be of any use, for the stomach has lost its power
of action. The crop may then be cut open, cleaned out, and
sewn up again, the inner and outer skins being carefully sewn
separately. This operation is often successfully performed,
but in many cases is of no use, as the powers of the stomach
have become impaired, and as soon as the bird is at liberty
it will speedily be gorged again, nothing that is eaten passing
into the stomach. From this cause, many of the best pouter
pigeons ever seen have died, and with those best developed in
crop it will always be one of the complaints most to be
feared. Besides cutting the crop open in bad cases of gorging,
Moore says : " Others will tie that part of the crop in which
the undigested meat lies tight round with a string, and let
it rot off. This method never fails, though it spoils the
shape of the crop." With a pouter considered valuable for
stock, and past his best show days, a curtailment of crop is not
any drawback, but rather the reverse. Charcoal capsules are
useful for preventing the corruption of the food in the crop
of a gorged pouter, and copaiba capsules are used to make
them disgorge, generally proving effective. A pouter should
be attended to on showing the least signs of becoming gorged ;
delay is dangerous.
Insects.
Pigeons are apt to be infested with several kinds of
insects. The feather louse is harmless, as far as ever I
saw, and seems to be common to all pigeons. It is found
chiefly about the neck feathers, and requires the natural
heat of the bird to keep it alive, for on the death of a bird
they may be seen crowding up towards its head, in a sort of
torpid state. The pigeon louse is ' troublesome on all birds
unable from a malformed beak to preen themselves, and when
allowed to increase for want of a little blue ointment, renders
their lives truly miserable. Short-faced tumblers are as
liable as any to these lice, and should be examined frequently
63 DISEASES.
by blowing up the feathers about the vent. A little mercurial
ointment rubbed about that part and under the wings will
kill all that come in contact with it. Ticks, I think with Mr.
Brent, proceed from a flat fly that may be sometimes seen
running over young pigeons, and hiding among their feathers.
This fly. which is difficult to catch, and difficult to kill when
caught, for it is so tough that it can scarcely be squeezed to
death between the finger and thumb, is not often seen. Ticks
are the largest of the insects that infest pigeon houses, and
are fortunately, at least in my experience, not very common.
I have never been much troubled with mites, but have known
others who were, in such countless thousands, that during
a whole breeding season every successive nest of young
ones was covered with them, causing the death of many. I
suppose they are the same sort of vermin that trouble canary
breeders. Fleas are the commonest kind of pests that
infest pigeon houses, but they and all other insects may now
be easily kept down by the use of the insecticide known as
Dalmatian Insect Powder, which has lately come into universal
use. It should be dusted over the nests occasionally, and it
is the best friend of the pigeon fancier. Since I began using
it, my pigeon houses have been quite free of fleas and other
parasites.
Leg Weakness.
This is a complaint which generally attacks young pouter
pigeons early or late in the season. A bird will, apparently,
be going on well, and be nearly ready to quit the nest, when
it will be observed to be unable to get on its legs. I have
seldom known a bird so affected cured. Those that give
promise of being extra long in limb and upstanding in
carriage are most liable to it. Such weakness in the limbs,
proceeding from some internal cause, must not, however, be
mistaken for a fracture or sprain of the limb, an accident
which sometimes happens through a bird falling over its
64 FANCY PIGEONS.
nest mate. This is often curable by a few days of care-
ful attention.
Moulting.
The majority of pigeons go through their annual moult
without any trouble, but generally a few of them will
fall into a diarrhoaa during that time. When this be-
comes specially severe, the growth of the new feathers
will sometimes suddenly stop. If the bird so affected re-
covers, the growth of its feathers will proceed, but many of
the birds will be weak and unfurnished about the middle,
showing where their growth was arrested; and instead of
the feathers lying close to the bird's body, they will hang
loosely, and flutter about with the wind. I have seen several
cases of this, but it cannot be said to happen very often.
Of course, the bird so affected cannot get into proper
feather before another moult. When a pigeon casts its
feathers in masses, as many do, so as to be quite bare on
head and neck, it should get extra protection from cold and
draught till the new feathers are well grown.
Small Pox.
Small Pox was well known to the old writers from their
description of it, but I have never known a case of it in
this country. In India, however, it is a common complaint of
young pigeons in the nest, and I have known seasons there
when every young bird bred by myself and others, to the
number of hundreds, has been attacked with it. At about
a fortnight old, pustules full of yellow matter would break
out all over the bird, including its beak and feet. If let
alone these would gradually dry up, and by the time the
bird was able to fly, it would be nearly clear of them; but
if broken they would bleed, and grow into big sores. I think
this form of small pox is quite unknown in this country
now: at least, I never heard any fancier say he had found it
in his loft.
65 DISEASES.
Spouts.
These are fissures that form in the eye wattles of barbs
and carriers, either naturally, from the skin growing into a
fold, or from accident. They never heal of themselves, but
must be cut out with sharp scissors, and the wound dressed
with healing ointment; the hole soon fills up. The operation
is no doubt a painful one, but is compensated for by the
after comfort of the bird.
Vertigo, or the Megrims.
An affection of the brain, causing the bird to turn its
head right round, and making it fall over and flutter about.
Although not an uncommon disease, I have, fortunately, never
been much troubled with it among my pigeons. I think it
incurable, and, acting on that idea, have killed any birds so
affected as soon as possible, to get them out of the way.
Wing Disease.
This disease is common to every variety of fancy pigeon.
It can generally be detected before the bird loses all power
of flight, by the one-sided way in which it flies. When so
observed, a bird will be found to have a swelling on some
of the joints of its wings. An almost certain cure at this
stage of the disease is, not only to draw both primary and
secondary flight feathers, but to strip the wing itself of
all feathers except the small downy ones. The great flow
of blood to the new feathers draws off the matter that
would form in the swollen joint, and, by the time the wing
is refurnished, all signs of the swelling will have disap-
peared, and the bird will fly as before. Having succeeded
in this way in curing numerous pigeons, I can recommend
it as the best thing to do. Formerly, the cure was to leech
the swelling, or to wait till matter formed, and then lance
it; but not one bird out of a dozen will fly again after
66 FANCY PIGEONS.
being cut about the joint, as the tendons are apt to get
severed. When the same disease attacks the thigh joint
it is not so easily cured, but in my experience it seldom
does so, as compared to the wing. The old writers divided
this disease into the flesh wen and the bone wen, but the
one is only an intensified form of the other. If taken in
time, this disease may generally be cured by the method
stated.
Conclusion.
There are certain strains of pigeons among all the high-
class varieties which have become more healthy than others,
on account of systematic weeding out of all diseased birds.
The plan I adopt, and which I recommend to others, is to kill
off or discard all birds that become affected with serious
hereditary ailments, such as wing disease.
Chapter IX.
VARIETIES OF DOMESTIC PIGEONS. X>
Scheme of Description.
N describing the numerous varieties of domes-
tic pigeons with which I am acquainted, I
shall commence with those least removed
from the original type, from which, as I
believe, all varieties descend. Many of them
are identical in conformation with the wild blue rock pigeon,
and others have the addition of turned crowns, or feathered
legs and feet. From them I shall proceed to the inter-
mediate class, which will include varieties such as the runts,
with their extraordinary size; the frizzled, frillback, and lace
pigeons, with their curious plumage ; and the ringbeater,
lowtan, and tumbler, with their peculiar flight or movements.
I shall then conclude with a description of what are called
high-class pigeons, the favourites of the most exacting pigeon
fanciers, the birds that come up but seldom to the standard
of excellence laid down for them, because they have not only
abnormal conformation, but carriage of body or style of
movement, and beauty of feather as well, and so combine
in themselves such a sum of excellence, when anything like
68 FANCY PIGEONS.
perfect, that the successful breeding of them is the work of
clever, thoughtful men.
"Race" or "Original" Pigeons.
These high-class birds, as well as the intermediate class,
have been named by the Germans " race " or " original "
pigeons; and while many have been able to assent to the
blue rock theory of descent of the feather varieties, most
of the others are so removed from them that some writers
have considered them as separate creations. On this ques-
tion, since writing the chapter on the " Origin of Fancy
Pigeons," I have found, in the third edition (1876) of the
work of Neumeister, the German writer, the following:
" We shall not be very far removed from the truth in sup-
posing that the first beginning in forming races took place
by climatic influences, according to the same acting laws
that produced species ; but that these, by domestication, arti-
ficially conducted pairing, and continued breeding, in the
course of thousands of years were raised to the highest ex-
pression of race types. Original races with perfect charac-
teristics are not found in a free natural state; these only
could be produced under the care and guardianship of man,
who, as their protector, is rejoiced up to the present day by
their fine and rare forms, pleasing manners, and symmetrical
arrangement of colours. But that the supposition of their
descent from one primitive race is justified, is proved by the
facility with which all the races, the common field pigeon
included, can pair and produce fruitful young ones, by the
strikingly great resemblance of their nature, and the inclina-
tion constantly to return to the wild blue colour and shape
of the field pigeon (Columba lima). The treacherous bluish
colouring which so frequently springs up in black, red, and
yellow, on certain parts (rump, vent, flights, and tail), is only
too well known to every attentive breeder."
These ideas are quite in accordance with what I have ex-
69 DOMESTIC VARIETIES.
pressed here and elsewhere. I have already instanced the
great differences existing in various races of canary birds
from what we know was their progenitor, and as we can fix
the time that it has taken to accomplish such results with
comparative accuracy, the "thousands of years" supposed
necessary by Neumeister for the perfecting of "race" pigeons
may be somewhat modified, though I have no doubt that
some of our varieties may have existed for some hundreds of
centuries, when we remember what Pliny says about pedigree
pigeons among the Romans.
Chapter X.
X COMMON PIGEONS. x>
Rock Pigeons.
j OMMON pigeons, strictly speaking, are rock or
dovehouse pigeons, as found in a state of
nature, or in a semi-wild state. I have
already referred to them elsewhere, and have
only to add that in the West of Scotland they
are bred by pigeon fanciers, who have a class for their
favourites at the annual show held in the town of Kilmar-
nock. Looking, as I have often done, at the class at this
show, which generally includes over a dozen entries of blues
and blue chequers, I have felt that I would rather not have
the responsibility of awarding the prizes, the birds appear so
very much alike. When a breed comes to be produced, as
they are, for size, good shape, and purity of colour and type,
they must necessarily cease to be regarded as quite common,
and would more truly be designated as fancy rock, or dove-
house pigeons.
Common Pigeons.
Common pigeons are generally understood to be those of
71 COMMON PIGEONS.
mixed race, so interbred that it is often impossible to guess
at their ancestry; and the same abound in almost every town
and village in the kingdom. The old English name for them
was runts, probably having the same meaning as when applied
to common cattle, as Welsh runts, though a canary hen of
three years of age was also called a runt. Moore refers to
common pigeons, after describing the fancy runts : " To these
we may add common runts, which are kept purely for the
dish, and generally in locker holes in inn yards or other
places, and are well known to everybody; they are good
feeders, and therefore good nurses for any of the more
curious sorts of pigeons."
In France these common runts are known as Pigeons Mon-
dains, and, according to Boitard and Corbie, who describe
them as having no special characteristics, because they assume
all forms and colours, what they lose in purity they gain in
the way of fecundity. When extra feather-footed, such are
known as Pigeons Patu, and the authors above-named describe
and illustrate types of both denominations. Common runts,
when selected for their gay and striking colours, are so far
interesting that their young assume the most various, though
uneven, markings; and for my own part, I would rather breed
a motley lot of such, than confine myself to some single
uninteresting, though undoubtedly distinct and pure race,
such as the spot pigeon.
Pigeons for the Market.
In France a considerable trade is done in supplying the
markets with hand-fed young pigeons, fattened in the fol-
lowing way : When the birds are about three weeks old they
are placed in cages, each containing about thirty or forty, kept
in a dark place, and fed five or six times a day, through a pipe,
with a liquid paste of buckwheat flour mixed with whole maize.
They become fat in five or six days, and "it is astonishing
how much delicacy they assume in such a short time."
72 FANCY PIGEONS.
I believe there is a limited trade for supplying the London
markets with hand-fed or crammed pigeons, but the chief
towns in this country are supplied almost exclusively direct
from field dovecotes. Purchasers may know how to select
young and tender birds by the presence of yellow down on
their neck feathers.
When the value of the manure from a few pairs of common
pigeons, kept in an aviary, is taken into account, this, in
addition to the value of the young ones they produce, will
pay for the food they consume. The manure may be kept
in barrels, each layer, of an inch in depth, being covered
with a similar layer of dry earth, siftings of ashes, or road
scrapings, which will deodorise it, and make a very rich com-
post, worth several pounds a ton. I have seen capital crops
from very poor soil, on which such a compost has been thrown,
some three or four times as thickly as Peruvian guano is
generally spread.
WHITE SPOT PIGEON.
Chapter XL
PIGEONS DISTINGUISHED CHIEFLY BY THEIR
COLOUR OR MARKING.
The Spot Pigeon.
HE Spot has been described by every English
writer, including Willughby, and is common
on the Continent. The Germans call it the
Maskentaube, and the French, Pigeon Heurte,
or the Spot Pigeon. It is of the size and make
of the common Field Pigeon, generally smooth-headed and
clean-legged, and all white, except a spot of colour on the fore-
head, extending from the beak wattle to the middle of the
brow either blue, black, red, or yellow and with a coloured
tail and tail coverts to correspond. Some are peak-headed,
and others shell-hooded, in which case the feet and legs are
generally feathered as well. Boitard and Corbie refer to a
variety with white tails, the spot being the only coloured
portion of their feathers. These are classed with the Mon-
dains, or common pigeons. The upper mandible of the Spot
is coloured in accordance with its markings, the lower white.
The iris of the eye is hazel-coloured.
74 FANCY PIGEONS.
The White-spot, or Blaze Face Pigeon.
The White-spot Pigeon, generally known in England as
the Blaze Face (die Weiszblassige Taube of Germany), is the
reverse in marking of the common Spot. Its head is
unhooded, the upper mandible white, the lower coloured in
accordance with the plumage. The legs and feet are in some
smooth, in others feathered. The heavier the leg-feathering
in this breed the better they look; but it is not easy to
procure them well-hocked and booted, the majority being
only sparsely covered.
This pigeon is of the common Field type in formation of
head and beak, and its chief value lies in the quality of
its colouring and accuracy of its marking. The irides are
yellow or red, following the body colour. The breed occurs
in the following varieties :
The common White- spot, in all ground colours, with a
white, regularly formed oval spot on the forehead. The tail,
with its coverts, is also white.
The White-barred Spot is black or blue in colour, and has,
in addition to the marks of the foregoing, white, or white
edged with black, wing bars. White-barred reds and yellows,
as in most other breeds, are rare.
The White-scaled Spot is black or blue. The Black, in
addition to white spot and white tail, has the wing coverts
scaled or chequered with white, the nights tipped or finched
with white spots, and the bars either white, or spotted with
white, like the flights; but the white in this variety is of a
yellow or creamy cast. This pigeon has, probably, some con-
nection with the spangled Suabian. The Blue, in addition to
the white spot and tail, has the wing coverts chequered with
white, and black bars across the wings.
The Copper-winged White-spot, or English Fire Pigeon, is
the most beautiful of the Blaze Faces. It is thicker set,
broader-breasted, and shorter than the preceding varieties.
It has an orange iris, and must be heavily feathered on
75 PIGEONS OF COLOUR.
hocks, legs, and feet. The upper mandible, according to the
German standard, should be white. This pigeon has the white
forehead spot, white tail and tail coverts. The head, neck, and
breast are dark blue-black, lustred with green and purple
hues ; the under body and leg-feathering should approach the
same colouring as much as possible ; and the flights are blue-
black, with a bronzed kite colouring on their inner webs.
The back and wing coverts, or shoulders, are of a burnished
copper colour, but only after the first moult, the nestling
feathers, as in other lustrous pigeons, being very dull com-
pared with the matured plumage. Mr. Ludlow says the English
Fire Pigeon is one of the varieties that show a sexual difference
in their colouring, the hens having their copper feathers
distinctly tipped with black, which the cocks do not.
Whether this difference exists all through the breed, or
only in one strain of it, I am not aware, but Neumeister
makes no mention of it. It is a matter of taste which of
the two appearances is the more pleasing. The Copper-wing
is not found with white wing bars.
The Saxon Pigeon.
A variety of foreign Toy pigeon, called the Saxon, has been
occasionally exhibited in this country lately. It is brilliant
black in colour, with white wing bars. The head is unhooded,
the eyes orange-coloured, and the legs and feet rather heavily
feathered. I cannot find any reference to it among German
authors. Such a variety might, no doubt, be produced by
selection from the produce of the white-barred black Blaze
Faces that happened to come foul-tailed and short of face
marking. I believe it is not unusual for them to breed young
ones entirely wanting the white brow spot.
The Breast Pigeon.
The Breast, Coloured Breasted, or Breaster Pigeon (die
Brusttaube, Farbenbriistige Taube, der Bruster), is a German
76 FANCY PIGEONS.
Toy of peculiar marking belonging to the Field type of
pigeons, but more slenderly built, and a good flyer and
breeder. It is marked on the head, neck, and breast
black, blue, red, or yellow, the colour being cut across,
or evenly belted, before reaching the thighs. The back, wings,
tail, and under parts are pure white, but only after the
first moult, the nest feathers being tinged with colour. A
variety of the yellow ones retain yellow wing bars ; but
these are rare. The beak is light, and the iris yellow.
They are generally smooth-headed, but occasionally shell-
hooded, and smooth and feathered-legged specimens are found
among them. The black variety generally retains some
colour on the parts that should moult white, from which it
derives the special name of Russtaube, or Soot Pigeon. I saw
a pair of these birds lately. The head, neck, and breast were
of a purple-black, and the wing coverts white, tinged with
black, as if dirtied with much handling.
There are also Breast Pigeons having the said marking
reversed, the head, neck, and breast being white, and the rest
of the feathers coloured. Such are mentioned by the
German author, Neumeister ; but I have never seen any of
them.
The Ice Pigeon.
This variety derives its name from its beautiful lavender
blue colour, considered by the German fanciers to resemble
blue ice; hence its name die Eistaube. It is also known by
the names MeM and Lasurtaube, signifying Meal and Azure
Blue Pigeon. There are several varieties of the Ice Pigeon,
the simplest form being of a beautiful clear light blue,
without wing bars, but with dark flights and barred tail.
This form, which is probably the original of the others, is of
the size of the common Field Pigeon, but more thickset, and
broader chested, shorter necked and legged. It should be
heavily feathered on the legs and feet. It has a dark beak
77 PIGEONS OF COLOUR.
and nails, a reddish yellow iris, and is smooth-headed.
The first remove from this form is that in which the
colour is still more delicate and silvery, and in which the
dark flights and tail bar almost disappear, and become
nearly of the same tint as the body feathers. The next
form, originally from Silesia, is of the same colouring as
the preceding, but with white wing bars, beautifully edged
with black, and with black tail bar. The newest and rarest
form is known in Germany as the Porzelantaube, or Porcelain
Pigeon, and, in addition to what the last-mentioned variety,
the Silesian, shows, is chequered or spangled over the coverts
of the wings, shoulders, upper and middle back, with narrow
white spots fringed with black.
The make and shape of all these varieties are similar. They
are found smooth, medium, and rough-legged, but are pre-
ferred heavily feathered. The smooth-legged chequered or
spangled ones are known in this country as Ural Ice, while
the rough-legged spangled birds are called Siberian Ice. In
all varieties they range in colour from light to dark, but the
powdered lavender ground tint, as uniform as possible, is the
most desirable. The blacker the edging on white wing bars
and spangling, the more inclined they are to run dark in the
blue. The iris is always preferred to be yellow, but is often
hazel in the lightest tinted birds. There are also Ice Pigeons
whose ground tint is changed from lavender blue to a beauti-
ful soft powdery silver. The various types should be distinct
and well-marked, not halfway between, neither one thing
nor another that is, the spangled variety should be heavily
spangled, and the merely white-barred should not show any
incipient spangling.
The Swiss Pigeon.
In Boitard and Corbie's work this variety is called Pigeon
Suisse. It is the Schweizertaube of Germany, where it also
78 FANCY PIGEONS.
goes by the name of Moon, Crescent, and Badge of Honour
Pigeon. It is of the common type in head, beak, and
body, is smooth-headed, and should be heavily hocked,
and feather-legged and footed. The irides are yellow or
orange, and the beak and nails correspond with the colour
of the markings. There are three principal colours in this
breed viz., the Bed, Yellow, and Black-barred. The ground
colour of all should be of a satiny white tint, shaded off into
a very clear light mealy, buff, or blue, according to the colour
of the marks ; the first have red or rich brown wing bars
and breastplate (which must be a clean-cut half-moon, as in
the illustration) ; the second have similar yellow markings ; and
the third, a crescent of the colour of the neck of a blue
pigeon, and black wing bars and tail bar. The red and
yellow-marked ones correspond with the red and yellow mealy
colours, which do not, of course, have a dark bar at the end
of the tail. The crescent, or breastplate, should in all be
well-lustred, and when its points meet at the back of the
neck it is ring-necked, which is a great defect. Neumeister
says: "The fledged young ones have no crescent marks on
the breast; it only becomes visible after the first moulting.
The more the ground colour approaches to pure white, and
the darker and narrower at the same time the wing bars are,
the more highly is the pigeon valued. It is quite a par-
ticular species, and loses all value by cross-breeding. In the
South of Germany, and in Switzerland, it is often found
without wing bars, with smooth feet and a yellowish crescent,
although very heavily feathered feet seem to be peculiar to
this race. Among the Swiss Pigeons the Starling Neck is
sometimes reckoned, also the "Whole-coloured Pigeon, with no
crescent, but with white wing bars, which resembles it very
much. The Bed and Yellow Swiss Pigeons, with dark eyes and
crescent, originating from suitable pairing with the Blue Star-
ling Neck, although they occur very seldom, are a beautiful
variety, which are paid large prices for by amateurs. The
79 PIGEONS OF COLOUR.
Swiss Pigeon is in general not common, and is only found
in Saxony, Thuringia, and Silesia."
Boitard and Corbie, in their chapter on the Pigeons Suisses,
include several varieties which appear to me to have no con-
nection with them, such as the Pigeon Suisse bai Dore ou bis
Dore. Their description and illustration of this variety make
it out to be more like the Hyacinth : " Ce pigeon ressemble
un peu au Maille Feu," they say. Brent has reproduced the
illustration of this pigeon on page 64 of his book (third
edition), where it serves as a portrait of the Porcelain Pigeon,
a sub-variety of the Hyacinth. I fancy that, after reading
that it resembled the fire- coloured Pigeon Maille, he thought
it would do well to represent it.
The Veiled Pigeon,
Known in Germany as the Farbenkopfige Taube, or Coloured-
headed Pigeon, and also as the Bdrtige, or Bearded Pigeon,
from its bib, is described by Neumeister as rather larger
than the common Field Pigeon. It is found in all the chief
colours, and the beak corresponds to the colour of the
markings. The Black variety has the special name of the
MohrenJcopf (Moor's Head), while others are Blue-head, Yellow-
head, and so on. The head is broadly hooded, and the iris,
Neumeister says, ought to be dark, but is generally yellow,
just as, when a pearl eye is demanded, it often comes dark.
The whole head is coloured, the shell hood included, though
it is white in his illustration; and the colour runs down the
breast, forming a bib. The tail, with its coverts, is coloured,
and the rest of the bird white. The feet and legs are generally
smooth, but sometimes feathered. Neumeister describes an
unhooded variety, which must have a narrow white stripe
dividing the coloured head at the nape, finishing at the back
of the head.
Boitard and Corbie describe a similar variety to the above
under the name of Pigeon Coquille Barbu ; and still another
80 FANCY PIGEONS.
(the Pigeon Coquille Tete de Morte, or Death's Head Shell
pigeon), which has only the head and bib black, all the rest
being pure white. It has clean legs and pearl eyes.
The Latz Pigeon.
The German Latz, signifying Bodice or Stomacher Pigeon,
also called in Germany the Latz Shell Pigeon of Holland, and
Helmet Pigeon, is of the size and type of the Field Pigeon,
and a good flyer and breeder. Its head is adorned with a
peculiar helmet, or large shell hood, not found so marked
in any other species. From the back of its head to
halfway down the back of its neck the feathers run up and
to the side, forming an extensive hood. They do not lie
closely and in a mass, but loosely and in disorder. The beak
accords with the colour of the marking. Blues, Reds, and
Yellows, according to Neumeister, seem to have died out,
while the Blacks are frequently to be found under the name
Wiener Latztauben (Yienna Bodice Pigeons). The head, front,
and sides of the neck and breast, as shown in the illustra-
tion, are coloured, giving the appearance of a coloured bodice,
from which the bird derives its name. The rest of the
plumage, including all the shell feathers, is white. The eye
is said to have a brownish-black iris, but is yellow in
Neumeister's illustration. The feet and legs are generally
stockinged, though sometimes heavily feathered and hocked,
or trousered, as Neumeister calls it. The Latz is certainly
a pretty pigeon, and would make a good addition to the
aviaries of those who like birds of well-contrasted markings,
and likely to breed very true to them.
The Starling Pigeon.
In Germany the Starling Pigeon goes by the name of
der Staarenhals (the Starling Neck). It is a Continental
variety. In size, shape, and in style of head and beak,
it is similar to the common Field, or Dovecote Pigeon. The
81 PIGEONS OF COLOUR.
legs and feet are sometimes feathered, but in general are
smooth; and the head, though usually uncrested, has
sometimes a turn crown. The irides are red, and the beak
and nails black. Although the Starling Pigeon is found in
several colours, the Black variety is the one most esteemed,
and it should be of a deep satin black, with a purple
metallic lustre, and strongly pigeon-necked. On the breast
there should be a crescent of white, and the evener this
is cut the more the bird is valued. It is produced by the
feathers forming it being tipped with white, and only comes
to perfection on completion of the first moult. Two
white bars cross the wings, which, with the crescent, are
in the nest feathers usually of a rusty red, or kite colour.
With age the Starling often loses its marking to a great
extent, the crescent becoming large and shapeless, the ends
of its nights becoming grizzled with white, and its head
grey, or spotted with white. The white crescent and wing
bars on the lustrous black ground being all the marking
desired, such a standard is not easy to maintain in all
the progeny, the birds being either too dark or too light.
Blue and Bed Starling Necks, though also obtainable in Ger-
many, are not considered so beautiful. The crescent on the
breast not being, as in the English Pouter, composed of
white, but only of white-tipped dark feathers, I believe this
kind of marking on a really sound Red is not easily attain-
able, and that such a Bed as can be got with these marks
combined fails to look well.
Neumeister says of the Starling : " By reason of its parti-
cularly recommendable qualities for fielding, it is absolutely
to be preferred to all other fancy pigeons that have to find
most of their food. It has almost always at the same time
young ones and eggs side by side, and seeks its food in any
weather, summer or winter, so long as the ground is not
covered with snow. For breeders of the finer species of
pigeons it is highly valuable, inasmuch as it feeds almost
I
82 FANCY PIGEONS.
all the young ones of other pairs running after it for food.
It is the only kind that, during the so-called famine months,
knows how to provide its young ones with the necessary
food, and bring them up. It is particularly distinguished by
its diligent roaming, possesses all the qualities of an ex-
cellent Field Pigeon, and generally serves as a guide to the
others in the field."
The Starling Neck is also known in Germany as the Trauer-
taube, or Mourning Pigeon a very appropriate name for the
little fellow in his black coat and white bands.
The French Starling Pigeon described by Boitard and
Corbie is stocking-legged and turn-crowned, and marked as
the German. These authors only mention the Black variety,
and, on account of its crest, place it among the Pigeons
Coquilles; hence its name, Pigeon Coquille Etourneau.
Brent speaks of a Crested variety of the Starling that has,
in addition to the ordinary marks of the breed, the upper
mandible and head white, as in the Priest Pigeon. This may
probably be the Starling-barred Priest; but Brent makes no
mention of the white nights and tail.
The Suabian Pigeon.
The Suabian Pigeon, which is a German breed, is known
also in France. Neumeister has classed it not very
correctly, I think among the Priest Pigeons, under the name
of die Gestaarte Silberschuppige Pfaffentaube (the Starling
Silver-scaled Priest Pigeon), and says that it comes from
Suabia. Boitard. and Corbie class it among the Pigeons
Coquilles, and call it the Pigeon Coquille Soudbe. I think
there can be little doubt that the Suabian was produced
from the Starling Pigeon, by breeding together such as came
too light in colour, till at length the desired marking was
fixed. "When in perfection, the Suabian is certainly one of the
most beautifully feathered birds in creation, and a striking
example of the ingenuity displayed by careful breeders of
83 PIGEONS OF COLOUR.
that most universally cherished bird, the domestic pigeon.
In make of head and beak, and in shape of body, the
Suabian, like the Starling, is of the common type, but is
not considered such a good breeder, or so hardy. It is found
both smooth and feather-legged, and both smooth-headed and
turn-crowned; but the smooth-legged ones, with a good peak
crest, are considered the originals, and look smartest. The
ground colour of the Suabian should be of a good metallic
black; but it is generally of a dull, dim black. On the head
and neck the feathers should be all tipped with a creamy -white,
interspersed with lustrous apple-green and red tints ; and on the
breast the white must be so intensified as to take the form of
a crescent, or half moon, as in the Starling. The back and
scapular feathers, and wing coverts, should be spangled or
chequered with black on their creamy-white extremities, the
pattern this spangling assumes being of different kinds. It
may either be in a triangular form, or the feathers may be
laced round with black, though I have never seen the latter
form so perfect as in the illustration in Tegetmeier's Pigeon
Book. But as the Eastern Blondinette Pigeons can be bred
beautifully and regularly laced on the wing coverts, the same
style of marking may yet be produced in the Suabian. The
primaries, or flight feathers, should be black, with creamy-
white oval spots near their extremities ; and although it is rare
to get specimens marked in a similar way on the principal
tail feathers, no bird can be considered perfect without.
The lower back, belly, vent and thighs, should also be as
black as possible, and in theory these parts should show
the Starling marking as well; but it will be found that this
can only be attained by an excess of marking on the neck
and wing coverts. To produce the happy medium in marking,
and get birds with neither too little nor too much of it, is
the difficult point to attain in the Suabian, and as its mark-
ing is of such a character, it is no easy matter to breed it
true. It is only after the first moult that its beauties become
i 2
84 FANCY PIGEONS.
apparent, the nestling being of a rusty red, as in the Starling ;
and not even then does it attain its full beauty, as the
secondary nights are not all moulted in its first year, but
in its second. With age it often becomes blotched and irre-
gular in spangling, like other pigeons of variegated feather.
The beak and toe nails should be black, and the irides orange
or red. Brent mentions a sub-variety with white upper
mandible and head, like the Priest, and Neumeister one with
white nights and tail, both of which I consider rather out of
keeping with the character of the breed.
Besides the Black-grounded Suabian, there is another form,
in which the ground colour is of a ruddy brown or chocolate
hue. These have been called Porcelains, which name has
also been applied to a sub-variety of the Hyacinth; but it
would be better to allow them to be known as Brown -
spangled Suabians. This sub-variety should possess the same
characteristics as the other, and the more decided and
pronounced it is in its ground colour the better. Many
specimens are neither one thing nor another in their ground
tint; and all such birds, unless possessing any special quality
of spangling, which may be of value in breeding, are com-
paratively worthless in point of beauty and for exhibition
purposes.
The Shield Pigeon.
Die ScJiild oder Deckeltaube (the Shield, or Cover Pigeon), a
German breed, which takes its name from its marking,
is of two kinds, one smooth-legged, the other heavily hocked,
and feather - legged and footed. The latter, which is pre-
ferred, is the larger of the two, and is a low, broad-chested,
thickset pigeon, of the Field type in head and beak. The
eye is dark. The marking is that known as turbit, or
shoulder marking, and to be right, they must neither have
white wing butts nor foul thighs. Although pigeons of the
Shield type are sometimes hooded, and even double-crested,
'
THE rillEST PIfiEOX.
85 PIGEONS OF COLOUR.
these belong to a sub-variety of the Trumpeter, to be after-
wards mentioned; the head of the true Shield is uncrested.
In colour they are found black, red, yellow, blue, silver, and also
in mixed colours, both plain and with white wing bars. Blues
of the latter kind have a black edging on the bars. The
rarest are Yellows, with white bars. In this breed some are
spangled, marbled, or chequered on the shoulders with two or
three colours, like some of the Eastern Frilled and Modena
Pigeons. I have seen specimens of this breed exactly marked
on the shoulders, and without a foul feather on under body,
when lifted up by the wings.
The Tyrolese Pigeon.
Die Elstertau'be, der Verkehrtflugel (the Magpie, the Reversed
Wing) is a German Toy marked like a Magpie Tumbler, except
that the head is white from a line running below the eyes;
but on the forehead a coloured spot, as in the Spot Pigeon,
is indispensable. It is said to exist in all the chief colours,
with a smooth head, and rather strongly feathered legs
and feet. Neumeister (1876) says : " It is to be regretted that
this really beautiful colour pigeon has been so much neglected
that it threatens extinction; its beautiful delineation and
shape adorns every dovecote." Herr Priitz calls it the
Tyrolertaube in addition to its other names.
The Priest Pigeon.
The Priest Pigeon, the Pfaffentaube of Germany, where it is
extensively bred, is now well-known in this country in several
of its numerous varieties. The general form of the Priest is
that of a stoutly-built, thickset pigeon, rather larger than
the common Field Pigeon, with which it agrees in shape of
head and beak. It is found in the following varieties :
The Common Priest, which is considered the original of
the others, is found in black, blue, red, yellow, and in off
colours, with a white upper mandible and head. The line of
86 FANCY PIGEONS.
demarcation must run from the month across the eyes, and
ronnd the inside of the crest, which must be, if good, an
extensive cupped shell, not lined with the white, but coloured.
The colour of the eyes is sometimes yellow, but generally
hazel. The legs and feet must be well covered with coloured
feathers, of a medium length. The colours of the Common
Priest are often excellent, and reds have been shown of late
not inferior in colour to any red pigeons I have ever seen.
The Double-crested Priest is found in all colours, like the
preceding. The second crest, or trumpeter's rose, on the
forehead, falling over the nostrils, assumes various shapes,
being either in the form of a flower, rayed from its centre, or
a small twisted-up tuft of feathers. So long as it is symmetri-
cal, and not all to one side, any form will do, as it is not
expected to be developed as in the Trumpeter.
The White- stockinged Priest has, in addition, the feathers
of the legs and feet white, but the thigh, belly, and vent
feathers must remain coloured.
The "White-barred Priest may have white or coloured stock-
ings, with white wing bars, which, with the blue ground
colour, are bordered with black. Reds and yellows so barred
are rare, and cannot be got so fine in colour as in the original
breed.
The White-flighted, White-barred Priest is like the pre-
ceding, but has the ten primaries white. The Blues have
received the name of Blue Brunswicks in this country.
The White-flighted, Barred and Tailed Priest is like the
preceding, with a white tail, and occurs almost always in
black or blue.
The Starling-barred, White-flighted and Tailed Priest is said,
by Neumeister, to be the most beautiful of the Priests. He
says: "It is exceedingly rare, and only to be met with in the
districts of Hohenzollern and the Upper Neckar, and only
with a black plumage and unfeathered feet." I have never
seen this kind, so cannot describe it more fully.
87 PIGEONS OF COLOUR.
There are also Priests which have mirrored or finched
flights i.e., with triangular or rounded white spots near the
extremities of the flight feathers, like some Blondinettes.
These spots appear after the first moult ; and the bar feathers
are similarly marked. There is also a variety of the priest
with frontal tuft, but no crest at back of the head.
The Whitehead, or Moulter Pigeon.
This pigeon, which is referred to by Brent under the name
of the Pilferer, as a sub-variety of the Priest, is known
in Germany as die Weiszkopf oder die Mausertaube. Mauser,
besides meaning to filch or pilfer, also means to change
feathers, or cast the skin. A German gentleman, to whom
I referred the question, renders the above title, the White-
head, or Moulter Pigeon, and the description of the breed
is as follows : " The Whitehead is one of the rarest coloured
pigeons, and is found only in a few places in Thuringia.
Its head has a beautiful broad shell hood; the upper bill is
white, the iris yellow, corresponding with the ground colour
of the plumage. The legs and toes are feathered. The
plumage has a metallic black, red, yellow, or dark bronze
lustre, which forms the principal beauty of this pigeon. It
has a broad breast and a low posture. The head and tail,
with its coverts, are white. These marks are not, however,
of any great fixity, the head being often marked unequally,
sometimes only the upper part of it being white. The
feathers on the feet are sometimes foul, and a part of the
back is often white. In this variety, therefore, something
always remains to be wished for. With black, red, or yellow
ones, a belly changing somewhat into blue is a frequent fault
which ought to be watched, and, by a suitable selection
in breeding, avoided. But the Whitehead with perfect
marks is a very fine pigeon. The black and red ones are
often excellent, and particularly valued. The latter display,
in fine specimens, a peculiarly burning red, even on the belly,
88 FANCY PIGEONS.
under the wings, and as far as the points of the flight
feathers, which is only very rarely found in other species.
Sometimes this somewhat tender pigeon produces white-spotted
young ones, which in moulting become quite white, but again
breed correctly coloured and marked ones. The Moulter
Pigeons prefer to remain by themselves, and rarely fly farther
than the neighbouring roofs." I believe that the gorgeously
coloured Bed Priests shown of late in this country were of
this variety, though they had coloured tails. They carried a
metallic lustre to the very extremity of the tail a rare thing
in pigeons of a red colour.
Herr Priitz, in his new Book of Pigeons, represents the
Whitehead in various forms viz., red, with white head and
tail, and shell crest; black, with shell crest, white head, tail,
and wing bars ; blue, with white head and tail, and with
frontal tuft over the beak wattle, but no crest at the nape.
The Monk Pigeon.
The Monk Pigeon (Die Monchtaube of Germany) is admitted
to be a relative of the Priest, compared with which, how-
ever, it is larger and broader across the chest and back. It
is found in all the chief colours, marked as follows : Both
mandibles are white, the whole head is white, the line of
demarcation running below the eyes, which should be hazel
in colour. The flight feathers and the tail, with its coverts,
are white, and the leg and feet feathers, from the knee down-
wards. The thighs and belly should be dark, but are often
partly white, which is a fault in this breed. All colours are
said to be found, both with and without white wing bars.
Herr Priitz represents the Monk as both plain-headed and
shell-crested, marked as above. I saw a pair lately of a very
beautiful blue chequer. These were uncrested.
The Swallow Pigeon.
The Swallow Pigeon, known in Germany in several varieties
THE SWALLOW.
89 PIGEONS OF COLOUR.
as the Schwalbentaube, and in France as the Hirondelle,
has its name from its resemblance in marking to the
tern, or sea swallow. The variety usually found in this
country came originally from Germany, where it is known
as the Niimberg type, and is marked like the illus-
tration. The Swallow has a long, slender beak, the upper
mandible of which is coloured in accordance with the mark-
ing. The forehead rises rather abruptly, the head is flat,
and coloured above an imaginary line running from the
corners of the mouth through the eyes. The hood, which
should be extensive and of a cupped shell form, should be
all white, and not lined with coloured feathers, or the bird
will lose in value. The eye has a dark hazel iris, and, when
the markings are of rich colour, as they often are, the eye
cere and corners of the mouth are bright red. The neck
is slender and short, the breast broad, the body broad and
flat, and the legs short. The wings and flights are coloured,
but the scapular and back feathers must be all white,
forming a heart- shaped figure on the back, the marking here
being the reverse of the Magpie Pigeon. The legs and feet
should be heavily hocked and booted, the heavier the better,
as this adds to the appearance, and is in keeping with the
shape of this variety. The hock feathers must be white, but
all feathers below the hocks, on the legs and feet, must be
coloured. The general appearance of the Swallow is that of
a thickset, broad, low-standing pigeon. The common variety
figured by Boitard and Corbie has no hood. The yellow-
marked ones, according to them, are called Hirondelles Siam,
while the Hirondelles Fauve Etincele, or Sparkling Fawn-
coloured Swallow, is described as follows : " This charming
bird is extremely rare in France; it can hardly be got
except in Germany, where it is not common ; its mantle is
fawn-coloured, agreeably scintillated with black or red."
This would appear to be an almond-feathered variety. The
colours of the Swallow are generally good, and sometimes
90 FANCY PIGEONS.
very rich in quality. It is found in black, red, yellow, blue
and silver, with dark bars and without bars, and in oi
colours.
The Saxon, or Bohemian Swallow Pigeon, according t<
Priitz, answers to the foregoing description, except that it i
marked on the head with only a frontal spot above the beak
of the size of a pea; while another variety, known as th
Silesian, has not even this mark, but is white-headed. Beside
shell- crested and plain-headed ones, a variety exists double
crested, or with a rose over the beak, like a Trumpeter o
Priest.
The Niirnberg Swallow in its purity has been known
according to Neumeister, from ancient times. In marking
it is like the illustration, but the quality of its colours ii
exceedingly rich, owing to a certain fat or oil in its system
which it has in common with certain Eastern pigeons. Iti
plumage fits loosely, but, at the same time, is thick, soft
and fatty to the touch. The colours are fiery and rich, th<
black deeper and more velvety than with all other (German
species of pigeon; the white, on the other hand, looks as i
oiled, for which reason this pigeon is called in Number^
" the Greasy Fairy." All the feathers under the wings, abou
the thighs, and round the vent, instead of shedding thei]
fibres in the usual way, remain merely cases filled witl
yellow fat or wax, or, at most, only shed a small portioi
of their extremities. I have found the same peculiarity ii
other pigeons, and at one time considered it a disease, insteac
of which I now believe it is this fat or grease in the systen
which gives the extraordinary metallic lustre to the fe^
varieties of domestic pigeons that possess it. The Blacl
Niirnberg Swallow has most of these grease quills, and, fro re
its beautiful green lustre, is called the " Yelvet Fairy." Nexl
it comes the Red, while the Yellow and Blue have not so mud
of this peculiar feathering.
Swallows are said to be found in the following varieties :
91 PIGEONS OF COLOUR.
Black, red, and yellow, with white wing bars.
Blue, with white wing bars, edged with black.
Silver, corresponding to the blue.
Scaled-winged Swallows. On the ends of the coloured wing
coverts are small white points, resembling the scales of a
fish:
Black, red, and yellow, with white scales or chequers on
the coverts, in addition to white wing bars.
Blue, with white scales, and white wing bars, edged with
black.
Blue, with white black-edged scales, and white wing bars,
edged with black.
Silvers, corresponding to the blues.
The Carmelite Pigeon.
The Carmelite described by Boitard and Corbie, whose
description has been mostly copied by Brent in his book,
is evidently a variety of the Swallow pigeon. M. Corbie,
who had the breed under his care for nearly fifty years,
considers M. Fournier, who was keeper of the aviaries of the
Count de Clermont, mistaken in classing them as Swallows
in his account of pigeons supplied to the naturalist, M.
Buffon ; but the only difference between the Common Swallow
and Carmelite, as figured by Boitard and Corbie, is that the
latter is smaller, h^as a crest, and more feet feathering than
the former, which is smooth-headed. The markings are the
same. In all probability, the Carmelite of Boitard and Corbie
was the Niirnberg Swallow. Brent, whose illustrations are
mostly copies from Boitard and Corbie, has the Carmelite
similar in outline to them, but he has reversed the markings,
showing it to be a magpie-coloured pigeon. How he fell into
this error I cannot imagine, unless he understood the word
manteau to refer to the scapular and back feathers,
instead of to the wing coverts. In the descriptions of both
Swallow and Carmelite, Boitard. and Corbie apply the word
92 FANCY PIGEONS.
manteau to the wing coverts, as reference to their letterpress
and illustrations will show.
The Stork Pigeon.
Die Storch oder Schwingentaube (Stork, or Wing Pigeon of
Germany) is in size and shape similar to the Spot Pigeon,
with which it has in common the coloured spot on the
brow black, red, yellow, or blue. If the spot is small, the
upper mandible may be white; but it is usually coloured
if the spot is extensive. The head may be either smooth,
peaked, or shell-crested. The eye is hazel-coloured. The
legs and feet are preferred heavily hocked and feathered,
and are coloured from the knee down, the thigh feathers
themselves being white. The ten flight feathers in each
wing should be coloured, and all the rest of the bird must
be white, except the feathers of the spurious wing, and a
few feathers about the wing butts. These coloured feathers
give the bird its name, and, when the wing is closed,
it has a coloured margin or framing at the butts of the
wings, running round it, which must be regular, and not too
broad. When well-marked, the Stork is considered one of
the finest feather varieties in Germany.
The Bavette Pigeon.
The Bavette Pigeon, which I have so named from its white
bib, has been introduced into this country within the last few
years. As will be seen from the illustration, it is nearly
the reverse of the Nun in marking, having a black shell
crest, on which the white feathers of the head should not
encroach. The bib should come well down on the breast,
and be sharply cut. The beak is usually white, and the iris
dark hazel. The tail, with its coverts, is white. The legs
and feet are stockinged, and white from the hocks down.
The position, size, and shape of the shell crest should be as
in the Nun. The only colour I have seen in this variety is black.
THE SUABIAN PIGEON.
93 PIGEONS OF COLOUR.
It is true that Dixon, in the "Dovecote and Aviary,"
quoting from Temminck, the ornithologist, mentions black-
bodied Nuns with white heads, under the name of Nonnains
Maurins ; but this is not the variety I am describing. The
Jacobin is called Nonnain, or Nun, in France, and the
Nonnain Maurin is a variety of the Jacobin, fully described
by Boitard and Corbie.
The Bavette is an exceedingly pretty pigeon, and entitled
to rank high among the feather varieties. From the forma-
tion of its head and beak, it must be placed among what
the Germans call colour pigeons. I have not yet found
an account of it in any German work on pigeons, and I
am inclined to think it comes from Eastern Europe, or
perhaps from Asia.
M. Y. la Perre de Boo has given a full description of
the Bavette (le Pigeon Moine a Bavette) in his lately pub-
lished Book on Pigeons. At his request, I made a drawing
of it for him on wood for that work, which differs from
that in this book in having the flight feathers white. He
informed me that he had some so marked, from which it
appears there must be some variation in the breed. He
says it is found in black, blue, red, and yellow, and that the
iris is sometimes black, sometimes orange red. A black
specimen I saw in London lately had orange eyes and a
black beak, but the flight feathers were black, like my illus-
tration.
The Lark Pigeon.
The Coburg Lerchentaube is a smooth-headed and legged bird,
considerably larger than the common pigeon, and has become
constant in the district from whence it is named. It derives
its name of Lark Pigeon from its colour, which appears, from
the plate in Herr Priitz's new book, to be that known here as
silver or dun chequer. The breast, however, runs into a rich
yellow. The beak and eye wattles are somewhat developed,
94 FANCY PIGEONS.
and the beak is inclined to a flesh tint. It has the shape
and style of a common pigeon. The yellow-breasted dun is a
combination of colours found in various breeds, such as the
Swift and Golden Dun Short-faced Tumbler.
The Nilrnberg Lark Pigeon is another of the same family.
In this variety the yellow colour extends from the breast
to the neck and head. The wings and tail ought to be
very light, approaching to white as nearly as can be
got.
The Fire Pigeon.
Die Feuertaube, or the Fire Pigeon, is a variety I have
never seen. It is mentioned by Friderich, the German
ornithologist (1863), and by Neumeister (1876), whose descrip-
tion is as follows : " It reminds one very strikingly of a strong
Tumbler, and is of the size of the medium Field Pigeon. The
head is unhooded, the feet smooth, the colour of the whole
plumage black, with an extremely bright copper red sheen.
This metallic lustre is with the Fire Pigeon more intense than
with any other species, and not only on the neck, but spread
over the whole body, with the exception of the flights and
tail. In the sunshine this pigeon reflects so splendidly that
it actually irradiates, and then looks almost copper red. It
is exceedingly rare, and seldom or never comes into the
market."
As the Archangel itself is not excepted in the above
description, the lustre on the Fire Pigeon must be a sight
for a pigeon fancier to behold. If not extinct, this variety
must be rather scarce and secluded, as it is never offered
for sale in this country, or even mentioned in the reports of
shows. It would make such a splendid addition to our
feather varieties, that it would be worth the while of any-
one having opportunities of acquiring the German Toys, to
see if some specimens of the breed can still be got; but,
as Herr Priitz does not, so far, refer to it in his new
95 PIGEONS OF COLOUR.
illustrated pigeon book, now publishing, I fear it has become
lost.
The Archangel Pigeon.
The first mention of the Archangel Pigeon in English
literature is in Dixon's "Dovecote and Aviary" (1851). An
authentic account of its introduction into England is given,
by Mr. Betty, in Mr. Tegetmeier's work. The late Mr.
Frank Redmond, being in Ghent in 1839, selecting some
pigeons for Sir John Sebright, procured a pair of Arch-
angels. Sir John bred them for some time, and at his
death the greater number went to the aviaries of the Earl
of Derby, at Knowsley, at whose death they were distributed.
The English name is probably derived from the vivid metallic
lustre the bird carries on the back and wing feathers,
similar to what painters have shown on the wings of angels.
At least, it does not derive its name from the town of Arch-
angel. The German name is Gimpel, or, the Bullfinch Pigeon,
considered as very appropriate by Neumeister, who says :
"No other pigeon displays so decidedly its name by its
colouring as does the Bullfinch, and thus it can be dis-
tinguished at a first glance." According to him, it has only
been known in Germany for about fifty years, but whether
this time is to be reckoned from the date of his first edition,
or from the date of the copy from which I quote (1876), I
am unable to say. Some authors, he says, call it a native
of Southern Germany and the Tyrol, where it is common.
I find from C. Malmusi's "Historical Notices of the Tri-
ganieri," or Pigeon Flyers of Modena (1851), that, besides
the present breed, the Triganieri of Modena formerly trained
three other kinds of pigeons for their aerial contests.
" Pausing now," he writes, " in my description of the quali-
ties of the Triganini, I will mention that three other distinct
species, or races of pigeons were trained to flight by the
Modenese Triganieri that is to say, the Turchetti, Timpani, and
96 FANCY PIGEONS.
Zinganini. The first is distinguished by its very short beak,
eyes excessively large and prominent, surrounded by a red
circle, and it came originally from Turkey." Evidently the
Barb. "The second has the head and breast yellowish, and
the wings and tail black; it is very much used in Austria,
especially at Vienna, though originally coming also from
Turkey." This can only apply to the Archangel, though
not a quite correct description of it. Professor Bonizzi, in
his work on the Triganini, after quoting the above, says :
" The Timpani are no other than the Gimpel described by
Neumeister." Malmusi continues : " The Zinganini are of one
sole colour throughout, whatever it may be, and are dis-
tinguished by a white spot between the wings, which
extends over the back, and sometimes even to the neck.
This race ceased to exist in Modena some years ago, and
there is a tradition that it was introduced by the gipsies of
Hungary in the fifteenth century; thus, these birds were
called Zingarini, or Zinganini"
Having now traced the Archangel as far as Turkey, we shall
next find it in the Orient itself. When in Calcutta, in 1869,
I heard of the arrival there of a pigeon fancier from the
North- West provinces, with a large assortment of pigeons
for sale. I found among them two pairs of Archangels, that
were acquired by a friend of mine, in whose place I saw
them often afterwards. This may not be conclusive evidence
that they are an Indian breed, as they might have originated
in Europe, and been carried East; but I am inclined to
believe that the Archangel is an Asiatic variety, either Persian
or Indian.
The Archangel is about the size of the common Field
Pigeon, and of the same type in formation. Its beak should
be of a dark flesh tint, brown at the tip, and free of hard
blue or black colour, straight, and rather long. The head is
long or snaky, and the eye should be of a vivid orange
colour, surrounded by a narrow flesh-coloured cere or wattle.
97 PIGEONS OF COLOUR.
Though there are plain-headed and shell-crested, or, at least,
partially shell- crested, birds among the breed, the correct
style of head is the peak- crested ; and so good in the peak
are some Archangels, that they leave nothing to be desired
in this respect. The feathers at the back of the head
should all draw to a point, ending in a finely-pointed
crest, and the higher this peak reaches, the better. I con-
sider it immaterial whether there is a notch below the peak,
dividing it from the back neck feathers, or a kind of hog
mane, showing no break, so long as the peak itself is
correct.
The head, neck, breast, belly, thighs, and vent feathers
should be of a bronzed copper colour, burnished with metallic
lustre, solid and even. But this appearance does not pervade
these feathers down to the quills, as underneath they are of a
dull black, which should not, however, assert itself to the eye,
though it generally does about the thigh and vent feathers.
The back, wings, and rump should be as black as possible,
(though generally more or less bronzed), accompanied by
metallic tints of green, blue, purple, and ruby colour, which
show in any light, but which in a strong, or sun-light, when
the bird is moving about, sparkle like coloured jewels of
price. The flight feathers are bronzed black, or kite-coloured,
and the tail is blue black, with a black bar at the end. I
have heard of black-tailed Archangels, but have never seen
any ; nor do I consider that they should be other than dark
blue-tailed, both on account of the greater variety in the
plumage, and because, though blue-tailed, they show as
much lustre on their feathers as any breed we have; at
least, in Germany, from where we got them, the standard,
according to Neumeister, is the blue-barred tail. The legs
and feet should be unfeathered, and of a bright red, the
nails dark.
Besides the above coloured Archangel pigeons, there are
others whose whole plumage is more subdued. The copper
K
98 FANCY PIGEONS.
is changed to yellow, the back and wings to a blue-black,
and the tail to light blue, barred with black. This variety
has but little lustre compared to the other. It is a natural
change that occurs in, and that has a value for, breeding.
I have bred such from two birds of standard colouring; and
they may be matched to the dark variety, when they will
breed both colours, and others midway between.
The Archangel does not assume its full colour till after its
second moult, for the four or five centre feathers of the
secondary nights are not changed during the first. The
breeder has, however, a good idea of what colour a bird will
become when it leaves the nest.
There are so-called Archangels all white and all black,
which may have originated from standard birds as natural
sports, by way of albinism and melanism. The black variety,
with its metallic lustre, is very pretty. German authors mention
several other varieties, such as blues with black bars, blues
without black bars, blues with white wing bars, blues and
blacks with white flights, blues and blacks with white nights
and heads. Blue Archangels are the yellow-breasted, blue-
winged type.
The Miroite Pigeon.
This is a French variety, described by Boitard and Corbie,
and mentioned by Brent. The French writers describe it
thus : " It is inconceivable that none of the authors who
have written about pigeons have mentioned this race, so re-
markable for the beautiful colour of its plumage. Is it
because they never heard of it ? This cannot be, for, although
not common, all amateurs know it, and some possess several
varieties of it. Is it because they have not regarded it as a
pure race ? This cannot be the reason, for these pigeons are
positively a pure race, since they cannot be crossed with any
other variety, however much they resemble it, without being
lost. Be this as it may, these birds have the general form
99 PIGEONS OF COLOUR.
of the Mondains (common Runts), and can scarcely be dis-
tinguished from them, except by the striking beauty of their
plumage. They never have a cere round the eyes, and are
generally yellow in the iris.
" Pigeon Miroite Rouge is the colour of the red blood
of an ox, interrupted at two-thirds of an inch from the ends
of the flight and tail feathers by a grey-white bar, half an
inch broad. The ends of these feathers are of a red colour,
a little clearer than the rest of the body; eye, yellow iris.
This charming variety, of medium size, produces well, and
merits, by all accounts, the care of amateurs.
" Pigeon Miroite Jaune. This pretty bird only differs from
the preceding by the ground of its plumage, which is yellow ;
moreover, it is miroite the same on the flight and tail
feathers. It has the same fecundity.
" Pigeon Petit Miroite. Similar to the preceding, but much
smaller about the size of the Rock Pigeon. This charming
bird is a good breeder."
Brent says the word miroite is difficult to translate. He
was informed that it meant, composed of three colours, of
which two were blended in one. A French gentleman has
informed me that miroite means flashing e.g., the neck of
the Blue Rock Pigeon is said to be miroite. The Miroite may
therefore take its name from its great metallic lustre, or it
may be a technical name, derived from the blending of the
colours in its tail and flight feathers. The Miroite Pigeons
may be had in Paris. I was recently offered some by the
Parisian dealer, M. Yallee.
The Hyacinth and its Sub-varieties.
The Hyacinth Pigeon stands at the head of a French breed
which is found in various colourings, and which are all
included under the name of Pigeons MailUs (Mailed, Armoured,
or Speckled Pigeons). They are large, smooth-headed, and
clean-legged pigeons, and have been classed by French
K 2
100 FANCY PIGEONS.
naturalists with the Pouters, as they have the power of
slightly inflating their crops. I knew a fancier who bred them
extensively, and his birds would have been correctly described
as middle-sized Bunts, with a slight dash of the Pouter. They
are classed as follows :
Pigeon Maille Jacinthe (Speckled Hyacinth Pigeon). The
shoulders as in a Turbit, or the Manteau in French, of clear
blue, chequered or spangled in a particular pattern with
white and black, or a black and blue bar on all the
feathers, the outer side of the blue bar having a white
spot, or spangle; the ten flight feathers of each wing pure
white ; the head, neck, breast, belly, and tail dark purple -
blue; the tail barred with black.
Pigeon Maille Jacinthe Plein is a little less in size than
the preceding, but similar in colouring, except that it has
dark blue, instead of white, flights.
The following varieties are said to be found both with
white flights, and plein, or with dark flights.
Pigeon Maille Couleur de Feu, red or flame-coloured, similar
to the Hyacinth, but with red, instead of white, spangles.
Pigeon Maille Noyer, coloured like walnut wood, or in-
clining to yellow in the spangles.
Pigeon Maille Pecker, or peach-coloured in the spangles.
The Noyer is considered as a cross between the Jacinthe
and Couleur de Feu; and the Pecher as a cross between the
Jacinthe and Noyer. Each variety is, however, established.
and breeds true, according to Boitard and Corbie.
All I have seen of these varieties were of the dark-flighted
kinds. These pigeons have been promiscuously named Hya-
cinths, Yictorias, and Porcelains in our pigeon literature; but
the above description is that of undoubted authorities, the white-
spangled ones alone being entitled to the name of Hyacinths.
The white-flighted varieties appear to be larger than the
plein, and to have more of the Pouter in them, and I think
I can recognise them in Moore's "Columbarium" as follows:
101 PIGEONS OF COLOUR.
" The Parisian Powter. This Pigeon was originally bred at
Paris, and from thence brought to Brussels, whence it was
transmitted to us; it has all the Nature of a Powter, but
is generally long crop'd, and not very large; it is short -
bodied, short-leg'd, and thick in the girt. What is chiefly
admir'd in this Bird is its Feather, which is indeed very
beautiful and peculiar only to it self, resembling a fine piece
of Irish stitch, being chequer'd with various Colours in every
Feather, except the flight, which is white ; the more red it has
intermix'd with the other Colours the more valuable it is.
Some are Gravel ey'd, and some bull ey'd, but it is equally
indifferent which eye it has." If for " every feather " we read
the wing coverts which are the only feathers, except the
flights and tail, that can possibly be spangled in pigeons in
the above way Moore's description of the Parisian Pouter,
(the Parazence Pouter of the treatise of 1765), agrees with
that of the sub-varieties of the Pigeon Maille Jacinthe, or
Hyacinth.
The Polish Lynx Pigeon.
This pigeon, according to Priitz, has only lately been intro-
duced, by Professor J. B. Yon Rozwadowsky, of Cracow, to
the notice of German fanciers. It is described as a large,
plain-headed and legged bird, measuring about 15in. from the
beak to the end of the tail, strongly-built, low, and broad-
chested; a good forager at all seasons of the year, a free
breeder, and especially good as a table bird. Its general
appearance is that of a slightly inflated Pouter. The colours
of the breed are black and blue; the same with white wing
bars; also others with both white bars and white scales, or
chequers, on the wing coverts. Sometimes the flight feathers
are white. Beds and yellows are not known.
This is the description of the Polnische Luchstaube, as
given by Priitz, and it seems to coincide in some respects
102 FANCY PIGEONS.
with that of the Hyacinth of Boitard and Corbie (1824), the
French authors.
The Carp-scale Pigeon.
This pigeon, known in Germany as the Karpfenschuppige
Taube, is of the common type. It is smooth-headed, red or
yellow-eyed, and has its legs covered with feathers of a
medium length. Its colour is dark blue, with lustrous neck,
except the mantle or shoulders, which are chequered as in
the French Hyacinth and its sub-varieties. Some years ago,
specimens were occasionally exhibited in this country under
the name of Hyacinths. I have bred a number of them, and
found that they varied in colour in the same way as dark
Blondinettes, which they resembled in colour very much,
except in having no white marks on flight and tail feathers.
The nestling feathers are of a dull, rusty hue, which disappears
after the first moult, when some become laced, and others
arrow-pointed on the wing coverts.
The Annatalozia Pigeon.
Such is the name of a pretty Toy Pigeon, which comes from
Asia Minor. It is of the size of a common Tumbler; smooth-
headed and grouse-legged ; short-beaked, and yellow or orange-
eyed; marked on the head like a Nun or Domino, either
black, blue, red, or yellow, and with coloured primary flight
feathers to correspond, the rest of the plumage being white.
The Red Indian Pigeon
Is another breed of Asia Minor, which has the make and
shape of a common, clean-legged, large, flying Tumbler. Its
colour is a glossy, burning, blood red, to the ends of the
flight and tail feathers. It has been used as a cross to give
colour to red and yellow Dragoons.
Chapter XII.
<X PIGEONS OF PECULIAR FEATHERING. x>
The Frizzled Pigeon.
HE Frizzled Pigeon, or Friesland Runt, as it
was formerly called, is not a Runt of the
large kind, but a bird of the size and shape
of a Common Pigeon. Moore writes of it as
follows : " This pigeon comes from Friesland,
and is one of the larger Sort of middle siz'd Runts; its
feathers stand all reverted, and I can't see for what it can
be admir'd, except for its Ugliness." So far Mr. Moore,
whose successors, Mayor and Girton, follow on the same
string, with variations, both adding that these pigeons were,
in their time, very scarce in England. The Friesland Runt
which name I merely use because it was formerly so called,
and because it matters little what name it goes by, so long
as it is not that of another pigeon must have become
extinct in England; but of late it has re-appeared from
abroad. It is known as the Lockentaube in Germany, where
it is said to be rare; and Neumeister says it comes from
Hungary. It is usually smooth-headed, and stocking-legged,
without much feathering on the toes. In colour it is gene-
104 FANCY PIGEONS.
rally blue or mealy, but I have seen turbit-marked ones, with
bronzed black shoulders. Its feathering is similar to that
of the Frizzled Fowls, or Sebastopol Geese that is, reverted,
making it appear to have been ou in a storm. This appear-
ance is owing to the concave surface of the feathers, more
especially those of the wing coverts and back, being outward
instead of inward, or next the body, as in other pigeons.
On its re-introduction into England, where it has been
common for some years back, and where it has done some
winning in the "Any other variety" classes, it was called
by the name of another pigeon, one of an opposite character
to it the Frillback. This was the more inexcusable, as the
Frillback was not extinct in England. This bird, being neither
a Runt nor a Frillback, may be appropriately named the
Frizzled Pigeon.
The Frillback Pigeon.
The first mention of this curious bird was in the "Treatise
on Pigeons," dedicated to John Mayor, published in 1765. As
the description is very good, concise, and clear, I reproduce it.
" The Frillback is something less in size than a Dragoon, and
in shape like the common Bunt ; their colour generally (if not
always) white; and what is chiefly remarkable in them is the
turn of their feathers, which appear as if every one distinctly
had been raised at the extremity with a small round, pointed
instrument, in such manner as to form a small cavity in each
of them." The Frillback, which is the German Strupp oder
Perltaube (Bristle, or Pearl Pigeon), is said to be a native of the
Netherlands, and Brent met with it in Saxony. It is of the
size of the common field pigeon, and is described as always pure
white in colour, with an orange or gravelly red iris. I believe
this variety is usually white, at least, I have never seen it of
any other feather. They are turn-crowned, and generally
smooth-legged; but I have seen specimens with well-feathered
legs and feet. Their peculiar appearance is caused by the
105 PECULIAR FEATHERING.
ends of their feathers, more especially those of the wing
coverts and secondaries, being goffered or crimped, as if by
a pair of curling tongs, as Brent describes it. This appear-
ance is often seen in a less degree on hard-feathered pigeons,
like Dragoons. As Brent says, the Frillback must not be
confused with the Friesland Runt. Some fanciers, however,
are of opinion that the Frizzled Pigeon must have been
produced from the Frillback; but I think this is doubtful.
The Lace Pigeon.
The Lace Pigeon is another variety, distinguished, like the
Frizzled and Frillback Pigeons, by the peculiar formation of
its feathers. It has its prototype in the Silky Fowl of
China and Japan, which early travellers called a fowl bearing
hair or wool on its body instead of feathers. This pigeon
was unknown to Moore, and was first described in our pigeon
literature in the " Treatise " (1765), where a very good plate
of it may be seen. It is described as white in colour, turn-
crowned, and as being valued on account of its scarcity,
and the peculiarity of its feathers, "the fibres or web
of which appear disunited from each other throughout
their whole plumage, and not in the least connected, as in
common with all other pigeons, where they form a smooth,
close feather."
The Lace Pigeon, which is known in France as the Pigeon
Sole (Silky Pigeon), and in Germany as the Seiderihaartaube
(Silken-haired Pigeon), is of much the same size and bearing
as the common field pigeon. It is almost always pure white
in colour, and generally smooth-headed. The fibres of all
its feathers are disunited, and appear as if every second
one had been cut out. The wing coverts, and quill and
tail feathers, with their long, fringed rays, have given it
its English name of Lace Pigeon. It is not so hairy or
woolly in appearance as the Silky Fowl, but more like the
produce of that fowl when crossed with a common one. Its
106 FANCY PIGEONS.
legs and feet are either quite smooth or slightly feathered;
its irides are dark hazel. Being unable to fly, it must be
kept in confinement, and under special conditions. However
interesting as an object of curiosity, it presents little varia-
tion in its form or feather, and, consequently, will always be
rather uncommon. It has the power of somewhat repro-
ducing its peculiarity when crossed with other pigeons, and
the French have a half-bred looking Fantail, called the Pigeon
Trembleur Paon de Soie, from which the Scotch Lace Fantail,
to be afterwards noticed, has been perfected.
The Frizzled, Frillback, and Lace Pigeons, are examples of
natural sports perfected by selection. If lost, breeders could
not recover them, but would have to wait till Nature pro-
vided them with a new beginning on which to work. As
they exist, they can be kept up, in a fair degree of quality,
with but little trouble as compared to many kinds that are
called mere feather varieties, fine specimens of which are
consequently much more valuable than they are. If fancy
pigeons were separate creations, and not descended from a
common origin, I wonder how the Lace Pigeon existed till
taken in charge by pigeon fanciers.
The A/lane Pigeon.
The Mane, or Curly Moor Head Pigeon (die Mdhnentaube
oder Krausige Mohrerikopf], is said by Neumeister to be
probably the Latz Pigeon perfected by long breeding. From
his description of it they appear to have much in common.
It is rather larger than the field pigeon, broader-breasted,
and more thickset in make. It is said to be found chiefly
in Thuringia and the Saxon Erz mountains, and gene-
rally with black markings. " Its rather thick, strong beak,
is polished black, its eye large, and brown in the iris. The
thighs, legs, and feet are heavily feathered, the claws white.
The ground colour is white, except, as in the Latz, the head,
front, and sides of neck and breast, which are black ; the tail,
107 PECULIAR FEATHERING.
with its coverts, is, however, also black in this variety. Its
characteristic is the white waving mane on the back neck,
reaching upwards, downwards, and to the sides of the neck,
parting the black of the bodice marking from the white.
The mane consists of thinly sown, flaky feathers, hanging
around the neck disorderly, and in the form of a mane, not
by any means close, as in the Jacobin, but reaching as far
down the neck as the coloured bodice does in front."
The chief difference between the Latz and Mane Pigeons
seems to lie in the greater development of loose, disordered
feathers at the back of the neck, the former having only a
large hood, while these feathers in the latter take the form
of a waving mane. The coloured tail and greater develop-
ment of leg feather are also properties of the latter; but
they are evidently near relatives.
The Mane Pigeon has been occasionally exhibited at the
principal shows in this country during the last few years.
The Egyptian Swift Pigeon.
This pigeon, which is of Eastern origin, was first de-
scribed in Fulton's Book of Pigeons, by Mr. Ludlow, who
says that it is an Indian variety, but that it has been
cultivated in Cairo and Alexandria, whence the best speci-
mens have been imported into England ; hence its name the
Egyptian Swift. I never met with it in Bengal, nor heard
fanciers there speak of such a variety; but I believe there
are many distinct breeds of pigeons existing in Hindostan,
especially in the North-west, still unknown to us, and the
Swift may be among them. This variety of the domestic
pigeon has its name from the Swift, or Hawk Swallow, on
account of its abnormally long flight feathers. Though a
bird of ordinary size, it has the appearance of being larger
than it is, from the fact of its feathers being long and loose.
In this respect it resembles other kinds, such as the Trumpeter
and Jacobin. The scapular feathers, on account of their length,
108 FANCY PIGEONS.
incline downwards. Both the flight and tail feathers are
excessively long, the former being carried crossed above the
latter, and measuring as much as 32|in. from tip to tip,
when outstretched, according to Mr. Ludlow, who also says
that the tail primaries measure 7iin. between tips of quill and
fibre. As a comparison, I measured an ordinary-sized flying
Tumbler cock in the same way, and his outstretched wings
covered 27in., while one of his tail primaries was 5|in. The
flights and tail of the Swift, therefore, extend 2fin. beyond
those of similar sized pigeons. To see how these measure-
ments would compare with those of the Pouter, I measured
a blue pied cock of 19iin. in feather, and found that his out-
stretched wings covered 37in., and that one of his tail feathers
was no less than 8y\in. in length. The Swift stands low, on
unfeathered legs, is smooth-headed, and is represented by Mr.
Ludlow as an owl-headed, gulleted pigeon, with a narrow flesh-
coloured eye cere and yellow iris. He says it is found
in various colours, such as blue, blue-chequer, almond-
feathered, and chocolate colour, heavily shot with yellow
on the neck and wing coverts, which latter is the colour
Mr. Ludlow has chosen for his illustration, and which might
be called an exaggeration of the golden-dun found in
Short-faced Tumblers. As represented by him, it is a very
beautiful colour, and one not found so pronounced in any
other variety I know of.
Instead of being an advantage to the Swift in flight, its
long wings are an impediment to it, as the feathers are thin,
and weak in texture. Like the Hawk Swallow, it rises from
the ground with difficulty, but, unlike it, cannot make use of
its long wings when once in the air. I once, when my age
could be told by a single figure, caught a Swift Swallow in a
garret, which I played with on the grass for some time, as it
never attempted to fly away ; but happening to throw it slightly
from the ground, it went off like an arrow from a bow.
Mr. Ludlow says the Swift is hardy and long lived, one
109 PECULIAR FEATHERING.
cock, an old one on his arrival in Birmingham, in 1864,
having lived till 1875.
Regarding the age of fancy pigeons generally, there was,
some years ago, a notice in the Field newspaper, of the
death of a "White Trumpeter, belonging to Mr. Gates,
formerly an exhibitor of this breed, at the age of twenty-
two years, which is the same age as the pigeon Willughby
(1676) refers to in the following passage : " Albertus
sets the twentieth year for the term of a pigeon's life.
As for tame pigeons (saith Aldrovandus), a certain man
of good credit told me that he had heard from his
father, who was much delighted in pigeons and other
birds, that he had kept a pigeon two and twenty years,
and that all that time it constantly bred, excepting the
last six months, which time, having left its mate, it had
chosen a single life." The oldest pigeon I ever had was a
common flying Tumbler, red in colour, which was fifteen
years old, and in good condition. I have known of a
Pouter cock breeding well when twelve years old; but it
would cheapen the price of fine pigeons if they usually lived
so long.
The Swallow-tail Pigeon.
I have never seen the variety of domestic pigeon that
has a forked tail, like the common House Swallow, and no
pigeon fancier, either here or abroad, seems to have
described it from actual observation. The existence of
such a breed seems to depend on what has been said by
Bech stein, the German naturalist, from whom Brent, who is
the only fancier who mentions it, has gathered the following :
" Die Taube mit Schwalbenschwanz. Bechstein, in his ' Natural
History of Germany ' describes this variety as occasionally to
be found among the collections of pigeon fanciers, and says
they are blue, chequered, or black mottled, the outer feathers
of the tail being much prolonged, or forked like that of the
110
FANCY PIGEONS.
Chimney Swallow, from which circumstance they derive their
name." And Brent adds : " A pigeon-fancying acquaintance
informed me that he once had a pair of Swallow- tailed Bald-
heads, which he purchased in Manchester : so I conclude this
variety is also to be met with in England, though I have
not seen it. Some of the wild pigeons or doves of foreign
countries have long, wedge-shaped tails, but such a formation
of tail I have never seen or heard of among our domestic
pigeons."
Chapter XIII.
o< THE RINGBEATER PIGEON. X>
NDER the names of Smiter, Finnikin, and
Turner, our former writers on pigeons have
described varieties agreeing more or less with
the French Pigeon Tournant, and German
Ringschlager, or E/ingbeater. Willughby says
of Smiters : " These do not only shake their wings as they fly,
but also, flying round about in a ring, especially over their
females, clap them so strongly, that they make a greater
sound than two battledores, or other boards, struck one against
another, whence it comes to pass, that their quil-feathers are
almost always broken and shattered; and sometimes so bad,
that they cannot fly." He describes the Turner merely as
"having a tuft hanging down backward from their head,
parted like a horse's mane ;" and the Finnikin, " like the pre-
cedent (the Turner), but less."
Moore describes no Smiter, but his Finnikin "is in Make
and Shape very like a common Runt, and much about the
same Size. The crown of its head is turned much after the
manner of a snake's head; it is gravel-eyed, and has a tuft
of feathers on the hinder part of the crown, which runs down
112 FANCY PIGEONS.
its neck, not unlike a horse's mane ; it is clean-footed and
legged, and always black or blue pied. When it is sala-
cious, it rises over its hen, and turns round three or four
times, flapping its wings, then reverses, and turns as many
the other way."
The Turner, he says, " is in many respects like the Finnikin,
except that, when it is salacious, and plays to the female, it
turns only one way, whereas the other turns both ; it has no
tuft on the hinder part of the head, neither is it snake-
headed."
Brent says he only saw one pair of Ringbeaters, which were
at a pigeon dealer's in Coblentz. They were common-looking
birds, with peaked crowns and red and white plumage. Their
peculiar movement and circling flight were described to him,
and he noticed that the vanes were beaten off the ends of
their flight feathers.
Boitard and Corbie describe the Pigeons Tournants as stronger
than Tumblers, stocking-legged, generally blue chequered, red,
or pearl white in colour, marked with a pure white horseshoe
mark on the back. "Whatever may be the space they are
shut up in, they ascend to the ceiling, then descend, de-
scribing circles, first to right, then to left, absolutely like a
bird of prey, which hovers, and then chases from high in the
air." They say amateurs have discarded them on account of
their quarrelsome and jealous disposition, which causes much
mischief in the aviary.
The Pigeon Lillois Claquart, or Lille clapper, is a variety
of the Lille Pouter, which Boitard and Corbie have confounded
with the Turner. "It makes a noise with its wings when
commencing to fly, like a clapper; hence its name." This is
a usual thing with half-bred Pouters, and I have often seen
such kept as decoys for stray pigeons.
Brent could find nothing in German books regarding the
Bingbeater ; but, in the last edition of Neumeister, I find
a description of this curious breed, from which it appears
113 THE RINGBEATER.
they may now be got, not only with all their peculiarities
of flight, but bred to feather as well. He says : " The
excellent pigeon fancier, Fiihrer, describes this pigeon, quite
unknown in the North of Germany, in the following way :
The Eingbeater is a pigeon only yet appearing on the Lower
Rhine, and here and there in Westphalia, of stately size,
strong figure, and good bearing. The head is covered with a
pointed hood; the forehead of middle height, the beak light
coloured, the irides according to the plumage, the eyelids
bright flesh-coloured, the neck robust, breast and back pro-
portionately broad, the legs and feet smooth." He describes
a peculiarity in the primary wing feathers, which I under-
stand to be, that the fifth from the outside is very much
shorter than the fourth, so that, when the wing is extended,
the four longest feathers seem to have grown away from the
others, and are not in the usual gradation. " The plumage
is close-fitting, and marked in all colours as follows : The
whole head is white, the line of marking being the breadth
of two straws below the eyes; the tail, with its covert and
six flights a side, are white." I am not sure from the
description whether this variety is white or coloured on
belly and thighs. Their flight is described thus: "The
characteristic of these pigeons is their flight; it is true they
never fly farther than from roof to roof, but not for a single
yard without flapping their wings together, so that it sounds
afar; this is particularly done by the cock when courting
his hen. A good beater must beat a ring round her from
five to six times i.e., flying around in a circle right and
left, making a loud noise by beating his wings together.
The hen beats likewise, but less strongly; both beat most
in spring. In autumn their flights are so much beaten down
that they cannot fly, and they easily meet with accidents.
Their quite ragged pinions are then sometimes pulled out,
which does not hurt them when done only once in a year.
Those birds are most valuable which flap much, and yet pre-
L
114 FANCY PIGEONS.
serve their pinions well. The young ones begin to flap as
soon as fledged. The Ringbeater is a healthy, very lively,
and quarrelsome bird, causing much disturbance in the loft,
and unfitted to live with other pigeons. It is also very
prolific, and it is a matter of wonder that it is not more
spread. Besides good ringbeating, we require in this pigeon
a considerable size of body, fine bright colours, and pure
markings. The price of purely marked black and yellow
ones is several marks a pair; the red, mostly bad in colour,
are cheaper."
The E/ingbeater is a pigeon that would be valued by many
in this country, where, as appears from the pigeon books of
the last century, it was formerly not uncommon. It is the
same bird that Willughby wrote of as the Smiter, and which
Moore calls the Finnikin, though evidently now bred for colour
and marking as well as ringbeating. It was no doubt produced
by selection from such as had its peculiar flight in a modified
degree. In a loft of Tumblers some lively cock will often
be found having a good deal of the above description in his
flight.
\ Bin! -lib
>
THE TRIGANICA, OK MODENA PIGEON.
Chapter XIV.
X THE TRIGANICA PIGEON. X>
| N the city of Modena tlie sport of pigeon-
flying has been in vogue from time im-
memorial. Those who are devoted to this
sport are called Triganieri, and the bird
they employ is known as the Triganica, or
Triganina Pigeon. Historical evidence carries the sport back
to the year 1327, the date of the Modenese Statute, De
Columbia non Capiendis nee Trappola Tenenda. In the same
Statute, reformed in 1547, the word Triganieros, used only
in Modena, is first found. In the Latin poem, De Aucupio
Coternicum, by the Modenese, Seraphino Salvarani, published
in 1678, there is a fine description of the method in which the
Triganieri carry on their aerial warfare. Tassoni has alluded
to them as
... A company of loose livers,
Given up to gaming and making pigeons fly,
Which were called Triganieri,
Natural enemies to the Bacchettoni,
the latter being " certain people who go about by day kiss-
116 FANCY PIGEONS.
ing little pictures painted on boards, and in the evening
assemble together to use the scourge on their bare backs."
About the time that Moore wrote his " Columbarium," Dr.
Domenico Vandelli was writing a description of the sport
carried on with pigeons by the Triganieri, which differs
but little from that in vogue at the present day. The dove-
cotes of the Modenese fanciers are on the roofs of the houses,
and they are surrounded by stepped platforms, on which the
Triganieri stand, directing the flight of their pigeons by the
waving of a little flag at the end of a pole. The flag, some
grain of which the birds are fond, and the shrill whistle of
the owner (instead of which a cornet was used in olden
times), are all the means used for directing them. The object
of the sport is the pleasure of making them fly as required,
and the capture of birds belonging to enemies. Some of the
phrases used will illustrate the methods employed.
Guastare, is to let loose for flight one or more pigeons for
the first time.
Sparare, is to let loose for flight, and to send round in
circles, the pigeons already trained.
Mischiare, is to join together, and confuse in one single
band, the various flying bands which belong to several Tri-
ganieri, taught to do this by a signal given them by their
respective masters.
Strappare, is the sudden division and separation of the united
bands, at the whistle of any Triganiere, who thus calls back
his band to his own roof, when they are all united together.
Scavezzare, is the signal which the Triganiere makes with
his flag to his band, when he observes, mingled with his own
birds, one or more strange pigeons, which they can more
easily surround, and bring to his dovecote.
Avvujare, is to induce a band, into which some strange
pigeons have been brought, to fly backwards and forwards in
long-continued flights around the dovecote, in order to seize a
favourable opportunity of making them descend all together.
117 THE TRIGANICA.
Trattare, or Gustare, is the giving of grain to the pigeons
when they have descended, as a reward for having been obe-
dient in their flight to the signals of the Triganiere.
Tirar giu niente, is the recalling of the flock of pigeons by
their master when they do not obey his signals, without
giving them food, the better to incite them to obedience.
Andare indietro spalla, is to feign to send the pigeons to
mingle with others, and, when they have almost mingled, to
call them back suddenly, with the probability of some of the
pigeons of the other bands returning with them.
Dare la mano, is the act of taking up the strange pigeons
which have perched on the platform with the pigeons of the
Triganiere.
When Yandelli wrote, the sport was carried on in four
ways. First, on the terms of good friendship, in which a
reciprocal restitution of captives was made without compen-
sation. Second, on the terms of fair battle, by the redemp-
tion of the captives at a price agreed upon by the combatants.
Third, on declared war, when the pigeons were taken with
impunity, and with no obligation on the part of the captor
to restore them. And, fourth, on war to the last drop of
blood, when the captive was immediately hung from the
platform in full sight of the dovecote of the adversary ; or
there was attached to its tail a little bottle of gunpowder,
in which a fuse was placed, and then, when the enemy sent
out his pigeons, the captive was let loose, after the fuse had
been fired, so that, when it arrived in the midst of the flight,
the bottle burst, and many of the pigeons near were killed
or wounded.
In the present day, however, such cruel reprisals are not prac-
tised, and the sport is generally carried on a lira, or on the terms
of the redemption of captives at the rate of a Modenese lira.
I am indebted to the Italian books to be mentioned in the
Appendix for the foregoing information on the Triganieri, and
chiefly to Malmusi's "Dei Triganieri," 1851.
118 FANCY PIGEONS.
The Triganica Pigeon, which is of comparatively modern
origin other varieties, as described under the Archangel
pigeon, having been previously used for the sport is said
by Neumeister to be a variety of the Huhnertauben, under
which classification he describes it. The marking is certainly
very similar to that of the Florentiner, but the Triganica
Pigeon is now only a medium-sized bird, and, though many
of them carry their tails somewhat erect, they ought to carry
them horizontally. This variety certainly shows some rela-
tionship to the Huhnertauben, or Fowl-like Pigeons, in being
high on the legs, short in the nights and tail, and in being
marked much the same as the Florentiner ; but its shape is
in every respect modified, and other elements have, without
doubt, entered into its composition.
There are no less than 152 colours in this variety, all of
which have received names from the Triganieri, and these
may be found in Professor Bonizzi's "I Colombi di Modena."
Seventy-six of these are what are called schietti, or pure
colours that is, the pigeons are all coloured, without any
entirely white feathers, and the other seventy-six are the
corresponding gazzi, or magpies of these colours that is,
pied with white, like the illustration. Some of the most
beautiful colours are black, with the wing coverts chequered
with red, which I have attempted to show in the woodcut
illustration. Black, with the wing coverts heavily tipped
with red, so that the whole shoulder, as in a Turbit, is red,
the head, flights, and tail being black. The same, with
yellow-chequered or whole yellow shoulders. Dun head,
flights, and tail, the shoulders buff, but tipped with bright
yellow. The same with solid yellow shoulders. Blue mag-
pies, with red or yellow wing bars, black-barred blues being
of no value. Light blue, of a uniform tint, without any wing
bars. Black and white grizzles, in which every coloured
feather should show black and white. Blue and white grizzles.
Three-coloured birds, in which every feather should show
119 THE TRIGANICA.
black, red, and white. Oddities, having one wing of one
colour, and the other of another colour. I had lately some
good Triganica Pigeons, light blue in colour, marbled on the
shoulders with dark blue, and with yellow wing bars, like the
coloured illustration.
These pigeons are bred by many fanciers who have neither
time nor inclination for the sport as practised by the Tri-
ganieri proper. Some of the colours are rare, and only in
the hands of their producers, who are so jealous of parting
with them that they would rather destroy their surplus stock
than let the breed out of their hands. The magpies present
the same difficulties in breeding as other pied pigeons,
coloured feathers in the parts that should be white, and
vice versa, troubling the breeders in Modena as much as
they do us in our pied varieties; so that a perfectly marked
pigeon is a rarity, and is, consequently, valuable.
Chapter XV.
<X SEVERAL VARIETIES OF EAST INDIAN PIGEONS. X
The Sherajee Pigeon.
HE Sherajee, so named in Bengal, but called
Sherazie in Northern India, is a favourite
pigeon throughout Hindostan. The name is,
no doubt, derived from the city of Sheraz,
in Persia, where it might possiby have origi-
nated. This pigeon is, in shape and size, very similar to the
tight-feathered Trumpeters common in this country before
the so-called Russians were introduced. The head and beak
of the Sherajee are of the common type, the latter neither
short, nor long and thin; and birds of good colour always
have a reddish tinge on the eye ceres, beak wattles, and
the edges of the mouth. The irides are dark hazel colour,
the head is unhooded, and the legs and feet are feathered.
Long toe feathers, spreading out on each side, are much
admired. The marking of the Sherajee is peculiar to it-
self, nothing similar to it being found in any other variety
that I know of. The upper mandible is coloured, except
with those colours that are generally accompanied by a, flesh-
121 EAST INDIAN VARIETIES.
coloured beak ; and the marking, commencing at the beak
wattle, runs over the head and down the back of the
neck, till it meets the back and wings. Looked at in
profile, the marking should show a clean division down the
side of the neck ; from behind, the neck appears all coloured,
and from before, all white. The back, wings, and flight
feathers are also coloured, the rest of the plumage being
pure white.
A rarer variety of the Sherajee is that known as the
Mottled. The breast of this variety must be well-mottled with
single feathers, no two of which ought to touch each other.
This is a kind of mottling peculiar to Indian fancy pigeons,
being the reverse of what is required in this country, where
standard mottling is always composed of single white feathers
on a coloured ground. The Mottled Sherajee, when anything
like perfect, becomes a very valuable pigeon, and is often sold
at so much the mottle; I was told, on good and satisfactory
authority, that as much as 1000 rupees had been paid for a
fine bird of this breed. While a few coloured feathers on
the breast of the Sherajee only spoil what might otherwise be
a good plain-breasted bird, when the number reaches to about
thirty single, well-separated mottles, the value is reckoned
something in the same way as that of the diamond, by
squaring the number of feathers, and multiplying by a
price. After all, 1000 rupees, formerly equal to about 100
sterling, is no more than has been paid in this country for
a Carrier, and Indian potentates are known to be as keen in
acquiring the objects of their fancy as people of any other
country.
The Sherajee can only be seen good in the collections of
experienced pigeon fanciers, though no bird is more common
in the places in Calcutta where pigeon shops abound. I have
seen them in black, red, yellow, and dun, also in blue and
silver, both barred and barless, and in many oif colours.
Those found for sale in the bazaars are generally of black
M
122 FANCY PIGEONS.
marking, and often either bare or only half-feathered on
the legs.
Some five or six hundred large vessels leave Calcutta for
Great Britain every year, and few of them without some live
stock on board as pets, for sailors are very fond of a monkey,
parrot, or pair of birds to amuse themselves with on the
long voyage. In this way, many black Sherajee Pigeons, such
as can be bought for 2s. or 3s. a pair, have reached this country,
and probably they have been coming for the last 200 years
or more ; but the earliest mention of this breed I know of
in our literature, is in the Poultry Chronicle, vol. iii., page
443, in the report of Prescot Show, in Lancashire, on the 4th
July, 1855, as follows : " The pigeons seemed to be the sub-
ject of universal interest. Among these were two pens,
quite new (and distinct as to variety), and which, we believe,
have never hitherto been shown at any public competition,
We allude to birds entered as 'Tailors.' Why so called we
know not, but are informed the original parent birds were
imported from the Canadas (under that name), at an immense
expense, by the late Earl of Derby, for the Knowsley aviary."
And then follows the description of them, agreeing with
what I have given of the Sherajee, except as to mottled breast
and feathered feet, which shows them to have been merely
sailors' pigeons, though called " Tailors " ; and no doubt they
were bought in Liverpool out of some East India vessel, the
Canadas not having any such stock to part with. Again, at
page 491 of the same volume, they are referred to by Mr. Brent
as follows: "I beg to second Mr. Eaton's appeal to pigeon
fanciers, and hope they will support the Anerley Show; and
trust to see some of the rare varieties there, such as Laughers,
Silk Fantails, Taylors, and others."
In Brent's Pigeon Book, and in Eaton's 1858 Treatise, the
name of " Tailor " is dropped, and that of " Lahore," or " Martin,"
substituted, the former being given because Brent had found
they came from that city, and the latter on account of their
123 EAST INDIAN VARIETIES.
resemblance in marking to the Martin, or Window Swallow
(Hirundo urbica).
The Mookee Pigeon.
This is another Indian pigeon, of pure and distinct race,
that has not been unknown in British seaports having a con-
nection with the East Indies, during the past twenty or
thirty years ; but which was not recognised until I pointed it out
some years ago, as the Narrow-tailed Shaker of Willughby's
" Ornithology," published in London in 1676. Willughby says
of this kind : " Narrow or Close-tailed Shaking Pigeons
Anglice, Narrow-tailed Shakers. These agree with the pre-
cedent (the Broad-tailed Shakers) in shaking, but differ in
the narrowness of their tails, as the name imports. They
are said also to vary in colour. This kind we have not as
yet seen, nor have we more to say of it." Willughby had
this information, without doubt, from some pigeon fancier
who knew the breed, though he does not name his authority,
as he elsewhere names Mr. .Cope, of Jewin-street.
When Moore wrote his " Columbarium," about sixty years
later, he described the Narrow-tailed Shaker, the last kind
mentioned in his book, as follows : " This Pigeon is reckon'd
by some a distinct Species, tho' I am apt to believe it is
only a bastard breed between the foregoing (the Broad-tail'd
Shaker) and some other Bird. Its neck is shorter and
thicker, its back longer, the Feathers of its Tail are not so
much spread out, but fall as it were double, lying over one
another, and the Tail generally lops very much." And thus,
from Moore onwards, every writer described the Narrow-tailed
Shaker as a crossbred Fantail, as no doubt the bird above
described was, Moore never having seen the true breed. But
it will be observed that Moore says : " This Pigeon is reckon'd
by some a distinct species." No pigeon fancier would reckon
a crossbred Fantail as a distinct species, so there were,
even in Moore's time, some who either knew, or had been
124 FANCY PIGEONS.
told, about the true Narrow-tailed Shaker, which is the Indian
Mookee, a pigeon having the tremulous shaking neck of the
Fantail, and a close, narrow tail, with the normal number of
twelve feathers.
The head of the Mookee is flat, showing no stop, and its
beak rather longer than that of a common flying Tumbler; it
is also generally peak-headed. The irides are dark hazel in
colour. The upper mandible is white, and the lower follows
the plumage. The whole head is white above a line running
across the eyes. The two longest flight feathers should be
white, and all the rest of the bird coloured. The head often
comes foul or unequally cut, and the flights often foul.
Three, or even four a side, are better than unequal flights,
but two a side are considered the standard. The curious
thing about the Mookee is the tremulous shaking of the neck,
which is never absent, and which is most constant when the
bird is salacious. It is singular to see the cock driving the
hen to nest; his head and neck shake continually backward
and forward, but he never loses his balance. The tail is
carried horizontally and close, as in most pigeons.
I have seen all colours in this breed, as in the Sherajee,
but the great majority are black. Blues with black bars,
barless blues, and duns, are next in order of number, while
reds and yellows are comparatively scarce, though they were
to be seen in the possession of several Calcutta fanciers ten
years ago.
Putting aside the curious markings, it is obvious that the
Mookee is not a bastard Fantail, for, united to a close tail
of twelve feathers, it has all the shaking of ordinary Fantails ;
and it is known that, in crossing the Fantail, its tremulous
neck motion is lost long before the tail is reduced to twelve
feathers. It is as probable that extra tail feathers in the
Mookee resulted in the Broad-tailed Shaker as that it was
bred down from the Fantail. No one can say now how either
variety was produced, and to experiment on the subject would
125 , EAST INDIAN VARIETIES.
be wasting time that might be better employed, as we have
both varieties ready made to our hands.
The Mookee is a good breeder and feeder. It is a long-
lived pigeon. One dun cock that I sent to Dundee from
Calcutta, old when he left, lived for ten years afterwards.
The Goolee Pigeon.
The Goolee is a small pigeon, not much larger than the
Short -faced Tumbler. It was in the possession of a Mr.
"Wood, one of four brothers, all pigeon fanciers in Calcutta,
that I first saw a good collection of Goolees, and what
at once struck me, was their close resemblance in shape
and carriage to our Short-faced Tumblers. The Goolee has
a spindle beak, like that of our small, clean-legged, flying Tum-
blers, and an abruptly rising forehead, showing a decided
stop. "Were the best of them to be subjected to treatment
from the skull improvers that are said to be used in this
country for shaping the heads of Short-faced Tumblers, the
result would be birds differing little from these pigeons,
except in colour. Indian fanciers, however, do not use such
instruments, for they only value properties that can be bred
in their pigeons.
The upper mandible of the Goolee is coloured, the lower
white ; but reds and yellows have generally light beaks. The
marking of the head and neck is the same as in the
Sherajee. The irides are usually dark. The tail, with its
coverts, is coloured. This marking is found in all solid
colours, and, when the colours are rich and lustrous, as they
often are, the eye ceres and corners of the mouth are of a
decidedly reddish hue. The rest of the plumage is white,
except in a rarer variety, known as the Mottled Goolee.
The mottled variety, to be right, must have a rose pinion of
coloured feathers on the wing coverts; when this rose pinion
is composed of well -separated feathers the effect is very
pleasing. Some of the Mottled Goolees are of three colours,
126 FANCY PIGEONS.
such as dark dun on head, neck, and tail, yellow mottled
shoulders, and white ground. I have seen them of this rare
combination of colours, and I believe other three coloured
varieties exist, such as black marked ones with red mottled
shoulders. The Goolee is clean-legged, walks on tip-toe
when proud, trails its wings, and has the carriage of a good
Almond Tumbler. There are in Bengal as many degrees in
quality in this variety as there are here between the best
Short-faces and Common Flying Tumblers. The choicest birds
can only be seen in the possession of experienced breeders,
and are never offered for sale in the bazaars. The Goolee
shares with the Sherajee the position of chief favourite
among Calcutta pigeon fanciers, some preferring the former,
others the latter. Fine specimens of both kinds fetch long
prices.
The Lowtan Pigeon.
The Lowtan is indeed a curiosity among Pigeons. It is a
native of India, and was quite unknown among fanciers in
Britain until some letters regarding it, from Indian corre-
spondents, were published in the Meld newspaper. These may
be found in Tegetmeier's book, and give a good account of
it. I knew the Lowtan very well in Bengal, and have seen many
of them. In size they were the same as the common Field Pigeon,
and all I have seen were pure white, with a turn crown. Their
eyes were dark hazel, their legs and feet unfeathered, and in
general appearance they were quite common-looking pigeons.
To make the Lowtan perform, it is laid hold of across the back,
held horizontally, and shaken smartly from side to side three
or four times. This seems to put it into a fit, for, on being
placed on the ground, it immediately turns head over tail
till exhausted; but it is generally picked up after fluttering
about for a short time, as there is a belief that it would die
if left alone, though this is not the case. Whether the Lowtan
suffers pain or not when made to roll about I cannot say, but
127 EAST INDIAN VARIETIES.
if it does it soon recovers, for on being taken up during its
fluttering fit it becomes quiet, and when let fly it will at
once play up to its mate, if a cock, or commence to eat as if
nothing had happened. There is no variety in its exhibition,
which is rather unpleasing after being seen once or twice,
and those who keep Lowtans seldom put them through their
manoeuvres.
One of the correspondents referred to, writing from Madras,
mentions two varieties of the Lowtan, one being the Kulmee,
or high caste kind, that would roll about on being merely
touched on the head or peak ; while the other kind, the Sadhee,
or Common Lowtan, required to be shaken as I have described
before it would perform.
The other correspondent, writing from Rohilcund, had kept
the /ommon Lowtans for two years, and on inquiring for the
high caste, or Choteen Lowtans so called because they were
said to roll on the chotee, or turn crown, being touched he pro-
cured four specimens, all of which rolled on being struck on
the back of the head with the forefinger. One of them was
similar to his Common Lowtans ; another similar in appearance,
but Turbit marked, being white with dark shoulders; and the
other two had "great long legs, feathered to the toes."
I never saw any of the kind that performed on being
merely touched, nor other than pure white ones.
I saw a pair of White Lowtans two years ago, in one of the
pens, at a meeting of the National Peristeronic Society, in
London. No one knew what they were until I put them
through their peculiar performance, to the amusement of the
spectators.
The breed is mentioned in the " Ain-i-Akbari," or " Institutes
of Akbar," written about the year 1600.
East Indian Flying Pigeons.
When passing through the streets of large cities in Northern
India, from an hour before sunset till dark, an observer may
128 FANCY PIGEONS.
see many people on the flat roofs of the houses, directing
the flight of large flocks of pigeons by means of flags
attached to long bamboo poles. This sport is carried on
with great energy in the city of Delhi, where I have
seen immense numbers of pigeons flown in this way. In
Calcutta also, anyone who may be passing through the
native parts of the city, near sunset, will see the same sport
carried on by numerous pigeon flyers. Garden Reach (the
southern suburb of Calcutta) was formerly the residence of
many of the principal merchants and civil servants, whose
palatial houses, standing in their compounds of from two to
twenty acres of ground, are now (1878) chiefly owned by the ex-
king of Oude, a State prisoner there, who has gradually
bought up a great many of them, and surrounded them by
a high wall. When passing up the Hooghly river, I often
saw flights of pigeons that seemed to number thousands,
flying, to all appearance, under command, over the King's
grounds ; but, as it seemed impossible to gain admittance to the
place, I could never get a closer inspection of them, till,
observing in the newspapers one day that certain people
would be admitted, I hastened to avail myself of the
opportunity. The ex-king of Oude has what is said to be
the largest private collection of rare birds and animals in
the world, on which he has spent an immense sum of
money, and of which he is very fond. It would be out of
place here to describe the beautifully laid out grounds, the
lovely plants, the rare animals, the marble-margined tanks
or ponds, surrounded by gilded railings, and full of rare
aquatic birds, and the houses fitted up as aviaries, and full
of the most gorgeously feathered birds ; so I shall confine
myself to a description of the four great flights of pigeons,
which are kept in four of the houses in the King's grounds.
These flights are said to number about a thousand in each,
and are composed of only one breed, the native name of
which I forget. This variety is a medium-sized, very hard-
129 EAST INDIAN VARIETIES.
feathered, smooth-headed, bare-legged, boldly upstanding,
rather long-faced pigeon, not unlike the cross between a
Dragoon and Tumbler. It is invariably pied in colour, the
head and neck, as far as in Triganica, or Nun Pigeons,
being usually coloured. The rest of the plumage is white,
on which irregular patches of colour, differing in different
individuals, may be found. It is difficult to find any two birds
exactly alike in marking. The four large flocks are of four
colours, one being black pied, and the others red, yellow,
and blue pied. The houses these flocks are kept in were
formerly dwelling houses, in the upper rooms of which I
was told the pigeons were bred. The keeper of each flight
has a long bamboo, to which is attached a small flag, and
a jar of seed, something like millet in appearance. He
must also be an adept in uttering a shrill whistle,
produced by placing his first and second fingers between his
lips. It will, therefore, be seen that the modus operandi of
directing the pigeons is exactly the same as that in use in
Modena. The flight I observed first was composed of blue
pieds, whose keeper drove them out of the lower hall of
the house in which they were with his bamboo. They all
settled on a large rack, such as is fitted up in greenhouses
for placing the pots on, which stood in front of the house.
He then gave his shrill whistle, waved his flag, and the
whole flock rose into the air. The other flights were up at
the same time, and it was a fine sight to see them inter-
mingling, separating, and wheeling round in their flight, the
dense masses casting shadows on the ground like passing
clouds, and the whizzing of their many wings being pleasant
to hear. After they had flown for some time, I asked the
keeper to bring them down, and I could then see how quick
they were, for, the moment he dropped his flag, and put his
hand into the seed jar, they stopped in their flight, hung
in the air for a moment, and then came down to the
ground at my feet with a rush. The keeper went in amongst
N
130 FANCY PIGEONS.
them, and picked up one, which he shook from side to side,
and then tossed into the air. It was a yellow pied, from one
of the other flights.
It is probable that pigeon flying carried on in this way has
travelled westward from Asia. The Italian books make men-
tion of a similar practice being common in Moscow. It is
well-known that the Taj Mahal, at Agra, and other fine build-
ings that are the glory of the East, were designed by Italian
architects, and nothing is more likely than that some of
the Italians, who were in India from two to three hundred
years ago, may have been pigeon fanciers, and taken the
sport home with them. There is even some resemblance in
the respective breeds used for the sport in Italy and India.
The Modenese Statutes of 1327 and 1547 prohibit the snaring
of pigeons by nets or strings, but they do not prove con-
clusively that this sport was in use then. Some of the
Venetians may have originated the sport in the fifteenth
century. The Venetians had intimate business relations with
India 400 years ago, and their coins are still plentiful there.
I have bought old Venetian ducats in India, where they are
valued for their purity, and hoarded up with the gold
Mohurs of Akbar. The sport of pigeon-flying may have
reached Italy from Turkey or the Levant, for I have no doubt
it is carried on in Persia, Turkish Arabia, and Asia Minor,
in very much the same manner as in Hindostan.
Chapter XVI.
OTHER DISTINCT KINDS OF ASIAN PIGEONS.
The Mahomet Pigeon.
HE Mahomet, formerly known in England as
the Mawmet, was first described by Wil-
lughby, in 1676, who says : " Mawmets,
called (as I take it) from Mahomet, per-
chance because brought out of Turkey,
notable for their great black eyes, else like to the Barbaries."
Willughby must either have seen such pigeons, or had his
description of them from others. When Moore wrote his
book, some sixty years later, he knew of no pigeons "notable
for their great black eyes," but he describes the Mahomet as
"no more in Reality than a white Barb, which makes the
red tuberous Flesh round the Eyes look very beautiful." In
the preface to the "Treatise on Pigeons" (1765), the author
admits that his book is "on the plan of Mr. Moore," but
says that he has corrected some of his errors, and made
many additions. After mentioning Moore's description of
the Mahomet, he proceeds : " so far Mr. Moore ; but it is
the opinion of many fanciers, that the Bird called a mahomet
is nearly of a cream colour, with bars cross the wings as
N 2
132 FANCY PIGEONS.
black as ebony, the feathers very particular, being of two
colours: the upper part, or surface of them, appearing of a
cream, and underneath a kind of sooty colour, nearly
approaching to black; as are likewise the flue feathers, and
even the skin, which I never observed in any other Pigeons
but these : its size much like that of a Turbit, with a fine
gullet, and in lieu of a frill; the feathers rather appear like
a seam ; the head is short, and inclined to be thick ; hath an
orange-eye, and a small naked circle of black flesh round the
same ; and a beak something resembling that of a bullfinch,
with a small black wattle on it."
In the pages of the Poultry Chronicle (1854-55) will be
found a discussion on the Mahomet Pigeon. Mr. W. Wood-
house, who had been breeding and also showing crested,
three-quarter bred white Barbs, as Mahomets, informed
fanciers in his letter to that journal, on 13th December,
1854, how he bred them. Brent would not accept these
birds as Mahomets, for he had shortly before, when writing
of them, quoted the above description of the true breed
from the Treatise, and had actually seen a pair in London.
He says : " This is one of the varieties of fancy pigeons
with which I have but a very slight acquaintance, having
only once seen a pair at a London dealer's, and their ap-
pearance gave me the idea of a cross between an Owl and
a Barb Pigeon; nevertheless, their seam and black wattle,
cere, and skin, I consider sufficient distinctive peculiarities
to give them a place among fancy pigeons as a separate
variety."
About the year 1868, Mr. Boyd, of Edinburgh, brought
home with him, from Constantinople, a pair of Mahomets.
They became the property of Mr. James Wallace, of Glasgow,
who showed them there, in 1869, as Damascenes. The hen
lived but a short time, and the cock came into my possession
in 1878 ; but he was then past breeding, and shortly after-
wards met his death from an accident. In 1883, several pairs
133 OTHER ASIAN PIGEONS.
were brought to this country from Asia Minor, some of
which came into my possession.
In shape and size of body, the Mahomet is not unlike the
Barb, and, were it not that its beak and eye wattles are
nearly black, instead of red, it might naturally be supposed
to be of the Barb race. The head is full and round, the
beak short and thick, but not hooked; the irides are bright
orange or deep yellow, and the beak and eye wattles, though
almost black, are covered, when in health, with a powder
that makes them of a beautiful blue colour. In colour, this
pigeon is of the most lovely light blue, frosted all over as
if with powder, except on the wing bars, flights, and tail.
The bars should remain, as in the old description, as black
as ebony. The flights are of a medium tint, darker than
shown in the illustration, as is the tail, except that it has
the jet black bar at its extremity. The lower part of the
neck is lustrous with hues of very light green and purple.
The beak and nails are black, the feet and legs bright red,
sometimes stockinged, but I much prefer them smooth.
Although of such a beautiful light blue, or what is called a
French white, tint on the surface, the neck and body feathers
are dark bluish -black underneath when exposed ; but this
must not assert itself when the bird is at liberty. This
beautiful colouring is not confined entirely to the Mahomet,
as the same feather, or nearly so, may be found among the
Ice Pigeons ; but what makes the former of such an original
type is the dark eye wattles. It would almost seem to be
related to the Owl race of pigeons as well, as it has a very
pronounced gullet and seam, or division down the breast,
though no actual frill.
This distinction, and the shape of its head, make it a likely
cross with the Blue Owl, which I know has been tried with
success in more than one instance.
It is a pity that the Mahomet is so scarce, for, although it
has not in its composition what would make it, even though
134 FANCY PIGEONS.
plentiful, only to be seen of high quality now and then, as
the Pouter or Turbit, it would be a beautiful and telling
variety in an aviary of different kinds, and likely to breed
very true to its characteristics. I know those I had were
often picked out by strangers as the most beautiful pigeons
in my aviary.
The Mahomet shows the powdered blue colour in the very
highest degree, and has the power of reproducing its colour to
a great extent when crossed with a blue or silver pigeon.
The Capuchin Pigeon.
A pigeon under this name was described by Moore, who
says that it is in shape and make very like the Jacobin,
but something larger in body, longer in beak, with a
tolerable hood, but no chain, though in feather and other
properties the same. He says : " Some will assert it to be
a distinct Species, but I am more inclinable to imagine it
is only a bastard breed from a Jacobin and another Pigeon;
however, thus far I am sure, that a Jack and another will
breed a Bird so like it, as will puzzle the Authors of this
Assertion to distinguish it from what they call their separate
Species."
Remembering what Moore has said of the Mahomet and
Narrow-tailed Shaker, I doubt if his half-bred Jacobin was
really what some fanciers asserted to be the true Capuchin.
Moore evidently knew the motto, viam aut inveniam aut
faciam, and it puzzles me to hear of any fancier asserting
a half-bred Jacobin to be a distinct species ; however, if there
was a pure race, as described, known as the Capuchin then,
we do not know it now, for its description cannot apply
to the bird we now class under that name.
The Capuchin was first imported into England, and first
described in Fulton's book, by my friend, Mr. H. P. Caridia,
of Birmingham. It is, he says, a native of one locality of Asia
Minor; and those I have seen are certainly of pure and
135 OTHER ASIAN PIGEONS.
distinct race. The head is round and full in front, the beak
short and fine, the iris pure white, surrounded by a thin
purple-black cere, and the beak and toe nails black. The
plumage is a rich metallic black, sparkling with lustre, the
tail, with its coverts, alone being white. Mr. Caridia says
there are also similarly marked blues and whole-coloured
whites. The Capuchin gets its name from an extensive close-
fitting hood on the back of its head, which comes down a
very short distance on each side of its neck. It carries the
flights low, generally below the tail. It is thin-necked,
broad-chested, and has much of the shape and carriage of
the Short-faced Tumbler. It is said to be a good flyer,
breeder, and feeder.
I have heard some say that this pigeon is the original of
our Jacobins, which I consider an hallucination. Its black
eye cere alone points to a separate origin, but I believe the
third or fourth cross from it and the Jacobin has resulted in
very fair specimens of the latter breed, which I can easily
imagine would be the case. I could fancy it to have origi-
nated from the Jacobin and the Mahomet, but this is mere
speculation. The breed as it stands may be many centuries
old.
The Coral-eyed Pigeon.
The Coral-eye is a variety of the domestic pigeon well
known in Bengal. I have seen these birds in the posses-
sion of different fanciers in Calcutta, among whom they
went by the above name ; and I believe their Hindo-
stanee designation has the same meaning. In size and shape
the Coral-eye resembles a strong English Owl Pigeon, but
its head and beak are more of the common type, the
latter not long and spindly, but of moderate length and
thickness. It is neither turn-crowned nor feather-legged, and
always, as far as I have seen, whole-coloured blue, with the
usual black wing bars. What constitutes this pigeon of pure
136 FANCY PIGEONS.
and distinct race is the colour of its irides, which are large
in size, and bolting, like the choice African Owl; in colour
they are of a vivid ruby red, of the hue known among jewel
merchants as "pigeon's blood." I have seen nothing nearly
approaching them in any other breed of pigeon, for they
are like big beads of living fire sparkling in the head of
the bird, and so noticeable that they tell at the distance of
several yards. This pigeon breeds true, but loses all value
if crossed with another variety. It is an instance of the
manifold variations that exist in that universal favourite,
the domestic pigeon. I described this pigeon in the Journal
of Horticulture some years ago, before which I am not aware
that it was ever mentioned in this country.
The Chinese Dewlap Pigeon.
Some specimens of this very distinct variety of the domestic
pigeon first made their appearance in Europe within the last
five years. Three pairs of them were brought from China by
M. Yallois, an officer in the French navy, for his brother in
Paris, an enthusiastic fancier. One pair of them was given
to M. Yictor la Perre de E/oo, who sent me some photo-
graphs of them, taken from life. In size and shape they are
similar to a large Homing Antwerp Pigeon. The head is of the
Owl type, round and down-faced, the beak thick and short. Their
greatest peculiarity is the enormous gullet, filling up the
hollow of the throat, from the jew wattle to far down the
neck, described as, and seeming to be, from the photographs,
over half an inch broad. In colour they are blue, but marked
in a very original way with a large white spot on the fore-
head, white upper mandible, a white oval spot on each side
of the neck, and with white flights, as shown in the illus-
tration. The best gullet yet seen on any of our Frill-breasted
Owl type of pigeons can only be called rudimentary when
compared with that of this wonderful bird.
The Dewlap Pigeons had brass bangles on their legs when
137
OTHER ASIAN PIGEONS.
they arrived in France, showing that they had been favourites
of someone. It is a general custom in Hindostan for fanciers
to ornament their pigeons in this way.
M. la Perre de Roo, in his Monograph on Domestic Pigeons,
published in Paris, in 1883, names this variety Le Pigeon
Voyageur de Beyrouth, being under the impression, when he
wrote his account of them, that they came from Syria; but
since then has informed me he had discovered they came from
Pekin, in the way I have mentioned. I think it likely that
other curious breeds of pigeons may still reach us from the
same source.
Chapter XVII.
THE RUNT PIGEON. x>
explained before, the name of Runt was
formerly applied generally to all common
pigeons in England, and is, no doubt, often
still so used; but pigeon fanciers now use
the name to designate the variety of gigantic
pigeons which Moore and subsequent authors wrote of as the
Spanish Bunt. I should suppose that the name was given on
account of the breed having so little to distinguish it, in
general conformation, from the common pigeon, that they were
looked upon, when first introduced into England, as the com-
mon pigeons of the place they came from, and that the name
is not, as supposed by Willughby, a corruption of the Italian
Tronfo, or of anything else. The Runt would appear to be
of an ancient race. Dixon says: "But the point respecting
Runts which most deserves the notice of speculative naturalists
is their extreme antiquity. The notices of them in Pliny and
other nearly contemporary writers are but modern records,
for Dr. Buckland enumerates the bones of the pigeon among
the remains in the cave at Kirkdale, and figures a bone which,
he says, approaches closely to the Spanish Runt, which is
139 RUNT PIGEONS.
one of the largest of the pigeon tribe. Ever since the classic
period, these birds have been celebrated among the poultry
produce of the shores of the Mediterranean."
The Bunt would, therefore, appear to have been distributed
throughout Europe from Italy, and the name it bears in
France, from where we get the best, is Pigeon Romain, which
points to a like origin for the breed.
Blue and Silver Runts.
The general colours of the Bunt are blue and silver; but
there are many others, some of which can claim a high
position as fancy pigeons. The Blue and Silver have, perhaps,
reached the greatest weights, and are probably the original
colours. In appearance Bunts are like huge common pigeons,
smooth-headed and smooth-legged, but having a rather heavy
eye and beak wattle as they get old. The irides are generally
orange in the Blues and lighter in the Silvers, and the eyes
lie deep in the head, which, when viewed from before, appears
narrow and pinched, considering the size of the bird. As
to size, a matured pair of birds (cock and hen) weighing less
than 41b. are considered small, and 51b. may be considered
the maximum, although I have not heard of any being quite
so heavy. From 41b. 12oz. to 41b. 15oz. has been often
reached by show birds.
Fancy Runts.
The illustration given is from the cock of a pair of Bed
Bunts I got from Messrs. Baily and Son, who imported them
from France. Although in general shape and carriage of body
they resembled the Blue variety, they at once proclaimed
themselves of a different race. The irides are pure white,
and form a very striking feature in their appearance. The eye
wattle is heavy in front and pinched behind, and, with the
beak wattle, is of as bright a red as in the Barb. The under
mandible is much broader than the upper, even when shrunk,
140 FANCY PIGEONS.
as in matured birds ; while with young ones in the nest this
point is so developed that it gives them a very strange ap-
pearance. In colour they are of a rich, deep, burning red,
glossy with metallic lustre, and within very little of the best
red I have ever seen in any domestic pigeons. I have also
had Yellow Runts of the same race as these Reds, and as
good for their colour, but they were mottled in the way the
Short-faced Mottled Tumbler ought to be marked, that is,
rose pinioned on each wing, and handkerchief backed. The
marking was just about as accurate as it could be painted
in a picture. I am astonished, therefore, that, considering all
these fine properties of colour, marking, real pearl eyes, and
large size, anyone should write of the Runt as having only
the one point of size. In France, these Fancy Runts are to
be had in black, red, and yellow, both self-coloured and
mottled. Pure whites with pearl eyes are, I believe, the
rarest. They are all very bad fliers, and, although good
breeders, the young are somewhat delicate, and difficult to
rear. The fancy coloured ones do not reach the great size
of the Blues and Silvers, and from 41b. to 4Lb. a pair is a
good weight for them. Being powerful pigeons, Runts should
not be kept with small varieties. When to great strength a
spiteful disposition is joined, as it often is with them, they
become rather dangerous to other pigeons.
Boitard and Corbie mention several varieties of the Pigeons
Remains distinct in colour and marking, some of the most
beautiful being described as follows:
Pigeon Romain Mantele. All red except the wing coverts
and under body, which are white. Brent mentions these under
the name of Tigre Rouge. The white mantle probably appears
only after the first moult.
Pigeon Romain Marcanu. Always black or dun (minime),
the head having a mixture of white feathers, giving it a
grey appearance; irides pearl.
Pigeon Romain Gris Piquete. One of the largest of the
141 RUNT PIGEONS.
race; irides yellow; plumage grey, chequered with black over
the body, a piquetures plus rapprochees sur la gorge ; feet
lightly stockinged.
Pigeon Eomain Minime Cailloute. Its colour is dun or tan,
with the edge of the feathers of the mantle and throat of a
pale hue, drawing to a clear fire colour; smooth legs and feet;
pearl eyes. It is very productive.
Pigeon Romain Soupe-de-lait. The smallest of the race. It
has a thickish membrane on the nostrils, a cere round the
eyes, and yellow irides. Its feet are bare ; its plumage is the
colour of cafe-au-lait, with two bars of a deeper colour on the
wings. This very pretty pigeon has also the essential quality
of being tolerably productive.
Pigeon Romain Argente. Head fond white, mixed with a
clear slate colour; neck and throat bluish-black, reflecting
green and metallic; the mantle of a bluish-grey tinted with
white, each feather darker at the base, with a light white
border. Flights of a blackish grey, barred with clear grey ;
tail slate colour, with a black bar ; pearl eyes. This superb
bird is generally very productive.
The Montauban Pigeon.
The Montauban Pigeon is a variety of the Runt, but not so
heavy, though a large bird. It is chiefly black or white, but
sometimes blue, brown, and mottled. It has a large shell
crest, which should extend from ear to ear, and the legs are
sometimes feathered.
The Norwegian Pigeon.
Brent says that the largest pigeons he ever saw were some
white ones, with long feathers on the feet, that came from
Belgium, and were called Norwegians. He says : " As I cannot
give their exact size and weight, I forbear to state my ideas."
The Roman Pigeon.
Moore says : " There are other Sorts of Runts, as the Roman
142 FANCY PIGEONS.
Runt, which is so big and heavy it can hardly fly ; and the
Smyrna Runt, which is middle-siz'd and feather-footed."
These words are repeated by Mayor and Girton. I think it
probable that the title "Roman" was merely the retention of
the French name for some importations of Pigeons Romains.
There is nothing in the " Columbarium" to indicate that the
Roman Runt was of the Leghorn type.
Runts as Table Pigeons.
Eaton says of Runts : " I knew a pair sold for 25." They
were likely something out of the common. At present they
are not in great request, and it is a mistake to imagine that,
because they are large, they are worth keeping from an agri-
cultural point of view. Three pairs of common Tumblers, or
two pairs of large Homing Antwerps, would weigh about the
same as a pair of large Runts, and certainly not consume more
food. I think either the Tumblers or the Antwerps would
produce twice or thrice the weight of young ones in a year
that the Runts would do in this country. Although Eaton's
note regarding Runts is printed under Moore's account of the
Leghorn Runt, the information he gives regarding them refers
to the Spanish Runt (Pigeon Romain), not to the Cock-tailed,
or Leghorn Runt.
The Almond and Blue Grizzled Runt Pigeons.
I have seen some very fine Runts in India, in the possession
of the ex-King of Oude. He had almond-feathered and blue
grizzled ones of great size, the latter the Pigeon Romain
Argente, I fancy, and I understand they were procured for
him, from France, by Mr. Jamrach, who took many of them
to Calcutta about the year 1870.
The Black-backed Gull Pigeon.
I have never seen this variety, which has only been described
by Brent, so far as I can find. He says : " Of this variety I
143
RUNT PIGEONS.
have seen a few specimens in London, called also the great
China Gull; but as to their origin I know nothing. In appear-
ance they were much larger than the common kinds, approach-
ing in form that of the Spanish Runts, smooth-headed and
clean-footed. The scapular feathers, and the wings, with the
exception of the extreme or the marginal pinion feathers,
were black, the marginal flight feathers and the rest of the
plumage being white, thus bearing a marked resemblance to
the large Black-backed Gulls (Larus Marinus) so common on
our coasts. I believe there are also some stuffed specimens
of this variety in the British Museum."
Chapter XVIII.
X PIGEONS OF PECULIAR VOICE. X>
The Trumpeter Pigeon.
HE Trumpeter Pigeon has been known in this
country since Moore's time, and is common
on the Continent of Europe. In France it is
called the Pigeon Tambour Glou-glou, and in
Germany, the Trommeltaube, or Drummer. Its
various names are, therefore, all derived from its voice, which,
not being reckoned of any consequence in the show-pen, may
be left unnoticed till I describe the form and feather of this
wonderful pigeon. Until soon after the year 1865, when some
very high-class Trumpeters were imported into this country,
the breed appears to have remained almost stationary since
Moore described it. The earliest picture of a Trumpeter I
know of is that in the Treatise of 1765, which represents a
very poor Black Mottle, with black flights and tail, and white
body, over which is sprinkled about thirty-five black feathers.
It has black thighs and leg-feathering, but is bare toed. The
author of that book, who copied his description of the breed
from Moore, says " they are generally pearl-eyed, black mottled,
very feather-footed and legged, turn crowned like the Nun, and
THE TRUMPETER.
145 PIGEONS OF PECULIAR VOICE.
sometimes like a Finnikin, but much larger, which are reckoned
the better sort, as being more melodious."
The Bokhara Trumpeter Pigeon.
It would be of no advantage to minutely describe the
Trumpeter as we had it before 1865, because the Central
Asian breed, which was imported shortly after that date, put
it entirely into the shade. The best we used to have were
Blacks, Black Mottles, and Whites, though Duns, Reds, and
Yellows were occasionally to be met with; and I once bred a
very good Blue Mottle. The new breed, coming here via
Russia, received the name of Russian Trumpeter, which is
what the Germans call such birds as we formerly had, because
they are said to be found in their greatest beauty in the
neighbourhood of Moscow. It is not, however, a native of
Russia, but of Bokhara, in Central Asia, and its appearance
in Europe was, no doubt, the effect of the Russian conquests
in the East during late years. At the same time, choice
Trumpeters may have existed for a long while in the interior
of Russia ; but if they have, I doubt not they originally
came from Asia. Finding these choice birds described by
Neumeister and Priitz as Bucharische Trommeltauben, I in-
quired of several German gentlemen the meaning of the
name whether it signified Bucharest or Bokhara but no one
could decide. Afterwards, however, in the course of a corre-
spondence with Mr. Charles Jamrach, of London, regard-
ing some of these pigeons brought here by a Russian, he
informed me that the man actually brought them all the
way from Bokhara, with other live stock. So I think it
is conclusive that they are a Central Asian breed, which
has only lately reached us in its purity, all previous im-
portations of Trumpeters having either been inferior, or
allowed by Europeans to decline in quality; while, on the
other hand, it is possible that, when European fanciers
did nothing to raise the character of what they had, the
o
146 FANCY PIGEONS.
Bokharians may have improved theirs from stock similar to
what we had before.
The Trumpeter is certainly a very high-class, original
pigeon, but, for some reason, not a general favourite, though
no one will deny that it has many beautiful properties. The
reason that it is not more generally fancied and bred, is, doubt-
less, the fact that it has nothing in its conformation very
abnormal like the Pouter, Carrier, or Turbit, all of which
birds present great difficulty in breeding towards an ideal
standard while its peculiarities are almost entirely those of
feathering, of such a fixed type, that it presents little scope
for competition. Were as many fanciers to employ their time
in breeding Trumpeters as Pouters, there would be twenty
of the former for one of the latter approaching perfection.
Fanciers know this, and therefore the Trumpeter is left in a few
hands, regarded more as a curiosity than as a fancier's pigeon.
Supposing, with all its fine properties, the Short-faced Mottled
Tumbler's standard of feather were to be fixed for the Trum-
peter, it would then present difficulties which any fancier
might be proud in overcoming; but this standard is not only
full of difficulties, but is a standard open, above all others, to
fraud. The Germans have for a long time bred Trumpeters
to Turbit and other markings, though in doing so they have
lost quality in the more important parts of the breed. Brent
and others have written of the difficulty there is in preserving
the voice and rose of the Trumpeter when it is crossed;
but though it doubtless takes a long time to recover either,
it can be done, as in the case of the Altenburg Trumpeter,
which I shall afterwards describe, and which is not inferior in
voice to the pure breed itself. Could all the peculiarities of
the breed be well-retained, in addition to well-defined specific
markings such as white, with coloured shoulders the Trum-
peter would rank higher in the fancy than at present, when
many care not how badly their birds may be mottled, or even
splashed, so long as they are good in rose and other points.
147 PIGEONS OF PECULIAR VOICE.
The fancy points of the Trumpeter are rose, crest, eye, leg
and foot feather, colour and marking, quality of feather,
size, shape, and voice.
THE ROSE is the first property of the Trumpeter, and is
what makes it distinct from all other pigeons. The Priest,
and other varieties which possess it, do so only in a modified
degree, and are supposed to have derived it from this pigeon.
The rose is formed by the feathers on the crown of the head
growing out from a centre in regular form. In a good bird
it will be large enough to form a complete covering to the
head, hiding the eyes, reaching nearly to the shell crest, and
covering the beak wattle, but not the point of the beak. All
the feathers forming the rose should lie well down, without
any irregularity, and the more circular and even the rose
is at its edges the better.
THE CREST is an extensive shell hood, reaching round the
back of the head, almost from eye to eye, and finishing off
at its extremities with an ornamental turn, of the same forma-
tion as the rose. The crest ought to be of a cupped form,
reaching over the head ; but though wanted as firm and com-
pact as possible, it is always more or less loose in texture,
from the nature of the bird's feather. The feathers forming
the crest, and those supporting it, can be moved by the
bird at will, and the crest is, therefore, seen more loose at
some times than at others.
THE EYE. Though described by the old writers as pearl-
eyed, the Trumpeter was generally red or orange-coloured in
the irides immediately before the introduction of the Bokhara
breed. The latter have generally pearl eyes, regarding which
a German author says : " The fine pearl eyes betray the noble
race which exacts admiration from every fancier."
LEG AND FOOT FEATHER. The legs and feet should be
heavily hocked and feathered. In this property the former
birds excelled the first importations of the Asian race; but
the latter, from the silkiness of their feather, were more liable
o 2
148 FANCY PIGEONS.
to have their long toe feathers broken, which partly accounted
for the want of them. Their toe feathers want the strength
of those of the old tight-plumaged birds, and seldom reach
their natural length without damage. I have noticed, that
birds bred from good imported ones, when inclined to close-
ness of plumage, which is faulty, grow stronger toe feathers.
It is almost impossible to preserve these feathers unbroken
for any length of time after the moult. An examination
of the feet will always show what strength of feather the
bird is there naturally furnished with, though the feathers
may be broken off short.
COLOUR AND MARKING. The Bokhara Trumpeters are
chiefly Blacks, and Blacks mottled or splashed in some way
with white, though both Duns and Dun Mottles have been
imported. The beak is almost always white, and is a pleasing
feature in the breed, as it looks well just appearing from
under the rose. The bird I sketched my illustration from
was a very fine Dun Mottle, with a strong red cast through
its dun feathers. It was not marked as I have drawn it,
but was almost half white, with dark flights and tail. As
a standard to breed from, I think the marking shown in the
coloured illustration, which is the same as is wanted in the
Short-faced Mottled Tumbler, is preferable to any gayer mark-
ing; but so long as the white is disposed in single feathers, a
bird mottled on the head and neck, as well as on the wing
coverts and back, looks very well if the tail, flights, under
parts, and leg and foot feather, remain black. Many
Trumpeters are nearly white, and of late some have been
bred entirely free of coloured feathers.
Some are all black except the head and upper neck, which
sometimes remain nearly white ; and if the rose alone could
be got white, or even lightly grizzled, the rest of the bird
remaining black, it would look very well, and such mark-
ing might in time become fixed if bred for. I understand
from Mr. T. B. C. Williams, who was lately travelling on
149 PIGEONS OF PECULIAR VOICE.
the Continent, that Blood Bed Trumpeters of high quality
are in existence. He informed me that he saw a pair of
them in Paris. Some idea of their rarity and value may
be learned from the fact that the price asked for them was
3,000 francs; and he learned afterwards that they had been
sold at this price. He described them as fine in colour, and
well-lustred. I have no doubt that there must be Yellows as
well. I have never bred any of the new Trumpeters, but
my experience with the former kind, both here and in India,
with English ones, showed me, that they alter very much
in feather during their first moult, after which I always
found them to moult without further change. A bird which
moulted into a fair mottle, always came out of the nest
entirely black, or with only a few grizzled feathers on the
wing coverts. If there was much white on a nestling, it
generally got very gay, and some would become half white
when almost black in the nest. I never saw a bird get
darker during its first moult.
QUALITY OF FEATHER. The choice Trumpeter should be
long and loose in feather, the flights should reach beyond the
tail, and all the feathers should be soft and silky in texture.
SIZE. The size of the Trumpeter should be above the
average of fancy pigeons; the larger it is the better, for, if
rose, &c., are in proportion, large size adds to its appearance.
SHAPE. The appearance of a good bird is that of a very
low standing, broad-set, short-necked pigeon, almost close to
the ground, unable to see about it, except in a downward
direction; it gropes about from place to place, and is fond
of retiring into corners, where it drums to its mate.
VOICE. One of the chief pleasures in keeping Trumpeters
is to hear their pleasant notes. They are, with their sub-
varieties, and the Laughers, the musicians of the Colum-
barium. I would think little of a bird, however good in
fancy points, if quite deficient in voice; and, although it
cannot be taken into account in judging at a show, it should
150 FANCY PIGEONS.
be carefully cultivated in tlie loft. Many of the old breed
were capital drummers, and kept up a constant concert in
their lofts ; but some of the new ones are very deficient in
vocal powers, which is, perhaps, the reason they left their
native place. The Trumpeter's voice does not seem to have
been cultivated so well in this country as in Germany.
From Neumeister and Priitz I gather what constitutes a good
drummer there "Excited by anger or love, its voice falls
directly, or from the usual cooing which, however, must
rarely be heard in a good drum pigeon suddenly into that
rolling, quivering, deep hollow drumming; at the same time
mostly sitting still moving the beak, puffing up its crop a
little the less the better moving to and fro the front part
of its body, and trembling with its wings. For correct
drumming, there are required a good beginning, a distinctly
marked delivery, alternate rising and falling of the sound,
shaking, and sustaining. The more frequently, and especially
the more sustainedly, without stopping, it drums in good
style, the more valuable is the pigeon. There are cocks
which, with quite short interruptions, drum away for ten
minutes, and make themselves heard the whole day, especially
in spring, or if they get a good supply of hemp seed. Even
when eating they drum away, and by a number of good ones
a dunning noise is produced. The principal sounds come
rolling out of the mouth like the beating of a drum, the
lower mandible at the same time moving up and down. The
sounds become by turns stronger and weaker, and die off till
they can scarcely be heard. The more subdued sounds form
a monotone rolling, which is produced in the interior with-
out movement of the beak, and thus appearing to come
from another bird altogether. There is no difference in the
sounds whether the crop be full or empty. The hen also
drums, less frequently, however, and with less force and
perseverance."
It is usual, during the breeding season, to clip the Trum-
151 PIGEONS OF PECULIAR VOICE.
peter's rose, not only that it may see better, but because
it gets clogged -with food when feeding its young ones.
Sub-Varieties of Trumpeter Pigeon.
In Germany there is a sub-variety of the Trumpeter,
marked like the Shield Pigeon, or exactly as a Turbit ought
to be marked all white, with coloured shoulders. Neumeister
figures them on plate 10 of his book, under the name of
Bastard Trommeltauben. They are represented, on the same
plate, with well-feathered feet, but with smaller rose and
crest than the pure Trumpeters. The Black and Blue have
white wing bars, the Red and Yellow are solid shouldered.
In Tegetmeier's book there is a picture of a pair of these
pigeons with red shoulders and white wing bars, called Letz
Pigeons, under which name the author says they had been
exhibited at English shows. There was probably some mis-
take in the naming of them perhaps the Latz was meant
at least, I cannot find the name in any German book. Brent
says, in the Poultry Chronicle, that "lats-chige" rough
slippered is a German provincial name for the Trumpeter.
Neumeister also figures another sub-variety, the reverse in
marking of the preceding, viz., all red and yellow with white
shoulders. These probably come out of the nest self-coloured,
and moult white- sided, like Tumblers and Runts. Boitard and
Corbie describe some varieties of the Trumpeter which M.
Corbie brought from Germany, the breed having become
scarce in France at the time they wrote. These are the above
Red and Yellow White-sides, Whole Blacks with White Wing
Bars, Grey-headed Blacks, Blues with white heads, flights,
and tails, and similar Blues, with the addition of yellowish
wing bars. Some of these were probably Priest Pigeons.
The Altenburg Trumpeter Pigeon.
This variety of the Trumpeter, deriving its name from the
district of Altenburg, is distinguished by its melodious vocal
152 FANCY PIGEONS.
powers. There are two, apparently distinct, varieties of these
birds, the Buff and the Lavender Altenburgers.
In colour, the Buff Altenburger is what is known in this
country as yellow-mealy, being buff-coloured on the wing
coverts, with yellow neck and wing bars. The legs and feet
are covered with feathers of a medium length; the beak is
rather long and slender; the iris yellow, or pearl-coloured;
the head is smooth at the nape, but has a frontal tuft on
the brow, which ought to be twisted up in the form of a
peak ; and this, when well formed, gives the bird an original
appearance. The voice of the Buff Altenburger resembles
that of the Common Trumpeter.
The Lavender Altenburger breed, which I kept for some
time, appears to me to be quite distinct from the Buff.
It is rather smaller, and more slenderly made, being about
the size of a common flying Tumbler, which bird it re-
sembles in form, except that its beak is somewhat longer.
The eye is pearl-coloured ; the legs and feet are sometimes
smooth, and sometimes slightly feathered. A peculiarity with
most of those I have had, though not altogether unknown
in other pigeons, was an inclination to webbed feet, the
middle and inner front toes' of nearly all the young ones
I bred being joined together throughout their whole length;
but I am not aware if this is general in the variety. The
head is unhooded at the nape, and the nasal tuft, instead
of being single, and peaked, as in the Buff variety, assumes
a double form. On each side of the brow, between beak
and eye, there is a small tuft of feathers growing from
a centre. In some specimens the tufts are quite distinctly
separated from each other by the smooth upward-growing
feathers of the forehead. The colour in this kind is a
light lavender tinted blue, somewhat uniform throughout,
except on the breast, when it merges into a bright yellow;
and the wing bars are nearly white. There is also a Silver
variety, which bears exactly the same relation to the
153 PIGEONS OF PECULIAR VOICE.
Lavender that a silver pigeon does to a blue one. The
voice of this pigeon, in both sexes, is melodious, is quite
peculiar to the breed, and differs from that of the Trumpeter
and Laugher. It commences by a very highly pitched, pro-
longed COO-TOO ; then, with the head down, and with shaking
wings, the bird breaks off into a long- sustained roo-roo-roo-
roo-wach-wach-wach-roo-oo, which is broken now and again by
sighs, as if it were short of breath. The hen's voice is much
lower in tone than the cock's, and is especially sweet as
she goes to her nest, when she purrs like a cat for about
half a minute.
The Laugher Pigeon.
The Laugher is a breed of pigeon that has been known in
this country, off and on, since Moore's time. It seems to
have died out and been re-imported several times. Brent
mentions two stocks of these birds he knew of. The first
closely resembled blue chequered dovehouse pigeons, but
were rather smaller, and had very slightly feathered legs, the
only difference he could notice being a slight fulness at
the back of the neck, behind the head, and the edge of the
eyelids being inclined to red. The cock of a pair he had
was dark chequered, the hen the same, but pied with white.
The other stock, which, he was told, was imported from
India, and which were taken thence by Mohammedans who had
been on a pilgrimage to Mecca, were of the same dovehouse
form, but with narrow, peaked crowns, and in colour of a
light haggle, or something between a grizzle and a gay
mottle.
Moore says of the Laugher: "It is red mottled; and some
tell me they have seen blues. They are said to come from
the holy Land, near Jerusalem." It seems, therefore, that the
breed is of different colours, sometimes peaked, and some-
times slightly feathered on the legs. Their peculiar voice is
what makes them a distinct breed, and Moore describes it
154 FANCY PIGEONS.
thus : " When the Cock plays to his Hen, he has a hoarse
Coo, not unlike the Guggling of a Bottle of Water, when
pour'd out, and then makes a Noise, which very much
imitates a soft Laughter, and from thence this Bird has
its Name."
These pigeons are known in France as Pigeons Chanteurs
du Soudan, Les Rieurs du Soudan, or as Chanteurs de la
Mecque; and in Germany, as Mekkatauben. The holy city of
Mecca appears to be the head - quarters of the breed,
whence pilgrims take them to Mahomedan countries. They
have probably been taken to Hindostan for centuries, as
Akbar's Kokah Pigeon, whose voice resembles the call to
prayer, would seem to have been of this breed. In size and
shape they resemble common flying Tumblers. The beak is
slender, and rather longer than that of the common clean-
legged Tumbler. They usually carry the wings low, especially
when laughing.
The first of this breed I possessed was a Blue hen, that
appears to have been brought to Dundee in a vessel from
Calcutta. I was told that, in a certain shop, there was a
pigeon with a very strange voice, but differing from that
of the Trumpeter. On going to see it, I learned it was
sold, but recognised it from the description as a Laugher.
I found where it had gone to, and I bought it. This
bird was barren, but she had a perfect voice. I next
got two Blues from M. la Perre de Roo. They came
from Marseilles, and were both hens, so I was unable to
get any young ones. As the colour of all these birds was
peculiar, I will describe it. Their wing coverts were of a
smoky, leaden blue, their wing bars not very distinct, and
their neck feathers were glossed with a reddish purple tint.
Shortly afterwards I found, in a different shop in Dundee,
a cock bird of this breed, which also came from India. He
was blue chequered, with a few white feathers on the head
and rump. From him and one of the Blue hens I bred
155 PIGEONS OF PECULIAR VOICE.
several young ones, resembling their mother in colour, and all
very good in voice. I afterwards got a fine pair of pure
Whites, and some more Blues, from M. la Perre de Roo,
who tells me that they are not as yet very common in France.
One of the Whites was entirely clean-legged, the other had
short feathers on the shanks, but none on the toes. I had
a Blue well- feathered both on legs and feet; most of them,
however, were entirely clean-legged, but on the middle and
outer toes had feathers about half an inch in length, which
style seems confined to this breed, at least, I do not at present
remember any other variety so feathered on the feet, though
bare-legged. Some of the Blues had a yellow iris, and some
were hazel- eyed. The eye wattle, which is generally very
narrow, and the corners of the mouth were reddish, and the
beak light.
The voice of the Laugher varies considerably, so much
so, that I could tell each bird from its voice. They vary
in the tone and length of their notes. Their ordinary coo
is louder and more modulated than with pigeons generally.
It is after cooing that, with the head bent down, and with
the wings hanging and trembling, as with other " voice "
pigeons, they break away into a prolonged hua-hua-hua-hua ;
all who have heard the Laugher in my pigeonry for the first
time have been quite struck by its voice, inquiring with
astonishment, " What's that ; what kind of pigeon is that ? "
and wishing to hear it repeated. In fact, one never tires
of hearing it, especially when several birds, all differing
somewhat in tone, are laughing in concert. The hens are
nearly as musical as the cocks. A Black Pied Pouter
cock paired with one of my odd Blue Laugher hens. She
laid, and, her mate having been sold, sat on the eggs alone,
and hatched and brought up a young one. This half-bred
resembled an Austrian Pouter in shape, and was blue
chequered in colour, without any white. I kept it to see if
its voice would differ from that of an ordinary pigeon. When
156 FANCY PIGEONS.
moulted off, I found he (for it proved to be a cock bird)
possessed a very strong, sonorous coo, but had great difficulty
in breaking off into the laugh. Only twice did I hear him
laugh, and that in a crude style compared to the pure
birds; but I have little doubt that his young ones by a
pure hen would have had very good voices had I kept, and
bred from him. As this breed hails from Mecca, the holiest of
Mussulman cities, I would expect to hear that it is there
regarded as the descendant of Mahomet's pigeon.
THE LEGHORN R U N T.
Chapter XIX.
PIGEONS WITH SHORT, ERECT TAILS.
in Germany as Huhnertauben, or Fowl-
like Pigeons, and existing in numerous varie-
ties, these birds are not now valued in this
country, as they appear formerly to have
been. The peculiarities of this race are, to
stand high, on long, unfeathered legs, to be short in the back,
broad in the breast and body, to have a short, erectly-carried
tail, and a long, swan-shaped, tremulous neck.
The Leghorn Runt Pigeon.
Moore, in his "Columbarium" (1735), describes this variety
as follows : " The Leghorn Runt is a stately, large Pigeon,
Seven inches or better in Legs, close feather' d, and fast Flesht,
extremely broad chested, and very short in the back ; he carries
his Tail, when he walks, somewhat turned up, like a Duck,
but when he plays, he tucks it down; his neck is longer
than any other Pigeon, which he carries bending like a Goose
or a Swan. He is goose headed, and his Eye lies hollow in
his Head, with a thin Skin round it, much like the Dutch
Tumbler, but broader; his Beak is very short for so large
158 FANCY PIGEONS.
a Bird, with a small Wattle on it, and the upper chap a
little bending over the under.
"They are a very tender Bird, and great care ought to
be taken with their young ones. I was offered Seventeen
Shillings for a single Cock, and Sir Dolbey Thomas would
have given me a Guinea and a half for the same Bird.
There are very few true original ones of this breed in
England; and if matcht to a Spanish Bunt, they will breed
a very large Pigeon, closer in Flesh and Feather than the
Spanish Bunt, and will breed much faster ; I have kill'd of
their young ones which, when on the Spit, were full as large as
middling spring Fowls. I here note that these and all
other Bunts encrease in their bulk till they are three or
four Tears old.
"As to their Feather, they are various, but the best that
I have seen were either black or red mottled.
"There is a vast difference in these Birds, and I have seen
very bad ones, that have been brought from Leghorn, little
better than a common Bunt ; however, this is the genuine
true Description of the Leghorn Bunt, which is more valued
than any other sort of Bunts."
The author of the " Treatise on Pigeons " (1765) quotes the
foregoing, and adds : " Mr. Moore says they are a very tender
Bird; but I must beg leave to dissent from that opinion of
them, having kept them several winters in a little shed or
room, one side of which was entirely open, and exposed to
the easterly winds, with no other fence but a net which kept
them confined. I have known four guineas given for a pair
of these Birds. I have had a hen of the Leghorn breed
which weighed two pounds two ounces avoirdupois weight."
The illustration of this breed in the Treatise of 1765 repre-
sents a large, heavy-looking bird, with sunken eyes and half-
erect tail, but not nearly so pronounced in type as my illus-
tration, which is taken from the Black or Black Mottled
variety of the race, often shown of late in this country as
159 PIGEONS WITH ERECT TAILS.
the Burmese. It seems to me, after consideration, that
Moore's Leghorn Runt was either the breed known on the
Continent as the great Maltese Pigeon, or the species described
by Neumeister as the Monteneur, said to be formerly common
in Stralsund and Griefswald in Pomerania. As I shall after-
wards show, when treating of the Pomeranian Pouter, there
appears to have been some connection between the fanciers
of London and Pomerania during the early part of last
century, and my idea is, that Moore's Leghorn Runt, though
apparently of the type of the great Maltese Pigeon, was so
large that it must have been more like the Monteneur.
A very exhaustive treatise on the Huhnertauben has lately
appeared in G. Priitz's " Mustertaubenbuch," now publishing,
in parts, in Germany. Mr. O. Neef informs me it is from
the pen of the Baron Yon "Washington.
The Burmese Pigeon.
This variety, called in Germany der Epaulettenscheck,
Huhntaube, or, as we would say, Shoulder-mottled Hen, or
Fowl-shaped Pigeon, is certainly the most pronounced in
type of the race. It stands high on the legs, with a short,
erect tail, below which the flight feathers ought to meet at
the points, though sometimes they are carried above the tail ;
but this is not correct. The long, swan-shaped, tremulous
neck, suggests a remote connection with the Fantail Pigeon;
and, indeed, a fan- shaped tail on a good specimen of the
Burmese would transform it into a long-legged Fantail. The
tail feathers, however, in this bird, are as abnormally short
as they are unusually long in a good Fantail; so that, when
held in the hand, the feet ought to extend beyond them.
Whether or not the Burmese came to Europe from Bunnah
or India I am not aware, but I never saw anything like it
during my residence in the Bast. The idea has struck me
that either this pigeon, or the Mookee, might have been the
Narrow-tailed Shaker of Willughby. In size, Burmese Pigeons
160 FANCY PIGEONS.
come midway between common pigeons and large Runts,
being from 2Lb. to 31b. a pair.
The following varieties of the Hiihnertauben, or Fowl-shaped
Pigeons, are described by German writers :
The Maltese Pigeon.
Die Maltliesertaube (the Maltese) is of the size of a small
English Bantam fowl, with a smooth head, somewhat long
and tapering ; a truncate beak, strong nasal skin, deep set eyes ;
fleshy, red eyelids; a somewhat projecting crop, broad back;
round, arched breast ; small, short wings ; strong, smooth, red
legs and feet ; and a very short tail, standing up straight over
the pinions of the wings, and seeming as if cut off short with
scissors. The lower part of the body behind is, as with
the domestic fowl, thickly provided with down. The whole
form is globular, almost as broad as it is long, and very high-
legged. The Gallinaceous Pigeon has a turned-up rump,
like the Fantail Pigeon. It takes long steps, and its bearing,
gait, and the movements of its head, are like the common
fowl. It propagates well, and brings up young ones all the
year round, except during the moulting season. The plumage
is, with the pure original race, self-coloured white ; next to
it comes the whole-coloured blue. With other coloured ones,
as black and brown, its characteristics are weakened. These
birds are chiefly found in the neighbourhood of Linz.
Judging from Neumeister's illustration, these birds would
appear to weigh something like 31b. per pair. He figures a
variety called the Kleine Maltheser, or Little Maltese, which
appears little bigger than a common Tumbler.
The Florentine Pigeon.
Die Florentiner oder Piemontesertaube (the Florentine, or
Piedmont Pigeon) is a peculiarly marked variety. The head
and neck, the shoulders, and the tail are coloured. This
marking is also found in other pigeons, such as the Modena
161 PIGEONS WITH ERECT TAILS.
Flying Pigeon. The Florentine is described as being about
the size of an English Bantam hen, similar in characteristics
to the Maltese, and generally with blue markings. German
writers class the Modena Flying Pigeon as a variety of the
Hilhnertauben, and it may have been produced from the
Florentine; but although the Modenese Pigeon sometimes
carries the tail raised, it ought to be horizontal.
The Speckled Hen Pigeon.
Die Huhnerschecke Taube (the Speckled Hen Pigeon) re-
sembles the Maltese in its general points, but is seldom so
round in build. Its head is fine; its wax-coloured, some-
what strong beak is of the usual length; its neck and legs
are somewhat shorter than the Maltese, and it seldom carries
its tail so upright. It has often fourteen feathers in the
tail; the inner side of the leg is sometimes provided with
short feathers; the ground colour is white, with black, red,
yellow, and blue speckles of a very intense colour.
The Hungarian Pigeon.
Ungar'sche Taube (the Hungarian Pigeon) is described as
follows: By perseverance and chance, there has risen from
the Florentine the so much liked, beautifully marked,
and expensive Hungarian Pigeon. It is found mostly in
Austrian Hungary. The nearer it approaches the Maltese
in form, the better. The colouring of its plumage is beauti-
ful; the black deep and velvety, with metallic sheen; the
red and yellow fiery and sated; the blue clear. Its dis-
tinguishing mark is the so-called " band " mark, which is
peculiar to this pigeon. This white band, or stripe, begins
at the nostrils, about the breadth of a straw, widens as it
goes back, dividing the colouring of the head, and disappears
at the nape of the neck, which is white down to the
shoulders. The colour, therefore, runs over each eye, turns
down by the ears, and forms a deep, pear-shaped bib on
p
162 FANCY PIGEONS.
the breast. Viewed in profile, the front of the neck is
coloured, the back of it white. The whole of the wing
coverts and scapular feathers, the flights, the tail and its
coverts, are coloured.
The foregoing descriptions of the Huhnerschecke and
Ungar'sche Tauben are from Priitz's Die Arten der Hanstaube,
and the third edition of Neumeister's work, edited by Priitz ;
but the latter, in his new work on pigeons, presently pub-
lishing in Hamburg, describes the Huhnerschecke at great
length, and gives illustrations of its head and neck, from
which it appears to answer the above description of the
Hungarian Pigeon, a breed he no longer notices. There
seems to have been more than one name for the same breed,
but, until I see the various sub-varieties of the race, I shall
not be able to give a more intelligible account of them. It
is a pity that taste among fanciers in this country does not
tend more in the direction of the numerous beautiful varie-
ties existing abroad; we might then see, at the large shows,
more variation in form and feather than we have been accus-
tomed to, and the long lines of Homing Antwerps, which are
not really exhibition pigeons, would be replaced by something
worth looking at.
The Monteneur Pigeon.
The Monteneur Pigeon is the last of this race mentioned
by Neumeister, and I think it is the most likely of any to
be the Leghorn Runt of Moore, as it is said to excel both
the Romain and Montauban in size. Its description is as
follows : " A formerly pretty well known, but for long very
rare, pigeon, which, by its gigantic size, more resembles a
hen than a pigeon. Body and breast strong, provided with
a rather short tail. It proves somewhat clumsy in flight,
while it moves easily on the ground with its unfeathered,
rather high, legs. The long neck is, with the cocks, very
strong, and the crop, when cooing, a little more inflated
163 PIGEONS WITH ERECT TAILS.
than with common pigeons. In size, the Monteneur excels
both the Roman and Montauban Pigeons, has shorter wings
and tail than these, and reminds one more of a domestic
fowl than a pigeon. The colour is generally blue, dappled,
or red. In the North of Germany, these pigeons were for-
merly much bred in Griefswald, Stralsund, and Colberg, but
seem to have become quite extinct there."
The Strasser Pigeon.
This pigeon is classed by Priitz among the feather pigeons,
but said to be a cross product of the Florentine Hiihntaube,
which it resembles in marking. It is said to resemble the
Polish Lynx Pigeon in its extraordinary fecundity, and to be
one of the best for table purposes, or as a nurse for more
delicate breeds.
Other Fowl-Shaped Varieties.
Priitz mentions self-coloured reds, yellows, and White-
shielded Fowl Pigeons, the latter being marked the reverse
way of a Turbit-marked pigeon.
Chapter XX.
<X THE FANTAIL PIGEON. X
History and Literature.
RITERS on pigeons, both British and foreign,
agree that Hindostan was the birthplace of the
Fantail Pigeon. It is certainly there where it
is found in the greatest numbers. That such
a curious and beautiful domestic bird would be
early taken by traders, from where it originated, into distant
lands, there can be no doubt ; but it is impossible to fix any time
for its arrival in Europe. The Romans, in all probability, would
have it from India, if it existed there 2,000 years ago. I some-
times think there must be old manuscripts existing that would
be of great interest to pigeon fanciers, and, some day or other,
old lore on the subject of our domestic pigeons may come
to light when least expected. In Calcutta, the Fantail is the
commonest variety found for sale, and I think I am well
within the mark in saying that from 200 to 300 pairs of
them annually leave that city, in vessels bound to the different
ports connected with it by trade. Fantails have existed for
at least two centuries in England, as we find from Willughby,
who refers to them as "Broad tail'd Shakers called Shakers
165 THE FANTAIL.
because they do almost constantly shake or wag their heads
and necks up and down. Broad tailed, from the great number
of feathers they have in their tails; they say not fewer than
twenty- six. When they walk up and down, they do for the
most part hold their tails erect, like a hen or Turkey Cock.
These also vary much in Colour." It is also necessary, for
the better understanding of what I shall have to say, to
quote Moore's description, who also terms the bird the Broad-
tailed Shaker. "This Pigeon has a beautiful long thin Neck,
which bends like the Neck of a Swan, leaning towards the
Back ; it has a frequent tremulous Motion, or shaking in
the Neck, especially when salacious, which is the Reason
they are called Shakers. It has a full Breast, a very short
Back, and a Tail consisting of a great Number of Feathers,
seldom less than four-and-twenty, which it spreads in a very
elegant Manner, like the Tail of a Turkey Cock, and throws
it up so much that the Head and Tail frequently meet. They
are called by some Fan-Tails, and I once saw one that had
six-and- thirty Feathers in its Tail; but when they have so
many Feathers, it is apt to make them lop their Tails, and
not let it meet with their Head, which is a very great Fault.
They are most commonly all white, tho' I have seen both black,
blue, red, and yellow Pieds, but the white ones have generally
the best Carriage in their Tail and Head : There are two
Sorts of these Broad tail'd Shakers, the one having a Neck
much longer and more slender than the other ; but the longest
Neck is the most beautiful and the most esteem'd."
If the chief varieties of fancy pigeons, excepting the
English Pouter and Carrier, did exist in anything like
perfection in Moore's time, they must have declined in quality
during the following century; for it is during the lifetime
of the present generation that the Barb, Trumpeter, Fantail,
Jacobin, Owl, and Turbit have been improved, and in every
case by the introduction of foreign blood; so that our day
may be well termed the "renaissance" of the fancy. Moore
166 FANCY PIGEONS.
mentions two varieties of the Fantail, but tie long-necked,
tremulous, short-backed variety, seems to have died out in
England, along with good quality in the rest of the above-
mentioned kinds.
The Indian Fantail.
Indian Fantails, as found in Calcutta, are usually entirely
white, with large, well-spread tails, long backs, and without
much tremulous motion in the neck. It is rare to get them
both smooth-headed and free of leg feather, most of them
having peak-crested heads, or grouse-feathered legs, while some
have both. Indian fanciers are fond of putting small brass
bangles on the legs of Fantails. This is done before the birds
leave the nest, so that, when full grown, the ornaments cannot
fall off. The bangles are hollow, and open at the edges, and
have small metal balls put into them; their edges are then
brought close together, and, as the birds walk about, a tinkling
sound is produced. In India, the tail feathers of Fantails
are sometimes cut off short, and the ends of Peacocks' tail
feathers introduced into the hollow stumps. If well done, this
has a pretty effect. After the entirely white Fantails, whole
blues, and ash-coloured, or barless blues, are the commonest.
The latter are nearly even in colour all over. I knew a
fancier in Calcutta who had a breed of glossy green lustred
blacks, with peaked heads and feathered legs. I knew of
whole reds and yellows in India, but never saw any. They
belonged to a doctor in the Government service at Dinapore,
and at his death were advertised for sale, but before I could
secure them, as I intended doing, they were bought by a
native gentleman. I heard that fine coloured reds and
yellows could be got in the North-west provinces of India.
Dundee Fantails.
Moore mentions having seen black, blue, red, and yellow
pieds. Three old paintings in my possession, that appear
167 THE FANTAIL.
to be about 150 years old, represent Fantails. The best is
a completely Turbit- marked, or Saddle-backed yellow, while
the other two are almond-feathered. The latter have low-
cut white heads and bibs, and are partly white in the tail.
The author of the treatise mentions an almond Narrow-tailed
Shaker, which was purchased by a certain nobleman. My
two paintings of almonds represent more than Narrow-tailed
Shakers, but they do not come up to the yellow Saddle-back,
which is a very good Fantail. The red and yellow pieds
must have become extinct in England, but black and blue
pieds still exist, I believe. They also existed in Scotland
fifty years ago, and were found in Dundee and its neighbour-
hood. From forty to fifty years ago, there was imported into
Dundee from where is not certain, though a fancier
there, Mr. David M'Intosh, who remembers the bird well,
asserts that it came from India a well-marked black Saddle-
back Shaker hen, of high quality, which was the origi-
nator of the breed known as Dundee Saddle-backed Fantails.
This hen, crossed with the then existing breed of black and
blue pieds, produced a race of pied Broad -tailed Shakers of
the greatest excellence, which have, unfortunately, become very
scarce. A fancier named Mudie, who was lame, and went
by the name of "Cripple Mudie," had the strain about forty
years ago, and he bred many excellent specimens of red
and black-sided ones. He possessed the original hen, which,
when mated with a black splashed cock, produced one or
more red pieds, which were the progenitors of the Red-
marked ones, now nearly extinct. From recent inquiries I
have made, I believe this to be the true account of the
origin of these birds. The original black-saddled hen was
first secured by a Mr. Alexander Dow, who told me, in 1880,
that he sold her to the said Mudie. One of the first pigeons
I ever possessed was a red Saddle-backed Fantail. This
was thirty-five years ago, and about ten years afterwards I
had another red-sided cock of extraordinary style. The
168 FANCY PIGEONS.
latter could never breed while I had it, but when it became
three or four years of age it began to breed. It was then
in the possession of a fancier named Mure, or Muir, in
Glasgow, to whom I sold it, and I believe its descendants
are still to the fore in the "West of Scotland. The reason
the coloured-sided birds became so scarce about Dundee was,
that pure white ones became the fashion. To obtain these,
crossing with whites was resorted to, but splashed and
saddle-marked ones long continued, and still continue, to
come, even when breeding whites together, on account of the
coloured strain there is in them. As far as I ever saw, the
Dundee Saddle-backs were seldom marked quite so accurately
as a Turbit, but had generally more or less coloured feathers
in the head, neck, and breast, and sometimes in the tail.
The few good ones still in existence are marked more
or less in the same way, though they do not appear so at
shows. Careful breeding would, however, do much to rectify
this, if even only a few persevering fanciers were to turn
their thoughts to the breed. I know one or two who are
directing their attention to Saddle-backs, and hope they will
be successful.
There is no doubt in my mind that the bird or birds
which originated the Dundee breed of Fantails came from
India, because I had one of the same style in Calcutta. It
was a red Saddle-back cock, the exact counterpart of the
one I sold to the Glasgow fancier some twenty-five years ago.
I bought it in the Tiretta Bazaar, Calcutta, about 1870, and
it was the only one of the wonderful Shaking breed I ever
saw there. Not following up its history at the time, I never
learned where it came from; but, on my return to this
country, I wrote to a friend in India, who could procure me
similar birds if they were to be got, and he told me they
were very scarce, but that he knew of them. He died shortly
afterwards, however, and I have not been able to learn more
about them. The bird in question lived but a short time.
169 THE FANTAIL.
It was not clean cut, but had a mottled neck and breast,
like the old Dundee birds.
English Fantails.
Twenty-five years ago, when shows began to get common
in this country, white Fantails of a large size, with little
action, loose in feather, and with immense tails, which were
sometimes carried right over their backs, entirely concealing
the latter, were often exhibited. Scotch fanciers, whose ideas
of a Fantail were ail towards high style of carriage, could
not endure these non-shakers, which, though called English
Fantails, were, I believe, if the truth were told, nothing but
imported Calcutta birds, or their immediate descendants. The
battle for precedence between the two breeds for they are
distinct breeds then commenced, and it has ended in a com-
promise. English Fantail fanciers have crossed their large,
motionless birds with the small Scotch shaking breed, and
Scotch fanciers have bred for tail, so that both can now
meet on the show bench with more equality than formerly.
For my own part, I like the old breed of small, round,
compact, close-feathered, dancing birds, which I never tire of
admiring, as they are ever on the move. At the same time,
they are seldom seen with the tails necessary for show
birds, to breed which is the difficulty. They breed very true,
although they have often been crossed to make them en-
tirely white; and, except for the size, shape, and carriage of
tail, they can so easily be bred good, that they present little
scope for competition.
Fancy Points.
The properties of the Fantail are as follows:
SIZE. Other things being equal, I prefer the Fantail as
small as possible. I weighed a cock and hen, matured birds, of
the Dundee shaking breed, and they were 12oz. and lOoz. respec-
tively. The hen was extra small, the cock of an average size.
170 FANCY PIGEONS.
MAKE AND SHAPE. Although differing much in size, all the
Fantails I have ever seen, excepting one pair, were of the same
formation in head and beak, viz., the common type. Cocks are
rather coarser in head than hens. The head is long, narrow,
and flat, the beak long and slender. The beak wattle should
be small, and there should be very little eye wattle. Smooth
legs are necessary in the show Fantail, and nearly all fanciers
prefer smooth heads. When the head is crested, the crest is
generally a neat peak, and I never saw a shell-crested one.
I do not dislike a peak crest on a good Fantail, though it
necessarily takes from the rounded outline of the head and
neck. I once saw a pair of white Fantails with rather round
heads, and shorter and thicker beaks than usual, but they were
not good birds otherwise. I believe they were imported from
the Continent. Except for the flights, tail, and legs, the shape
of the Fantail should be as round, compact, and close-feathered
as possible. It should look like a pigeon pressed into the shape
of a ball. A peculiarity generally found in the best Shakers is
the split breast, an indentation running up the middle of it,
which is most apparent in birds of good carriage. The legs
should be moderately long. They are seldom too long, but
often too short.
CARRIAGE. The carriage of a first-class shaking Fantail is
something wonderful to behold. The head is thrown back till
it rests at the root of the tail, the crown of the head being far
below the level of the breast. The head sometimes goes
through the tail, which is a great fault. Some birds have an
up and down motion in their necks, the head leaving its
position against the tail, and returning to it by a succession of
strokes. I dislike this style, and prefer the head to remain
fixed in position, while the whole body of the bird is in a
constant state of agitation. A good one is unable to walk
forward while in action, but has to turn its tail in the direction
it wishes to go, when it backs with a dancing style of move-
ment. It will occasionally make three or four complete turns
171 THE FANTAIL.
round, as on a pivot. There seems to be some invisible
influence trying to drag it off the ground, to counteract which
requires all the power of gravitation. Resting only on the
tips of its front toes, the hind ones are quite off the ground.
The shoulders are carried close to the body, and the flights
are often to be seen dragging on the ground. When a
good one wants to fly, it turns its tail in the direction
of the place it wishes to reach, when, after several feints, it
makes a dash, turning rapidly in its flight. With all their
extraordinary carriage, these birds are not bad fliers. Unlike
other pigeons, they contract instead of spreading their tails
in flight.
TAIL. The tail feathers of the Fantail ought to be both
longer and broader than in other pigeons of similar size. These
feathers do not generally shed their fibres freely when growing,
and, unless some attention is paid to this, by carefully scraping
off the husk or skin as they grow, they will often reach their
entire length without opening out, and become rotten. A little
care will obviate this. Malformed tail feathers are common
in Fantails. These are usually two separate, incomplete
feathers, growing from one quill, often at right angles to
each other, spoiling the appearance of the tail. The tail
feathers ought to be frizzed at their ends and edges for
about half their length from their extremities; not, however,
like the feathers of the Lace Pigeon, but ten or twelve of the
fibres may adhere together, and be divided from another set.
Fantails with as many as forty-two tail feathers have been
noticed. I never counted more than thirty-six. The number
is not of so much consequence as the shape of the tail. It
ought to form as complete a circle as possible, the opening
at the bottom being something like a fourth part of the circle,
or even less. Through this opening the flights should project,
and not cross at their points. The perfect tail is quite flat,
and, when viewed in profile, perpendicular. It ought not to
incline forward, which is worse than being a little arched or
172 FANCY PIGEONS.
inclining backward. I have never seen the perfect tail on a
really first-class Shaker, though I have seen it on a bird of
no merit otherwise. The difficulty is to produce carriage
and tail combined, and the nearest to it is, of course, the
best. "While some persons even prefer an arched tail on a
Shaker, they have not indicated how much or how little
arch they want. Surely the perfectly flat, fan- shaped tail
is what is wanted, and what has been seen, though not with
all else perfect. My own illustration is not that of a
quite flat-tailed bird, and is, so far, not that of a perfect
specimen.
FEATHER. I have referred to whole-feathered Fantails, such
as white, black, blue, silver, red, and yellow, and to Turbit-
marked, or Saddle-backed ones. The latter ought to have the
wings, including the scapular feathers, coloured, the flight
feathers and all else white. They have been seen very cor-
rectly marked, though generally mottled on the head and neck,
and otherwise foul, and such have often red or yellow irides.
The eyes may be either hazel or gravel- coloured in a Saddle-
back, but not broken. Yellow eyes would be difficult to breed,
and would be so far an additional property. Whole-feathered
yellow Fantails come from Germany, I understand, but are
not of good quality. The Germans have, also, coloured birds
with white tails, and reversely marked ones, as well as Saddle-
backs, which are all described and illustrated by Neumeister.
At a show held in Copenhagen, early in 1885, Saddle-backed
Fantails, of various colours, were exhibited. I think much
of my old paintings of almonds and a yellow Saddle-back,
evidently portraits, as they show me that such birds formerly
existed.
Boitard and Corbie, in writing of the Fantail, say : " It is all
white, or white with the head and tail black; they are also
found with the shoulders (manteau) and tail affected with all
the colours common to pigeons." Saddle-backs are preferred
with only coloured wings ; but I have seen them with the tail
173 THE FANTAIL.
coloured as well. The German and French, names for the
Fantail are Pfautaube, and Pigeon Trembleur Paon, both signi-
fying Peacock Pigeon.
The Fantail Club.
The Fantail Club was established in the year 1885, chiefly
for the purpose of endeavouring to put down the dishonest
practice, so common of late, of manipulating Fantails, so that
very ordinary birds are manufactured into the semblance of
good ones. The adepts at this art have for years succeeded
in carrying off the principal prizes, and sold numerous good-
looking birds, which, after moulting in their purchasers' pos-
session, have turned out ordinary spoon-tailed specimens ; but
they have kept the secret of their art so well, that no one
can say what methods they employ. Pasteboard, or wire
frames, for fixing to the tail during its growth, at the annual
moult, is said to be one of the means employed; while extra
feathers, fixed into the quills of the natural ones, have actually
been discovered in the tails of prize birds. Loading the lower
tail feathers with lead, so as to form as complete a circle
as possible, is also in vogue. When such frauds are con-
stantly practised, honest men get disgusted, and go into
some other variety, declining to compete with those who
artificially improve their birds.
The Lace Fantail.
Lace Fantails, so called from their feathering being similar
to that of the Lace Pigeon already referred to, are known
in Germany as Seiden Pfautauben, and in France as Pigeons
Trembleur Paon de Soie, names signifying Silken Fantails. I
believe they are generally white, and were probably produced
from the Fantail and Lace Pigeon. The Lace-feathered Fan-
tails that have reached us from abroad could only be described
as narrow-tailed; but from them, and good specimens of
ordinary close-feathered Fantails, Scotch fanciers have pro-
174 FANCY PIGEONS.
duced the modern Laced birds, which, in some late instances?
have been bred so good as to be able to compete successfully
in classes of any variety of the breed. The Laced and common
kinds, when bred together, produce young of both types, and
the close-feathered ones so bred may be depended on, when
bred back to a Laced bird, to produce a large proportion of
the Lace-feathered variety. This peculiar feathering is, there-
fore, not only maintained without difficulty, but easily trans-
mitted to other pigeons. The only colour yet seen in Laced
Fantails is pure white, but I think blacks and blues might be
produced without much trouble.
After describing this pigeon, Boitard and Corbie have the
following: "Pigeon Trembleur de la Guyane. This superb
variety has the tail large, and displayed like the Peacock, and
has been brought from Guiana, from which it takes its name.
The ground of its plumage is of a dull white; the wings are
blue, shaded with a sort of bright eyes, and rays of black
bars. All the races of small pigeons crossed with the Lace
Fantail produced laced pigeons of all forms and colours; but,
especially if the latter is bred with a pigeon with black-barred
wings, their young will have fringed bars of various colours,
imitating tapering fringes, and producing a very agreeable
effect." This would appear to be a coloured-winged Lace
Fantail, with a fancifully derived name, just as they name
certain colours in other varieties "Siam." It seems unlikely
that any special variety should hail from Guiana.
THE JACOBIN PIGEON.
Chapter XXI.
THE JACOBIN PIGEON.
History and Literature.
TIRING the past few years, there has been con-
siderable controversy over this variety, which
is one of the choicest in the whole fancy.
Such controversy was nothing new, for, although
J it turned on a fresh question regarding what
constitutes the true breed, our first writer of note on pigeons
John Moore, himself clearly indicates that there were differ-
ences of opinion in his day about this pigeon. Subsequent
writers, mostly imitators of Moore, continued denouncing the
Jacobins of their time as not the true breed, and there has
been no rest for its breeders, as first one, and then another
writer, felt called on to declaim in no measured terms against
the generally accepted standard of the breed. I will give my
ideas on the questions forming the chief differences of opinion
later on, and commence with an account of what is known of
the Jacobin from books. It is mentioned by Aldrovandus, in his
" Ornithology," as the Columba Cypria Cucullata. Willughby,
who was indebted to Aldrovandus for a good deal of what
he wrote on pigeons, says : " Jacobines, called by the Low
176 FANCY PIGEONS.
Dutch, Cappers, because, on the hinder part of the head, or
nape of the neck, certain feathers reflected upward encompass
the head behind, almost after the fashion of a monk's hood
when he puts it back to uncover his head. These are called
Cyprus Pigeons by Aldrovand, and there are of them rough-
footed. Aldrovandus has set forth three or four, either species
or accidental varieties of this kind. Their bill is short, the
irides of their eyes of a pearl colour, and the head (as Mr.
Cope told us) in all white." It is to be noted, that there
were Bald-headed Jacobins before 1676, according to what
Mr. Cope, the Pouter fancier of Jewin-street, told Willughby.
Moore, of course, gives a good account of the Jacobin, which
was then, as now, called the Jack, for shortness. It was then,
" if true, the smallest of all Pigeons, and the smaller still
the better " ; and he adds : " there are but very few now to be
found in England compleat." I think it unlikely that Moore
ever saw such good Jacobins as are in existence at the present
time, after reading that "the Feathers of this Chain ought
to be long and close, so that, if you strain the Neck a little,
by taking hold of the Bill, the two sides will lap over each
other in some of the best." The very best, in his time, there-
fore, required the above treatment before their chains would
cross in front. Nowadays, many Jacobins exist whose chains
lap over naturally, not only without straining the neck by
"taking hold of the Bill," but without cutting out a piece of
the skin of the throat, as " Mayor " (1765) says was practised
for the same purpose. Moore describes a pigeon known as a
Ruff, "larger than the true original Jacobine, tho' in shape
and make much the same. It has a longer Beak, the Irides
of the Eyes in some are of a Pearl Colour, in others of a
Gravel Colour, the Feathers of its Hood and Chain are much
longer, tho' the Chain does not come down so low to the
Shoulders of the Wings, neither are they so close and com-
pact as the others, but are apt to blow about by every blast
of Wind, fall more backward off the Head, and lie in a rough
177 THE JACOBIN.
confus'd Manner, whence the Pigeon has its Name. The Strain
of Jacobines has been much vitiated by matching them to this
Pigeon, in Order to improve their Chain by the Length of the
Buff's Feathers, but instead of this, the Jack is bred larger,
longer-beakt, looser in its Hood and Chain, and in short worsted
in all its original Properties."
The account of the Jacobin in the Treatise of 1765 contains
very little in addition to that of Moore, whose ideas are
retained, though his language is altered. The ruff is also
described, and its use in Jacobin-breeding condemned. Yellow
Jacobins had the preference over the other colours. The por-
trait or illustration in that book representing the breed is,
however, very good, considering all things, and is the earliest
fancier's picture of a Jacobin I know of, Willughby's, of 1676,
and another in Albin's "History of Birds" (1734), not being
worth consideration. The following passage from the Treatise
(page 117) points to another picture of a Jacobin as existing,
but I have not yet met with it : " The following being in itself
so uncommon, and a fact, I cannot help taking notice of it : a
person the other day passing through Fleet-street, seeing a
print of this Bird " (the Jacobin) " at a shop window, stopped
to make his observations thereon, and having well viewed it,
he went in and purchased it, declaring to the seller, that he
never saw a stronger likeness in his life; and as for the wig,
it was exactly the same he always wore. For he imagined
it altogether a caricatura of one of his intimate acquaintance ;
and the person of whom he bought it, did not think it necessary
at that time to undeceive him."
The picture of a Jacobin in the Treatise represents a very
round-headed, short-beaked, rather down-faced, apparently high-
cut bird, with the broad eye wattle of a good Jacobin. It is
entirely dark-thighed and vented, and full-flighted as far as
seen. The chain feathers are long, but do not meet in front,
as they ought to do. The mane is clearly brought out, but
is not so even at its ridge as many modern birds have it.
B
178 FANCY PIGEONS.
We know that the Short-faced Tumbler had not reached a high
degree of quality when the author wrote, and, as he says, " the
true Jack is a very small Bird, very little bigger than a
tumbler ; " we know that, whatever its size was when Moore
wrote, it was by no means the smallest of pigeons thirty years
afterwards. The fact is, all the small varieties of pigeons
produce extra small stock occasionally, and although small
size is admired in many varieties, quality in the properties that
go to make them excellent ought not to be, and is not, sacrificed
for size.
One of a set of eight oil paintings of pigeons in my posses-
sion, evidently about 150 years old, is a self-coloured Jacobin,
with feathered legs and bare feet. It is a gravel-eyed, short
and open-chained, large bird, not worth consideration from a
fancier's point of view. Although I was able to rub off the
varnish from the other seven pictures, I could make nothing
of this one ; but from what I can make out, it represents a blue
with black bars.
There is not much difference in modern opinion regarding
what a Jacobin Pigeon ought to be, excepting on the property
called the mane. Some say the mane is wrong, and that a
breed existed having a clean division of the feathers all round
the back of the neck, which was the true breed. If this is
correct, I have never seen it, and, moreover, do not believe
it is natural for the feathers of the Jacobin to grow in
this way. I have formed this opinion from observation of
great numbers of the breed, both British and foreign not
poor, half-bred looking things, known in country places, and
by mere keepers of pigeons, as Ruffs, but what were fairly
good Jacobins. The feathers at the back of the neck in the
Jacobin, Trumpeter, and some other varieties, can be moved by
them at will, so that they assume different positions at different
times. The Jacobin in the Treatise is certainly a maned bird ;
and Brent wrote, in the Poultry Chronicle of 20th September,
1854, when describing the Jacobin : " At the lower part of the
179 THE JACOBIN.
chain the feathers turn out all round, and expose a centre
spot of white down." Exactly so; the rose is the centre of
chain, tippet, and mane. The following is what the German
ornithologist, Friderich, says in his " Natural History of Birds "
(second edition, 1863), where he treats of pigeons at great
length : " The feathery ruff runs along the sides of the neck,
down over the angles of the wings, reaches upwards over a
part of the crown, like a cowl, forming the mane (mahne)
towards the back part of the neck. This feathery ruff is parted
along the sides of the neck towards the front, the back, and
the top." Mr. P. H. Jones had Jacobins with manes before
1840, and Mr. Esquilant before 1850, according to their pub-
lished statements. From all the foregoing, nothing could be
more clear, than that the mane is not a modern property of
the Jacobin. I am inclined to believe, that the mere assertion
that it was modern has been the cause of most of the late
disturbance, some fanciers being so conservative that they
oppose, on principle, all new ideas.
Another hallucination regarding the Jacobin is, that its head
and beak, or its marking, were derived from the Bald-headed
Tumbler. It was a short-faced bird before the Short-faced
Tumbler was in existence. It would be something like a
hundred years after "Willughby described it before a Short-
faced Baldhead was produced. The Baldhead is first described
in 1765, among common Tumblers. Is it for its marking that
it is a relative of the Tumbler? Then why not choose the
German Monk, Priest, Bingbeater, or even the old Bald-headed
German Pouter, for its ancestor not to mention the Indian
Mookee, and plenty more P To say that it derived its marking
from the Tumbler, is about on a par with what a " judge " once
said to me at a show, when I asked him why he had entirely
passed some very good Baldheads in a class of Flying Tumblers.
" Give a prize to these things," said he ; " why, they're bred
from Jacobins." I could not reply to this, for I quite lost the
power of speech. In comparing the pictures of the Jacobin
K 2
180 FANCY PIGEONS.
and Almond Tumbler in the Treatise, the former is all we want
in head and beak, the latter a mere Long-faced common Tumbler.
Nothing could be more erroneous than to say, as Brent and
others have said, that a Short-faced Baldhead with a Jacobin's
hood and chain would be the perfect Jacobin. It might be a
pretty pigeon, but it would be the very opposite of a Jacobin in
many ways.
Jacobin Properties.
The properties of the Jacobin are size, shape, carriage, head,
beak, eye, legs and feet, quality of feather, hood, chain, tippet,
rose, mane, colour, and marking. It must not be inferred
that I consider them valuable in the order named. I shall
merely describe what I consider a perfect bird, and no bird
can be considered very good which is not fairly well up in all
points. The same remarks must be held to apply to my
descriptions of all other varieties.
SIZE. There is considerable difference in size among
Jacobins. When other things are equal, the smaller pigeon
is to be preferred. By equal, I mean equal in proportion
to size.
SHAPE. The neck ought to be long. This is a grand property,
the effect of which can easily be seen by comparing long-necked
and short-necked birds together. The body ought to be long,
and narrow in girth. A well-bred Jacobin, which weighs the
same, or even rather more, than a pigeon of another variety,
will easily force its way through the bars of a cage which will
effectually confine the latter. I have seen this illustrated
in the case of a very small African Owl and a Jacobin, the
latter being much the heavier pigeon of the two, which
gives a good idea of the difference in shape between the two
varieties.
CARRIAGE. A Jacobin of the best type, whose head is well-
smothered in hood and chain, is unable to see well about it.
Such birds have a groping way of going about, and endeavour,
181 THE JACOBIN.
by stretching their necks, to see over those chain feathers
which obscure their vision. Some of the longest-chained birds
are, consequently, all the better for being clipped about the
eyes during the breeding season, like the best Trumpeters. The
real carriage of the Jacobin is seen when the cock is driving
the hen to nest. The head is carried well up, and the chain
will then lap over in front, if it ever will.
HEAD. The head should be broad across the crown, and well
rounded off over the eyes. There should be a little tuft of
feathers projecting over each eye, like two small horns; but
this is only seen in broad-skulled, short-faced birds, and not
always in them. These tufts are quite a peculiarity of the breed.
The forehead must be broad and prominent, well rounded in
profile, from the crown to the beak wattle, and not showing a
stop, as in the Short-faced Tumbler. A narrow skull, and run-
out, or mousey head, is a great fault.
BEAK. This should be short, and rather thick at its base,
but coming to a fine point, with a downward inclination. The
true beak is differently formed from that of the Owl tribe,
not being so blunt and thick at the tip; the beak wattle
should be fine and smooth. Any gullet is faulty, though it
is sometimes found in good birds.
EYE. The irides should be of a pearly white colour, but
often have a reddish tinge round their outer circles. Clouded
or dusky pearl, yellow, red, broken, and entirely dark, or bull
eyes, are all found in Jacobins, and are all to be avoided.
Bad as a bull eye looks, it can often be bred out easier than
a yellow one, if it has not existed to any great extent in the
strain. The eye wattle ought to be broad, and of a bright
red colour. I have seen the wattle almost, if not quite, a
quarter of an inch in breadth. In richness of colour it
follows the quality of colour in the feather. Bad blacks, reds,
or yellows, do not have a deep red eye wattle, though a straw-
berry bred from a rich black and red may ; and such a wattle
on a strawberry would indicate that it was of a good coloured
182 FANCY PIGEONS.
strain. I look on the broad bright red eye wattle as a great
attraction in an otherwise good bird.
LEGS AND FEET. Although the Jacobin may be got with
feathered legs, such a variety having existed for centuries,
being mentioned by Aldrovandus, Willughby, and Moore, our
standard permits only smooth legs and feet, which should be
small, neat, and bright red in colour.
QUALITY OP FEATHER. The feathers should be soft and
silky, of great length, making the bird appear larger and
heavier than it would prove to be on being handled. The
flights should extend considerably beyond the tail, as much
as an inch when the bird is in the hand, though usually not
to such an extent when it is at liberty; but the longer they
are the better.
HOOD. The hood is the property of utmost consequence in
the Jacobin. It is formed by the feathers round the back of
the head and upper neck all growing forward. The feathers
of the head do not, in a good bird, turn up where they meet
the forward growing hood, and so fall into the sweep of it,
as they would prevent it lying close; but the hood forces
itself through these feathers in a succession of regular steps,
and every feather forming the hood should grow towards the
beak. Sometimes the feathers on one side will grow towards
the other, and so form a twisted hood, more or less faulty. The
head feathers will often prove too strong for the hood, and cause
it to stick up, which spoils the bird ; and there are altogether so
many difficulties in getting a perfectly formed hood, that to
obtain one naturally perfect, and which requires no faking
whatever, is half the battle in producing a good pigeon of this
variety. Supposing the formation of the hood to be right, its
position is next to be considered. Some commence low down
on the nape, and cannot, in consequence, come far enough
forward. Such a hood, often plastered down at the back of
the h^ad, is not what is wanted; it ought to grow well for-
ward at the back of the head, and it will then, in a long-
183 THE JACOBIN.
feathered bird, get as far as the middle of the head, over the
eyes. It should lie close, but not as if pasted to the head, a
slight space between it and the crown being well liked. It
ought also to be regular in its outline, and not split or
divided in its centre, as many are, but compact, well filled
up, and look like a feathered cap reaching over the head to
protect it.
CHAIN. The chain, or frill, is the continuation of the for-
ward-growing hood feathers down each side of the neck. The
first difficulty with a good chain is the cheek feathers, or
whiskers, growing out against it, and causing irregularity in
its shape, to obviate which they are often weeded out. The
chain should come down on each side of the neck as far as
possible, and, without " taking hold of the Bill," should at
least meet in front, hiding the beak ; so that, in a first-rate
bird, the crown of its head is alone visible, both beak and
eyes being hidden in feathers. An exposed throat is faulty
according to its extent. In birds whose chains lap over, this
is not caused by one side lying right over the other, but by the
two sides meeting, and forcing their way through each other,
which, of course, causes a certain irregularity that cannot be
avoided. Otherwise, the whole outline of hood and chain
ought to be as even as possible. The feathers forming the
hood and chain should present a smooth surface, each one
lying in order; this is the difficulty with very long-feathered
birds, the shorter-feathered ones, with half an inch or more of
exposed throat, being much easier to produce good in this
respect.
It will now be seen how a long neck adds to the appearance
of the Jacobin, and how it gives room for a display of chain.
Let a short-necked one be ever so good in hood and chain,
it looks mean beside an equally well-furnished long-necked one.
The ends of the chain must turn beautifully round at the
bottom.
TIPPET. This is formed by the feathers growing backwards
184 FANCY PIGEONS.
over the shoulders and back. It ought to be full, and convex
in shape all round ; and the longer and fuller in feather a
bird is, the better it will be in this property.
ROSE. Opposed to the theory that the perfect Jacobin
should have a clean division of the feathers at the back of
its neck, part growing forward, to form the hood and chain,
and part backward, to form the tippet, is the fact, that on
each side of the neck the feathers grow out all round from
a centre, as on the head of the Trumpeter. The formation of
the rose may be well seen in a young bird as it gradually
feathers in the nest. When about three weeks old, the young
one which will become good when matured has a perfectly
formed rose on each side of its neck, the feathers at the top
of which become the mane. At maturity, the rose should
appear as an oval- shaped spot of white down, hollow in the
centre; in those colours which have a white under down to
the feather, as red and yellow. In blacks, the downy part
of the feather is not white, but of a medium tint ; but,
although the black cannot, therefore, have such a contrast
in colour between the chain and rose, the formation of the
latter should be correct. The formation of hood, chain,
tippet, and mane, may be all very good, and yet the rose
may be faulty from an awkward feather or two standing up
in the centre of it, the removal of which would cause all to
look well.
MANE. The feathers forming the mane have no connection
with those of the hood, but grow from low down on each
side of the neck, being those which take an upward direction
from the centre, known as the rose. They ought to fall in
with the sweep of the hood and tippet, filling up the cavity
which, but for them, would exist. A good mane is difficult
to get, as, instead of its ridge being sharp and even, one
of the sides forming it often presses down the other, causing
a twisted mane ; or each side may force itself through the
other at some part, and so spoil the hogged appearance it
185 THE JACOBIN.
ought to have. The feathers forming the mane are also
movable by the bird at will, so that, what may be a good
mane at one time, is at another only a mass of rough
feathers. The outline of the hood and mane should form
part of a circle, and the deeper in feather a Jacobin is from
ridge of mane to bottom of chain, and the broader from
front of chain to tippet, the better, for all of which a long
neck is of the greatest consequence. The great difficulty is
to get the whole formation even in its outline, and firm in
texture as well, for, the feathers being long, soft, and silky,
they are generally inclined to be loose.
COLOUR. The chief colours of the Jacobin are red, yellow,
and black, and, for the most part, they are of good quality.
Before the introduction of certain foreign pigeons, Jacobins
were, indeed, regarded as sometimes perfect in colour; but I
have never seen any with the same lustre and fatty quills
about the under body that I have referred to when writing
of the Swallow, and which the Smyrna Turbiteens have
in perfection. The red, yellow, and black are, however,
generally good, and sometimes very good in colour, though
not absolutely perfect when compared with Turbiteens. The
thigh and vent feathers ought to be as lustrous as the
wing coverts, though they often fall away in reds and
yellows to a half tint, and sometimes to a mere grey,
which is an indication of bad colour elsewhere. The nearer
the thigh and vent feathers approach the colour of the wing
coverts, the better will be the colour throughout. There are
Blue and Silver Jacobins, but, so far, they do not approach
the red, yellow, and black in quality. Mottles also exist,
and they are an old variety, being mentioned by Moore.
Mottles are chiefly reds, and, while retaining the white
head, flights, and tail, should be marked as much as pos-
sible with single coloured feathers over a white ground.
Pure whites are favourites, and present a difficulty in regard
to pearl eyes, being inclined, like other pure white pigeons,
186 FANCY PIGEONS.
to be hazel, or broken, in the irides. When whites have a
coloured feather or two in the hood or chain, the pearl eye
generally accompanies them; and as it is impossible to detect
the removal of a few feathers, what appear to be White
Jacobins at shows are not always so in reality. In off
colours, the chief are the strawberry, or sandy, of various
shades ; kites ; duns ; red and yellow chequers ; an occa-
sional red or yellow mealy, with distinct wing bars ; and
the very dark chequer, or bad black, which, while often of
a fair black on the wing coverts, is of blue grey on the
thighs and vent. These are all the result of crossing the
black, red, and yellow, or the produce of sound colours and
such as themselves. The first cross of black and red in
all varieties of pigeons, even in those of superlative colour,
often results in a strawberry, which is, accordingly, useful
in breeding back to these colours, especially to the black.
It altogether depends, however, on how the strawberry
itself may have been breed, whether or not it may be a
good match for some of the solid colours, its indiscriminate
use being calculated to spoil good colours. I have known a
pair of Red Jacobins produce red, yellow, black, and dun
young ones in one season. This was on account of the way
they were bred, the cock being from a red and black, and
the hen from a red and a yellow.
MARKING. The Jacobin, in common with many other
varieties of fancy pigeons none of which have any con-
nection with it, except that, as I believe, they all descended
originally from a common origin is marked in the way called
bald-headed. It has been so for at least two hundred years.
Many instances occur to me of bald-headed pigeons being
produced from a self-coloured bird when mated with a pure
white. The first pair of pigeons I ever possessed, which I
bought for sixpence, while they were still unhatched, and
which I saw in the nest day by day as they feathered, were
a pair of Baldheads a blue and a red and were bred from
187 THE JACOBIN.
a whole-coloured red cock and white hen. They were
common pigeons of mixed race, and certainly may have had
Baldhead Tumbler blood in them, but I think it unlikely.
The young ones had very low-cut, slobbered necks, and I
merely mention them to show that a coloured bird, mated to
a pure white, often breeds coloured young ones with white
points. I had lately a similar instance in my pigeon house.
A pure white, peak-headed, cock common pigeon, with an
appearance of Fantail blood, mated with a whole dun Tumbler
hen, used as feeders, reared a pair of their own young ones,
their eggs not having been changed. One was a blue Bald-
head, and the other a dun Baldhead such another pair as
those I began the fancy with, thirty-five years ago, when
aged seven. Again, when passing through Leadenhall Market
one summer, I saw a cage containing two or three dozens of
blue and blue-chequered dovehouse pigeons, among which
was one with clean white head and flights. I looked at it
particularly, and felt certain it was of the same race as the
rest. It was, most likely, the produce of a blue and a white,
or albino, such as may be found in almost any field dovecote.
In fact, a coloured body with white points may be found in
many domestic animals, such as horses, dogs, and rabbits,
and was doubtless originally produced from the cross of
self-colours with albinos. I merely mention all this, because
some people refer the marking of the Jacobin to the Bald-
headed Tumbler, while nothing is more certain than that it
could have been produced without any admixture of alien
blood.
The head of the Jacobin ought to be white above a line
running from the mouth across the eyes. Both mandibles are
white in rich-coloured reds and yellows ; but a high-cut black
has often the lower mandible coloured, or partly so. There
is a natural line between the eyes and mouth, which serves as
a guide for marking; at the same time, a few of the short
feathers below this line are generally white, or, if not, a few
188 FANCY PIGEONS.
of those above it are sometimes coloured, for it is difficult to
get the marking quite exact. When the white comes below
the eyes, or any way down the throat, the bird is low-cut
certainly no great eyesore in a first-class bird, which will never
show it unless its chain be opened out; but the high-cut
marking is what is desired. The flight feathers should be
white to the turn, and the tail, with its coverts, also white.
All else should be coloured, though, even in the darkest
thighed and vented birds, there is generally some white where
the thigh feathers finish off at the hocks. When this can
only be detected by handling it is no great fault. It was for
some time a very difficult matter to get full-flighted, high-cut,
dark-thighed birds, because so many were low-cut and white-
thighed; but during the last few years immense progress
has been made in the desired marking. I have seen Jacobins
imported from the Continent beautifully marked, though
not to be compared with our own in the more important
points of the breed; at the same time, I believe foreign
blood has been used here, during the past twenty years, in
bringing the Jacobin to its present high quality.
Formerly the Carrier, Pouter, and Short-faced Tumbler were
the only varieties regarded in this country as high-class pigeons.
The Jacobin, Turbit, &c., were Toys. Ideas have changed, and
the Jacobin is now regarded as a very high-class pigeon. Not
only is it full of properties difficult to breed, but it is one
of the most beautiful pigeons known, and a general favourite.
I dislike placing the different varieties of pigeons in any
order of merit, and will only say that, in my opinion, it
ranks among the first four, leaving other fanciers to please
themselves.
Foreign Jacobins.
The Jacobin is known in France as the Pigeon Nonnain, or
Pigeon Nonnain Capucin. A variety mentioned by Boitard
and Corbie as the Nonnain Maurin is described as follows :
189 THE JACOBIN.
" It is black, with the head, tail, and flight white. It is of
a size above the ordinary Nuns " (Nonnains, i.e., Jacobins),
'* approaching to that of Pouters. It has, like the latter, the
habit of inflating its throat a little. It has an elegant form,
and the ruff of feathers raised gracefully, but it is not very
productive." Dixon, in his "Dovecote and Aviary," quoting
from Temminck, mistakes this variety for a Nun, the name
having misled him. In France, Nuns are styled Pigeons
Coquilles shell-headed pigeons.
In Germany, the Jacobin is chiefly known as the Peruck-
entaube, or Wig Pigeon, of which there are several sub-
varieties. I have seen self-coloured blacks, all colours of
bald-headed with feathered legs, also most of the baldhead
colours with both feathered legs and rose on the forehead,
like a Priest Pigeon. There are also blues and blacks with
white wing bars.
Chapter XXII.
X SHORT-FACED FRILLED PIGEONS. X>
Historical.
XTENSIYELT spread throughout Europe,
Asia, and North Africa, the Short-faced Frill-
breasted varieties include many of the most
charming types of pigeon beauty. Some of
the countries bordering on the Mediterranean
Sea would seem to be the home of this race, as those we had
in this country, or from France and - Germany, before the
introduction of Tunis Owls and Turkish Frilled Pigeons, were
very much inferior in many respects. There is only a meagre
account of them in our early literature. Willughby says :
" Turbits, of the meaning and original of which name I must
confess myself to be ignorant. They have a very short thick
Bill, like that of a Bullfinch; the crown of their head is
flat and depressed; the feathers on the Breast reflected both
ways. They are about the bigness of the Jacobines, or a
little bigger. I take these to be the Candy or Indian doves
of Aldrovand, torn. 2, pp. 477-478, the Low Dutch Cortbeke."
A naturalist describing the Turbit at the present time might
give a similar description, the head being " flat and depressed "
>.
THE AFRICAN OWL.
191 FRILL-BREASTED PIGEONS.
in the great majority. From the following account of the
Turbit and Owl, by Moore (the description of the latter being
the first notice by name there is of it), it will be seen how
much he was indebted to Willughby, who wrote about sixty
years before him:
" The Turbit. The Reason, why this Pigeon is so nam'd by
the English, I cannot by any Means account for; the low
Dutch call it Cort-beke or Short-bill upon the Account of the
Shortness of its Beak. It is a small Pigeon very little bigger
than a Jacobine, its Beak is very short like a Partridge, and
the shorter the better; it has a round button Head, and the
Feathers on the Breast open and reflect both Ways, standing
out almost like a Fringe or the Frill of a modern Shirt ; this is
call'd the Purle, and the more of it the Bird has, the more
it is admir'd. As for the Feather, their Tail and Back of the
Wings ought to be of one entire Colour, as blue, black, red,
yellow, dun and sometimes chequer'd; the flight Feathers and
all the rest of the Body shou'd be white. They are a very
pretty light Pigeon, and if us'd to fly when young, some
of them make very good flyers. I have seen a Flight of
them kept by one Girton that wou'd mount almost high as
Tumblers. There are of this Sort all white, black, and blue,
which by a Mistake are often call'd and taken for Owls."
" The Owl. This Pigeon is in make and Shape like the
former, except that the upper Chap of its Beak is hookt over
like an Owl's from whence it has its Name. Its Plumage is
always entirely white, blue, or black."
Moore also mentions, when writing of the disease called the
vertigo : " I once had a Turbit, of the Owl Kind, taken with
it in a violent Manner."
There is no mention of the gullet or crest in this description ;
the head, however, is said to be round, and it was not the
shoulder marking alone that constituted a Turbit, as it might
be self-coloured. The difference between the Turbit and Owl
seemed to be only in the beak.
192 FANCY PIGEONS.
On reading the descriptions of the Turbit and Owl in the
Treatise of 1765, which are very much more extensive than
Moore's, it would appear that either some recent importations
of finer Owls had been made, or that breeders had effected great
improvements on the old stock. The illustrations accompanying
the descriptions differ very little in their outlines : both are
plain-headed ; exactly alike in beak, that of the Owl not being
hooked; the chief difference lying in the Turbit's head being
very round, while the Owl is rather flat-crowned. The author
says : " The owl is, according to Mr. Moore, a small Pigeon,
very little larger than a jacobine, which might be their
size in his time; but at present they are brought to such
perfection, that they are hardly, if anything, larger than a
very small tumbler. . . . Its plumage is always of one entire
colour, as white, a fine sky-blue, black, and yellow, &c., except
some that are chequered. The blue ones should have black
bars cross the wings; and the lighter they are in colour, par-
ticularly in the hackle, the more they are valued." He
mentions the gullet, "reaching down from the beak to the
frill," both in the Owl and Turbit ; and that the latter, when
red and yellow, had white, not coloured, tails. For about a
hundred years after the preceding was written, or till about
1860, there seems to have been no improvement made in
pigeons of the Owl tribe in England; I rather think they
must have lost quality from neglect. Mr. Jayne says the
African Owl was used as part of the composition of the Short-
faced Tumbler, but the record of how and when is lost. Mr.
Fulton says, in his book, that a Dundee fancier had African
Owls in 1838, and that they were brought to this country by
his brother. From what I was told by the said fancier years
ago, I could never believe the pigeons in question were African
Owls. In 1838 he would be about twenty years of age, and
his elder brother, who was not a seafaring man, having occa-
sion to make a voyage to the Baltic, brought home with him
some coloured-tailed White Owls, which were, doubtless, the
I! 1 5|
THE AFRICAN OWL.
193 FRILL-BREASTED PIGEONS.
Danish or North German pigeons known here as Meeves
(Movchen), which bear about the same relation to African Owls
that Skinnums do to Carriers.
The African Owl Pigeon.
It was about the year 1858 that the first pair of African
Owl Pigeons known to the present generation of British pigeon
fanciers was imported into this country. They were exhibited
at the Crystal Palace Show, by their importer, Mr. E. Y. Har-
court, and the description of them in The Field newspaper of
22nd January, 1858, is as follows : " Owls (all colours) well repre-
sented ; but the best pair of Owls in the Show was certainly
a pair of whites, in the class for other varieties, under the
name of ' Booz ' Pigeons from Tunis." Since then thousands
of these beautiful pigeons have been imported from the North
of Africa, chiefly, I believe, from Tunis. The late Mr. John
Baily, jun., who, with his father, did a large business in
exporting and importing fancy pigeons, informed me that these
beautiful birds were bred, he understood, about the mosques
in Tunis, and allowed to pair together as they liked. If this
is so, they must certainly be the only variety there, or the
breed could not be kept pure. As far as I know, no experienced
fancier has yet visited Tunis, so we have but little informa-
tion regarding these birds, and can only judge of them as
they appear. How they originated, or came to- be located in
Tunis, is a mystery. The great proportion of those brought to
this country are quite worthless in comparison with the select
few in each shipment ; so that Mr. Baily told me that latterly
it did not pay to import them, as, when the one or two good
ones had been picked out, the rest were unsaleable. From the
careless treatment they generally get on the voyage, as well
as from the fact that a great proportion of them arrive in
their nest feathers, canker, and other diseases of the head
and throat, are very prevalent among those that come to this
country, so that I have known only some ten or fifteen per
8
194 FANCY PIGEONS.
cent, of a lot survive the first month of their residence here.
They are very delicate pigeons, but, when acclimatised, are
fairly hardy, and good breeders. I have bred them in this
country, as well as in India, where they do very well.
In detailing the properties of the African, or Tunisian Owl,
I may say, that the nearer all the frill-breasted, gulleted pigeons
approach the ideal standard of conformation, the better they
are. Some fanciers agree with me, others do not. Under each
variety I shall describe the various differences of feather, size,
&c.^which constitute them separate breeds.
SIZE. The African Owl is the smallest domestic pigeon
known. A good pair will weigh about lib., and hens are
sometimes found under 7oz. in weight. The smaller they are
the more they are valued, if good in the various properties
which fanciers admire.
SHAPE. Short in neck, broad-chested, short in nights and
tail, the legs long enough to make the thighs visible in pro-
file, the back rather hollow, and the rump rather full.
CARRIAGE, very erect, the head carried well up, and the chest
full and prominent.
HEAD, as round as possible, both from the nape to the beak
wattle, and from eye to eye. The prevailing fault in the head
is more or less flatness on the crown, and there is often a
prominence at the back, which is undesirable. The forehead
very broad and prominent; the cheeks full.
BEAK, short and thick, the upper mandible as much as
possible in the same curve as the head, so that, from the nape
to the point of the beak, a half-circle should be described. The
under mandible should approach the upper in consistency
as much as possible, and fit closely to it ; or, in the language
of pigeon fanciers, the beak should be "boxed." The only
difference between the Owl and Turbit, according to Moore,
was in the beak, the upper mandible of the former being
*' hookt over like an owl's, from whence it has its name." The
upper mandible in all pigeons is inclined to overlap the under
195 FRILL-BREASTED PIGEONS.
more or less, and in the race under review it sometimes does
so very considerably, from the formation of the head and
beak; but I have found that, when it does, it is generally
owing to a weak under mandible; while I have also found,
that birds so formed are much troubled with vermin, being
unable to keep themselves free from them, like Short-faced
Tumblers whose beaks have been distorted in the process of
head-shaping. The upper mandible of a pigeon has no inde-
pendent motion, and is not jointed like that of a parrot, which
can move its upper beak at will, so that, though much hooked,
it can lay hold of anything small. The best under mandibled
African Owls I have seen were not much hooked in the upper
beak. The picture of an Owl in the Treatise of 1765 does not
represent a bird with a hooked beak ; nor has Mr. Ludlow, in
Mr. Fulton's book, represented any of this family of pigeons
so. The mandibles may never be completely boxed, but, in
my opinion, the nearer they are so the better. The mouth
should be wide, and deep in the head.
EYE should be large, prominent or bolting, and placed in
the centre of the head. The irides are hazel or " bull " in
whites, and orange or yellow in coloured birds.
BEAK AND EYE WATTLES vary considerably in birds of the
same family, A moderate amount is natural, and therefore
allowable. The beak wattle thickens with age, and, so long as
it does not stand out much beyond the curve of the skull,
cannot be objected to. Neither the beak nor eye wattles should
be rough and lumpy, otherwise they give coarseness to Owls
and their varieties.
GTJLLET is a thin, transparent skin filling up the hollow of
the throat, commencing on the under mandible, as far forward
as the feathers grow, and reaching, in a good bird, to the top
of the frill. This property can be seen, whenever a bird is
hatched, if the beak be gently raised. The gullet is about the
last part of a bird to be covered with feathers ; and I may say
here, that pigeons of the Owl tribe feather differently from
s 2
196 FANCY PIGEONS.
all others, the sides of the breast feathering before the frill
makes its appearance, and the centre of the breast remaining
bare for about three weeks from the date of birth. The longer
and deeper the gullet is the better, and, if it is not present in
a bird when hatched, it never comes later. With age it gene-
rally thickens at its junction with the lower mandible, forming
there a little lump, which is, in fact, a jew- wattle. This gives
a fulness to a bird's appearance; but it cannot be got on a
young one. Gullet, to a more or less extent, is seen some-
times in various kinds of pigeons ; but the Owl tribe (in which
the Chinese Dewlap Pigeon may be included) and the Mahomet
are the only races in which it is regarded as necessary. In
them it is a beautiful property, giving that breadth across
the neck in profile which adds so much to their appearance,
and without which they fail to look well.
FRILL is the property in which the African Owl is most
deficient. Great numbers of these birds have been imported
entirely wanting in this necessary adornment, while the most
have far too little of it. Such frills as those on the wonderful
Whiskered Owls are never seen on African Owls. The frill
ought to spread out on each side of the breast, the more of
which it covers the better, and is formed by the feathers
composing it growing out in all directions. It ought not to
lie in any particular position, but stand out from the breast
roughly, as I have attempted to show in my drawing. The
more confusedly the feathers forming it grow, the better it
looks. Where it joins the gullet it ought to divide, and
spread to right and left, and so form the figure of a cross.
Hence this race is sometimes called "Cross" Pigeon in
Germany (Kreuz Taube). None of the Owl tribe, with the
exception of the Whiskered Owl to be afterwards described
are yet complete in this beautiful property, and when they
will be it is impossible even to guess, for their standard
of perfection is one so complex, and difficult of attainment,
that to have all of it fairly good is as hard a task as the
197 FRILL-BREASTED PIGEONS.
whole fancy presents, excepting the standard of no variety
whatever.
LEGS AND FEET, small and neat, bright red in colour, and
free of feathers, from the hocks down.
COLOUR. Self-coloured, white, blue, and black. It will be
noticed that Moore has mentioned these colours as those of
the Owl, and that other colours were not mentioned till thirty
years later. The majority of African Owls, as imported, are
whites, and black and blue pieds, whole blues and blacks
being, however, not uncommon. The number of splashed birds
that come would favour the idea, from their appearance, that
no regard is paid to the matching of them for colour. The only
apparent regular marking is white, with black or blue tail;
but nothing comes oftener from a pure white and whole blue
or black than such marking. From the fact of my having
bred pure white, whole blue, and black and blue splashes, from
a black- tailed white cock and blue- tailed white hen, I think
that, if Mr. Baily was not well informed when he told me how
these pigeons are bred in Tunis, very little regard to colour
must be given in matching them. No reds or yellows have
been brought here, so far as I know, nor even mealies, the
origin of these colours; but I would expect to find an occa-
sional mealy were I to visit the native place of these pigeons,
as such a natural variation is very likely to have been pro-
duced. I once had a blue hen, an imported bird, from Messrs.
Baily, with most of the frill white. I consider this marking
a very suitable one for the coloured Owl, and I am inclined to
think that the bird I had was not a mere chance production,
for I find notice of the same marking in Neumeister's book
among the Frilled Pigeons, all of which, whether self-coloured
or Turbit-marked, go by the name of Movchen (seagulls) in
Germany, so that the blue- shouldered variety seems to have
given the name to the entire family. The blue Tunis Owl
is often of a good deep sound colour, with jet black bars, and
is also frequently of a smoky tint, the evident result of having
198 FANCY PIGEONS.
been crossed with the black. The black is generally of a dull
colour, showing bars of a darker hue, and is never of such
intensity, nor accompanied with such lustre, as is seen in other
varieties. I should imagine there are blue chequers among
these pigeons, but I have not seen any. The colours of the
African Owl, as far as known here, are, therefore, the original
blue, and albinos and melanoids, as found in most, if not all,
domestic animals, and black and blue splashes. But although
the artificial colours, the result of extended breeding on the
part of fanciers, are unknown in this breed, form is some-
times found in such perfection, that, with the exception of
more frill, this bird may be said to be as complete a pigeon
as we know of.
Small size being a desideratum in the Tunis Owl, and the
hen in all kinds of pigeons being less than the cock, the former
generally comes nearer perfection than the latter for this
reason; but what gives a better idea than anything else, of the
high state of breeding found in this variety is, that the hens
are equal to the cocks in all that goes to make a perfect bird,
a most rare thing to find in other varieties of frilled and
gulleted pigeons. I have an idea that red and yellow
African Owls may yet appear, for the interior of Tunis is not
as yet much known to Europeans ; and I cannot but believe
that if, as Mr. Baily told me, exporters have to employ a man
about the mosques to catch such fine birds as we have already
received, others, showing still more of the breeder's skill, must
be in existence in the hands of fanciers.
The English Owl Pigeon.
The English Owl, as it existed at the time the African variety
was introduced, could not be found so good in Owl properties as
at present, so that the difference between the two varieties was
then more marked than it is now. The improvement has been
effected by crossing with the Tunis breed. There are not two
standards for Owls as regards shape of head and beak, gullet,
THE ENGLISH OWL.
199 FRILL-BREASTED PIGEONS.
frill, &c. The difference between the two varieties consists only
in size, and greater variety of colour.
SIZE. The English Owl is wanted as large as possible, so
that it may present a contrast with the African, as the Pouter
does with the Pigmy Pouter. To gain size, it is said that
crossing with the Short-faced Antwerp, which is of Owl descent,
has been resorted to, and that the Barb has been used to give
breadth of skull.
COLOUR. The English Owl is self-coloured, and exists in
white, black, red, yellow, dun, blue, silver, and in various off
colours, as mealies and chequers. Splashed Owls are not re-
garded, except it may be locally, or as stock birds. The blues
and silvers are chiefly fancied and bred, and the best English
Owls are of these colours. The blues should be of a deep, sound,
rich colour, even in tone, with broad black wing and tail bars,
and dark hackle, lustrous with green and purple hues. The
silvers should be of a light creamy dun body colour, with very
dark dun wing and tail bars, merging into black, and with
lustrous dun hackle. White rumps in both are faulty, but
cannot be regarded in blue and silver pigeons as blemishes of
the same degree of magnitude as when occurring in blacks, reds,
or yellows. The chief defects are indistinctness and bad colour
of wing bars, ticked or slightly chequered wing coverts, some-
times showing indications of a third bar, and too light body
colour and hackle, through crossing with the powdered blues
and silvers ; these latter, as varieties of the blues and silvers,
require special mention, as they have a history of their own.
As the author of the "Treatise on Pigeons" (1765) says,
regarding blue Owls, "The lighter they are in colour, par-
ticularly in the hackle, the more they are valued," a dis-
tinction not recorded by Moore thirty years previously, and
as the true Mahomet Pigeon, unknown to Moore, was well-
described by the author of the above quotation, I have thought
that it had been made use of in his time to produce the colour
known as powdered blue, as it certainly has of late years.
200 FANCY PIGEONS.
The powdered blue and silver English Owls of our day were,
however, bred in London about the year 1855, according to
a letter from Mr. Harrison Weir, appearing in the Live Stock
Journal of 1878, who states therein that they were produced
by himself and the late Matthew Wicking. "When requested
by me, in the same publication, to state how they were bred, if
it was no secret, Mr. Weir made no sign. I have considered
that the appearance in London of a pair of true Mahornets,
about the year 1850, as mentioned by Brent, had some con-
nection with the powdered Owls which appeared soon after-
wards. That they sported from common blues is very unlikely ;
but from the long, mousey faces, and freedom from gullet, of
those I have seen, they might have been bred from the German
Ice Pigeon, which has much of the same colouring as the
Mahomet. The late Mr. James Wallace, of Glasgow, with
the Mahomet Pigeon already mentioned by me, and a blue
English Owl, bred beautifully powdered birds, wanting the
frill, which he recovered by the next cross of these half-breds
with blue Owls, though at the expense of some colour. These
quarter-bred Mahomets were equal in powder, and better Owls,
than any of Mr. Weir's breed I ever saw. Some mystery
seemed to be made out of the production of the powdered
Owl in London; but there is really no mystery in the matter,
for, even if it was not produced as I say, similar coloured
and better Owls can be so produced. That the same kind
of Owl existed in the last century seems likely; and, in the
year 1824, Boitard and Corbie published the following in Paris :
" Pigeon Cravate Anglais; Columba Turbita Anglica ; En Anglais,
Turbit Pigeon : plumage entirely amethyst blue, with
black bars on the wings. This pretty variety is very pure,
for it cannot be crossed with another variety without entirely
losing its colour." Like the German writers, Boitard and
Corbie do not distinguish between Owls and Turbits all are
Pigeons a Cravate. The above, though called the Turbit,
cannot read as referring to a Turbit-marked pigeon ; such
201 FRILL-BREASTED PIGEONS.
marking, with blue and other coloured manteaux, they also
describe. I understand it to mean a self-coloured, very light
blue pigeon, that could not bear crossing without losing its
peculiar colour, which is the characteristic of the English
powdered Owl. It may be, that the French had, in 1824,
such pigeons as are described in our Treatise of 1765, which
they called Cravate Anglais, and that from them were de-
scended the London powdered Owls of late years.
So long as the powdered Owl was considered of an original
colour it was worth while preserving ; but as it is, at its best,
only half-powdered, in comparison with the Mahomet, I see
no reason why any special value should be put on it, more
especially as it is inferior in Owl properties to the best blues
and silvers. The colour, in perfection, should be the same
as that of the Mahomet in the blue, and the silver should
bear the relation to it that the common silver does to the
common blue, the same as in the Ice Pigeons. As for red
and yellow English Owls, they are inferior to the blues and
silvers, probably on account of no African Owls of these
colours ever having reached us with which to improve them.
I have seen and had red and yellow Owls of good colour,
however, and they probably represented the breed as it existed
in England when the Treatise of 1765 was written. Between
twenty and thirty years ago I had one pair of yellow mottled
Owls, marked nearly as exactly as the show mottled Tumbler
ought to be. I received them from Glasgow, but they were
imported from the Continent, I believe. Whole-coloured Owls,
excepting the wing bars, which are white, are mentioned by
the G-erman writers ; also white ones with coloured tails, and
coloured ones with white tails.
The standard of the Owl requires a smooth head, as a crest,
and especially a peak crest, from its formation, takes much
from the roundness of the head. Still, peak-crested Owls are
not uncommon, and I have known very good ones bred from
the best blue English Owls. Self-coloured, peak-crested, black,
202 FANCY PIGEONS.
red, and yellow Owls are sometimes called whole-coloured,
or solid Turbits; but the name Turbit is usually, and ought
only, to be applied to white Frilled Pigeons with coloured
shoulders.
The English Owl being wanted large, the hen generally fails
in this respect from looking so well as the cock, for the
same reason as in the African breed she often excels him;
but in conformation also, she is generally, as in all other
frilled races, except the African, much inferior, so that good
hens are rare.
The English Owl is a variety which is now widely spread
and greatly fancied, so that choice specimens are very valu-
able. There is little doubt that it owes all its quality to the
African breed, which began to be imported into this country
about thirty years ago, as already mentioned. There were no
such English Owls as exist now twenty years ago, and much
still remains to be done with them; for, until both cocks and
hens that will bear comparison with the little foreigners in
all but size are produced, they cannot be said to have reached
their best state.
Hitherto the supply of African Owls from Tunis has not
failed ; but, should it do so, it is a question if they would con-
tinue to exist in this country for any length of time, on account
of the delicacy of the breed. If they could not be kept up
here, unless by constant importations, it is an additional reason
why the large English Owl should be cultivated.
During the past few years, since the first edition of this
book was published, great progress has been made in breeding
powdered English Owls, chiefly by Mr. Stephen Salter, who
informed me that he had used a half-bred Damascene, or
Mahomet, to improve the colour. There are now in existence
some powdered blue Owls nearly up to the standard of the
common blues and silvers, and greatly superior to the breed
that existed thirty years ago, regarding which, Mr. H. Weir
has lately said that I was mistaken in supposing that he
203 FRILL-BREASTED PIGEONS.
bred his from the Damascene cross; but lie still refused to
say how they were bred. Those who take any interest in the
question, should procure a copy of the new German illustrated
pigeon work, " Mustertaubenbuch," and study the coloured illus-
tration of Italian Owls therein, which are very well drawn.
The Italian Owl Pigeon.
Herr Priitz, in his "Mustertaubenbuch," now publishing, de-
scribes this variety, and gives both woodcut and coloured
illustrations of it. The former represents plain-headed, frill-
breasted, white birds, with coloured shoulders, flights, and
tails, the latter carried high, and suggesting some connection
with the Modenese Triganica Pigeons. The coloured plate
represents two beautiful pigeons, one of which is blue, with
blackish shoulders, the feathers of which are laced with white ;
the other is of the colour of a Mahomet. Both are plain-
headed, with good gullets and frills. From Italy, then, the
English powdered Owls of thirty years ago may have come;
certainly, Herr Priitz's illustration has a remarkable likeness
to those that used to be seen here.
The Whiskered Owl Pigeon.
This beautiful variety is of a medium size between the
African and English Owls. Those I have seen were either white
or blue in colour, with the usual black wing and tail bars.
In head, beak, gullet, and general Owl properties, they could
only be called passable, and could not be compared with the
African variety. In frill, however, they were extraordinary,
their breasts being covered with it from butt to butt of wings.
The frill also reached up to the throat, and, dividing to
right and left, was continued almost round the neck. I un-
derstand that in some of them it actually goes quite round
the neck. These pigeons are called Chinese Gulls in Ger-
many (Chinesiche Movchen), and the only account of them I
have found is by Neumeister and Priitz, as follows :
204 FANCY PIGEONS.
" Tlie Chinese Gull is somewhat larger than, but not so finely
built as, the Egyptian Gull (Tunis Owl). The beautifully
arched head is smooth, and not so angular, but rounder ; the
strong bill, somewhat crooked in front, is a little longer, in
the form of a Parrot's beak, with which bird this pigeon
has much resemblance in many respects as, namely, in
bearing, neck, and eyes. The eye is large, the iris orange-
coloured, and very lively; the breast is full, the neck short
and powerful ; the pinions reach to 12 millimetres from the end
of the tail; feet and toes are short and smooth. The jabot
(frill) on the breast and neck is the most peculiar thing about
this pigeon. When it stretches its neck the crop is invisible,
as it is hidden behind the so-called cravatte. This cravatte is
formed by several rows of feathers, which stand upwards, on
the under side of the neck, lying closely to each other from
one side to the other. Proceeding from this, the jabot goes
downwards to the middle of the breast, forming a rosette.
The feathers from this point radiate to all sides, reaching
almost over the breast, and offering a beautiful sight. This
pigeon became known in Germany only a few years ago, and
therefore the price for a pair is still rather high. It is found
in blue, with black bars, black, yellow, silver-grey, and some-
times white.
"J. Destriveaux, a fancier in Paris, who accidentally came
into possession of a pair, originated the name Chinese Gulls.
There exists a certain obscurity about the descent of these
pigeons; however, they probably owe their origin and propa-
gation to chance. Some ships laden with sugar, returning
from the East Indies, brought, shortly after 1850, a large
number of Chinese Gulls to Tilsit and Memel, and that in so
excellent a plumage as nowadays is no more to be seen.
From thence, these pigeons came into the South of Germany,
and disappeared from the market for a long time, until, later,
they re-appeared in Paris, from which place the distinguished
fencing-master, A. Prosche, in Dresden, got possession of some,
THE YELLOW T U E B I T.
205 FRILL-BREASTED PIGEONS.
and has bred them successfully for years, as well as the
Egyptian (Tunis) Owl."
From the above, it seems that the Whiskered Owl cannot
now be found in such perfection as when first imported. The
interesting account of the breed makes one wish to know more
about it, and especially from whence it came. I have seen
many varieties and types of fancy pigeons in India, but none
of the frilled race, except such as were imported from Europe.
There is nothing to connect the re-appearance of the Whiskered
Owl in Paris with the Tilsit and Memel birds. The Paris
birds may have been a fresh importation, and the name given
them Chinese Pigeons may not be a mere fanciful one.
However good the first arrivals were and, if better than such
as I have seen, they must have been very choice birds there
doubtless exists, in the hands of fanciers somewhere, a race of
most extraordinary pigeons, compared to which all other races
we know of are much inferior in jabot, or frill.
The Turblt Pigeon.
The origin of the name Turbit seems to have puzzled our
old writers on pigeons. It is evidently derived from the Latin,
as was first pointed out in the eleventh, and last edition, of
"Moubray's Book on Poultry," edited by Meall and Horner,
and published in 1854. That the Turbit alone, among all the
varieties of fancy pigeons known in England 200 years ago,
should have had a Latin name, has caused me to think that
a frill-breasted pigeon of some kind may have been introduced
into this country 'by the Romans as the Columba Turbata.
Willughby appears to have been the first writer to use the
word, and though Turbat would have been the more correct
form, any vowel would have rendered the sound of the name.
The name Turbit, therefore, signifies a frilled pigeon of any
colour, though we now use it only for those that are white,
with coloured shoulders.
There are differences of opinion regarding the formation of
206 FANCY PIGEONS.
the head of the Turbit. I have shown what the old writers
say about it, and that Moore particularly says it should be
round; while the earliest picture of a Turbit I know of that
in the Treatise of 1765 shows a pigeon rather rounder in head
than the Owl in the same book. It is a fault too often found
in frilled pigeons the choice African Owl included to be flat
on the crown; but, although there is no difference specified
in any old book between the Owl and Turbit head, some
modern writers have held that the latter should be frog-headed.
When or how this idea originated I cannot trace, unless it
was derived from what was published in Paris, by Boitard and
Corbie, in 1824. They say, in their introductory notice of the
Frilled Pigeons : " Their beak is short, and head toad-shaped
that is, in the prettiest varieties; the eyes are extremely pro-
jecting in the upper part of the skull, where they form two
well-marked protuberances, as also the bone behind the head,
which forms a third, which gives their head a sort of resem-
blance to that of a toad."
I have seen the frog or toad head even more marked in
some birds than this description, the head having a decided
hollow between the two rising eyebrows, and this was in the
case of some birds bred from a Turbit and African Owl. I
dislike this style of head, and hold, with many fanciers, such
as Fulton and Caridia, that, the nearer the head of a Turbit
approaches that of the ideal Owl, the better it is. The Owl
type is that most difficult to obtain, for it can seldom be got
very good ; it is the result of careful breeding, and never
comes by chance.
The ideal standard of a Turbit in my opinion, and in that
of many more who are devoted to this beautiful pigeon is,
therefore, exactly the same as that of the African Owl, except
as to colour and crest.
SIZE. The Turbit, as it exists, is, even in small specimens,
very much larger than the African Owl. I prefer it small, but
would not have it so at the sacrifice of any of its properties.
207 FRILL-BREASTED PIGEONS.
Generally speaking, it is as large as the clean-legged flying
Tumbler. To reduce it materially in size can only be accom-
plished by crossing with the African Owl, its undoubted rela-
tive. I have been doing this for several seasons, with much
greater success than I had hoped to anticipate, and I believe
others are now adopting the same method. Such experiments,
however, take long to complete ; and as all the Frilled Pigeons
are with me more delicate, and apt to succumb under that
dread disease, inflammation of the bowels, than any other race
of pigeons, I have several times been thrown back after
making a decided advance. In crossing with the African Owl,
my object has been, both to reduce size, and improve the Turbit
in head and beak; in fact, to have a peak-headed, coloured-
shouldered, African Owl, which would be, in my opinion, the
perfect Turbit.
Many Turbits are neither peak nor shell-crested, but some-
thing between the two. Some of these are merely the faulty
produce from pure bred birds of either variety; but crossing
the two kinds is apt to result in badly-crested birds. They
ought, therefore, to be kept distinct, for the mane is diffi-
cult to maintain in perfection.
COLOUR. The Turbit should be entirely white, with
coloured shoulders. The wings, including the scapular
feathers, with the exception of the primary flight feathers,
ought to be coloured. Nothing is easier to get fairly good,
and yet nothing is more difficult to breed to a feather, than
this beautiful marking. The flight feathers, generally ten a
side, though occasionally only nine, may often be got right;
but to have freedom from foul thighs, vent feathers, or under-
body, on the one hand, and no white feathers on the wings,
except the flights, on the other, is the great difficulty. I
consider that a bird quite clean below, with white wing butts,
looks worse than one free of white on the wings and a
little foul below, because bishoped wings are very glaring.
With a full set of white flights we almost invariably find
208 FANCY PIGEONS.
the short feathers covering the spurious wing white, thus
giving a white edging to the margin of the wing when
closed. To get the spurious wing coloured, which prevents
white butts when the wing is closed, is a very difficult matter,
if the bird is quite clean below. Formerly black and blue
Turbits had coloured tails, and they often breed young ones
with the tail partly so; but the coloured tail is no longer
considered desirable. Beds and yellows do likewise; but, in
that case, the tail feathers are usually only of a weak half
tint. It is only lately, owing to keen competition at the
numerous shows, that great attention has been paid to
proper marking. Not only in this country, but in others
where Turbit-marked frilled pigeons are fancied, foul thighs
and vents have been very prevalent, simply because these
natural faults have not been considered of grave account.
It is no easy matter to eradicate such mismarking when
breeding from the strains that have it; but, once this is
got rid of, it is comparatively easy to maintain clean thighs
and vents in many of the produce.
The Triganica Pigeon, in addition to coloured wings, has
the head, tail, and nights coloured ; and although it is common
enough to find this variety foul below, like the majority of
Turbits, I found it easy enough to breed many quite clean-
thighed and vented birds of this breed, by commencing with
such as were free from these faults.
I have stated that I have crossed the African Owl and
Turbit, and have mentioned my reasons for doing so. I
commenced by matching a very fine green-glossed black
Turbiteen cock to a pure white African Owl hen, and from
their young ones I selected a very round-headed, white cock,
with about half of one shoulder black, which was as much
colour as any of the produce possessed, some being pure
white. I mated this bird, which was smooth-headed, like
both his parents, to a good peak-headed black Turbit hen
of Mr. Roper's breed. She was not quite clean below, being
THE BLACK TURBIT.
209 FRILL-BREASTED PIGEONS.
foul-vented. The best of the young ones from this pair was
a smooth-headed, almost completely Turbit-marked cock, of
small size, and good properties all over. I matched him to
his mother, and they bred several very small, peak-headed
birds of first rate quality, so well marked that, when lifted
up by the wings, some of them did not show one foul feather
below. The black Turbit hen mentioned above was de-
scended from the hen of the first pair of black Turbiteens
imported about 1872, which were probably superior to any
since brought to this country. I went on breeding this
strain of birds, and again crossed them with a hen I got
from Mr. Roper, till, in 1883, 1 succeeded in winning the cup,
at the Crystal Palace Show, for the best young Turbit of
all colours, with a very glossy black cock. Since then, these
birds and their offspring, in different hands, have won many
prizes at all the principal shows.
The Turbit is found in all the twelve barred, chequered
and solid colours, mentioned on page 49, but of these only
five the black, red, yellow, blue, and silver are chiefly bred
and shown.
The black colour, when in perfection, is strongly glossed
with a green metallic lustre. Even when decidedly bad in
colour, a black Turbit shows any foul feathers on thighs or
vent so glaringly, that they tell strongly against it in com-
petition with others, such as blues and silvers; and I have
often seen specimens of the latter colours, which were no-
better than blacks opposed to them, preferred because they
appeared cleaner-thighed and vented, whereas they were in.
reality very much fouler.
Red and yellow Turbits were, at the best, only fair in colour
before the introduction of red and yellow Turbiteens from
Smyrna. A great improvement has been effected by crossing
with these beautifully-coloured pigeons, and though their
feathered legs, head markings, and plain heads, take much
careful breeding to eradicate, it has been done. So much has.
T
210 FANCY PIGEONS.
crossing with, the Turbiteen been resorted to during the past
few years, that I imagine few fanciers could say for certain
that their red and yellow Turbits, if fit to hold their own
in strong competition, were of pure English blood. Beds and
yellows, when anything like right in colour, show any foul-
ness on their under body very distinctly ; when poor in colour,
foul thighs hardly show on them; hence, I have known them
called clean-thighed and vented when so hopelessly foul on
these parts that, had their colour been even fair, they would
have been unfit to put into a pen. Black, red, and yellow
Turbits, especially black, when of rich colour, have their
eye wattles of a reddish tint.
The blue Turbit has also been crossed with foreign blood,
but not to any great extent. The best birds of this colour
generally show a sexual difference in colouring, the hens
being of a duller and more smoky tint than the cocks. The
colour in cocks is sometimes very clear and delicate ; so much
so, that white will hardly show on it, and this light blue
is even preferred by some. It is a matter of taste, but I
prefer a darker and more vivid blue, like the colour of the wild
Rock Pigeon. The delicate blue is too near an approach to
silver, and I think the more pronounced the colours, the
better they look from an artistic point of view. Such a beau-
tiful rich blue as I have had in Triganica Pigeons would only
require to be seen to have its superiority allowed. The wing
bars of the blue should be of a deep black, broad and distinct.
The silver Turbit should be of a creamy dun, with bars of
the darkest glossy dun, merging into black. To have really
black bars on the silver ground is, perhaps, not an im-
possibility, but I have never seen them. When I consider
that bright red and yellow bars can be seen on rich blue
Triganica Pigeons, black bars on a silver ground may not be
incompatible with Nature. So very light in colour are foul
thigh and vent feathers on silvers and the light blues, that
it is scarcely possible to distinguish them, and so they often
211 FRILL-BREASTED PIGEONS.
pass undetected. I consider that the silver colour ought to
have bright golden dun wing bars, with neck and tail to
match. In a Turbit, this colour, confined to the shoulders,
is ineffective, being so light. Darker wing coverts, and bars
merging into black, are, therefore, more effective for a Turbit.
Red and yellow barred-winged Turbits, as well as duns,
strawberries, and the various chequers, are usually called
off-colours, and are not cultivated. The barred colours are,
however, very pretty, and if bred for, could be improved by
selection. To each of the solid colours, black, red, yellow,
and dun, there is a corresponding barred and chequered colour,
as referred to in the Chapter on "Colours." It is, doubtless,
by the judicious blending of all of them, that so many varia-
tions are found in the colours of foreign pigeons. But how-
ever intricate and effective are chequering, spangling, and
breaking up of colour, as in the Smyrna Satinettes and Tri-
ganica Pigeons, they do not fill the eye like black, red, and
yellow, when these are in perfection.
There are also pure white Turbits, inasmuch as such are
occasionally produced, by way of albinism, from coloured-
shouldered birds. They might as well be called Crested Owls,
unless they are of the decided frog-headed formation, which
no Owl ought to be. It is a manifest mistake, however, to
allow them to compete with coloured- shouldered birds,
whether frog or Owl-headed. The best so - called white
Turbits I have ever seen were very thick-headed, down-faced
ones, of the Owl type, with broad shell crests.
THE PEAKED TTJEBIT. This variety should have a long
mane running up the back of its neck, quite unbroken, and
ending in a finely-pointed peak crest. There is much to
contend with in getting the right peak and mane. The peak
ought to reach higher than the crown of the head, but it is
rarely more than level with it, and often set so low down in
the neck, that the bird would look better if altogether smooth-
headed. As the peak crest is formed by the feathers on the
212 FANCY PIGEONS.
nape, and those on each side of it, all drawing to a fine
point, the bird cannot look so round-headed as the Smooth-
headed Owl. A very good peak is sometimes seen with no
mane on the back of the neck, and this form has generally a
deep notch below the peak. Many of the Turkish Frilled
Pigeons are of this style, which is considered very faulty in
the English Turbit. The peak must not incline to either side
of the neck, but rise straight from the middle of the nape.
THE SHELL-CRESTED TURBIT. This variety, according to
Neumeister, is bred largely in the North of Germany. It is
not uncommon in this country, but is not so generally
fancied and bred as the Peaked. The shell ought to extend
quite round the back of the head, and be of the cupped
form, as in the Swallow Pigeon. The more extensive, even
in outline, and firm in texture it is, the better. There ought
to be no mane on the Shell-crested Turbit.
Turkish Frilled Pigeons.
Mr. H. P. Caridia, of Birmingham, was the first to import the
various kinds of Eastern short-faced Frilled Pigeons into this
country. This was, perhaps, about twenty years ago. For a
long time, however, there was not much known about them,
as he only kept them for his own pleasure, and parted with
very few of them. They became better known after he wrote
the account of them in Fulton's Book of Pigeons; but, for
many years after that, they were not much kept by breeders
here, notwithstanding their great merits as fancy pigeons.
During the past few years, however, a change has taken place,
and they seem at last to have taken hold of the British
fancier, as very large classes of them have lately been ex-
hibited at the principal shows.
The varieties are the Satinette, Blondinette, Domino, Yizor,
and Turbiteen. The first and third appear to be old breeds ;
the others, more recently established. I am not aware who
gave the first three their names; but Mr. Ludlow, of Bir-
213 FRILL-BREASTED PIGEONS.
mingham, has said he named the last two. The differences
between the five kinds consist in colour and marking, in plain
or crested heads, and in smooth or feathered legs and feet.
They vary a little in size, but, for the most part, are larger
than British Turbits. They are generally excellent in car-
riage, sometimes very round in head, full in gullet, and short
and thick in beak, which is generally well-boxed, and not
overlapping at the point. From a side view, their heads are
sometimes well-arched; but they are often deficient in great
breadth of skull and forehead, and, leaving size out of the
question, are seldom or never up to the standard of the best
Tunisian Owls in head properties. When crested, the correct
standard for all the varieties is a needle-pointed peak, standing
as high as possible; not springing from a mane, as in the
Turbit, however, but divided from the feathers at the back of
the neck by a notch. The peak is sometimes seen very good
on these pigeons, though lopsided and half shell crests are
common enough. Mr. H. P. Caridia considers that "no
maned bird can possess a close-fitting, well-pointed crest,"
in which opinion I think he is mistaken. When feathered
on the legs, the correct style is what is sometimes called
grouse -legged, or stocking -legged that is, with legs and
feet completely covered with rather short feathers, so as to
show no bare skin. The feathers on the legs should be long
enough to stand out somewhat at the sides of the feet, but
the toes ought to be covered with very short ones.
The great majority of the coloured-shouldered, white-bodied
varieties are very foul on thighs and under body. It appears,
from what Mr. Caridia has written, that no attention is paid
to this in the East, and that they are allowed to be foul-
thighed. I have never, however, seen him point out definitely
how the colour must be disposed on the under body, nor can
I believe, were competition to arise in Turkey, as it exists
here, that foul under body would be any longer recognised
there. With a standard of only seven white flight feathers,
214 FANCY PIGEONS,
and foul thighs allowed, as he says is the case in Turkey, foul
wing butts are no difficulty whatever. The Triganica Magpie
has coloured nights, in addition to all the marking of the
Yizor and Domino. Foul under body is not allowed in Tri-
ganicas, according to the Italian writers, and I have both
seen and bred them without a foul feather underneath. I
think, therefore, that it only requires the attention of Turkish
breeders, to enable them to eradicate foul under body in their
pigeons, and they certainly require it.
The irides in coloured-headed Turkish Frilled Pigeons should
be orange; in white-headed ones they should be dark hazel,
as in our Turbits. Turbiteens, when heavily head marked, have
sometimes orange eyes, which look very well. Many, however,
have broken irides, which are decidedly faulty.
As regards the frill on the breast, the Turkish varieties are
about on a par with our Turbits and Owls. They are certainly
not, on an average, better than them. In this beautiful and
distinctive property much, therefore, remains to be done for
them, if we are to take the frill of the Whiskered Owl as our
standard.
The Satinette Pigeon.
This beautiful variety is grouse-legged, and usually smooth-
headed, though a few have lately been imported with peaked
crests. It is coloured- shouldered and tailed, and the rest of
its plumage ought to be white. As for its wing marking, it
ought to be similar to that of the Turbit, and foul under body,
coloured primary flights, white secondaries, and white wing
butts, are all as faulty in it as in the Turbit. In addition to the
colour of the Satinette proper, there are several others found
in the breed, some of which have received special names,
while it would have been less confusing to have retained the
generic name for all, prefixing a word to distinguish them,
as, for instance, Blue Satinette, instead of Bluette.
The Satinette is an old breed, according to Mr. Caridia,
215 FRILL-BREASTED PIGEONS.
who says lie has traced it back for 120 years, through three
generations of fanciers. When he wrote the account of it
in Mr. Fulton's book, about 1874, he said that an aged Pres-
byter in Smyrna, then upwards of eighty years of age, had
bred them all his life, and that his father and grandfather
had done so before him.
The ground colour of the shoulders of this pigeon, after
it has cast its nest feathers, should be of clear pink-brown,
or nearly of a flesh colour, each feather being laced round
with lustrous purple-black; or the same with an inner
lacing of reddish brown, making the plumage tricoloured.
This is what I consider the most beautiful marking; but
it is not the only one. Some of them are chequered, at
the extremity of each shoulder feather, with a triangular,
or arrow-pointed mark, which often runs too large, and
which, when blue in colour, as it very often is, consider-
ably spoils the appearance of a bird. Small triangular
chequers of purple -black are very pleasing on the flesh-
coloured ground, and even small blue markings are pretty;
but when the general appearance is more blue than flesh-
coloured, the effect is spoiled. The tail and its coverts should
be as in a blue chequered pigeon, and on the black bar, at
the extremity of each primary tail feather, there ought to
be a large round white spot, which gives a fine effect when
the tail is outspread. The shaft of the tail feather should
be dark throughout, and this has also a nice effect, running
through the white spot.
The BRUNETTE bears the same relation to the Satinette as
a silver does to a blue pigeon. Its ground colour should be
of a silvery dun tint, each feather being laced or chequered
with dark dun. Its tail is much the same colour as that of
a silver pigeon, and the bar at its extremity should show the
same large round white spot as in the Satinette. Its more
correct name would be Dun-laced, or Spangled Satinette, ac-
cording to the style of its marking.
216 FANCY PIGEONS.
The BLUETTE, or BLUE SATINETTE, is of an even, clear
blue on the shoulders, with white wing bars, which ought to
be laced with intense black, and also have an inner lacing
of a red or dark flesh colour. The tail is the same as in the
Satinette, or a shade lighter.
The SILVERETTE, or SILVER SATINETTE, should be of an even
clear silvery dun on the shoulders, with white wing bars, laced
round with dark dun ; and if there is an inner lacing of buff or
yellow, so much the better. This pigeon bears the same
relation to the Bluette as the Brunette does to the Satinette.
The tail is of the same colour and marking as in the latter,
or a shade lighter.
These four varieties may be interbred occasionally; but, if
it be intended to follow after the laced marking in the Satinette,
the Bluette and Silverette cannot assist it. So many shades
of colour appear in the breeding of Satinettes, that care must
be exercised in the selection of stock. A bird with excessive
lacing or spangling must be paired with one too lightly marked.
This plan is, however, less likely to produce a large proportion
of well-coloured young ones, than by pairing two birds which
are themselves nearly of the desired colour. I think, if the
breeding of Satinettes were to extend in this country, that
either the clear flesh tint, evenly laced with black, or, in addi-
tion, an inner lacing of red or brown, making three colours
in each feather, would come to be regarded as the only standard
colour. Besides the foregoing varieties, there are also Black-
laced Satinettes, whose shoulders are white, each feather being
laced with black. Towards the wing butts they appear more
black than white. The principal tail feathers and their coverts
should also be white, laced round with black.
The Blondinette Pigeon.
The Blondinette has been produced in recent years, according
to Mr. Caridia, who has recorded its history. The Blondinettes
bear the same relation to the Satinettes, in their several varie-
217 FRILL-BREASTED PIGEONS,
ties, as the Schietti, or whole- coloured Triganicas, do to the
Gazzi, or pied ones. I am not aware if every variety of colour
in the Blondinette is represented in the Satinette, not having
seen so many; but the same natural laws of variation of
colour must affect both in course of time.
The SATIN BLONDINETTE is marked on the shoulders and
tail exactly the same as the Satinette, and, where the latter
is white, the former is of a dark blue; but its primary nights
should have large oval spots on their extremities, making them,
when closed, to appear laced. The colour which has gained
most acceptance in this country is the clear pinky flesh ground,
evenly laced with black, the flight feathers of which, when
opened out, are also generally laced all round their edges, but
with, usually, a strong brownish cast on their inner webs.
There is, however, an immense variety of colour among Satin
Blondinettes, many being heavily marked on the wing coverts
with arrow-pointed blue chequers ; but the inferiority of these,
in appearance, is at once seen when they are placed alongside
the laced kind. The nest plumage of the different kinds of
Blondinettes is dull and heavy, the intricate markings and
clear ground colour only appearing after the first autumnal
moult. The bronzy flesh colour of the wing coverts often
reaches up the back of the neck, which ought to be dark
blue. The Blondinettes are grouse-legged, and generally peak-
crested.
BROWN AND SULPHUR BLONDINETTES. Yery pretty varie-
ties are the red and yellow laced or spangled ones. The
former is reddish-brown, and the latter sulphur-yellow,
where the Satin variety is dark blue, and their shoulders
are of the same colours, merging into white, each feather
being laced, spangled, or chequered at the edge with reddish-
brown or clear yellow. These varieties fall away in colour
in tail and flights. I have not seen similarly shouldered
Satinettes, but should suppose they could be bred.
BLACK LACED BLONDINETTES. There are black and white
u
218 FANCY PIGEONS.
laced Blondinettes, in which the head, neck, and under body
are black, the wings, flights, and tail being white, strongly
laced with black, dark towards the wing butts, and gradually
lighter towards the tail, according to the size of the
feathers.
The BLUE BLONDINETTE is of the colour of a blue pigeon,
with tricoloured wing bars and white-spotted tail, the same
as in the blue Satinette. Its primary flights ought also to
have white oval spots on their extremities.
The SILVER BLONDINETTE differs from the blue, exactly the
same as these colours differ from each other in the Satinettes.
There are also whole dark dun Blondinettes, with white wing
bars, and spotted tail and flight feathers.
The Domino Pigeon.
The Domino is peak-headed, smooth-legged, coloured on
shoulders and tail, and is marked on the head like a Nun.
The colour of the head includes the peak crest, and comes low
down in front, forming a bib. I have only seen one specimen
of this variety, and I believe it is the only one of the pure
original race which has appeared in this country. Its marking
resembled that of my drawing of the Triganica Pigeon, except
the flight feathers, which were white. It was imported by Mr.
Caridia, and was shown very successfully by Mr. Yardley, of
Birmingham. It was blue in colour, with the usual black
wing and tail bars. In a letter published in 1879, Mr. Caridia
stated that the Dominoes, "though very scarce now, were in
colours, blacks, blues, silvers with bars, duns without bars,
and chequers of all these colours. There were also a few
without the crest, and I possessed there [in Smyrna] some of
these which were perfection." The bird I have referred to
was of grand Owl properties, and its colour and marking
were so good, that I venture to think, were such birds to be
imported, they would take the fancy of pigeon breeders in this
country before any of the other Turkish frilled pigeons. They
219 FRILL-BREASTED PIGEONS.
appear, however, to be almost extinct, and it seems to me
that it does not say much for those in whose care they were
that such is the case. A prettier, and, at the same time,
higher-class pigeon, than the solitary blue Domino, shown so
often during the last few years, never presented itself to my
eyesight. I cannot say how it was as regards clean thighs
and under body; but its general appearance was very fine.
Minor defects would only be regarded if the breed were plentiful.
The Vizor Pigeon.
This variety was produced by crossing the Domino with the
Satinette tribe, the object being to have coloured-headed
Satinettes. This has been partially accomplished, and I have
seen some fairly marked satin and blue Yizors. The best of
them were, however, somewhat peppered with white about the
head, so that much still requires to be done in perfecting
them. The Yizor should be completely grouse-legged, like the
Satinette. It may be smooth-headed or peak-crested the latter
or choice, as it is an additional property. The colour of its
head will, of course, be in accordance with that of its shoulders,
viz., light blue in the Bluette-marked, and dark purple blue
in the satin. Black-headed Yizors, with black laced shoulders
and tail, would look very well, and will, no doubt, be produced
if the Eastern fanciers are successful with the blues and satins.
The Turbiteen Pigeon.
According to Mr. Caridia, it is now between thirty and forty
years since this much-admired variety was produced. He says
it is a composition of the Domino, white Owl, and Oriental
Turbit ; but I cannot exactly understand the method of breed-
ing which was adopted. I understand from his account,
that the Oriental Turbit was marked as the British kind;
and to employ a white Owl " to counteract and balance the
colour of the black tail" in the Domino, appears a very
roundabout process, when the Turbit of Smyrna was itself
.white-tailed. However, it seems a misfortune that Smyrna
220 FANCY PIGEONS.
Turbits, marked according to our standard, with peak crest
and clean legs, and with the blazing colour and grand Owl
properties of some of the Turbiteens, should have been
allowed to disappear in the desire for something new. Such
pigeons would now be very valuable.
The Turbiteen is generally smooth-headed, but a few peak-
crested ones have been brought to this country. It is grouse-
legged, and white in colour, marked as follows : The shoulders
should be coloured exactly the same as in the British Turbit.
The head markings are by no means well fixed in the breed,
but are occasionally to be seen very good, according to the
standard agreed on by fanciers, viz., a round, coloured spot
on the forehead, commencing at the beak wattle, and of about
the size of a shilling, and a similar spot on each cheek. There
ought to be a distinct white line between the forehead and
cheek spots, and the throat should be white, dividing the
cheek marks. The whole face and throat is sometimes coloured
in a heavily-marked bird, which is faulty.
The eyes should be orange for choice ; they are often broken
in colour, which is worse than being dark-eyed.
The Turbiteen is exceedingly foul-thighed in general, the
only clean- thighed ones I ever saw being a few blacks that I
bred myself; but they had white wing butts, which looked
very bad. I have seen them with the feathers on the outside
of the thighs coloured, and still white- vented, and white between
the thighs. This approached to a specific marking, and may
be what is wished for in Smyrna ; but I have stated my ideas
on this point already. I have seen a few black Turbiteens
with black tails in addition to the usual marking.
The colour found in some of these birds is superb, and,
though I have seen it equalled in other pigeons, I have never
seen it surpassed. The black, red, and yellow leave nothing
to be desired. There are also duns of various tints, some
of them being of a lovely lavender shade; but this colour is
apt to fade, and becomes dappled at the moulting season, till
221 FRILL-BREASTED PIGEONS.
all the feathers are renewed. There are blues, silvers, chequers,
strawberries, and bar-winged reds and yellows as well, ac-
cording to Mr. Caridia. Most of these I have seen and bred,
but they are of little beauty alongside the glossy blacks, reds,
and yellows. The latter are full of the fatty quills about the
root of the tail and vent referred to in the description of the
Nurnberg Swallows. These feathers only shed, at most, the
tips of their fibres, and many of them never break at all.
The standard of the Turbiteen, therefore, comprises all that
is requisite in a Turbit, with the addition of feathered legs
and face markings. The feathered legs give little difficulty,
but they occasionally come with too little or too much leg
and foot covering. The face markings cause much trouble,
as they are comparatively new. Out of several scores of
these pigeons which I have bred, when I kept them some years
ago, only four were about right in face markings. They may
be bred with small cheek marks, about equal on each side;
but nothing less than the size of a shilling to that of a florin
looks well. The black, red, and yellow may be interbred ; but
the first, with either of the last two, often produces a sandy,
or strawberry, which, however, frequently throws back to good
colour when matched with either a black, red, or yellow. It
must not be supposed, however, that it requires no care to
keep up colour in this breed. Many of them are bad in that
respect when compared with the best; but even the second
and third degrees of colour in Turbiteens would be highly
valued in many varieties of pigeons, which shows how good
they are in this feature. I never possessed an imported bird
of this breed with a crest, but I bred a peak-headed one from
a pair of smooth-heads. I consider the peak crest a fine
property, and difficult to breed right, therefore valuable.
The upper mandible is generally coloured in Turbiteens, or
at least tipped, according to the feather, white or flesh-coloured
beaks being exceptional. There ought to be no hard blue,
however, in the beaks of blacks, reds, and yellows; the black
222
FANCY PIGEONS.
should have a black beak, the red a ruddy brown one, and
the yellow, just enough colour in the beak to make it show.
The Turkish Turbit Pigeon.
Some Turkish Turbits of very superior quality have occa-
sionally been brought to this country of late. I have seen
some blues and blacks with broader and better filled up fore-
heads than any of the other Eastern frilled varieties. These
have all been smooth-headed birds, some with feathered, and
others with clean, legs. In all cases their tails were coloured,
but none were face-marked in any way.
Turkish Nomenclature.
The following list of the Turkish names of the various Frilled
Pigeons was published lately by Mr. C. E. Duckworth, of
Liverpool, who procured it from the East :
Satinettes
. . . Honcheria.
Satinette
... Honcheria Anichto Zimboulie.
Brunette
,, Surphanie.
Bluette
Giokiho.
Silverette
Odu.
Vizor
Carabasico.
Blondinettes
... Zimboulia.
Blue Blondinette
... Mavie Zimboulie.
Silver
Asimie
Brown-laced
... Bembi
Dark arrow-pointed ,,
Marico
Sulphur
... Surphanie
Black
Chircuzanie.
Yellow Turbiteen
... Sarimiseria.
Bed
... Ambruthes.
Black
. . . Caralles.
Blue
Yuk Mavales.
Peak-headed birds are
called Tepelithica ; plain-headed,
Carbachica.
THE BLUE POUTER.
Chapter XXIIL
POUTING OR CROPPER PIGEONS.
The English Pouter Pigeon.
| HIS noble pigeon has always been considered
one of the finest varieties, sharing, with the
Carrier, the premier position in the fancy
since the time when we have any records on
the subject. It is referred to by "Willughby
as follows : " Croppers, so called because they can, and usually
do, by attracting the air, blow up their crops to that strange
bigness that they exceed the bulk of the whole body beside.
A certain Hollander informed Aldrovandus that these Kroppers
Duve, as they call them, are twice as big as the common
Domestic Pigeons, which, as they fly, and while they make
that murmuring noise, swell their throats to a great bigness,
and the bigger the better and more generous they are
esteemed. Those that I saw at Mr. Cope's, a citizen of
London, living in Jewin Street, seemed to me nothing bigger,
but rather less than Runts, and somewhat more slender and
long-bodied. These differ no less one from another in colour
than the precedent" (i.e., Bunts).
Meagre though this description be, we can learn from it
224 FANCY PIGEONS.
that, 200 years ago, the London Pouters were large pigeons,
long and slender in body, and with great crops. Sixty years
later, however, we have Moore's succinct account of the origin
of the English Pouter; but whether it was merely a tradi-
tionary account, or a narrative of facts within his own
knowledge, cannot now, I fancy, be determined. First of
all, he describes the Dutch Cropper as follows: "This Pigeon
seems to be originally Dutch, being naturally thick, and its
Name is derived from a large Bag, or crop of Wind, which
they carry under their Beak, and can at Pleasure either
raise or depress; they are thick bodied and short, their Legs
are likewise thick, short, and feather'd down to their Feet;
their Crop is large, but always hangs low; the Feathers on
their Thighs hang loose, whereby they are said to be flag-
thigh'd; their Legs stand wide, and they seldom play
upright ; they are gravel Ey'd, and generally very bad
Feeders; therefore, as soon as they have fed off their soft
Meat, it is proper to put their young ones under a pair of
small Runts, Dragoons, or Powting-horsemen, which may be
kept as Nurses for that Purpose. There are of all Sorts of
Feathers in this Pigeon, and the Dutch in breeding it take
a very great care ; for as soon as they have fed off their
soft Meat, they put the young ones under others to nurse,
and then separate the old ones, placing them in different
Coops, and feeding them high with Hemp or Rape Seed for
a Month, then turning them together; and by being very
hearty and salacious, they breed Pigeons with very good
Properties : from whence we may observe, that wou'd Mankind
be like abstemious, their Progeny might be more compleat
both in Body and Mind. These are the Pigeons that are
most apt to gorge, if not kept constantly supplied with Meat
and Water."
Moore commences his description of the English Pouter thus :
" This Pigeon, which was first bred in England, and is therefore
call'd the English Powter, is originally a mixt breed between
225 POUTING PIGEONS.
a Horseman and a Cropper, and by matching their young ones
over and over to the Cropper, Experience teaches us, it will
add a wonderful Beauty to this Bird, and raise in it the five
following Properties." Though Moore does not say what kind
of Cropper was used for breeding the English Pouter, the
inference is that he referred to the aforesaid Dutch variety,
which is, in fact, the only Cropper he describes. His description
of what constituted a good English Pouter in 1735, is, indeed,
excellent, so far as it goes ; and though he does not go minutely
into the appearance of the bird, his account of it, had nothing
been added by the author of the Treatise of 1765, would give
those who read his work to-day the idea that our Pouter is
identical with the one he describes. During the thirty years
following the publication of Moore's work, however, a con-
siderable advance appears to have been made in the breed-
ing of fancy pigeons, as I learn from the following, taken from
the preface of the Treatise of 1765, page xiv. : " It is to be ob-
served that the species in general, and the Almond Tumbler
in particular, are, from great care and expence in breeding them,
arrived to so great a perfection, and so different from what
they were twenty or thirty years past, that if a person who
had been a fancier at that period, and had quitted the fancy,
and not been conversant therein during the intermediate time,
was to give his opinion now, he would be apt to condemn
them, for no other reason than because they are not like what
used to be thought good when he was in the fancy before;
for instance, the Powter was formerly bred with thin legs,
and void of feathers on them, which by the present fanciers
are in no esteem, and called by them naked and wire-legg'd,
who now endeavour to breed them with strong substantial
limbs, and well feathered."
One of the set of eight old oil paintings of fancy pigeons
which I am fortunate in having acquired, and which I have
before referred to (see page 178), represents a magnificent
black-pied Pouter cock of the kind stated by the above-
x
226 FANCY PIGEONS.
mentioned writer to have been fancied in Moore's time. As
this picture shows a bird quite bare in limb, with the excep-
tion of a few very short feathers down the outside of
the leg, and with none whatever on the toes, I think it, as
well as the others, must have been painted about the
time Moore wrote his book, for they are all uniform, and
evidently the work of the same artist. The pictures repre-
senting the other pigeons being life-size, I suppose that
of the black-pied cock to be the same; and although I
have occasionally seen a bird in life standing as high as he
does, it has been but seldom. He is 14in. from the crown of
his head to the soles of his feet, and must have measured
about 20in. in feather. He is short of bib, and his rose pinion
might have been dressed, had the artist meant to depict a
well-marked pigeon. I think, for this reason, the picture is
a portrait. I can scarcely believe that such a pigeon could
-have been produced, in the way Moore says, in a short period
of time, for the immense crop and intricate marking would
take long to fix after a cross with the Horseman ; and then,
"Willughby's description of the Pouter, such as it is, written
about sixty years before Moore's, is extant. At the same time,
when a drawing of a model Pouter is made, quite devoid of crop,
there can be seen in it much of the shape of the thorough-
bred Carrier, as anyone may prove for himself; so that it is
extremely likely that the union of such a bird as Moore's
Dutch Cropper and the Carrier would result, after a long,
careful breeding, in such a bird as the English Pouter. We
find that, with age, certain Pouters develop a good deal of
beak and eye wattle, though birds of the same family vary
greatly in this respect. If this be not derived from a remote
cross of the Carrier, either direct or through some of the long
Runts which likewise possess it, it must have -developed itself
in the Pouter race in the same way as in that of the Carrier.
There has arisen lately, in Germany, a theory that the English
Pouter might have been derived from the Pomeranian Cropper,
227 POUTING PIGEONS.
the appearance of which I shall describe, and the arguments
connected with which I shall discuss, when I come to write
about it. In the meantime, I shall describe what constitutes
a perfect English Pouter, which, even on the Continent, where
many varieties of the family exist, stands confessedly at the
head of them all, and by many in this country is considered
the finest, noblest, and most beautiful of all pigeons.
As will be shown, the great run on the Almond Tumbler,
about the middle of last century, was the cause of the Pouter
being to a great extent neglected in London; and the fancy
for it appears to have languished from that time, till at
last the breed nearly disappeared thence. About the year 1830
Scotch fanciers began to breed this pigeon, and ultimately
got it almost entirely into their own hands. At that time,
some of the linen manufacturers of Dundee brought home with
them from London which place they were in the habit of
visiting annually by way of trade many fine Pouters, which
have been described to me, by those who remember them, as
stylish birds, good in colour and marking. At the same time, or
soon afterwards, fanciers in the West of Scotland also began
breeding Pouters, and from 1860 to 1870 the fancy for them may
be said to have reached its zenith in Scotland. Soon after the
Glasgow pigeon shows were established, or about 1860, English
fanciers went into Pouter-breeding, but for some time were
obliged to draw their supplies of stock birds from Scotland,
the breed being next to extinct south of the Border. As
records will show, this was so much the case, that the Pouter
was for years often quite unrepresented at the annual exhibi-
tions of Metropolitan pigeon societies, the members of which
confined themselves to the Carrier, Short-faced Tumbler, Dra-
goon, &c. At the present time, Scotland and England may
be said to divide between them the breeding of Pouters ; but
in London, the very home of this variety, and where it was
undoubtedly produced, so far as I know, there are still few
who keep them, with the exception of the large dealers. Irish
x 2
228 FANCY PIGEONS.
fanciers have, to some extent, bred these noble pigeons for
several years past, and they have succeeded in producing
many fine ones, as is well known. Some of the best I have
bred myself I can trace back to birds I bought from the late
Mr. Montgomery, of Belfast, whose stock was founded chiefly
on Scotch blood.
It has been usual to write of the English Pouter as having
five properties viz., crop, length of limb, length of feather,
slenderness of girth, and feather. Authorities are divided on
the respective value of these properties, and also as to which
is the most valuable. It is no use, however, to argue over
this, as a Pouter must be fairly well up in all points to
have any chance of winning at a good show, the bird which
fails conspicuously in any one of them having little chance
in keen competition. In describing the Pouter, I shall restrict
its properties to four viz., size, shape, carriage, and feather.
SIZE. The Pouter must be a very large pigeon, very tall
and upstanding, the larger the better. It will be found in
breeding, that the great difficulty is to get it of gigantic pro-
portions, combined with quality in shape, feather, and carriage.
Under-sized Pouters, otherwise very good, are common enough ;
but, as soon as a certain size is reached, there is not only a
very great difficulty in rearing a bird, but it almost invariably
fails in shape and carriage. When size and shape are got,
the difficulty of producing good colour and the intricate
marking at once decimates the number fit for exhibition.
Those whose experience in breeding pigeons has been confined
to self-coloured varieties, such as Carriers and Barbs, know
nothing of the difficulty there is in producing colour and
marking, combined with size and shape, in the Pouter. I
believe the Pouter was formerly the most valuable variety.
Moore says : " I have known eight guineas refused for a single
Pigeon of this breed " ; and the author of the Treatise of 1765
quotes a sale of Pouters by auction, at which two pairs
realised 13 6s. and 16 16s. respectively. He says that
229 POUTING PIGEONS.
two pairs from the same sale were afterwards sold for thirty-
six guineas by private contract. I believe 60 is the highest
price which has been paid in late years for a Pouter.
SHAPE. My drawing of a Pouter represents the shape or
outline of a good bird in position. The head and beak do
not constitute fancy points, because, generally, there is nothing
abnormal about them. As I have said, beak and eye wattle
are sometimes developed to an abnormal extent, but generally
when the bird is past being fit for exhibition. Allowing for
size, the head and beak of the Pouter may be said to be
of the common type.
The chief and most important part in the shape of a Pouter
is the crop, towards the setting off of which to the greatest
advantage all its other parts are designed. By the time a
young bird has moulted its nest feathers, the breeder will have
an idea if it is likely to be well-developed in this respect. The
cocks are generally better in crop than the hens, though, in young
birds, the latter generally show it sooner. The crop ought to be
very large, and as round as possible from every point of
view. It ought to be carried with freedom, and fully expanded
when the bird is in show.
Slenderness of girth, or smallness in waist, shows off a good
crop to the greatest advantage, and is one of the principal
points contributing to fine shape in a Pouter. "While most
Pouters thicken in body after two years of age, I have known
some retain their slender girth for six years, and never be
shown without winning. Fanciers should strive to obtain birds
of the latter type, the only one which a breeder who has
passed through his novitiate has any pleasure in keeping.
Next to a good crop, the limbs are the most important
points about the shape of the Pouter. They ought to be long,
properly placed in the body, well- shaped, and rightly feathered.
Limb is measured from the joint of the thigh, first above the
hock, to the point of the nail of the middle toe. A limb
measuring in this way 7in. is extra long. Some years ago, I
230 FANCY PIGEONS.
visited the lofts of more than thirty Scotch and English Pouter
breeders, and all the really 7in.-limbed Pouters I saw on my
journey could be counted on the fingers of one hand. Since
then, however, a great improvement has been made in this
respect, and birds measuring 7in., and even 7f in. in limb, have
been bred. It is usual, either intentionally, or from ignorance
of how to measure, to overstate the length of limb in Pouters
about a quarter of an inch; but this extra quarter sometimes
makes a great difference in the value of a bird. A fancier
once wrote me that he required his cock Pouters to be 7in. in
limb, and his hens 6f in. ; but when I visited him, he could
not show me a bird out of thirty measuring so much. Some
birds wear down their toe nails very much; in others, living
under the same conditions, the nails grow out extra long.
Neither form is fairly to be taken into account in measuring
the limb ; the length of an average toe nail may only be included ;
but neither form affects the height of a pigeon. The
difference in length of limb between the cock and hen Pouter
is about iin., so that 6fin. in a hen is as good as 7in. in
a cock. I measure the limb of a Pouter on a marked board
projecting from the wall, placing the nail of the index finger
of my left hand in the joint of the left thigh of the bird,
and bringing it exactly to the corner of the board; then,
stretching out the limb with my right hand, I can find the
exact length to ^th of an inch. Others who measure with-
out assistance, hold the pigeon by the back in the left hand,
place the point of the index finger of the right hand on the
joint of the thigh, and then, bringing the limb down the
palm of the hand, ascertain the length from the natural
marks on their palm. This is a true way to measure if one
remembers what signifies such and such lengths on his hand,
but not otherwise, as I have often found. Of more importance,
however, than actual measurement of limbs, is their position
in the body, and their shape. They ought to be placed far
back, so that there remains a good length of body between
231 POUTING PIGEONS.
them and the crop. It is only birds so formed that can be
very tall. The limbs ought also to be placed closely together,
and, when viewed from the front, continue to approach each
other down as far as the hocks; then, gradually separating,
the feet ought to be as far apart as the thighs are at their
junction with the body. The hocks must closely approach, but
not touch, each other, otherwise the pigeon cannot walk grace-
fully. In profile view, the limbs must form a very obtuse
angle at the hocks ; on this depends very much the height
of a bird. I have shown in my drawing, as nearly as I can,
the correct shape of the limbs from this point of view.
While pigeons generally are in-toed, the Pouter must turn
his feet decidedly out. It is quite unnecessary to describe all
the faults in shape of limb usually seen in Pouters, every
other form from that described being faulty. Limbs too
straight and stiff, or too much bent and crouching, are frequent
faults, as also are those set too far forward in the body, or
widely placed, the latter often appearing quite bowed at the
thigh from a front view. A Pouter should show all his limbs
as far as the thigh joint ; but many have this joint concealed
in the feathers of the body, their thighs lying close to their
body, like a runt's, instead of standing well out. Finally, there
is the way the limbs ought to be feathered. The correct style
is known as stocking-limbed, or with the legs entirely covered
with short, soft, downy feathers. These feathers may over-
hang at the hocks as much as shown in the illustration.
The feathers on the toes must, however, be very long, spread-
ing out from each foot for 3in. or 4in. For a short time
after the annual moult these toe feathers remain perfect
in some birds, if care has been exercised; but they never
remain perfect throughout the season, and usually get broken
before they are full grown. They give such birds as have
them a very fine appearance, but very few are naturally furnished
with them in perfection, if the limbs themselves are just
completely stockinged, and not over-feathered. Pouters proper
232 FANCY PIGEONS.
as apart from small Croppers, are not now found entirely
barelegged, the least amount of leg covering seen showing
about half the leg bare, or with short feathers on the out-
sides of the limbs and on the toes. This is how the portrait
of a Pouter is represented in the Treatise of 1765, which
shows the gradual improvement in this respect from Moore's
time. Pouters are now found from half leg-feathered to
rough-limbed, some of the latter having coarse hock feathers
reaching to the ground, and toe feathers over 6in. long. Such
leg-feathering quite impedes graceful movement; but as it
often comes in birds otherwise excellent, these are bred with
others under-feathered in limb. In matching stocking-legged
birds together, the produce is rather inclined to come bare-
legged, and it is annoying to find what are otherwise the
best young birds so. Rough limbs have, and, it is likely,
always will have, a place in every loft. As a matter of in-
dividual taste I dislike them very much, and greatly prefer
thin-limbed birds, as they are much handsomer, more grace-
ful, and have greater freedom in movement. It will be seen
what a heavy tax on the Pouter breeder this matter of leg-
feathering is of itself. All else may be about right, but it is
three to one against the limbs being properly feathered.
Length of feather, or, the length from the point of the
beak to the end of the tail, is next to be considered in the
shape of the Pouter. This is ascertained by holding the bird
in the left hand ; then, by placing the index finger of the right
hand under his beak, and the thumb at the back of his head,
he can be stretched out to his natural length, and measured
against a marked board as before. In this way some birds
measure 20in., which is a good length. I once saw one 21in.
full, but he had one feather in his tail an inch longer than
the others, and which was, consequently, of no value, but
rather a fault. I have often measured two Pouters and found
them the same length, though the flights and tail of one
were a full inch longer than those of the other. The birds
233 POUTING PIGEONS.
were differently formed, one making up in neck what he lost
in feather. I think this may be some slight proof of the
Carrier cross, the greater length of neck enabling the bird to
stand higher, and giving room for greater development of
crop. Short-necked birds, whose length depends on nights
and tail, have little style, and can never have fine carriage.
Mere length from beak to tail should never have been made
a property in the breed. Pouters may be too long as well
as too short. What they ought to be depends entirely on the
set and apparent length of their limbs. There are, at present,
three too long for every one too short. A Pouter which has
7in. limbs, of the proper shape, and rightly placed, and which
has a good long neck, can afford to measure 19in. from point
of beak to tip of tail, and no more. A bird measuring
20in., however long in neck, requires limbs 7^in. long, and
of the very best description, to enable him to stand properly.
The next excellence in shape of a Pouter, supposing him to
be standing in position in a show-pen, or on the ground, is
to be hollow-backed, the opposite of which being hog-backed
is a most serious defect. His wings must be carried close to
his body, and well up, so as to show his breast and belly in
profile. Drooping wings, which conceal this outline, are very
faulty, and generally hereditary. His flights must always be
carried over his tail, and reach nearly to the end of it; they
ought to be broad, and not narrow. The tail should be carried
very near the ground, but not touching it; it ought never to
be carried high, which is a great, though common, fault.
Many of the best Pouters I have seen were split-tailed, having
their tails in two equal divisions, this being more noticeable when
the birds were in the hand than when at liberty. I have heard
old fanciers say that the split- tail is a mark of high breeding,
and also that long hairs on the breast of a Pouter were proof
of good blood. What is known as a fish-tail, or one split in
two, and diverging at the points, is, however, very undesirable.
Pouters often have extra tail feathers, as many as fifteen
234 FANCY PIGEONS.
primaries being common. Several strains nave also an extra
primary flight, and I have had many with eleven flights a
side.
CARRIAGE. Having stated what constitutes good shape in
a Pouter when seen standing still in a show-pen, or on
the floor of his loft, I now proceed to describe the way he
ought to carry himself when in motion. Regarding carriage,
Moore expresses himself as follows: "Besides the five Pro-
perties before mention'd, there is another, which tho' not
generally allow'd, will be found to be one of the best, I
mean the Carriage." A Pouter which is not formed on good
lines, and is not well-proportioned, can never look well, how-
ever he may carry himself ; but, however well he may be shaped,
it does not follow that his carriage will be right. Shape and
carriage are, therefore, separate properties, as Moore states.
The crop being well filled, the bird may, as he plays up to
his hen, begin to "bufle," as Moore describes it, or to choke
with wind by overfilling his crop. He then sets up the feathers
at the back of his neck, and struggles from side to side, en-
deavouring to free himself from the encumbrance. Some birds
are much addicted to this fault, and will, unless caught up and
relieved, by their beaks being opened, and the air pressed out
of their crops, remain in such a state for half-an-hour at a time.
Some birds, though naturally possessed of capacious crops,
never fill them, but allow them to hang down like an empty
bag. These are said to be slack-winded, and, as Moore says,
" appear not much better than an ill-shap'd Runt." A Pouter
as he plays must keep himself perfectly upright, so that his
head is perpendicular with his feet ; he must on no account
jump oft* the ground as he plays, but walk in a very dignified
way, with his tail slightly spread out. A grave fault in
carriage is jumping off the ground as he plays, which is gene-
rally accompanied by rumping, or setting up the feathers of his
back and rump, the tail at the same time being tucked under
him, and dragged along the ground. All these faults are
235 POUTING PIGEONS.
often seen in birds which look well enough when standing
still. Pouters ought, therefore, to be always judged in a large
show-pen, to allow their carriage to be seen, and this is now
generally done at important shows.
FEATHER. The standard colours of the Pouter are yellow,
red, black, and blue pied, valuable, both of old and at the pre-
sent time, in the order named, when the birds are equal in all
else. Pure white comes next, and then the other colours, pied
according to the standard. The way in which a Pouter must be
pied, or marked with white, is as follows : On his ground colour
he must have a crescent or half -moon mark of white on the
front of his crop, as shown in the illustration. This half -moon
mark looks best when about 2in. wide at its deepest part. It
must finish on 2 with fine points a little below the ears, and
be set low enough on the crop to leave a large bib of colour
between it and the beak. When this bib is wanting the bird
is swallow-throated, and then, of course, there is no properly
defined crescent at all. The ends of the crescent often reach
to the eyes, finishing off too widely, and this is apt to result
in broken or bull eyes. All pied Pouters should have clear
yellow or orange irides, and beaks coloured according to their
feather, though it may be mentioned that a flesh-coloured beak
is not only allowed, but admired by some, in reds and yellows.
Serious defects in marking are a blaze of white or snip on the
forehead ; and a ring neck, which is caused by the crop mark-
ing going right round the neck. On the shoulders, and well
away from the butts of the wings, there should be a mottling
of single white feathers, forming what is known as the rose-
pinion, which ought to be round, and cover a space lain, in
diameter. It is but seldom this beautiful mark is seen well-
defined; the white feathers forming it are generally more or
less in patches; and it is often represented by a single patch
of white, which, when it reaches the edge of the wing, makes
the bird bishop- winged, bishoped, or lawn-sleeved, which is
more faulty than being entirely solid winged. The primary
236 FANCY PIGEONS.
flight feathers must be white to the turn of the wing, or a bird
will be foul-flighted; and if the outer flight feather alone is foul
a common enough fault he will be sword-flighted. Next, if a
Pouter be lifted up by the wings, he ought to be entirely white
on the lower back, sides, belly, thighs, and legs. The tail, with
its coverts, upper and under, must be coloured, being cut sharply
off, the same as in the Nun; and the line of demarcation between
the belly and breast must be sharply cut, or, as it is called,
evenly-belted, as shown in the drawing.
In treating of the various colours found in Pouters, the
yellow comes first, as being the most valuable when all else is
equal. Cocks of this colour, really good in properties, are, and
always have been, scarce, but good yellow hens are common
enough. In reds, on the other hand, good cocks are plentiful,
and really fine hens rather scarce. These colours have a great
natural affinity, and are to a great extent interbred in all
varieties of fancy pigeons. The colour of yellow Pouters is
often pleasing enough, but is not, in reality, any nearer perfec-
tion than the majority of reds. The latter were formerly some-
times to be found of a glossy blood-red, but they became very
scarce. Of late years, attention having been directed to them,
much has been done in resuscitating the colour : but although
I have seen, in my experience, many very good coloured
reds, I never saw any that could compare, in general Pouter
properties, with such as were only of a second or third degree of
colour. There is a beauty and richness in the best degree of
the red colour, as seen in many foreign pigeons, which makes
it universally admired. The best coloured red Pouter I ever
saw was a cock, bred in London, I believe, which was in the
possession of Mr. Fulton, about 1870, and from which are
descended some of the best coloured reds now in existence.
This bird had not a white beak, which many consider essential
in a red Pouter ; his beak was of a dark ruddy hue. His tail
was heavily stained with red, and his rump, or upper tail coverts,
was as red as his wing coverts. I have always considered that
237 POUTING PIGEONS.
it is owing to the poverty of colour in reds and yellows generally
that they are unable to carry colour in the tail; but however
white the tail may appear to be, an examination will always show
that the feathers are not really white, like those in the tail of an
all white Pouter, the shafts of the primaries being usually dark,
and the under coverts grey, in the lightest tailed birds. When
fine coloured red Jacobins, Turbiteens, or other red pigeons with
white extremities, breed young ones with a foul tail feather or
two, as they frequently do, these feathers are invariably weak
in colour compared with their body feathers. The old breeders,
finding it impossible to breed red and yellow Pouters with tails
as dark as their wing coverts, probably tried to breed them with
tails as white as possible, for it cannot be denied that a half-
coloured or stained tail does not look well. But then, if the
white tail were imperative, it would be necessary to keep reds
and yellows entirely distinct from blacks, for how could the
black-tailed black, when crossed with the red, be expected to
breed reds with pure white tails, and blacks with black tails ?
As a matter of fact, the best coloured reds and yellows are
usually the most heavily stained in tail; therefore, finding that
it is natural for them to be so, it should not prejudice them. I
do not suppose any intelligent breeder would prefer a brick-red,
with an apparently white tail, to a blood red with a dark rump
and stained tail. There is no trouble with the tails of black
Pouters ; however bad their colour, they can always carry it to
the end of the tail. In crossing black with blue Pouters,
smoky blacks, showing wing bars of a darker hue, are a common
result. This can be bred out in a series of crosses ; but it ruins
colour in reds and yellows to breed any such blue-bred blacks
with them. The first cross between black and red, in all
varieties of pigeons, however good in colour, often results in
strawberry or sandy. These are of various shades, from such as
are very light, looking as if sanded over, to such as are of a
reddish strawberry, many of which are ticked with black. It is
well known that some of the best black pieds have been bred
238 FANCY PIGEONS.
from a sandy and a black. Blue-pied Pouters have always been
favourites, and their colour being the most natural one, is easiest
to breed good. Through crossing with artificial colours, blues
have certain inherent faults, which must be carefully guarded
against. Their wing bars ought to be jet black, but frequently
come brown, when they are called kite-barred. Their wing
coverts ought to be of a sound dark blue, neither smoky nor
dusky, nor so light and silvery that the white rose pinions are
with difficulty distinguished on them. White Pouters ought
to have flesh-coloured beaks, and almost invariably have bull
or hazel eyes. It may almost be taken for certain that a white
Pouter, with its beak even slightly stained, has some coloured
feathers about its head. A white Pouter with a dark, or partly
dark beak, cannot rightly be shown in a class for whites, if the
strict letter of the law be enforced ; but such a bird is in much
the same position as a white-vented black Carrier in a class for
blacks. The difference between them is, that the Carrier's fault
is hidden, while the Pouter's is very glaring. There was once a
strain of orange-eyed white Pouters, but whether they were
free of foul feathers I know not. Pure whites with orange eyes
would look very well, and I see no reason why they should not,
if ever shown, be allowed to compete with whites, for they would
really have an additional property over bull-eyed birds, and one
difficult to keep up, as in white Jacobins and white Tumblers.
There would always, however, be a suspicion that they were foul-
feathered somewhere ; but so there is with other pearl or yellow-
eyed white pigeons.
The colours of Pouters other than yellow, red, black, and
blue-pied and pure white, are generally called off-colours, and
are not so valuable, neither are they generally bred for. This
would not, however, long continue to be the case if the Pouter
fancy were to extend greatly over the country, because in-
creasing competition would cause breeders to cultivate some
of the so-called off-colours, many of which are very beautiful.
Dun, which is a standard colour in Carriers, was, till lately,
239 POUTING PIGEONS.
very scarce in Pouters. I do not admire it myself, but it
could be vastly improved if bred for. Duns are usually hens,
but I nave seen a dun cock. I have seen blue, red, yellow,
and dun chequers. Of these, the blue is the only one which
can be said to be common, and that not so much so as formerly.
Such chequers as come in crossing the solid with the barred
colours do not represent what could be made of them were they
to be systematically bred for; but in the present state of the
Pouter fancy I do not think there is room for them. The
blue chequer is of two kinds the light, and the dark, some-
times called black chequer. The light blue chequer is useful
for improving colour of wing coverts and bars in blues, but
it must be used with care, and with due regard as to how
it was itself produced. This colour has always existed in the
breed. The black chequer is sometimes so dark that it is
apparently black on the wing coverts ; but its tail is dark
blue, with the usual black bar, and any foul feathers on its
under body are greyish blue. This colour is often thrown by
a pair of reds which have had a recent cross of black. It
is a very good cross for black, and some of the most lustrous
black pieds have been so produced.
The mealy Pouter has always been a favourite in Scotland,
because many of the best birds ever seen have been so coloured.
It is of various shades, the correct colour being the same as
in the best show Antwerps. The neck and wing bars ought
to be lustrous red, and the wing coverts of a clear light tint,
but still decided enough to show up the rose pinion. The
tail should be so light as to appear nearly white. Mealy has
been continually bred with blue, and, consequently, most mealies
are of a bluish tint, with a hard blue-black beak, instead of a
soft-coloured, ruddy one. The mealy could be greatly improved
by cultivation, which it is well worth, as are the other bar-
winged colours, the silver and yellow-mealy. Silvers are occa-
sionally bred from blues, and are almost invariably, in my
experience, hens. It is many years since I heard of a silver
240 FANCY PIGEONS.
cock. The wing bars and neck of a silver ought to be of a
clear bright golden dun, and not as black as possible, which
would be a departure from the correct colour, and too near
an approach to blue. The wing coverts should be of a creamy
dun, and only dark enough to show up the rose pinion. The
tail is of a medium shade of dun, barred with the same colour
as that of the wing bars. The yellow-mealy ought to have
bright yellow neck and wing bars; but the wing coverts in
this colour are never so decided in colour as to show the rose
pinion without the closest examination. The tail is so light
as to appear white. Yellow-mealies are usually hens. The four
solid colours black, dun, red, and yellow have, therefore, their
corresponding barred colours, all of which are very beautiful
when good; but in the present state of the fancy, I question
if there is a sufficiency of breeders to give them the attention
they require. In crossing the barred with the solid colours,
chequers are produced, which are of service in breeding back
to the barred, but detrimental to the solid, colours, which
they tend to spoil, as is well known to those who understand
breeding for colour.
To give a Pouter every chance in competition at a show, it
must be carefully tamed and rendered familiar by systematic
training. The difficulties which beset the Pouter fancier on
this account are very graphically described by Eaton, in a
note where he compares the ever-merry Norwich Cropper with
the frequently-sulky and phlegmatic Pouter. Temper and dis-
position are very variable in Pouters, many of the best birds,
when penned up, obstinately refusing to show off what good
shape they possess. To send the average Pouter direct to a
show from his loft or aviary, where he has been so far at
liberty, without preliminary training, is to lose half the chance
he may have of winning. The greater portion of the lives of
some birds, even in the breeding season, is spent closely penned
up ; but most fanciers have neither accommodation nor inclina-
tion to keep their birds in this way, and only commence to train
241 POUTING PIGEONS.
them after the breeding time. Every bird intended to be
shown must, therefore, be penned up separately, the cocks
being placed out of sight of the hens ; and by often talking to
them, using such expressions as "hip, hip, hoo-a, hoo-a," and
at the same time snapping the fingers, a good-tempered pigeon
soon becomes very tame, and shows up whenever called upon.
A proud hen, that will stand quietly on the hand, may also be
carried round before the cocks, which soon puts them on their
mettle; and it is well to allow all penned-up birds out occa-
sionally, so that they may stretch their wings. It is a bad
practice to put one's hands in the pens and allow the birds to
peck at them ; this gets them into the habit of always jumping
off their blocks, and coming to the front of their pens, on the
approach of anyone. Pouters are naturally familiar birds,
few of them refusing to become very tame if any trouble is
taken with them; but perseverance and judicious treatment
must be exercised, and kindness accorded to such as keep
long shy and stubborn, for they will not be driven into show-
ing. The late Mr. Montgomery, of Belfast, said: "Pigeons,
like other animals, have got tempers ; a sulky, bad-tempered
bird will never be a winner in a show-pen, and I question
the propriety of breeding from such birds, as they transmit
this peculiarity as well as others." As to breeding from such,
everyone will, of course, be guided by circumstances. I fear
good Pouters will never be plentiful enough to allow any hard-
and-fast line to be drawn against breeding from one possessing
a particular fault, if good otherwise.
The Norwich Cropper.
The Norwich Cropper is a pigeon which is found in its
purity in the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, and Essex. It has
hitherto been undescribed by name in any book treating of
English pigeons, though quite distinct from the large Pouter ;
but some allusions are made to it by Eaton, who was evidently
sensible of its great beauty and fine style. The Uploper and
Y
242 FANCY PIGEONS.
Pouting Horseman are two varieties of Croppers described by
Moore, at pages 37 and 38 of his " Columbarium." Of the
former he says: "The Uploper is a Pigeon bred originally
in Holland, its Make and Shape grees in every respect with
the English Powter, only it is smaller in every Property.
Its Crop is very round, in which it generally buries its Bill ;
its Legs are very small and slender, and its toes are short
and close together, on which it treads so nicely, that when
moving, you may put anything under the Ball of its Foot ;
it is close thigh'd, plays very upright, and when it approaches
the Hen, generally leaps to her, with its tail spread, which
is the reason the Name is given to it, from the Dutch Word
Uplopen, which signifies to leap up. These Pigeons are
generally all blue, white, or black, tho' I will not assert that
there are no Pieds of this Species. There are but very few
of them in England, and I have been inform'd that in
Holland they have ask'd five and twenty Guineas for a
single Pair of them."
Moore then describes the " Powting Horseman " as follows :
" This Pigeon is a bastard Strain between the Cropper and
the Horseman, and according to the Number of Times that
their young ones are bred over from the Cropper, they are
call'd first, second, or third bred; and the oftner they are
bred over, the larger their Crop proves. The Reason of
breeding these Pigeons is to improve the Strain of the
Powters, by making them close thigh'd, tho' it is apt to
make them rump, from the Horseman's Blood: They are a
very merry Pigeon upon a House, and by often dashing off
are good to pitch stray Pigeons, that are at a Loss to find
their own Home; they breed often and are good Nurses,
generally feeding their young ones well. I have known
these Pigeons to be six Inches and six and a half in Legs;
they are a hearty Pigeon and, give 'em but Meat a,nd "Water,
need very little other Attendance. Some of them will home
ten or twentv Miles."
243 POUTING PIGEONS.
There is certainly much in the description of the Uploper
which agrees with that of the Norwich Cropper, and, if
Moore had said that it was marked like the Pouter, I should
consider the breeds identical. The Uploper was, however, a
self-coloured Cropper, and Moore could not say positively
that there were pieds among the breed. While the shape,
carriage, and general characteristics of the Norwich Cropper
are well described by Moore in his account of the Uploper,
its merry disposition and peculiar flight is, to a slight extent,
mentioned in his description of the Pouting Horseman; but
I cannot consider the latter to be the same variety, for it
was evidently much nearer the Pouter in size, nothing like
6in. to 6iin. in limb being found in pure Croppers. Nor have
Croppers the slightest indication of ever having been crossed
with the Horseman, their heads and beaks being of a pure
Blue Bock Pigeon formation. That the Norwich Cropper, as
it exists, is a much older and more constant breed of pigeon
than the English Pouter I am well satisfied of, but I have
no means of knowing how long it has existed, or how it was
originally produced. Its marking, like the Pouter's, is found
in several Continental breeds of Croppers, and the probability
is, that both our Pouter and Cropper were gradually bred up
from Continental varieties, perhaps brought here by immi-
grants in the Middle Ages. Gonzales, in his account of Britain
(1730), says of Norwich: "The worsted manufacture, for which
this city has long been famous, was first brought hither by
the Flemings, in the reign of Edward III., and afterwards
improved to great perfection by the Dutch, who fled from the
Duke d'Alva's bloody persecutions."
The properties of the Norwich Cropper are size, shape,
carriage, feather, and flight. Flight is, indeed, the chief
point with many, who, though they may admire all the other
points, consider them as of little consequence if a bird cannot
perform well in the air. The German writers, Neumeister
and Priitz, mention certain peculiarities in the flight of some
Y 2
244 FANCY PIGEONS.
of the Continental Pigmy Pouters; but that similar pecu-
liarities are shared by a pure English variety, the fanciers
of which have an old, though unwritten, code of rules to
guide them, is not generally known. I learned much of what
I know of these rules from Mr. Boreham, of Colchester, who
graduated under an old Cropper fancier, the late Mr. Perry,
of Great Yarmouth, who, I believe, died, at an advanced age,
somewhere about 1871. He was a Cropper fancier all his life,
always kept up a stock of good birds, and was always willing
to buy a good one. I had one old cock which belonged to
him, from which the best 1 ever possessed descended.
SIZE. I admire smallness of size in a Cropper, though
not at any sacrifice of what goes to make up general good
shape. Mr. Boreham, and others with whom I have ex-
changed ideas on the subject, agree with me in this, while
many pay no regard to size if a bird flies well. The best
Croppers I have seen were of a medium size; but there
little difference in size between the largest and smallest birds
of the pure breed.
SHAPE. While it would take the best parts of several
first-class English Pouters to make up such a pigeon as my
drawing represents, I have seen many Croppers quite equal
in outline to my illustration. The crop in these pigeons is,
for the most part, far better developed than in Pouters,
their respective sizes considered; indeed, many of these
beautiful little pigeons have crops that would be considered
good in a large Pouter. The crop, or bladder, as it is called
in Norwich, is often as round as a ball, even filling out
behind the neck, so that a perfectly spherical shape is some-
times attained; and in it, as Moore says of the Uploper,
the bird " generally buries its Bill." The legs should be
entirely free of feathers; but about half the number of
Croppers I have seen or possessed have had some short
feathers down the outsides of the legs and on the middle
toes, which I consider so far faulty, the barelegged birds
245 POUTING PIGEONS.
being very much smarter in appearance. However, as some
of the best birds are slightly feather-legged, they are not to
be discarded on this account. Flight being considered all-
in-all by many Cropper fanciers, feathered legs are of little
consequence ; at the same time, bare legs are allowed to be
correct. I have not seen any pure Croppers completely
stocking-legged, and the more they are so the worse they
look. No doubt the Pouter is vastly improved by com-
pletely feathered stocking limbs ; but, as I have shown, it
was barelegged in Moore's time. The little Cropper having,
however, quite a different carriage from the Pouter, feathered
legs give it a clumsy appearance, and this is a settled question
among many of those who keep them. The legs ought to
be placed in the body as in the Pouter, compared with
which the Cropper is straighter in limb, not inclining so
much at the hocks. Slenderness of girth, or of waist as it
is termed, is, of course, an admirable property in the Cropper,
and is best seen in young birds, for they naturally thicken
as they increase in age.
Regarding length of limb and feather in Croppers, I give
the following measurements of birds I have possessed, some
of which were bred in Norfolk and the adjoining counties, and
some by myself. Ten cocks averaged 5 T 5 ^in. in limb, and 15in.
in feather; they varied from S^in. to S^in. in limb, and from
14^in to 15iin. in feather. Nine hens averaged S-^in. in limb,
and 14|in. in feather; they varied from Sin. to 5fin. in limb,
and from 14in. to 15in. in feather. There is, therefore, nothing
like the variation in length of limb and feather among them
that there is among Pouters. Their average length of limb, in
proportion to their average length of feather, is also equal to
what is only rarely attained in Pouters, which proves them to
be more easily bred good in shape than Pouters. This is,
indeed, the case, and many perfect models in shape may be
found among them, which, of course, makes them very much
less valuable. Good Croppers should feel no heavier in the
246 FANCY PIGEONS.
hand than average-sized common flying Tumblers. They
vary a little in size, like every other variety.
CARRIAGE. Croppers have the most upright carriage of
any variety of pouting pigeons I know of. They occasionally
overcharge their crop with wind when young, but generally
soon grow out of this habit. Slack-winded birds are almost
unknown among them. So long as they keep in health they
remain in show, and in this respect present the greatest con-
trast to large Pouters. For the most part they walk perfectly
upright, their wings being carried tightly to their sides, and
their flights never crossed at the points. They are, however,
inclined to carry their wings rather low, thereby not showing
so much of their belly and thighs in profile as is desirable.
The flights ought not to reach to the end of the tail by nearly
an inch, long-flighted birds being bad fliers. It is noticeable
that the best flying varieties of pigeons, such as Blue Bocks,
Tumblers, Dragoons, Antwerps, Triganicas, and Croppers, are
all rather short in flights, long wings being impedimental to
pigeons in their flight, whatever they may be to some other
kinds of birds. The tail of the Cropper is carried as shown
in the drawing, and seldom any higher. In stretching itself
to its utmost height, it often walks on its front toes only, the
back ones being off the ground, or just touching it, resemb-
ling in this respect the Uploper, regarding which Moore says,
" that when moving you may put anything under the Ball of
its Foot." Its style of movement so far resembles the Pouter's ;
but it is allowable for the Cropper to spring off the ground
when playing to another pigeon, and this it often does in leaps
of 3ft. or 4ft. across the floor, opening its wings on its way,
and quickly closing them as it alights. This leaping, which
is so ungainly in the Pouter, is executed with such expertness
by the Cropper that it is pleasant to see them perform it.
FEATHER. The Cropper is found in eight principal pied
colours, all of which are admired, because they are all beautiful.
Four of these are solid colours, and the others are their
247 POUTING PIGEONS.
corresponding barred colours. Some of them being known,
in the Cropper fancy, by different names from what is usual,
I here give the Norwich and general nomenclatures :
ENGLISH POUTER. NORWICH CROPPER.
Black ... ... Black.
Bed ... ... Cinnamon.
Yellow ... ... Yellow.
Dun ... ... Mouse.
Blue ... ... Blue.
Mealy ... ... Dun.
Yellow-Mealy ... ... Cream.
Silver ... ... Cloth.
Black, owing to the practice of breeding the best flying
birds together, regardless of their colour, is seldom seen very
glossy in Croppers. Some of the best shaped and marked
birds I have seen were of this colour. Black pieds are often
quite free of objectionable leg feathering, and generally very
good fliers. Cinnamons (reds) and yellows are scarce, and
difficult to get. I have seen and had well-marked and fairly-
coloured birds of both these colours. They are generally
somewhat feather-legged, which makes them valuable to
breeders of stocking-legged pied Pigmy Pouters. Mouse-
coloured Croppers (i.e., dun, as in Carriers) are not common.
I was told that the late Mr. Perry, of Yarmouth, had a good
bird of this colour, and as I bred one myself from a bird
which formerly belonged to him, it may have been a de-
scendant of the one he had.
The great proportion of Croppers are of the bar-winged
colours, blue and dun (i.e., mealy) being the commonest. The
blue ought, of course, to have black bars, but kite-barred blues
are very common. The dun, like all mealy pigeons, has a
light tail. Its neck and wing bars ought to be bright red,
and its wing coverts of a clear light mealy, when it is called
a miller dun. A red dun has the wing coverts of a reddish
tinge. Between the miller dun and cinnamon there are many
248 FANCY PIGEONS.
degrees of colour, according to the amount of red in the
plumage. Cloth (i.e., silver) is one of the prettiest colours,
and is of many shades. The neck and wing bars of a
Cropper of this colour vary from a light dove-coloured to a
hard blackish dun, a beautiful golden chestnut dun being
the most pleasing tint. The wing coverts ought to be of a
soft creamy dun, only dark enough to show up the rose
pinion. This colour pigeon has, of course, a dun tail, barred
to match the neck and wings. Cloths are mostly hens, a
really good cloth cock being rather a scarce pigeon. Creams
(i.e., yellow-mealies) are also usually hens, and very rare.
They have, of course, light tails, and their colour is so
delicate that a rose pinion is scarcely distinguishable on their
wings. Their necks and wing bars ought to be rich yellow.
The barred colours are very much interbred, the result being
left to chance ; in fact, it is usual to breed two good birds
together, no matter what colour they are ; hence, unless
when breeding from a pair of the same colour and not
always then it is impossible to predict what the young ones
will be like. To improve blacks, yellows, and cinnamons,
they ought, of course, to be kept distinct from the barred
colours. As all the solid and primary barred colours are
found in Croppers, the intermediate or chequered also exist
in a great variety of shades, but are not generally liked
or bred for. Pure white birds are occasionally seen, and
whites with coloured tails are an old and favourite variety.
There are three colours of them viz., black, blue, and cloth-
tailed. To be properly marked they ought to be entirely
white, with the exception of the tail and its upper and under
coverts. Some coloured feathers on the head are often found in
them, as well as a white feather or two in the tail, or among the
under tail coverts, which does not look well when the birds are
flying. Their tail primaries ought to be sound in colour, but
are frequently very much grizzled with white. The Cropper
is very often mis-marked in having an excess of white, though
249 POUTING PIGEONS.
I have had a few of them very well marked to the Pouter
standard. A deficiency, or total want of bib, causing the
ugly swallow throat, is very common ; so is the blaze face, or
snip on the forehead. A flesh-coloured beak usually accom-
panies a large snip; the bird is then said to be pink-nosed.
The whole front of the crop is often white, and ring-necks
are sometimes found. The rose pinion is occasionally seen
beautifully defined, but a wing free of any white is more
seldom seen than a bishop wing. A good flying bird, however
ill marked, is bred from, because perfect flight is not easily
got and so bad marking is perpetuated.
FLIGHT. The Cropper is the merriest and liveliest, and
can be made the tamest and most familiar, of all pigeons.
In the loft, or out of it, he is always on the move, and, so
long as he remains in health he keeps in show. The rules
for good flying are as follow : A good bird should spring
up from his trap like an acrobat from a spring-board, and
go off in a circle, loudly clapping his wings, so that he can
be heard from afar. His tail must be carried spread out like
a fan, but depressed in the middle, so that it has the shape
of a scoop. A well-spread scoop tail is valuable, because
rare to get. Extra tail feathers are often found in Croppers,
some having fourteen or more ; a well-carried tail is all the
better to have these extra feathers. Like other breeds in
which more than twelve tail primaries are often seen, Croppers
generally want the oil gland on the rump. A good Cropper
should have a rocking action in his flight, his head and tail
going up and down like the movement of a rocking horse.
Then, as soon as he gets enough way on his flight, he must
stop using his wings, and, raising them, so that they nearly
touch at the points, sail motionless through the air, and the
longer he can so sail, the more valuable he is. A good bird
will sail along for 50yds., gradually lowering as he goes ;
then, again using his wings, with loud claps, he will rise as
much as he has fallen, and go on alternately in this way
250 FANCY PIGEONS.
till lie pitches. A Cropper ought not to fly far nor long at
a time. He may go twice or thrice round his house in a
wide circle, then pitch, play up to his hen, and fly off again.
The period during which they fly best is the week or ten
days before the hen lays, when their courting is going on; but,
even when sitting or feeding young ones, each will fly well alone,
though not in such good style as during the time mentioned. A
good way to gain the flight of Croppers is to let out a lot of
odd cocks and one proud hen, when good sport may be had.
There is certainly nothing in the whole pigeon fancy from
which greater pleasure can be derived than a flight of well-
trained Norwich Croppers. Beautiful in shape and feather,
grand fliers, ever dashing about with spirit, both in the loft
and out of it, in them the owner possesses a source of in-
exhaustible amusement. I have always kept the noble and
majestic Pouter, which everyone will allow is one of the
choicest pigeons in the fancy; but he generally wants the
spirit and life of the active, merry Cropper. The Pouter can
certainly fly, after a fashion, and if flown from his squeaker-
hood is fairly able to take care of himself when allowed
liberty; but the choicest large birds cannot be said to be at
home in the air, which the Cropper is, to a much greater
extent than most pigeons.
The remarks on Pouters by Dixon, in his " Dovecote and
Aviary," apply solely to the Norwich Cropper, as can be seen
from his allusions to its flight, colour, &c. His illustration
of it represents a barelegged blue Cropper, and is, perhaps,
the best and most life-like picture of a pigeon in his book.
I observe from the preface, that he was living at Norwich
when the work was issued. He says, at page 122 : " The
flight, also, of the Cropper is stately and dignified in its way.
The inflated crop is not generally collapsed by the exertion,
but is seen to move slowly forward through the air, like a
large permanent soap-bubble with a body and wings attached
to it. The bird is fond of clapping his wings loudly at first
251 POUTING PIGEONS.
starting to take his few lazy rounds in the air, for he is too
much of a fine gentleman to condescend to violent exertion.
Other pigeons will indulge in the same action in a less degree,
but Croppers are the claquers par excellence; and hence we
believe the Smiters of Willughby to be only a synonym of
the present kind." This description is very true to Nature ;
but, as I have shown, the Smiter of "Willughby is the bird
known in Germany as the Bingbeater.
Eaton could appreciate the excellence of the Cropper, which
he writes of as the Pouting Horseman as follows : " I have
seen some of these light-bodied Pouting Horsemen that ap-
peared to me to fly as light as Tumblers, and, when flying with
the Tumblers, their round, globular crops, well filled and up,
have a very pleasing effect, owing to the contrast of the
Tumblers. With regard to dashing off, they are not only a
merry but a spirited pigeon; not only spirited, but graceful
in the extreme; I would rather see an elegant shape, small
or narrow-girt Pouting Horseman, 6^in. in the leg (think of
this, Gentlemen of the Pouting Fancy !) than an English
Pouter, even if it would measure 7in. A large English Pouter,
with thick girt, and hog-backed. Style is a grand thing, and
the Pouting Horseman is the English Pouter in miniature,
retaining all its properties." As I have explained, Croppers
are nothing like 6|in. in limb ; but Eaton, if he ever measured
any, was probably unwilling to write what, at the time, would
have been regarded as something very heterodox. How well
he goes on to describe what may be seen at any show of
Pouters : " How often it happens, at a grand show of these
remarkable, fine, large, English Pouters, after having been
previously prepared for showing, that is separating each cock
and hen, and not allowing them to see a pigeon, show well
in their own pens ; but when put into the show pen, a male
bird, expecting it will show, it stretches forth its head and
neck, apparently taking a sight of all the Fanciers in the
room, almost as much as to say to some of them you owe
252 FANCY PIGEONS.
me something; some may show to a certain extent. It is
very disheartening to Gentlemen Fanciers of the English
Pouter when this takes place, after forwarding their birds
miles, &c., to give their brother Fanciers a treat, as it was
supposed ; it does not always turn out to be so, owing to their
not showing, as it is called. Nevertheless, it often proves
a treat to see what length of body and shape, length in leg,
and beautiful in feather. It is otherwise with the light (not
heavy) merry spirited Pouting Horseman cock, when put into
the show pen, always up and ready for his work, not long in
stripping himself, putting himself in attitude, and suiting the
action to the word, display that fine action of showing which
is well understood by the Gentlemen of the Fancy; giving
infinite satisfaction with regard to being a merry pigeon, &c.
... I have this week bought two pretty little Pouting Horse-
man cocks; I am informed they come from Norwich. I am
given to understand they fly tremendously, with very large
crops. . . . The Gentlemen Fanciers of the English Pouter
may assume that I admire the small Pouting Horseman more
than the large English Pouter. The contrary is the fact;
I never have, and never shall, advise the young and in-
experienced Fancier to attempt to breed a second-rate bird,
while he has the opportunity to breed a first-rate bird, there-
fore I shall not advise him to breed the Pouting Horseman
while he has the opportunity to attempt to breed the English
Pouter, any more than I shall advise him to breed a Skinnum,
Dragon, or Horseman, while he has the opportunity to attempt
to breed a Carrier, for degeneracy will do that, in spite of
the efforts of the most experienced Fanciers ; but I am desirous
you should breed the English Pouter with more style and
grace, with a hollow back, smaller in the girt, stout legs, but
not like mill-posts, soft downy or snow-like feather legs; but
not rushed and sprouted with feathers that almost prevent
the bird from walking."
All the foregoing is in a long note to Moore's description
253 POUTING PIGEONS.
of the "Powting Horseman," which I have already quoted.
Eaton took it for granted that the Norwich Cropper was
identical with the Horseman, and evidently could not see,
though he had had birds direct from Norwich, that they
were a pure and distinct breed, having nothing to do with it.
His remarks on their fine style, in comparison with that of
the Pouter, are, however, well weighed, and very conclusive.
It is about six years since the foregoing account of the
Norwich Cropper was published in the first edition of this
work ; and, in the interval, the taste for this engaging pigeon
has spread widely, and it is now kept in districts where it
was previously unknown. Some shows have lately given
classes for them, which have been well filled; and I expect
that, with the steady increase of the pigeon fancy in general,
and keen competition in most of the better known varieties,
the Norwich Cropper will gradually take a prominent place
in the principal exhibitions, which it is well entitled to.
That well-known fancier and writer, the Rev. Alex. Headley,
of Chippenham (" Wiltshire Rector "), some time ago described,
in enthusiastic terms, a flight of these lovely birds which he had
got together since reading my account of them. Others, also,
who like pigeons of beautiful appearance, merry ways, and great
power of flight, have found all this in the Norwich Cropper,
regarding which I once wrote :
He springs from his trap, he sails through the air,
Loud clapping his wings as he goes,
Now he's down on the roof, playing up to his hen,
See how neatly he trips on his toes !
They're off now together, and as they wheel round
You may hear the wind sigh through their wings,
Like the zephyrs so sweet through ^olus his harp
As they murmur their song through the strings.
The Pigmy Pouter Pigeon.
The English pied Pigmy Pouter is a modern breed, which
ought to agree in every respect, except size, with the large
254 FANCY PIGEONS.
Pouter. Captain Norman Hill has been working at this variety
for about twenty years, and to his skill and perseverance we
are indebted for many of the best specimens that have been
exhibited. A noted specimen, bred by him, was a black pied
hen, first exhibited in 1879. Afterwards he produced a very
curious one, which was black pied on one side, and blue pied
on the other. This bird, which was very small, was well marked
according to the Pouter standard. At the Crystal Palace Show
of 1885 he showed some very well-marked, glossy-coloured
black pieds.
The following correspondence with Captain Hill, in the year
1880, will show how he produced his now well-known breed of
Pigmies. He wrote to me as follows : " Some time ago I saw a
letter of yours, in the Fancier's Chronicle, on the Norwich
Cropper, which in itself was good, and correctly written; but
therein you ventured a remark which I must take exception to,
and which, at the time, I fully intended putting you right on, as
far as my strain of pied Pigmies are concerned. Your opinion
then was, as far as I can recollect, that my good Pigmy that
had been produced lately was a cross between the Norwich
Cropper and the foreigner. Until I went to Colchester I had
never seen a Cropper worth looking at ; then I saw one or two,
in Mr. Boreham's collection, with fair markings and more
character than I had before seen. The thought then struck
me, had I possessed one of them at the time I began, I might
have saved years in the manufacture of my Pigmies ; but this
may be doubtful. However, I never had one in my possession
until this season, when I bought three from Mr. Boreham, after
he had supplied you with the best specimens he got at Norwich
or Yarmouth. I am now giving them up, having no opportunity
of witnessing their flying powers, and I cannot agree with
you in admiring their other properties in preference to the
Pigmy.
" In reply to your inquiry, how I bred my much-admired
black pied Pigmy, I may state, briefly, by in-breeding and
255 POUTING PIGEONS.
selection of the most diminutive and Pouter-like birds for the
last fourteen years. Its genealogical family tree, as far as I can
trace it, starts from a whole-coloured blue Austrian Pouter
cock I bought, in 1866, from the late Mr. Evans, of the Borough,
at that time a good Pouter fancier. This bird was quite bare
on shanks, and nearly so on toes, but very small, and of fine
form. I mated him to a blue Pouter hen, a weed, small, gay
in marking, and well-feathered on limbs and toes, determined
to try to breed dwarf Pouters on the same principle as Game
Bantams were produced. I in-bred for five years, and then
obtained a whole-coloured, mealy- chequered cock, with good
limbs and toe feathering, finding it more difficult to obtain the
latter points than correct markings. I mated him to my best
pied hen, and from them got whole-coloured and foul-marked
dun, mealy, satinette, and other nondescript colours. In-
breeding then for some years with the blue pieds, they produced
some black and blue splashes some dark, others nearly white.
Prom two black splashed cocks, mated to a silver and a blue
pied hen, in one season was produced two blacks a cock and
hen which are the parents of the little black pied wonder.
Its dimensions are: Length of limb, 5f in. ; length of feather,
13iin. There are bred from it, this season, two black pieds, two
blue pieds, two black and one blue splashes, all small and
stylish, but none equal to the parent in markings or combi-
nation of Pouter properties; still, I do not despair of produc-
ing other equally perfect specimens of the miniature Pouter
of the period."
With reference to the above, not having seen the bird
described, I could not make any comparison between it and a
good Cropper ; all I could say was, that I preferred such
Croppers as I had to any foreign Pigmy Pouters I have seen.
Knowing that a Pouter with 7in. limbs, properly shaped, and
rightly placed in the body, can afford to measure 19|in. in
feather, if such length is made up in a certain way, as described,
I at once saw that Captain Hill's Pigmy was quite out of this
256 FANCY PIGEONS.
proportion. But even taking 7in. limbs to 18fin. in feather,
this Pigmy, being 5fin. in limbs, ought to measure 15in. in
feather, if formed on the same lines. I pointed this out to
Captain Hill, and had the following reply : " In order to satisfy
you and myself, I have re-measured my little gem, and find
length of feather 13in. in full, or at the outside ^in. more;
limb, 5fin. These are the same measurements as were taken
by Fulton and a crowd of admirers at the Palace, when the
bird was first shown there (not for competition) in November,
1879. It appeared there again, two months afterwards, at the
Peristeronic Show. Although the above measurements appear
out of proportion to those you quote, and are so, according to
the old rule for the Pouter, still, no one who has seen this little
bird has made the remark that it was not symmetrical; on
the contrary, either on or off the block it is considered graceful
in form, and walks well, without rumping or jumping. In my
opinion, a slender Pouter, with 7in. limbs, well-formed and
placed, is much more pleasing to the eye, if under 19in., than
one over that length ; but such birds are rare. The limbs of
this Pigmy are not spindly, but well-set and stockinged, with
the proper curves, not too straight, neither bent, and with
perfectly spread toe-feathering. Markings very perfect, good-
sized bib, crop and both pinions correct, no approach to bishop-
ing, and a true line at belt ; but, like the majority of its large-
brethren of same colour, it has a few foul feathers at thigh
joints. Flights ample, and well- carried ; colour a deep black;
dark orange eye ; pout a good size, and well-shaped ; but, as
you intend making mention of it, you ought to know, what was
a great surprise to me and to others viz., the discovery, when
it was about nine months old, that it had deceived us in its
sex, as it turned out to be a hen after being matched up to
another hen. It is again keeping close company with a large
Pouter hen. I have known other instances of a similar kind,
but never one whose action, voice, and coo, were so like to a
cock.
257 POUTING PIGEONS.
" I have given you all these particulars as I find I cannot
bring my mind to risk the journey to-and-fro of my wee pet,
much as I would like you to see it at the present time. The
mealy-chequer is the only new blood introduced into my strain,
with the exception of a yellow Austrian hen, whose young have
never lived. The mealy is most unlike the Norwich Cropper,
being heavily covered on limb and toes, and the blue cock,
wire-legged, is now the oldest bird I bred, and longer in limb
than any Cropper."
Eaton, at page 72 of his 1858 book, says : "At the sale of Ban-
tams, pigeons, &c., belonging to the late celebrated and spirited
fancier, Sir John Sebright, I was astonished to see the English
Pouters in miniature possessing the five properties of the
English Pouter." Some have supposed these were stocking-
legged birds; but no proof of this can be adduced. The above is
contained in a note on the Pouting Horseman, much of which I
have already quoted ; and my own impression is, that they were
selected Norwich Croppers, such as I have had myself.
There is still room for improvement in the pied Pigmy
Pouter, its prevailing faults being wide set limbs, round or
hog back, and too little crop; but as several persons are now
directing their attention to it, we may expect to see great
improvement as time goes on. The colours of the breed
at present are mostly black, blue, and silver pieds : red and
yellow pieds are scarce. A few have been bred coloured like
the laced Blondinettes, but wanting the white spots on the tail
feathers. These seem to have been produced from crossing
blues, blacks, and strawberries.
French Pouters.
According to Boitard and Corbie, there are several varieties
of Pouters bred in France. The writings of these authors
evince a personal acquaintance with most of the varieties ; but
their descriptions are so meagre, and their technical words so
impossible to translate just as the terms used only by pigeon.
258 FANCY PIGEONS.
fanciers here would be into any foreign language that, were
it not for the illustrations in their book, it would be quite
impossible to form any correct idea of the appearance of the
birds described by them as follows :
The largest French Pouters are known as Pigeons
Grosses-gorges, or Pigeons Boulans, and are represented as
large, thick-bodied, short and barelegged, clumsy, Runtish-
looking birds. They appear to be both self-coloured and
pied. The latter have white nights, and are white in front
of the crop, so far approximating in the disposition of their
marking to the English Pouter and Norwich Cropper, which,
doubtless, have some remote connection with them. The crop
is well- developed.
Boitard and Corbie allow that the English Pouter attains
a greater size than the French. I made an attempt, some
time ago, to obtain from France some blood-red Pouters
of this variety, but my correspondent searched for them in
vain. The Grosse-gorge Bleu, with white crop and nights,
is, it is said, much spread over Picardy, where it is greatly
esteemed. Every separate colour seems to constitute a distinct
variety with these writers, hence, nearly twenty kinds are
classified ; but, except that some are entirely barelegged, while
others are somewhat feather-legged, I can find no mention of
any difference in form between the various breeds. On page 28
of Brent's pigeon book is an exact copy of Boitard and Corbie's
Pigeon Grosse-gorge Maurin a Bavette, but entitled by him the
" Old German Pouter."
LILLE POUTERS (Pigeons Lillois) are thus described : " This
race of superb pigeons belongs to the Pouter division, since,
like the preceding, they have the power of inflating the throat,
but in a lesser degree. The crop in the Boulans is always of a
spherical form, instead of which these have it in the form of
a long pear, of which the thinnest part is below, and the
largest part under the beak. -These pigeons take their name
from the town of Lille, where they are much bred and esteemed.
259 POUTING PIGEONS.
Their head is small, beak long and slender, and they are not
subject to the crop diseases of the large Pouters."
The Pigeon Lillois Elegant is portrayed as a short-legged,
thick-bodied, very upright- standing bird, with a small oval
crop, which is white in front, as are the nights. Boitard and
Corbie say : " It is very well made, of an elegant and graceful
form, body placed almost vertically on the legs, in such man-
lier that the head is on the same line as the feet ; small head,
no cere round the eyes, stockinged legs, only the middle toes
covered with feathers a trait which is only met with in this
variety wings long and crossed. This bird is of light flight,
is of great productiveness, and is greatly to be recommended
to amateurs who wish to unite the useful with the agreeable."
This pigeon seems to bear some resemblance to the Norwich
Cropper, and, from what I can make out, its colours are like
those of the bar-winged Croppers ; but to a British Pouter
fancier, nothing more inelegant than the shape of it, as pictured,
can be imagined, so that I can scarcely believe it to correctly
represent the breed.
The next variety mentioned by the same writers has evidently
a, resemblance to our Cropper in flight.
Pigeon Lillois Claquart.- " This pigeon, which Buff on has
confounded with the Tournant" (Smiter, or Kingbeater), "makes
a noise with its wings when commencing to fly, like a claquette ;
hence its name. It inflates its throat, has long wings, crossed
over the tail, a cere round the eyes, and stocking legs. Its
plumage is white or chamois, or blue shouldered with white-
that is, having the upper part of the wing white. It produces
well, which makes it much sought after."
For my own part, I have never seen long-flighted pigeons fly
so well as the short-flighted.
THE CAVALIER POUTER (Pigeon Cavalier) is recommended
for its beauty and productiveness. "This race appears to be
extracted from Bunts (Romains) and Pouters, of which they
lave the general form, as also the power of inflating the
260 FANCY PIGEONS.
throat, more or less according to the variety. Some have
thick nostrils, membranous and fleshy, or even a little mush-
roomed, but rarely ; they have a red cere round the eyes."
The Pigeon Cavalier Faraud is pictured as a tall, upstanding,
shell-crested, long-cropped, and barelegged Pouter. It is said
to be a cross between the common Cavalier and the Sagadais
Mondain a Vceil.
German Pouters.
Neumeister and Priitz describe several varieties of German
Croppers (Kropftauberi), and say, regarding the whole race :
" This universally known and favourite kind of pigeon is
distinguished from all others by its ability of puffing up its
throat to the highest degree, so that it often becomes as large
as the remaining body. This is done by drawing in air into
the throat, by means of the bill, somewhat opened, the throat
valve closing ; which closing is brought about in a manner
which has not yet been thoroughly investigated, but it is likely
by a co-operation of the neck muscles. As to the beauty of
Croppers, it is essential that the neck be long, so that the
head does not stick between the shoulders, which gives them
an unshapely appearance. Their flight is mostly good, though
somewhat heavy; they flap much with their wings, and fre-
quently make playful gyrations, with their wings held high.
Their propagation is but middling, but they are much liked
on account of their cheerful ways and the above- described
remarkable blowing up of their crops, which gives them
peculiarly graceful attitudes and movements. They should
never be kept with other pigeons, especially large kinds, as
they are helpless when blowing, and unable to withdraw from,
or defend themselves against, the attacks of others. The crop
loses its feathers by blows from the beak, is even sometimes
pierced; when feeding with other nimble kinds they often
come short; their pairing is also interfered with, which is
telling on the offspring. They are variously marked, of
261 POUTING PIGEONS.
quite different forms, and therefore divided into the following
varieties :"
THE OLD GERMAN POUTER (Der Deutsche Kurz und GlaUfils-
zige Kropfer] " is one of the largest Croppers, of considerable
height. Its length 55 centimetres " (21fin., 36in. = 91 centi-
metres), " and breadth of outspread wings. 105 centimetres. It
passes for the original race of all the remaining Cropper kinds.
The round head is mostly smooth, sometimes with a pointed
hood, brow high, bill proportionately short, neck very long,
and, along with the crop, strongly hung with hair; breast
and back broad, the latter somewhat hollow. The crop
always puffed up, hanging somewhat forward, has a diameter
of 12^-15 centimetres, and a circumference up to 42| centi-
metres. The short, strong legs, are unfeathered ; the wings,
carelessly hanging down, overreach the tail end by 5 centi-
metres. This is the characteristic mark of the German
Cropper, and is not found in any of the following varieties.
The usual colour is either white, or blue with white head or
tips, yellow with a white tail and head, or black. It is very
much to be lamented that this pigeon, in its pure state, seems
almost to have disappeared, as it is never represented at the
exhibitions. The propagation is extremely poor. The main
cause of its disappearance is likely owing to change of
fashion, in consequence of which breeders have turned more
to the slender, high-legged kinds."
This breed is represented, on Plate XI. of Neumeister's
" Das Ganze der Taubenzucht," in four colours white, yellow,
red and blue ; the two last have turn crowns. The coloured
birds have white heads, nights, and tails, but are dark thighed.
They are short, and bare in limb.
THE BRESLAU POUTER (Der Breslauer Kropfer) "comes
nearest to the preceding, is of stately size, generally speaking
is one of the largest Croppers, yet not long in body, nor do
the pinions reach beyond the tail, so the dimensions are much
less. It occurs one- coloured and marked, in the latter case
262 FANCY PIGEONS.
with a white upper head, the yellow marked frequently with
white flights and tail."
THE POMERANIAN POTJTER (Die Pommersche Kropftaube)
11 has a great resemblance to the English Pouter, with which
it is unmistakably connected. It is found in perfect beauty
at Stralsund and Greifswald." And then follows a detailed
description of it, taken from an article by Dr. Bodinus, pub-
lished in the year 1858.
Herr Priitz, in the third edition of "Die Arten der Haus-
taube," published in 1878, states that the Pomeranian Cropper
" is said to have been imported from England many years ago ;
but it is, without doubt, much handsomer than all similar
Croppers which have lately been brought from England that
I have seen. The late Herr Wermann, of Altenburg, an
authority on pigeons, was quite delighted when he first saw a
pair which I had sent to Herr von Beust." From his descrip-
tion of this variety, it would appear to resemble the English
Pouter in all respects, except that any white pinion on the
wing, which, when rightly defined, is so valuable in our breed,
is a fault in it. It would also appear that the Pomeranian
must have much rougher limbs than our Pouter.
The principal breeder of Pomeranian Croppers, Herr Wilhelm
Hevernick, in a lecture entitled " The Pomeranian Cropper, and
its Relation to the English one," delivered in the Ornithologi-
cal Club of Stralsund, and published in Columbia of February
15th, 1879, a copy of which was very kindly sent to me by its
editor, Herr Priitz, says as follows : " If I try in the following
paper to establish the relationship of the Pomeranian and
English Croppers, as well as their descent, to point to the
value of a rational breed of Pomeranian Croppers, and to
warn against crossing with the English, I must preface the
plan of my work with this my view, without claiming infalli-
bility, that this subject, so far as I know, has not been handled
by anyone before me, excepting Dr. Bodinus. He first described
the Pomeranian Cropper about twenty-five years ago, and drew
263 POUTING PIGEONS.
the attention of pigeon-lovers to this beautiful bird, at that time
not known anywhere beyond Fore-Pomerania. I must remark,
that only my great love for this race of pigeons induced me
to undertake investigations into its descent, development, and
relations, and to communicate the result here, in the hope of
giving others breeders a motive, through my views, to consider
this circumstance, to make known their views, and to treat
this subject further in our club, in order that we may be in
a position to breed our beautiful Cropper in such quantity and
quality that it may equal the English and French breed in
beauty. I am persuaded that this is very easily practicable,
provided we have the understanding and will necessary for it.
To perfect the first, and to aim at the latter, is the plan o
my lecture."
He then goes on to describe the peculiarity of all Cropper
Pigeons, and argues that the distension of their crops must have
proceeded from long, careful, selective breeding in domesticity,,
because such pigeons could not naturally exist, as they could,
never hold their own in a state of Nature. Assuming that
Croppers, as well as all other races, are derived from the
Blue Rock Pigeon, he does not think that all the kinds of"
Croppers are necessarily derived from one original race, but
that they might have originated from parallel running lines;;
or, in other words, that the distension of crop in pigeons may
have been noticed in different countries and times, and in-
dependent races established from them. He does not, however,,
mean to try to prove which races may be considered originals,,
but only to express his opinion on the relationship and origin,
of the Pomeranian and English breeds, as the clearing up of
this relationship is necessary for the rational breeding of the-
former. He evidently did not know that it is on .record how
our English Pouter was produced, which would have materially
assisted him in his investigations. He proceeds:
" As I suppose that, to all who are interested in our Cropper,
the marks of both races are known, I will omit an exact
264 FANCY PIGEONS.
description of them, yet it appears necessary for my plan to
illustrate more nearly the striking peculiarities, as well as the
resemblances, of both. The English Cropper is very large,
and very much of the same size as the Pomeranian. The
inflated crop is round, and must be intersected by an incision
on the breast, so that this incision forms a regular shape;
the rump is proportionately thin, the tail long and slender,
the legs are very long, possibly equally feathered with downy
feathers, only the toes must have standing out feathers so
that they quite hide the toes, but at the same time form no
shoes, which is a decided defect in the English Cropper."
What is meant by "shoes" I do not exactly know, but I
learn further on that the Pomeranian breed is much rougher-
limbed than ours, which, though considered a beauty in them,
is a grievous defect in ours.
"The Pomeranian Cropper is almost, or quite, of the same
size as the English; but its rump is thicker, its crop not in-
flated so like a ball, on account of which the shape is lost;
the tail is shorter, and is carried a little more spread out. The
legs with good birds are almost as long as with the English.
Yet from a distance they do not appear so long, because they
are provided with pretty large feathers, which form stockings
below the hocks and shoes at the feet. The colours and marks
are the same as with the English; pure whites also occur,
though they have become rare; and there are whites with
black and blue tails. The last mark often occurs, and I have
hitherto believed that whites with black tails existed in no
other race, especially in the English, for Fulton does not
mention them, although he treats his subject very minutely
and fully. It is striking that among the Pomeranian Croppers
there are no whites with red or yellow tails."
I have seen many blue and black-tailed white English Pouters,
and they can easily be bred by pairing a black or blue pied
with a white. The first cross often results in such marking,
as I have observed elsewhere, and it can easily be fixed, as
265 POUTING PIGEONS.
in the Norwich Croppers. Red and yellow-tailed whites are
however, impossible, or next to it, because, as Herr Hevernick
truly observes, the coloured tail is not found in red and yellow
pied Pouters; at least, not dark enough to match the body
colour.
" On beard and heart " (i.e., bib and half-moon), " as it is
called, we place the same conditions with Pomeranian as with
English Croppers ; but white feathers on the wings, which with
the English are more and more highly prized according to
their form, are in all circumstances a defect with the Pome-
ranian, and a sign of careless breeding, or of a bad origin.
In consequence of this, these feathers are cut off with a pair
of scissors by many breeders. On this occasion I cannot
refrain from blaming this proceeding most decidedly, for there
can be no interest, in my opinion, in examining the pigeons
of a breeder of whom we know that he indulges in such
rectifications; however, on the other hand, it may perhaps be
represented that someone may say he sells no pigeons, and
removes their feathers in order that his pigeons may please
him better, no matter to him whether other breeders allow
this proceeding or not. But, if anyone sends pigeons to an
exhibition, all the same whether for sale or not, I can find
no point from which such manipulations can be defended, for
they have only impure motives, such as bragging or base dis-
honesty. The bearing of the Pomeranian must be high and
upright, though not so high as with the English. But if, as
Priitz says in his noteworthy book, ' Die Arten der Haustaube,'
the back must be arched a little convexly, he is mistaken; at
least, I have heard this hog's back, as the English call it, always
very expressively blamed.
" Now, if we compare the two races with each other, we find
that size and marking are nearly the same ; but with the
English the crop is somewhat more inflated, the shape some-
what thinner, the tail more slender, and longer, the legs some-
what longer, but less strongly feathered, and the bearing more
2 A
266 FANCY PIGEONS.
upright than with the Pomeranian. With both races white
feathers occur on the wings; yet this is considered a defect
in the Pomeranian, while with the English this mark is highly
valued. But this mark is only the result of a careful choice
in breeding, continued for years, and is very difficult to fix;
it occurs in England in the wished-for perfection very
seldom, and is only known to me by description and pictures
from English prize birds; while I have never met with this
mark, in specimens shown in Continental exhibitions, in
anything like such perfection. If we place an English and a
Pomeranian pattern bird together, the first must positively
please us most, not on account of its beauty, but on account
of its peculiarity, which consists therein that the bird, with
its great length, and upright bearing, shows a very voluminous
upper body, and a high, thin, under body, both of which are
only joined by the slender figure. Dr. Bodinus says : ' The
English Cropper gives the impression of a large, beautiful
statue placed on a small pedestal,' and I find this very striking.
The Pomeranian Cropper, on the other hand, appears very
compact, firm, and powerful, yet shows in the parts of its
body, and in its whole appearance, such great harmony as I
have never seen in any other race of Croppers, with the ex-
ception of the striped Hollanders" (whole-coloured Croppers
with white, long bars). " If we examine more closely the whole
impression of both races, we find that in both the character
of the nation is exactly expressed. The Englishman likes the
unusual and peculiar, and the Pomeranian (especially the
~New Fore-Pomeranian) likes the less striking, but compact
and strong; and from these motives in the breeding both
races have evidently arisen. After having seen that the total
impression with each race is quite different, we find that the
differences in the single parts of the body are not important.
This circumstance lets us know that both races are nearly
related; therefore, there remains only the question whether
one race descends from the other, and which has been the
267 POUTING PIGEONS.
original, or whether both have arisen from some common
stock. In my opinion, we find the answer to this question
very easily if we look practically into the way and manner
of degeneration in both races. That both easily degenerate
with careless breeding lets us know that both races are not
yet very old ; but in this respect we must not think of the
generations of man, for, no doubt, both races have existed
200-300 years. If we now examine the degeneracies of English
Pouters, the shorter legs and less upright carriage show their
ancestors must have had these faults. With the degeneration
of Pomeranian Croppers we find lower and less-feathered legs,
white spots on the wings, and white snips on the forehead,
which leads us to suppose that they proceed from a race which
had bare legs and white heads. Only the old German Croppers
are so marked, and I therefore take them to be the original
of our Croppers."
From the foregoing it is evident that there is enough re-
semblance between the English and Pomeranian Croppers to
establish a connection between them. Sailors speak of every
northern European who is not a Frenchman as a Dutchman.
Moore's Dutch Cropper was evidently a bird with much re-
semblance to the Pomeranian, so it is not unlikely that this
pigeon, " flag thigh'd," as Moore says, was the ancestor of our
Pouter. The Horseman cross would take the feathers from
its legs at first, evidence of which I have adduced from the
Treatise of 1765, and from the description of my old painting
of the time of Moore ; but leg feathering to suit the taste of
fanciers was quickly recovered. As to solid shoulders being
infinitely preferable to bishoped wings there is no doubt; but
the Pomeranian breed itself is evidently not altogether free
of white " daubs " on the wing, as they are called. As to
deducing both varieties from the old bald-headed, long-bodied
German Cropper, already referred to, I can see nothing in the
argument at all. The correct crop marking of the English Pouter,
and similarly marked breeds, must necessarily vary very con-
268 FANCY PIGEONS.
siderably in breeding, there being no certainty in the production
of a white mark which has no structural conformation in the bird
to guide it, such as a white head, wings, or tail. The rose pinion,
for the same reason, is a difficult mark to breed. Hence,
Pouters come, and must always come, more or less close or
open marked. The crop is sometimes seen solid, or free of
white, and sometimes the bib is wanting ; the bird is then
swallow - throated, and a white blaze on the forehead often
appears. The same may appear on a bird correctly marked
on the crop. No one would adduce a white blaze on the fore-
head of a short-faced mottled Tumbler from Baldhead blood.
The little Norwich Cropper, from careless breeding, is very
subject to the blaze face. I have seen Bunts, imported from
abroad, some of which I had, marked exactly as the Pouter
ought to be marked, except that they had no white feathers
on the shoulders. They weighed over 31b. per pair. It is
something for one who admires his own breed so much as
Herr Hevernick does, to allow that a pattern English Pouter
"must positively please " a fancier more than a pattern Pome-
ranian. It is unlikely that many English Pouters of the first
quality have been seen in Germany, because they easily sell
here for several times the price foreigners will give for them.
Were English fanciers to breed for solid shoulders they could
very easily accomplish their desire ; but they consider the rose
pinion such a set-off to a bird that they will not abandon it ;
and, although it is rare to see it well-defined, it is now and
then seen.
Herr Hevernick says that it was Dr. Bodinus who named the
Pomeranian Cropper, that it was sometimes known before as
the Hollander, and that he has seen some that were brought
from Holland very like it. These might have been taken from.
England, or they might have been of a Dutch breed. He saw
some in the market of Rotterdam which were not English, but
which resembled the Pomeranian, though not so good. He
says the breed has lost quality in late years ; that it was better
269 POUTING PIGEONS.
twenty-five years ago, but that, about that time, offers of
tempting prices induced breeders to part with their best birds,
which were scattered to all places, and soon lost sight of. He
concludes his lecture by giving much valuable information on
the breeding of the Pomeranian Cropper, observing, that of late
a great increase in breeding had taken place, and warning
breeders against crossing with English blood, which he had
found did not improve this variety. From all I can learn
from his lecture, I do not think this variety, though evidently
allied to ours, can be of any service to Pouter fanciers here,
because it seems smaller, and rather inferior in all its points
of shape in comparison with our best birds; however, if I
were to see a collection of good Pomeranians, which I may do
when I can spare the necessary time, I could at once form an
opinion on the subject more to the point than can be gathered
from any amount of descriptive writing.
THE SAXON POUTER (Die Sdchsische Kropftaube) "is not
so large as the German, far quicker and lighter in flight, and
of a slimmer shape. The wings lie close to the body, and
reach to the end of the tail, on which the wing-points cross.
The beak is longer and thinner than with the German Cropper ;
legs and thighs are high, and feathered. It is of a weakly
constitution, and propagates poorly. The plumage, generally,
is one-coloured blue, black, red, or yellow ; frequently, however,
Day-coloured, with white wing-bars."
THE DUTCH POUTER (Die Holldndische Kropftaube). I
understand that the following description applies to a Cropper
bred in Germany, and known by this name : " The Dutch
Cropper is distinguished from the Prague Cropper by a some-
what larger body, and by a crop more of the shape of a
cylinder than a ball. Its legs are high, covered with trousers
and feathers. It is always one-coloured, often with white wing
bars. The bay-coloured" (Isabel-coloured) "among them are
most cultivated, and no other colour is found in the same
perfection. In Holland, where this breed is original, it like-
270 FANCY PIGEONS.
wise occurs only one-coloured, yet there it has thin legs, less
feathered, and short toes, standing close together. The gait
of the cock is tripping, and he leaps towards the hen. It is
of a very erect bearing, slimly made, and high-legged, because
it carries its thighs outside the plumage of the belly. It
inflates its crop very well, and it assumes an oval, cylindrical
form. The wings do not reach the end of the tail, are narrowly
drawn together, and their points cross over the tail. The Dutch
Cropper, in its erect posture, when strongly feathered on the
legs, resembles a falcon at rest. It is a very cheerful pigeon,
fond of flying, of flapping its wings, and especially of swoop-
ing along, floating with high held wings. It is a pretty good
breeder."
THE AUSTRIAN KLATCHER (Der Oesierreichische Klatscher]
"is between the Dutch and German Croppers in size, and a
powerful pigeon. Compared with the Dutch, it is broader built,
heavier, has shorter, unfeathered legs and feet, does not stand
so erect, has longer wings, and inflates its crop in the same
way as the German. One might take it for a cross-breed
between the German and Dutch Croppers; but such is not
the case. Its plumage is distinguished by being glossy and
glittering; it is entirely self-coloured, and never shows white
pinions, or any white on the head, which would be the case
if it were a descendant of the German Cropper. It is a very
good breeder, very lively, and when flying the shortest distance
it flaps its wings, so that it is heard from afar, like the
Ringbeater. It occurs in Switzerland blue, yellow, and white."
THE PRAGUE MAGPIE POUTER (Die Prager Elster-Kropf-
taube). " This Cropper, which has become very rare, is of a
structure between the German and Dutch breeds, standing
higher than the latter, and having well-feathered legs and
feet. It is a good pigeon for breeding, very lively, and has
the manner of the Dutch Cropper." The illustration of this
Cropper represents an upstanding, rough-legged, Magpie-marked
back. The marking is exactly the same as that of the Magpie
271 POUTING PIGEONS.
Pigeon, except that the head is white. There seems, from
what Neumeister says, to have been formerly a similarly
marked German Cropper. The Prague Magpie Cropper,
though shown with a white head on his coloured plate, has
evidently not a pure white head, as he says that, from the
beak to the middle of the head, it is of a " coloured paleness,"
probably meaning that the head is of a powdered colour.
This concludes the account of the large Continental Croppers
as gathered from the French and German writers named.
Tegetmeier says, at page 71 of his Book on Pigeons, regard-
ing foreign Croppers : " Many of these birds are very prettily
marked ; a pair, a short time since, came into our possession
of a very bright yellow, with pure white wings and flight
feathers, and well-defined white rings round the necks." This
marking nearly resembles that of the Prague Magpie Cropper,
already described, to which race they probably belonged.
The Bengal Pouter Pigeon.
I have seen in Bengal several Croppers of a breed which
I believe is peculiar to that country. They were of a size
between the English Pouter and Norwich Cropper, feathered
on the legs, but not roughly, and by no means very graceful-
looking pigeons. They were called by a name which signifies
swell neck. Such as I saw were either self-coloured blue, or
blue grizzled in colour. They were evidently bred for crop
alone, being short in limb and feather. Considering their size,
some of them had very large crops. They seem to me to
have no connection with English Pouters, several imported
specimens of which I have seen in Bengal from time to
time. There are probably several other varieties of
Croppers throughout India and adjacent countries.
Foreign Pigmy Pouters.
Several varieties of Continental Pigmy Croppers have
been known in this country for a good many years. The
272 FANCY PIGEONS.
first that were introduced, so far as I know, were self-coloured
blacks, reds, blues, &c., which went by the name of Austrians.
Self colours with white wing bars are also known, the most
beautiful being the delicate cream or light dove-coloured ones
called Isabels. The smallest of these Pigmies are now generally
known by their German name of Briinners. So far as I can
learn from the description of these varieties by Neumeister
and Priitz, they ought to have clean legs. I have had them
with feathers on the outsides of the legs and middle toes,
precisely the same as in many of our Norwich Croppers, but I
prefer bare legs. Tegetmeier figures a pair of pigeons called
Isabels, very tall and rough-legged, but entirely devoid of
crop, and with none of the shape of a Cropper. He also
figures a pair of red Austrians, which well represent such as
I have seen, except that their limbs are well covered with
downy feathers, and their colour is too bright. Such Isabels
as I have had were miniature Pouters with hardly any leg
feathering, more delicate in colour than those Mr. Tegetmeier
represents in his book, Uplopers in carriage, only medium-sized
in crop, and carried their wings crossed at the tips. They
were splendid fliers, floating lightly in the air, with wings
upheld, for great distances, but did not clap so loudly as
Norwich Croppers, nor carry their tails so fan-like. They had
the ability, mentioned by Neumeister, of bending their hock
joints forward when stretched to their utmost height; but
they were not nearly so small as he speaks of, being very
little less than average-sized Norwich Croppers. Mr. Teget-
meier, who bred foreign Pigmy Pouters extensively, and pro-
duced them with stocking limbs like English Pouters, gives the
following weights and measurements of birds he possessed :
White cock IS^in. by 5|in Weight 8oz.
Blue hen 13in. ,, 5in ,, 7ioz.
Silver hen 13in. 4 Jin S^oz.
Neurneister and Priitz describe these miniature Croppers as
follows :
273 POUTING PIGEONS.
THE BRUNN POUTER (Die Brunner Kropftaube}, according to
Neumeister, "is found particularly beautiful in Prague and
Vienna, where it is known by the false name of the 'Dutch
Cropper.' It is the most elegant and finest of all the Croppers.
Having been first imported to us from Briinn, it was named
Brunner Cropper, and it is mostly known by that name. It
has the smallest body of all the house pigeons, its whole
length amounting to 27| centimetres (llin.). Legs very long,
the thighs being outside the plumage of the belly, and being
so stretched during the act of inflating the crop that they
almost form a perpendicular line. The leg measures 14 centi-
metres (S^in.); the full-grown pigeon weighs 200-266fgrm.
(7 to 9foz.). When not inflated, it is very little bigger than
a Blackbird, and so slim that you can draw it through your
thumb and forefinger. "When affected, it presses its thighs
outwards, to such a degree that they look like knees which
can be moved forward, as it stands almost perpendicularly
on the points of its toes. Its smooth, finely-shaped head, is
oval ; brow high, neck long ; the globular crop is 7 centimetres
(Sin.) in diameter, but without hair. The bill is thin, the
waist delicate. The wings, fitting closely to the body, reach
within an inch of the end of the tail. The tips are strongly
drawn together, narrow and long, and much crossed over
the rump. Feet and toes are weakly and smooth. On the
whole, the pigeon has a loose plumage, but, notwithstanding,
flies well and perseveringly. The Briinn Cropper is mostly
coloured like the Saxon. The black with white wing bars,
blue, red, and yellow, are the most common. The delicate
bay with white wing bars are the rarest. In this colouring
the whole plumage, without exception, must be equally, as it
were, breathed upon with the most delicate and aerial bay,
not so light but that the pure white wing bars can be
distinctly seen on it. In connection with this is an un-
spotted, delicate, flesh-coloured beak, toe nails, and eye wattle.
The iris is light yellow, with an orange border. A dark
2 B
274 FANCY PIGEONS.
beak is a chief defect. The Briinn Croppers are cheerful and
lively, are fond of flying rapidly, and of flapping, but do not
like to go near strange dovecotes. It is a worthy parallel to
the fine English Almond Tumbler, and as neat, elegant, and
cheerful in its way. Nothing prettier can be imagined than
a loftful of these lively, neat, and amorous pigeons, among
whom there is no end of courting and caressing. The loving
cock drives the hen before him, all the while inflating his crop
and cooing, while she walks forward in proud decorum. It
flies lightly, quickly, and with flapping wings, and is very per-
severing in its flight; in this the inflated crop helps, for it
happens that the Briinn Cropper can float for from fifty to
sixty steps in the air, holding its spread wings high over its
back without moving them. No other pigeon is able to do so
for so long a distance. Generally speaking, its flight differs
from that of other pigeons. If a swarm of these Croppers fly,
it is clearly seen how fond they are of it. It is for them a
pleasure to fly in wide circles around their house for half an
hour. The Briinn Cropper, when affected, runs on high legs, as
if on stilts, standing even on its toes, and inflating its round
crop so full that it reaches a diameter of 7 centimetres " (3in.).
The length of the Briinn Cropper (llin.) seems out of all
proportion to its limb, and I think, considering the weight of
the bird, it is mis-stated. Compared with our Norwich Cropper,
the Briinner is, doubtless, a smaller and more slender pigeon ;
but those I have had were very little less than my best Crop-
pers, which attained a diameter in crop up to 5in., 4|in. being
commonly seen. The Briinn Cropper is certainly smaller in
girth, and shows its thighs more than our Cropper, but its habit
of crossing its wings is a bad fault, in my opinion. I had one
Isabel-coloured Briinner hen which did not have this fault,
and some who saw her considered her one of the best shaped
little Pouters they had seen. She was 5in. in limb, and
14|in. in feather, but had only a small crop compared with
that of a good Norwich Cropper.
275 POUTING PIGEONS.
THE PRAGUE PIGMY POUTER (Die Prager Kropftaube), " also
called the Stork Cropper, is not much larger than the Briinner ;
the legs are of the same height, and, along with the toes,
somewhat feathered. It is either one-coloured, with white
wing-bars, or, like a stork, white with mottled, mostly reddish-
brown breast, nights, and tail. It comes from Bohemia, and
frequently very strong blowers are found among them."
This pigeon, of which Neumeister gives a coloured portrait,
is represented as a barelegged, very upstanding Cropper, with
red crop, nights, and tail. The head and upper neck are light,
the colour gradually deepening towards the lower neck.
THE DUTCH BALLOON POUTER (Die Holltindische Ballorikropf-
taube} "is, in the first place, distinguished from all other
Croppers by its peculiarly short, round form, and bent back
neck. Its length is 32 centimetres (13in.), the length of its
leg 14 centimetres (5^in.), the weight of the body up to
383igrm." (13ioz.).
"The head is smooth, the nape very powerful, the neck
bent back as with the Fantail, even when not blowing, and
this is the first characteristic mark of the Balloon Cropper.
The breast is correspondingly protruding and broad. The crop
has, when inflated, a diameter of 12^-15 centimetres" (5in.
to 6in.). "The flights do not reach the end of the tail, and
are somewhat crossed. The leg is shortly feathered, and the
colour and markings vary. It stands with stiff legs, and rather
low, and walks with dignity, nodding very much. In flying,
it holds its head and crop upright, which lends to the pigeon
the appearance of a balloon; hence its name. All other
pigeons stretch their necks out horizontally when flying, and
this deviation from the rule is its second characteristic mark.
It propagates badly. In Holland, much care is spent on its
production ; in Germany less, as, on the whole, this pigeon does
not make a very fine impression."
Chapter XXIV.
X WATTLED PIGEONS. X>
The Barb Pigeon.
lHAKESPEARE'S reference to the Barbary
Pigeon makes it the earliest noticed variety
that I know of in our literature. As Willughby
gives a recognisable description of the Barb,
under the same name (Barbary Pigeon), within
a hundred years of Shakespeare's allusion to it, there can
be no reasonable doubt that this breed has been cultivated for
at least three centuries in our country. Willughby describes
it as having a bill like that of a Bullfinch, with a circle of
naked, tuberous, white flesh, round its eyes, as in the Carriers,
and with white irides ; and adds : " My worthy friend, Mr.
Phillip Skippon, in a letter to me concerning tame pigeons,
writes that the eyes of this kind are red."
I think it likely enough that Willughby's " worthy friend "
was Major General Phillip Skippon, who was so much associated
with Oliver Cromwell in the Civil War ; and if so, he is the
earliest English pigeon fancier of whom we know anything.
The part he took in the troubled times in which he lived may
be learned from Carlyle's "Letters of Cromwell." He was
THE B A B B.
277 WATTLED PIGEONS.
the author of the following religious books : " A Salve for
every Sore " (1643), " Truth's Triumphs" (1648), and "A Pearle
.of Price" (1649). When Field Marshal in the army, he was
deputed by the Parliament, in conjunction with Cromwell
;and another, to go to Saffron Walden to allay some discontent
that had broken out among the soldiers. He is thus alluded
to in an old ballad:
Some citizens they say will ride,
To buy knacks for their wives ;
Let Skippon skip -on as their guide,
He may protect their lives.
Perhaps Willughby's correspondence is extant. Skippon's
letter about tame pigeons would be interesting to read.
It is owing to some importations of Barbs from the South
of France, made by Messrs. John Baily and Son, about thirty
FIG. 13. HEAD OF A BARB.
years ago, that this pigeon exists in our country in its
present excellence. Its French name is the Polish Pigeon
(Pigeon Polonais); and though it is now known in Germany
as the Barbary Pigeon, from its English name, it is also
called the Indian Pigeon (Indianische-taube}. Neumeister says :
" There is no explanation of the origin of the name ' Indian/
and the French designation, 'Polish.'" From what we know
278 FANCY PIGEONS.
of modern nomenclature, as applied to new varieties of pigeons
and poultry, it would never do to depend on the names of
old varieties as being indications of their origin. It is certain
that the Barbs which came from the South of France were
far superior to what were here previously ; and though the
name of this bird in French literature is Pigeon Polonais, it
may have another in the South. It is evidently an ancient
variety, and more nearly allied to the highest type of the Owl
tribe than any other. Both may be from the same stem,
and both may have existed from pre-historic times. I have
seen a few Barbs in Bengal, but was informed that they
were the produce of some that had been imported from
Europe.
The Barb should be smooth-headed and clean-legged; at
the same time, a crested variety has existed for long, and is
mentioned in our old pigeon books. The legs are occasionally
slightly feathered, which is so far faulty. A sub-variety is
bred in Germany with frilled breast like an Owl.
SIZE. There is a certain difference of opinion regarding
size, some liking a small bird, and others a large one. I
think that, when the head properties in two birds are equal
in proportion to their respective sizes, the larger bird is to
be preferred, as being bolder in all its points.
SHAPE. The neck short and thin, the breast very broad,
the legs short, and the flights rather long, and carried neither
high nor low, but lying on each side of the tail, is, I think,
the correct style for this pigeon, and it is that described by
Continental writers. Any gullet or fulness of throat takes from
the wished-for appearance of a massive head set on a thin
stem, which most, though not all, look for in a Barb. A gullet,
filling up the hollow of the throat, and making a bird broad
across the neck in profile, is a grand property in the Owl tribe,
with their sprightly carriage ; but the Barb has little carriage,
properly so called, and looks much better with a hollow, clean
run throat.
279 WATTLED PIGEONS.
SKULL. This should be very broad, and is, consequently,
rather flat, and generally with a fulness at the back. It should
be as much as possible of an equal breadth, and not wedge-
shaped. The forehead should be very broad, prominent, and
well-filled out, and form a curve from the crown to the beak
wattle, a straight-lined forehead in profile being a bad fault
very often seen. The forehead must be well-ribbed up, with
an indented line on each side of it, as if carved out, which
gives this pigeon a very nice modelled appearance in head,
not so marked in any other variety, though seen, in a less
degree, in the Owl tribe.
BEAK, very short, thick, well-boxed, and wide in the gape ;
the upper mandible in the same curve as the forehead, and the
under mandible approaching the upper in massiveness as much
as possible, which is hard to get, but which, when got, gives
a bird a grand appearance. The beak should be flesh-coloured,
or no more than tipped with colour.
EYE, as pure white or pearl coloured as possible, though
the nearest approach to this is usually a white iris, rather
red at its outer edge. Many good Barbs have yellow irides,
which ought not to disqualify, but be duly allowed for in
competition. White Barbs have been seen with pearl eyes, but
generally have bull or hazel eyes.
BEAK WATTLE. At maturity the beak wattle ought to
have filled up all inequality in the curve of the forehead
and upper mandible, and it may stand out a little in addi-
tion ; but it ought to be as free as possible from rough
wartiness, and show a clean division in the middle, appearing
like a small bean split open and laid across the beak. The
jew wattle on the under mandible should not be excessive,
but of course grows to a certain extent in such a pigeon as
the Barb. It should appear as three small warts, one in
the middle of the lower mandible, where the feathers finish
off, and the others on each side, below the opening of the
mouth. The beak wattle in a healthy bird is nearly white,
280 FANCY PIGEONS.
the jew wattle and corners of the mouth being of a reddish
flesh colour.
EYE WATTLE. This is one of the chief properties of the
Barb. It continues growing till the bird is from three to four
years of age, when it ought to be at its best. It should be
of an equal breadth all round, and, consistent with roundness,
the larger in diameter the better. It ought to be thickest at
its outer edge, and of a concave form, or shaped like the out-
side of a cart wheel, the eye being represented by the nave,
which stands out in the centre. The more prominent or less
sunken in the head the eye is, the better. The colour of the
eye wattle ought to be bright red; with age it often becomes
light, sometimes turning almost white.
The hen is generally less developed in all head properties
than the cock, though hens have been seen good enough to
be mistaken for cocks when exhibited. Before a hen can
reach such quality she is generally past breeding, Looked
at in front, the Barb's head ought to be very square and
blunt, the tops of the eye wattles reaching higher than the
skull, and standing away from it. When they incline towards
each other by rolling over the skull, the head appears con-
tracted, which is the opposite of what is .wanted.
COLOUR. The Barb is a self-coloured pigeon, and is found
in black, red, yellow, dun, and white. Blue is rare, but is
occasionally seen on the Continent. I think the red eye wattle
would harmonise very well with the blue colour. The black
is the most usual colour, and it can often be found good,
being the easiest of the artificial colours to breed; at the
same time, it is not found with such vivid green, metallic
lustre, as in some other varieties. Black may look very well,
and yet be far from the best possible tint. What the best
Barb black is in reality may be seen by looking at the reds
and yellows of the same relationship. The latter colours are
not found very good in Barbs, the red usually falling off very
much in colour towards the rump, flights, tail, and under body.
281 WATTLED PIGEONS.
The yellow may sometimes be seen fairly good, it being a
colour which does not look so bad, when a little thin, as the
red. Red, well lustred to the ends of the flights and tail, is
undoubtedly the most difficult colour to breed and to maintain
in fancy pigeons. Where it exists, black and yellow will be
found good. Dun in Barbs is usually of a deep, dark colour,
often merging into black. Pure white Barbs are scarce; they
appear from time to time as albinos bred from coloured
birds. To breed whites with coloured ones would certainly
result in a pied produce to some extent, but such are not
wished for. By this method, however, some specific marking
would be obtainable in time, if wanted. Black, red, yellow,
and dun Barbs, are so much crossed that, when any two of
them are breeding together, there is great uncertainty as to
the colour of the produce. Mr. P. H. Jones, in his description
of this pigeon in Mr. Fulton's book, mentions having bred from
a pair, in one season, black, red, yellow, dun, and white young
ones. He has given the following measurements of the Barb
in the same work : " Weight, 13oz. to lib. ; length, beak to tip of
tail, 12sin. to 14in. ; inner edge of eye to tip of beak, fin.; width
of skull, a full inch to l^in., measured between, not over, the
eye wattles; diameter of eye wattle, Hin.; length of limb,
measured as Pouters, 4in. to 4fin. These dimensions would
apply to cocks, and would be a little modified for hens, more
especially in width of skull." He considers these measure-
ments a fair standard, though a few birds might be found to
exceed them.
Formerly the native breeds of the Pouter, Carrier, and Short-
faced Tumbler, were regarded as the only high-class pigeons,
the Jacobin, Fantail, Owl, Turbit, Barb, and Trumpeter coming
lower in the scale, and being regarded as " Toys." Lately, Mr.
Fulton, in his book, has removed the Barb from the "Toy"
division, and added it to the "high class," or inner circle,
making four varieties of the latter. For my part, I regard
the Jacobin and all the Owl family as much choicer pigeons
282 FANCY PIGEONS^
than the Barb; but I dislike placing the various breeds in
any order of merit, as they are all very high-class pigeons.
The English Carrier Pigeon.
" This Bird is esteem'd, by the Gentlemen of the Fancy, as;
the King of Pigeons, on the Account of its Beauty, and great
Sagacity." So writes old Moore regarding the English Carrier ;:
and I believe, were a vote of English fanciers to be taken to-
day, the English Carrier would still be found to be considered
the " king of pigeons ;" while the great majority of Scotchmen
would vote for the Pouter. Moore says : " The original of these
Pigeons came from Bazora, in Persia, being sometimes brought
by shipping, and sometimes in the Carravans ; hence by some
ignorant People they are call'd Bussories. . . . The Dutch call
this Pigeon Bagadat, I suppose from a Corruption of the Name
of the City Bagdat, which was formerly old Babylon, which
Nimrod built, because they judge this Pigeon in its Way from
Bazora to be brought thro' that City." I have not met with
this account of the origin of the English Carrier in any book
older than the " Columbarium "; it is not to be found in
Willughby's " Ornithology," from which Moore has drawn so
largely; and as the breed was well established in England,
according to Willughby, sixty years before Moore wrote, it is
probably a traditionary account. I have satisfied myself,
however, that Moore's account is a true one, having had
many opportunities of seeing the Carrier Pigeons of Bagdad.
In Calcutta, some years since, resided Mr. David J. Ezra,
a native of Bagdad, whose business connections extended
over all the south of Asia. He had been a Carrier fancier
in Bagdad in his youth, and, at the time referred to, the
ships that were consigned to him from Bussora the Bazora
of Moore often brought him Carriers to add to the stock of
those birds which he had kept for many years in Calcutta.
I shall describe the appearance of these later on. They were
kept in an aviary, in the inner courtyard of his house, and
THE CARRIER,
283 WATTLED PIGEONS.
shared, with some Arabian gazelles, the care and attention of
their owner.
The earliest description of the English Carrier known to
me is Willughby's. He describes these birds as " of equal big-
ness with common pigeons, or somewhat less, of a dark blue or
blackish colour ; their eyes are compassed about with a broad
circle of naked, tuberous, white, furf uraceous skin ; the upper
chap of the bill is covered above half way from the head with
a double crust of the like fungous skin." The beak is described
as black in colour, and not short, but of a moderate length.
" Of this kind," he says, " we saw in the King's aviary in St.
James's Park, and at Mr. Cope's, an embroiderer in Jewin
Street, London." Mr. Cope would seem, from the repeated
mention of him by Willughby, to have been a very prominent
fancier in London then ; and King Charles II., in addition to
his fondness for the breed of spaniels which now bears his
name, was evidently a Carrier fancier. " Charles was also
extremely fond of sauntering in St. James's Park, where he
would feed the birds, with which it was well stocked, with his
own hands, and on these occasions very much preferred being
attended by only one or two of his personal friends rather than
by a retinue." This may be found in the short account of the
King's personal history in Bonn's edition of Count Grammont's
"Memoirs of the Court of Charles II."
It seems strange that, among the many admirers of the
Carrier, no one should have written a treatise on it, which
might well have been done, considering how much there is in
connection with it worth writing about. Some enthusiastic
fancier may yet do as much for this pigeon as "Windus and
Eaton have done for the Almond Tumbler. What might have
become a monograph on the English Carrier was begun, in a
serial way, in the pages of The Pigeon, by its editor, Mr.
Thomas M. Denne, of London, but was never completed, on
account of the cessation of that journal through the ill-health
of that gentleman.
284 FANCY PIGEONS.
The Carrier takes three years and upwards to come to
maturity. At some of the principal exhibitions classes are
provided for birds bred during the preceding season ; but,
generally, Carrier classes are only available for old birds.
This pigeon looks particularly well during two periods of its
existence viz., when under a year old, when its noble shape and
carriage are at their best ; and then, again, when its head pro-
perties are fully developed. A careful study of all that our old
books on pigeons contain regarding it, proves that it has steadily
advanced in excellence since Moore's time. Like other varieties
which take long to mature, good specimens are very valuable,
and I believe the sum of 100 has been paid, on at least three
occasions, for a fine specimen of this breed. Its name is, without
doubt, derived from the use made of it when first introduced
into this country, the same having been retained when it became
strictly a fancier's pigeon. Its sub-varieties, the Horseman and
Dragoon names which also clearly show their origin were the
birds mostly used in Moore's time as homing pigeons, but it was
merely because Carriers were too valuable "to risque their being
lost upon every trifling wager," as he plainly says, and not that
they were incapable of homing a good distance; for, says he,
" such is the admirable Cunning, or Sagacity of this Bird, that
tho' you carry 'em Hood-winkt, twenty or thirty Miles, nay I
have known 'em to be carried three- score or a hundred, and
there turn'd loose, they will immediately hasten to the Place
where they were bred." When Moore has written this regarding
the pure Carriers of his day, we must come to the conclusion
that they were not so developed in fancy points as they now are,
or that such as could fly sixty to a hundred miles were either
comparatively young ones, or old ones which had never made
up much in beak and eye wattle. There can be no reasonable
doubt that the Carrier is descended from the same stock that
has been used for many ages in the East as messenger pigeons,
and that, whatever it might be capable of doing now, its relative,
the homing Antwerp Carrier, is the variety capable, above all
285 WATTLED PIGEONS.
others, of homing from great distances. We have no means--
of knowing when the originals of our fancy Carriers were first
brought into England. It may have been about the time of the
Crusades; but, from Moore's succinct account, it is probable
that the breed was of no long standing in London when he
wrote, and that his words, already quoted, may have been handed
down through only a few generations of fanciers. From the
fact of pigeons having been used as messengers by the ancient
Egyptians and Greeks, and from the fact of a long-faced,
heavily beak and eye-wattled, Asiatic breed, being the founda-
tion of the highest developed type of homing pigeon, we may
assume that such a breed has existed for a long time in the
world.
The points of excellence in the fancy Carrier are the fol-
lowing :
SIZE. The Carrier should be a large pigeon, and the larger
the better. From the point of the beak to the end of the tail, a&
fanciers measure a pigeon, it should be from 16in. upwards. I
once measured a blue hen, and found her 17fin., and a young
blue cock of the same strain was 17|in. This hen owed her
length as much to neck as to feather, and was not badly pro-
portioned in any way. I should say, then, that a full- sized cock
Carrier should measure 18in. in feather, without having an un-
duly long tail. Blues are, however, admitted to be very stylish*
and handsome birds, though not generally up to blacks and
duns in head properties. For the latter, 17in., at present, is a.
good measurement.
SHAPE AND CARRIAGE. In Moore's description of the
Carrier, the following sentence occurs : " Their Flesh is naturally
firm, and their Feathers close, when they stand erect upon their
Legs, their Necks being usually long, there appears in them a
wonderful Symmetry of Shape beyond other Pigeons, which are
generally crowded on Heaps." This is so well put that I cannot
help quoting it. It will be seen from the illustration, that the
bird stands very erect, and firmly on its legs, with a long, out-
286 FANCY PIGEONS.
stretched neck, and with its beak at right angles to the same.
The neck ought to be long and thin, with a clean run under the
jaw, showing no gullet or thickness, and with a beautifully
arched or rounded-off shape at the back of the head. The neck
ought to be, as much as possible, slender all the way down, till
it runs into the body ; but this appearance is only seen in young
birds. As they mature they naturally get thicker at the junction
of neck and body. The wing butts should be well forward, and
level with the front of the breast, which ought to be broad. The
Carrier is naturally shy and wild, and this is of advantage to
its shape and carriage in the show pen, as any tameness or
familiarity is quite at variance with a statuesque appearance.
The inflation of the crop and spreading of the tail, which add to
the beauty of a good Pouter, when seen in a Carrier only spoil
its fine shape.
THE BEAK. This ought to be long, straight, and thick.
Moore says : " As to its Length, an Inch and a half is reckon'd
a long Beak, tho' there are very good Carriers that are found
not to exceed an Inch and a Quarter." The arguments that
have been founded on this statement have evidently been based
on the assumption that Moore's measurement was the same
as that still known as London measure viz., from the point
of the beak to the inner edge of the eye. I cannot believe
that Moore measured as far as the eye, considering the length
he gives. He evidently measured from the point of the beak
to where the feathers begin to grow, behind the mouth. I
think the fairest way to measure is from the point of the
beak to the centre of the eye, which is the method now
generally adopted and best understood. Measured in this way,
therefore, the Carrier should be as long as possible; but
mere length is of little consequence compared to the style
and set of the beak. It ought to be thick, and especially
so at the point; and the under mandible ought to approach
the upper in consistency as much as possible, fitting closely
to it. This is known as a box beak, which is one of the
287 WATTLED PIGEONS.
greatest beauties of the Carrier. The beak ought next to be
straight, and not inclining downwards, or the bird is down-
faced, which takes considerably from its appearance. The
division between the mandibles should be exactly straight,
and, when the bird is in position, level, or at a right angle
with the neck. As to the length of the beak, measured to
the centre of the eye, 2in. is about the extreme length
ever seen in a box-beaked bird. Thin spindle beaks, and those
in which the upper mandible has been allowed to grow out
past the under, have been seen exceeding this measurement
considerably, but such are of no intrinsic value, a blunt box
beak being what is desired.
BEAK WATTLE. This being one of the hardest points to
breed good, is, accordingly, a valuable one when anything like
perfect. A bird has seldom enough of it, to enable it to be
shown with success, till it has moulted several times, and
it sometimes continues to grow for five or six years. Many
kinds of pigeons get rough in beak and eye wattle with age,
but the Carrier has an extraordinary development of these
parts. This abnormal growth of wattle round the eyes and on
the beak constitutes its chief fancy value, all its other properties
being merely adjuncts thereto, calculated to set off these wattle
points to the greatest advantage. A good beak wattle must
be broad across the beak when seen from the front, short in
profile view, so as to show as much of the point of the beak
as possible, and rise high above the beak with a forward in-
clination at its summit, which is called being well tilted.
The growth of the beak wattle has been compared to that
of the cauliflower, which is a good illustration. It ought to
rise in three distinct portions as shown, and be as equal
as possible in formation on each of its sides, so as to have
their indentations, or crevices, corresponding. The wattle on
the under mandible is called the "jew wattle," a term not in
use in the old pigeon books, and the origin of which is obscure.
Some have considered jewed to be a corruption of jawed-, but as
288 FANCY PIGEONS.
it was customary for the Jews, during the last century, to
wear their beards when the English did not do so, the word
may be no corruption or technicality, but mean, literally,
bearded. The Carrier seems to have had little jew wattle in
Moore's time; he refers to the beak wattle as being "some-
times join'd by two small Excrescences of the same kind on
each Side of the under Chap." The picture of a Carrier in the-
Treatise of 1765, however, represents a bird well jewed. The
jew wattle ought to be similarly formed to that on the upper
mandible, though less in degree; so that, when all is fairly
well formed, the beak with its wattles, upper and under, has
the shape of a peg top. Sometimes the jew wattle grows
very much forward, and is heaviest towards the point of the
beak; and this, though not the correct form, is generally
found on what are very stout birds. A form of beak wattle
called the " walnut wattle " has the three portions on the
upper mandible very much in one mass, and not so pro-
minently defined as in the peg-top style. This form, when
large and well-shaped, is also valuable. A full-sized beak
wattle should measure 4in. in circumference.
THE HEAD ought to be long, narrow, and flat on the top.
Length is necessary for the growth of eye wattle, and to
prevent the crowding together of the beak and eye wattles.
Length of head assists what is called the distance, or space,
dividing the eye wattle from that of the beak, and this is.
also improved by the tilting of the latter. However, Moore
very truly says, when writing of the distance : " But I cannot
allow this to be a Property, because when a Carrier comes to
be three or four years old, if the Eye is broad, and the Wattle
large, they must of Necessity meet." This is no doubt true;
at the same time, a clear dividing space or distance between
the wattles is admired, and, the greater the length of head,
the more distance there will be. The head ought to be narrow,
and, as much as possible, equally broad over its length; it
ought also to be flat across, and is sometimes depressed on.
289 WATTLED PIGEONS.
the crown, which is not considered any fault. There is often
a protuberance at the back of the skull, but the less of this
the better, as it takes from the graceful curve of the head and
neck. If the head be arched from side to side, it is barrel-
headed, which is a serious defect. In profile view, however,
the head ought to be rather rounded from back to forehead,
or there will be no room for a large eye wattle to spread
upwards, in which case it must either grow over the crown,
or, if thick and heavy, fall downwards over the eye, which is
called being beetle-browed.
EYE. The eye should be large and prominent bolting, or
staring, as it is called by fanciers. When looked at from
above, the pupils should be seen standing quite outside of the
eye wattles. The bolt eye always tells well in competition, as
it gives an otherwise good bird a fine appearance. The irides
of black and blue Carriers ought to be, and usually are, of a
fiery red; they are lighter in duns, and hazel in whites.
EYE WATTLE. This ought to be as large as is consistent
with perfect roundness, and, consequently, the diameter of a
perfect eye wattle is limited to an inch or a little more. I
have seen a crown piece laid on the eye of a Carrier and not
cover the wattle. Such enormous eye wattles are generally
accompanied by rather small beak wattles, and are of no
intrinsic value, because in their growth they must depart from
the true circular shape. The eye wattle ought to be thin
rather than thick in substance, soft yet firm in flesh, of an
equal breadth all round the eye, and evenly laced. This is
known as a " rose eye," is the most difficult to obtain, and the
most esteemed. When the inner edge of the eye wattle takes
an angular shape, instead of being round, it is known as a
diamond eye; but though many admire this, it is not a form
of such true beauty as the rose eye. The eye wattle is a
property which is subsidiary to the beak wattle, the latter
being the most difficult point to get both large and well-
shaped. Given a good beak wattle, then a distance is neces-
2 c
290 FANCY PIGEONS.
sary between it and the eye wattle to set off both, and,
consequently, there is only room for a really round eye
wattle of a certain diameter. An eye wattle perfectly circu-
lar, and more than an inch in diameter, must encroach on
the beak wattle, and decrease the distance.
COLOUR. The Carrier ought to be self-coloured, and is
found black, dun, blue, silver, chequered, and white. Moore
says: "Its Feather is chiefly black or dun, tho' there are
likewise blues, whites, and pieds of each Feather, but the
black and dun answer best the foregoing Properties; yet the
blues, and blue pieds are generally esteem'd for their Scarcity,
tho' they will not usually come up to the Properties of the
foregoing Feathers." This statement remains generally true
after a lapse of a century and a half. The black ought to
be deep and glossy, showing no dulness on the wing coverts,
or with wing bars of a darker colour, as is often the case.
A white beak, or the same with a black tip to the upper
mandible, is admired, as often accompanying lustrous colour;
but though a white or flesh-coloured beak in a black Carrier
is admired, it is not a sine qua non. Strictly speaking, a
black pigeon ought to have the beak and toenails black, just
as a white pigeon must have them white. A white Pouter
without a coloured feather on it would lose all chance in
competition if dark beaked; a white beak in a black Pouter
would be a serious fault; and a black-headed Nun with a
white beak would have no chance in competition whatever,
however good otherwise. How, then, does it come that black
pigeons, such as Carriers and Barbs, are allowed to have
white beaks, and are admired with such? The reason is,
that in breeding the different self colours together in Barbs,
and the black and light-beaked dun in Carriers, the flesh-
coloured beak often remains in the best coloured blacks, so
that it has come to be considered by many as correct.
Regarding the colour of the wattles in the Carrier, Moore
says: "This Flesh is in some Carriers more inclinable to a
291 WATTLED PIGEONS.
blackish Colour, which is generally the more valued." At
the present time, the whiter they are in the colour of the
wattles the better they are liked. Pigeons of brilliant colour
are generally inclined to run reddish in the flesh round the
eyes, and Carriers are occasionally seen so marked in this
respect that very good ones have been distinguished as "red
eyed." Many have decidedly reddish flesh-coloured wattles.
The usual method in breeding Carriers is to freely cross
the black and dun colours. By this means the black is more
easily kept good than by constantly breeding blacks together.
The dun, which is generally considered an off-colour in most
fancy pigeons, though not in Carriers, is mostly of a soft
tint, inclined to fade near the end of the season, and pre-
senting a very dappled appearance during the moult, till all
the feathers are renewed. Neither the bright lavender dun
seen in some foreign pigeons, nor the deep glossy dun of the
Barb, are common in Carriers.
Blue Carriers are still inferior in average quality of head
points to the blacks and duns, but in size and shape they
are sometimes excellent. They fail, however, for the most
part, in colour, being often of a dull or dusky blue on the
wing coverts, with indistinct or half-obliterated wing-bars.
Blues have of late years risen in favour among fanciers, and
some superior ones are occasionally to be seen. Considerable
attention is being paid to them, and they will, no doubt, con-
tinue to improve.
Silvers are sometimes produced from blues, and have usually
the same failing in colour. They are generally hens. The
bad colour in blue Carriers is often attributed to crossing
with blacks, which is sometimes done to obtain stoutness in
head points; but I am of opinion that this bad colour is
inherent in the breed, and has always existed since it was
introduced, as I have observed the same bad blue colour
among the Carriers of Bagdad, the undoubted originals of
our Carriers. Black being occasionally bred with blue, and
2 c 2
292 FANCY PIGEONS.
all blacks being full of dun blood, the silver colour, which,
is the original of the dun, is bred from the black-crossed
blue as a natural consequence.
As the blue and black, and the silver and dun colours,
exist in the breed, their intermediate, or connecting colours,
the blue and silver chequers (dun chequers in fanciers' language)
are sometimes produced. These colours are not cultivated,
however, though birds having them might, if otherwise good,
be valuable enough as stock birds. Such blue and dun chequers
as are produced in crossing the solid with the barred colours
do not illustrate what might be accomplished were they to be
bred for as varieties. A correctly-marked chequer must not
only be properly dappled on the wing coverts, but show the
marking down the rump and on its under body. To get such
marking distinct is a very difficult matter indeed. Bed and
yellow, the choicest colours in domestic pigeons, do not exist
in Carriers. I have been told that Mr. Corker, the well-
known fancier, made considerable progress at one time in
breeding yellow Carriers, but that he did not persevere in
his attempt. There is no doubt that reds and yellows could
be produced, but the time and expense requisite for the work
would necessarily be very great. Were several breeders to
attempt it simultaneously, it is not unlikely that in time
both reds and yellows might be bred.
White Carriers existed from Moore's time down to about
1860, when the best collection of them belonged to Mr.
Potter, a London breeder. His stock was stolen, and it is
believed they were destroyed, as none of them were ever
recovered. Since then attempts have been made to resusci-
tate this variety, and some very good specimens have been
bred lately, by General Hassard and others who have been
working with them for years. Although there is no sure way
of breeding albinos from coloured pigeons, we know that they
are occasionally so produced, and I know of several instances.
It is not unlikely, therefore, that some one of the many
293 WATTLED PIGEONS.
Carrier breeders may be fortunate enough to breed a pure
white young one from his best black or dun birds, and such
would be valuble to a breeder of whites. "When an albino
is bred from a pair of coloured pigeons, they ought to be
kept breeding together if albinos are desired, as they are
likely to do the same again, the cause of lack of colour in
their produce remaining with them. Ordinary white pigeons
are well-covered with yellow down when hatched, but an
albino from coloured parents is hatched devoid of down,
like the majority of pigeons which afterwards prove to be
of a poor yellow; for richly-coloured yellows have a good
covering of down when hatched, though not so much as reds
and blacks.
Pied Carriers are mentioned by Moore, but how they ought
to be pied neither he nor any subsequent writer has set
forth. I do not think there is any understanding among
fanciers on the question. During the late scarcity of whites,
and in the attempts to breed them, parti-coloured birds have
been produced, and classes have occasionally been made for
"whites or pieds." There is enough in the standard of the
Carrier, as a self-coloured bird, to require the utmost attention
of its breeders, without adding specific white marking, which
would have to be done if pieds were to be recognised. There
is no doubt the Carrier looks best as a whole-coloured pigeon.
Blacks and duns have often white vents, and occasionally
white feathers, or white crutches, as they are called, at their
hocks, as well. These faults, in the eyes of some judges,
preclude their being shown as self-coloured birds, which, with
such pigeons as Carriers, is carrying the letter of the law
too far. A white-crutched bird should doubtless lose a point
or two in competition, but not be disqualified altogether, unless
the white about it is extensive. A merely white-vented bird,
which does not show it unless when handled, should only
lose to an equally good bird free of white. Many good strains
of Carriers have these small faults, which have not been
294 FANCY PIGEONS.
considered a disqualification hitherto; but the question is one
for breeders to settle among themselves.
When the beak wattle of a Carrier grows unequally, or
when its eye wattles become overhanging, causing it to be
beetle-browed, cutting and carving them into shape is some-
times practised. Pigeons made up in this way ought, of
course, to be disqualified if exhibited, the object of all shows
of fancy stock, such as pigeons, poultry, or dogs, being to
encourage natural, not artificial, excellence. Carriers cut in
the eye wattles for spouts are, however, on a different footing.
They have undergone a necessary operation, which should not
disqualify them in competition. But as it is an object to
breed the true rose eye which will not spout, one cut for
that fault ought to be heavily handicapped in competition,
as being a bird likely to perpetuate spouting eyes in its
produce, and, therefore, not of a desirable type.
The Bagdad Carrier Pigeon.
My acquaintance with the Carrier Pigeons of Bagdad has
been confined to such as were brought to Bengal by Arab
ships from Bussora, during my residence in Calcutta. The
best I have seen were those I mentioned as belonging to
the Jewish merchant, Mr. D. J. Ezra. I occasionally saw an
odd pair or two elsewhere, but they were always inferior to
his, and would be more correctly described as heavy Dragoons
than Carriers. They went by the name of Bagdadees, from
their native place. Mr. Ezra, from his position and influence,
would be able to obtain the best birds, and I have no doubt
that those in his aviary fairly represented the breed. He
had about six or seven pairs, some of which were matured
pigeons. They were all blues with black bars, most of them
rather dusky in colour. I could see no difference between them
and English Carriers as regards size and general character-
istics. The old cocks had heavy beak wattles and fair eye
wattles. Their faults were those of forty-nine out of every
r*ll
THE DRAGOON.
295 WATTLED PIGEONS.
fifty English Carriers, an inclination to be broad-skulled and
rather down-faced, or Roman-nosed. I consider them, not only
from Moore's account, but from their appearance, as the un-
doubted originals of our Carriers, which have been brought to
their present condition by generations of persevering fanciers.
And, after all, how many Carriers out of the hundreds bred
annually in England are fit to be penned at a first class-show ?
The best birds we have produce plenty not nearly so stout as
the best of those T have seen from Bagdad. Were any good
Carrier breeder to visit that city, I believe he might find birds
which he would consider well worth bringing home with him,
but whether of other colours than blue I am unable to say.
The Dragoon Pigeon.
Before touching on the Dragoon, it is necessary to say
something about the pigeon which our old writers called the
Horseman, a bird holding a position somewhere between the
Carrier and Dragoon. Although no longer recognised in the
fancy, the Horseman was distinguished from the Carrier in
being found in greater variety of colour. It was evidently,
when Moore wrote, the pigeon capable of flying the longest
distances, and it had then a distinct place in the fancy, as
will be seen from the following passage in Moore's work : "This
Pigeon in Shape and Make very much resembles the Carrier,
only it is smaller in all its Properties, viz. Somewhat less in
Body, shorter neck'd, the protuberant Flesh upon the Beak
Smaller, as likewise that round the Eye, so that there remains
a larger Space or Distance between the "Wattle and the Eye,
in this Pigeon than in the Carrier. They are generally more
inclin'd to be barrel-headed, and their Eye somewhat pinch'd.
" It is to this Day a Matter of Dispute, whether this be an
original Pigeon: or whether it be not a bastard strain, bred
between a Carrier and a Tumbler, or a Carrier and a Powter,
and so bred over again from a Carrier, and the oft'ner it is
thus bred, the stouter the Horseman becomes.
296 FANCY PIGEONS.
"The only tiling that seems inclinable to favour the Opinion,
that they are original, is a strain of this kind brought over
from Scanderoon, which will fly very great Lengths and very
swift ; but still the Answer readily occurs, that they may be
bred originally the same way at Scanderoon, and so transmitted
to us, however, non nostrum est inter vos tantas componere Lites,
that is, we shan't take upon us to determine such Controver-
sies as these.
"There are of this kind, of all Manners of Feathers; but
the Blue and Blue-pieds are most noted to be genuine and
good, and if flown are very good breeders.
"These are one of the sorts of Pigeons that are chiefly
made Use of in England, for the carriage of Letters, or fly-
ing of Wagers; because those that are possess'd of the true
original Carriers, which are at present very scarce here, pay
too dear, and have too great a Value for them, to risque
their being lost upon every trifling wager.
" These Pigeons when regularly flown, twice on a Day, that
is, turn'd out alone and put upon wing without any others,
will fly very large Circumferences, so that after they have
made a Tour or two round your own House, they will fly
four or five Miles out at Length and so maintain the Circuit
for an Hour or two: This the Fancyers call going an End,
and is what Daniel Moggs, who was one of the oldest Fan-
cyers, meant, when he jocularly us'd to bid his Pigeons
maintain their Length.
" This Practice is of admirable Service to 'em, when they
come to be train'd for the homing Part."
And the following is the whole of what Moore says about
the Dragoon:
"This Pigeon is absolutely and without dispute a bastard
Strain, being bred originally between a Horseman and a
Tumbler, and by matching their breed often to the Horse-
man, they will obtain a tolerable Degree of Stoutness.
"This Pigeon is a very good breeder, and as they are
297 WATTLED PIGEONS.
somewhat less than a Horseman, are reckon'd lighter, and
more expeditious in their Flight, for ten or twenty Miles,
but the Horseman if good, will generally out- do them at a
greater Length; they ought to be flown and train'd like
the foregoing."
During the last few years the Dragoon has been ex-
tensively bred and shown, and its popularity has been so
great that, even at first-class shows, it has been encouraged
with a classification and an amount of prize money out of
all proportion to its merits. This pandering to false taste
in pigeon breeding culminated at the Oxford Show of 1876,
where Dragoons had eighteen classes, against sixteen for
Carriers, Pouters, Tumblers, and Barbs combined. Weari-
some discussions have also gone on for years over the stan-
dard of a Dragoon, and I am not aware if those who have a
place in their hearts for fancy pigeons which the Dragoon
is capable of filling have settled the matter amongst them-
selves yet. Some time ago the National Peristeronic Society
of London appointed a committee of its members to con-
sider the question, and, on the 6th January, 1880, this
committee, after taking the subject to avizandum, handed in
the following report, which it was hoped would have been
accepted as the conclusion of the whole matter; but it merely
opened up some fresh discussions, so that their deliverance
can only be called an interlocutor after all.
"Gentlemen, Tour Committee, appointed to consider and
note the points of the Dragon, have the satisfaction of pre-
senting in their Report the following enumeration of pro-
perties which, subject to your approval, will constitute the
Standard of the Dragon as recognised by the Members of
the National Peristeronic Society.
"The Skull wedge-shaped and broad, yet proportionate to
the stoutness and length of the beak, slightly curved when
viewed from the side or front, thus showing no angle or ex-
tended flat surface.
298 FANCY PIGEONS.
"The Beak thick at its base, and so continuing for about
half its length, thence gradually lessening in calibre. Mea-
surement from the termination of the beak horn to the ante-
rior corner of the eye, not less than l|in. The lower man-
dible, stout and straight ; the upper, also thick, and terminat-
ing in a slight curve.
"The Beak-wattle peg-shaped i.e., broad and perpendicular
at its base, narrowing with even sides and longitudinal fur-
rows towards the point of the upper mandible, but not in-
truding on the lower.
"The Eye-wattle small, not fleshy, nearly circular, slightly
pinched at the back.
"The Eye prominent and watchful. In blues, silvers,
chequers, and grizzles, the irides of a deep rich red colour.
In other varieties, an approximation to this colour, except
in whites, in which the iris is dark coloured.
"The Neck of medium length, neither thin nor gulleted at
the head, and widening boldly at the shoulders.
"The Breast broad, the Shoulders prominently denned.
" The Back nearly straight, neither hollow nor hogged.
"The Wings strong, the Flights carried slightly above the tail.
"The Tail running in a line with the back, carried clear of
the ground, and extending quite half-an-inch beyond the tips
of the wings.
" Measurement of the Leg, from the hock to the foot, about
IJin. The Thigh stout and muscular. The whole length of the
Dragon, from the point of the beak to the extremity of the tail,
about 15in.
"Colour in Blues. The Neck dark and lustrous; the Body,
Bump, and Thighs, a leaden blue of uniform shade. Markings
A broad black bar across the end of the tail. Two black bars,
about i of an inch wide, even and distinct, running trans-
versely from top to bottom of each wing, in the form of the
letter Y inverted. Colour of beak, black. Colour of eye-
wattle, a deep blue-grey.
299 WATTLED PIGEONS.
11 Silvers. An uniform and bright creamy tint. Neck of a
deeper shade. Bars as black as possible. Beak of a dark
shade.
" Grizzles and Chequers. Each feather distinctly grizzled or
chequered. The Markings, colour of Beaks, and Eye-wattles,,
same as in blues.
" Yellows and Reds. Colour uniform and bright. Beak of
an even flesh colour."
The foregoing scale of points nearly agrees with what was
formerly known as the " London style," opposed to which,
the "Birmingham School" upheld a more Skinnumy kind of
Dragoon. Both kinds are fully described by their partisans in
Mr. Fulton's book, where coloured plates of each are given. I
think no one can carefully read Moore's descriptions of the
Horseman and Dragoon without coming to the conclusion that
the latter was, in his day, a different bird from the modern
London one, which closely approximates to his description of
the Horseman, with its barrel head, pinched eye, and various
colours, of which " the blues and blue-pieds are most noted to
be genuine and good." I think that, in the course of time,
Moore's Horseman and Dragoon have gradually amalgamated
in the present London Dragoon, which has become of a some-
what fixed type in the hands of London pigeon keepers, though
probably without much design on their part ; and now, in these
days of pigeon shows, when, in the course of a year, a typical
bird, according to the foregoing standard, can win quite a large
sum of money in prizes, it is no wonder that what was, before
show days, a pigeon worth only a few shillings, is now very
valuable indeed.
On comparing the standards of the Carrier and Dragoon, it
will be seen that much which is faulty in the former becomes
positively excellent in the latter. From this it might be
supposed that a very bad Carrier would make a very good
Dragoon, which is by no means the case, for, in practice, it is
found no easy matter to breed the latter good according to the
300 FANCY PIGEONS.
standard. About the time of the Oxford Show, in 1876, already
referred to, Mr. Denne, editor of the Pigeon, published an
article in that paper on " Exhibiting and Breeding Dragoons,"
from which I copy the following : " It matters not what inte-
rested parties may say, the real value of Dragoons is about four
or five shillings a pair. Of course, temporary causes, such as
this sudden run upon them for exhibition, may cause the price
of them to rise to much more than this, but the price we name
is the true one, as experienced men know, and we have bought
scores of pairs as good as ever have been seen, and could have
bought thousands at the price. "We have even bought them as
late as the early part of this year, and end of last, at an average
price of seven shillings a pair, as good as need be wished for,
and, in some cases, good enough to win prizes. The highest
price we ever paid for a Dragoon, in the whole of our experience,
we paid this year, viz., seven and sixpence for a blue hen, and,
at the time we did so, thought we must have been slightly
* touched ' to pay such a price. From these birds we purchased
we could, had we been disposed to have gone in for Dragoon
breeding, have bred as good blues, chequers, and grizzles, in
the course of one, or, at the most, two seasons, as the ' next
man,' and so can anyone who has a very slight knowledge of
breeding, by following the instructions we will give."
Before the days of pigeon shows, a pair of choice Pouters,
Carriers, or Almond Tumblers, were worth as many sovereigns
as the best Dragoons were worth shillings. How is it, then,
that now a good Dragoon is worth, roundly speaking, about as
much as a good pigeon of these varieties? Merely because it
pays well enough to give as much for a bird as it can win in a
season. The Dragoon formerly held the present position of the
homing Antwerp Carrier, and, like it, may have been occasionally
worth a large sum for flying purposes. It now holds the same
position as the Short-faced exhibition Antwerp, and is just about
equal to it as a fancy pigeon. Both would go down to their
former price of a few shillings a pair but for show encourage-
301 WATTLED PIGEONS.
ment. Real fancy pigeons have undoubtedly risen in value
since shows were established ; but they were highly valued
before, and they would continue to be highly valued were pigeon
shows abolished. To establish a breed of exhibition pigeons
from the faulty produce of Barbs, taking as their standard of
perfection a narrow skull, a small pinched eye wattle, and a
run-out face of a certain length, would be an analogous case
to what has been done with the Dragoon since pigeon shows-
were established. Before then the breed had no fancy value
whatever, and it has no fancy value now out of England, and
only there within a limited circle.
The first thing to be observed in the National Peristeronic
Society's standard of the Dragoon is the name they give it the
" Dragon." The analogy between the names Carrier, Horseman,
and Dragoon, is clear, but at some time before the oldest living
fanciers were born it became usual to call the Dragoon the
Dragon. This is noticed in Moubray's Poultry Book, first
published in 1815, and which went through five editions in ten
years. The author says : "Dragoons (commonly called Dragons).""
The name would easily become corrupted, and more easily
pronounceable among illiterate pigeon keepers, who were, doubt-
less, formerly the chief breeders of Dragoons ; and, when
gentlemen went to buy feeders for their Carriers and Pouters,
they would hear them spoken of by shopkeepers, and others,
as Dragons, and so gradually come to speak of them by that
name among themselves. I have known a similar alteration of
the name in my own experience. I can remember when there
were very few Dragoons, Skinnums, or Antwerps in Dundee,
nothing but flying Tumblers being fancied by the poorer class
of pigeon keepers. When homing pigeons became in request,
everything with the least beak or eye wattle more than a
Tumbler was known, in their language, as a " Draigon." This
was afterwards shortened into "Draig," and now the word is
"Drake." I was once rather surprised to hear a gentleman's
son tell me he had some fine " Drake " pigeons. I have written
302 FANCY PIGEONS.
Dragon before now for Dragoon, but I admit there is no defence
for this. However the word may be pronounced in conversa-
tion, it ought to be written as of old, because its meaning is
clear, and not obscure. There is a quaint note by Eaton, on
page 59 of his 1858 book, on this question : " Why do authors
on pigeons spell the Dragon with two ' o's', making the word
Dragoon, a kind of soldier, &c. (Walker) ? In society we never
call it the Dragoon, but the Dragon Drag-un, a winged serpent
(Walker), from which it derives its name. I hope no author
who follows me will be guilty of doing it." This is amusing,
and very Eatonesque.
I must next say something about the beak and eye wattles
of the Dragoon. What they ought to be in a show bird is
clearly stated ; but it is quite usual for the best birds, while still
in the very prime of life, to put on, with advancing age, more
wattle than is allowable for the show-pen, or to become " more
than a Dragon," as it is called. This bird, therefore, occupies a
quite unique position among exhibition pigeons. A Fantail can
never become more than a Fantail, nor a Jacobin more than a
Jacobin. I have seen Dragoons that could win prizes at from
two to three years of age become, when five or six, great
coarse-wattled, pinch-eyed Horsemen. They are then only fit
for stock birds.
The colours of Dragoons mentioned in the Peristeronic
Society's Report do not include black and dun. This is wisdom
itself. It would scarcely do, for reasons good, to have show
Dragoons of these colours. There was once an inquiry in The
Bazaar newspaper on this very subject, and the answer given
was this : " They would have no chance in competition what-
ever." But why not ? I would have thought that, the more
variety of colour in a breed, the better. It will be seen from
the Report, that the said Society advocates a silver with dark
beak and eyes, and with bars as black as possible. There can be
no harm in fancying such a colour, but why should the real
silver be ignored, and not even be mentioned ? As I have said
303 WATTLED PIGEONS.
before, what may be called the four primary barred colours of
pigeons include the silver with dun bars. There are many
variations in the colours of wing bars in pigeons, one of which
the body colour of the silver with the black bar of the blue, or
as near it as possible is what many consider a silver ought to
be; but I know this is a mistake. The golden dun barred
Dragoon, generally called brown barred, is a well-known variety,
which ought to be recognised. It has a yellow iris and light
beak.
A well-known breeder of blue Carriers told me that, having
an odd blue Carrier cock matched to an Antwerp hen as feeders,
he bred a young one from them which so took the fancy of a
Dragoon breeder that he gave him 7 for it.
The following is from the " Treatise on Pigeons, " 1765,
page 89 : " They are very good breeders, and good nurses ; and
are chiefly kept as feeders for raising of Powters, Leghorn
Bunts, &c.
" The following may be depended upon as fact, notwithstanding
the appearance of incredibility, as several gentlemen now living
can affirm the same if requisite:
"A gentleman of my acquaintance, having a small wager
depending, sent a Dragoon by the stage coach to his friend at
St. Edmond's Bury, together with a note, desiring the Pigeon,
two days after his arrival there, might be thrown up precisely
when the town clock struck nine in the morning, which was
accordingly executed, and the Pigeon arrived in London, and
flew to the sign of the Bull Inn, in Bishopsgate Street, into the
loft, and was there shewn at half-an-hour past eleven o'clock
the same morning on which he had been thrown up at St.
Edmond's Bury, having flown seventy-two miles in two hours
and a half ; the wager was confirmed by a letter sent by the next
post from the person at St. Edmond's Bury.
" I could relate several more exploits of this nature performed
by Dragoons ; particularly of their being thrown up and
returning home by moonlight, &c."
304 FANCY PIGEONS.
In Eaton's 1858 book, page 59, there is also the following
note by Mr. John Boys : " Thirty-six years ago, when my
collection of Dragons (about thirty) every morning brought me
from London, in slips, the leading article of the Morning Post
newspaper, tied round the leg " regarding which, Eaton adds :
"From London to Margate, seventy- two miles; a decent fly,
and proves Dragons can do work."
Blue and blue chequered Dragoons ought to have a dark
eye wattle, something like that of the Mahomet Pigeon. It
appears to get lighter in colour with age, and, if report can
be believed, is often produced artificially.
Foreign Wattled Pigeons.
FRENCH BAGDADS. There are various kinds of beak and
eye-wattled pigeons described by Continental writers, all of
which are called Bagdads, or Turks, which serves to show
they are considered to be of Eastern origin. Such as seem of
distinct breed from our Carriers, though undoubtedly belonging
to the same family, are described as follows by Boitard and
Corbie, whose work on pigeons, it must be remembered, was
published in Paris in 1824. Whether or not the varieties
mentioned are still in existence is more than I can say.
Great Wattled, or Mushroomed Bagdad (Pigeon Bagadais
a Grande Morille). "A mushroom, or large fleshy excres-
cence on the beak ; large ribbon round the eyes, forming, when
the bird is old, a second eyelid, fleshy and reddish, which falls
over the eyes and prevents it from seeing. These ribbons (eye
wattles) are sometimes so large that they join at the top of the
head. Beak curved and crooked; eye black. This bird is thick,
high on the legs, large, and short in the body, the neck fine and
long, wings short, legs bare. Its backmost part is always of
an inflamed red. There are several sub-varieties, with plumage
black, red, black and white, dun, &c. They all produce little,
and with difficulty; they have also become very rare, and are
scarcely preserved, except as a curiosity."
305 WATTLED PIGEONS.
Batavian Bagdad (Pigeon Bagadais Batave). " Some authors
call it Grand Batavian, because the first of them were brought
from Batavia ; they think also that it, and not the Blue Rock
Pigeon, ought to be regarded as the primitive stock of the
Bagdads. Larger than the Great Mushroomed Bagdad, though
with less beak and eye wattle ; pearled eyes ; very long beak,
attaining up to dix-huit lignes de longeur; neck extremely long;
body large, short, and very high on the legs; feet and legs of
the colour of blood, often long enough to get a good finger
length beyond the tail when stretched out. Its walk is heavy ^
and its flight laborious, on account of its short wings, which,
besides, are sparsely covered with feathers, and the prominent
bones of the shoulders appear nearly bare. It produces little,
and is not now much sought after by amateurs, who formerly
did not grudge to pay up to ten louis a pair for them. This is
no doubt owing to the little grace of their form, and the
destruction they make in the aviary in plucking and killing
the young of others with their formidable beaks. This bird is
the largest of all pigeons. M. Corbie has one large enough to
drink out of an ordinary bucket without the least trouble.
There has been seen, with a fancier coming from Germany, a
bird called a Hen Pigeon " (Leghorn Runt, or Hiihnertaube), " in
all respects like the Batavian, except having no beak and eye
wattle."
Boitard and Corbie's illustration of this curious pigeon has
been copied by Brent, on page 21 of his book, and called the
Scanderoon, or Great Horseman. It has much in common
with my drawing of the Leghorn Runt, but its very short tail
is carried below its flights. I can scarcely believe that its
original home was in Batavia, though brought thence to
France. There has for centuries been a trade between
Batavia and the Persian Gulf. This is said to be the largest
of all pigeons, not excepting the Runt, or Pigeon Romain.
It is also described by Neumeister who gives a drawing
of it, coloured red (Plate XYII. of his book) as the
2 D
306 FANCY PIGEONS.
Franzosische Bagdette. He speaks of it in similar terms to
the foregoing, adding that the tail is sometimes carried
upright, but must not be like a swallow's tail probably meaning
that it must be close, and not split. He says the plumage is
close, fitting the body so tightly that all its parts are sharply
prominent, especially the shoulders and the breast bone, the bare
skin being often visible on these parts, which is a peculiarity,
more or less, of all the Carrier race. Brent says : " I have met
with very fine specimens in France, by the name of Swan-necked
Egyptians. They are very large pigeons, almost as large as the
best Bunts. They are thinly covered with feathers, and these
lie very close to the body ; neither are the tail and pinion
feathers remarkable for length. Their beaks are very long, and
somewhat bent, and they have a moderate wattle, of a whitish
colour, and the cere round the eyes is broad and red. The head
is flat ; the neck long, thin, and much bent ; the shoulders are
broad ; the legs long and large, and they are the most powerful
of all pigeons I have met with. They are heavy, clumsy birds,
and appear to have great difficulty in rising ; but I have found
the young, if kept in exercise, and not allowed to get too fat,
to be very swift, and excellent homing birds. In the air they
remind me of wild ducks, owing to their scanty plumage and
angular form. Many points of the body are left bare, as the
front of the neck and the shoulders of the wings, exposing a
red skin. Mine were very good breeders, though they are not
generally considered so. Their plumage is usually white, black,
blue, or pied." It is worth notice that Brent found these
pigeons excellent homing birds.
The Little Batavian Bagdad (Pigeon Bagadais petit Batave)
"resembles in general form the Great Batavian, but differs
in its size, being much less. It produces advantageously."
The Lace-feathered Batavian Bagdad (Pigeon Bagadais
Batave Soie). "A new variety, quite as rare as singular. It
resembles the preceding (petit Batave) in size and general
form, but the fibres of its feathers are long and silky, and
307 WATTLED PIGEONS.
do not adhere together, which prevents it from flying. This
bird, which is not in commerce, no doubt only multiplies in
the hands of amateurs, who only consider it an object of
curiosity."
I am not aware if this variety still exists, but the fact of a
Lace-feathered Bagdad having existed shows that such a
natural variation in feathering might occur in any breed.
TURKISH BAGDADS (Pigeons Turcs). " These superb birds
make the natural link between the Bagdads and Runts. They
have, like the first, a large beak and eye wattle, the latter red
in colour, and are of large size ; but they come nearer to the
Bunts by their thighs, legs, and neck, being shorter, and by
their long wings." They are described as of various colours,
and both crested and plain-headed. I believe most of the
fancy Bunts, such as the one I made my drawing from, have
the blood of these Turcs, as they have more beak and eye
wattle than the common blue and silver Bunts. Brent has re-
produced the portrait of a Pigeon Turc on page 20 of his book.
GERMAN BAGDADS. We come next to the German varieties
of the Carrier family, as described by Neumeister, which are
as follows :
The Short-faced Turkish Bagdad (Die Kurzschnabelige Bag-
dette, or TiirTcischetaube). This variety is illustrated on Plate
XIY. of his work on pigeons, and is represented as both crested
and plain-headed, self-coloured black, red, and yellow, rather
short in beak, and looking very like short-faced English
Dragoon Pigeons.
The Nurnberg Bagdad (Die Deutsche Krummschnoibelige Bag-
dette, or Number ger Bagdette). The crooked-beaked Bagdad
is already well known in England as the Scanderoon, and
is well portrayed, by Mr. Ludlow, in Mr. Fulton's book. The
German fancier, Fiihrer, has thus described, in Neumeister's
work, the history and standard of excellence of this bird:
" This exceedingly interesting pigeon, resembling more a fierce
bird of prey than a peaceful, granivorous bird, had its home
308 FANCY PIGEONS.
in the Orient, and was probably first brought into commerce
from Bagdad. In Germany, it is chiefly at Nurnberg that
it is beautifully bred, a town which, hundreds of years ago,
was in a lively commercial intercourse with the Levant, and
has the merit of having introduced, and first bred, this stately
bird, where it is said to be still the favourite pigeon. The
beak must be beautifully bent, long, thick, blunt, and light
coloured ; the beak wattle must sit deeply below on the brow,
rather flat than high, heart-shaped, and not too broad; the
head must be long and narrow, and, seen from the side, must
form a semicircle from the nape to the point of the beak ;
the eye wattle, or rose, must be large, flat, and regular, bright
red in early age, later in life rather white ; the neck long and
thin, and the chin adorned with a beard; the body must show
a broad back and breast; the ridge of the breast bone must
spring forth sharply ; the pinions must be narrow and short,
the tail short, and legs high.
" If the brow and beak form an angle, if the crown has a
depression, if the upper mandible is longer than the under, or
if they do not fit close, these are faults which are opposed to
the beauty of the race."
The only thing obscure in the above is the chin being
adorned with a beard, which word is used in Germany to
designate various properties in pigeons. If, in this instance,
it means the slight jew wattle inseparable from all abnormally
wattled pigeons, the less of it the better. I should say that a
clean-cut, hollow curve, from the point of the lower mandible,
down the throat, would look best. . It is said that, in whole
colours, this pigeon is only found of the highest type all white.
The pied ones are the most valued, and on the regularity of
their markings fanciers set a high value. The chief marking
is that shown in Mr. Ludlow's drawing, and may be described
as exactly the same as that of the Magpie Pigeon, except
that the head and upper neck are white. From low down
on the nape, the white runs down the sides of the neck,
309 WATTLED PIGEONS.
to a point on the breast, forming a pointed bib. There
ought to be a spot of colour on each side of the face, at the
gape of the mouth, and this is shown in the illustration of the
breed in Herr Priitz's new book. There are also others
coloured, in addition, on lower body, from breast to tail, in-
cluding the thighs, the head and bib, wing coverts and nights,
remaining white. The back must always remain coloured, as
in the Magpie, and form the figure of a heart, and is known
as "the heart." Others, again, are all coloured except the
head, upper neck and bib, flight feathers, and butts of the
wings, as in the Stork Pigeon. The quality of colour in this
variety is sometimes superb.
"Its flight is powerful, quick, and more stormy than dex-
terous ; its voice abrupt and deep. Towards smaller pigeons
it is violent, and therefore not suited to live with them, and
best kept alone. It shows mistrust to men, and only gradu-
ally becomes accustomed to its feeder." This wild nature
is common to all the Carrier race and their descendants.
THE HIMALAYAN CARRIER. When writing about Indian
pigeons, I mentioned some gentlemen named Wood, whom I
knew in Calcutta as enthusiastic pigeon fanciers. There were
four brothers of them who bred choice pigeons, and their
father had done so before them. The eldest brother had the
largest and best collection I knew of in Calcutta, with the
exception of that belonging to the ex-King of Oude. It was
in Mr. Wood's aviaries I first saw this variety, which I have
named as above; the native name I have forgotten, if I ever
heard it. This pigeon is about the size of an average Dragoon.
It is very hard and close-feathered, upright in carriage, thin-
in neck, moderately long in neck and limbs, and inclined to be
short in flights and tail. It is short in face, measuring about
If in. from centre of eye. The beak is stout and thick at the
base, sharp rather than blunt at the point, and straight. The
head is angular, or wedge-shaped, the brow forming an angle
with the crown and beak. It has a smooth beak wattle, of
310 FANCY PIGEONS.
moderate amount, which never grows quite so large as that
considered necessary for a show Dragoon. The striking point
about this pigeon is its staring or bolting eyes, which stand
further out of its head than I have ever seen in other pigeons ;
these are mostly hazel-coloured, large, bright, and surrounded
by a thin, smooth wattle, of about fin. diameter in matured
birds. The colours of those birds I saw were black or blue
pied, the white predominating, and some being nearly all
white. The black and blue patches were disposed without any
regularity, no two birds being exactly alike. This pigeon,
though a sub-variety of the Carrier, has assumed a distinct
type of its own, and bears a highly-bred look. I was told
that the breed had been brought from some of the countries
north of the Himalayan mountains.
The only specimen of the Himalayan Carrier I have seen
in this country is at present in my possession. Going on
board an East Indiaman in Dundee Docks last March (1886), I
saw the bird walking about the quarter-deck. The captain gave
it to me; it is all white, with dark horn-coloured beak, and
orange eyes. The eye wattle, which resembles that of a show
Dragoon in its prime, is of a reddish purple hue; but the
greatest peculiarity of the bird is its bolting eyes, and the
great space between the irides and the eye wattles.
Chapter XXV.
THE TUMBLER PIGEON. X>
HE above heading causes the almost forgotten
past to be remembered. Visions of bygone
celebrities, that were known by such names
as the Red Mottle, the Blue Hen, and the Red
Breaster, crowd up from the days of the
springtime of life. I recall the feat of my little blue Tumbler,
which, when heading against a strong wind, and neither
making nor losing any headway, turned clean over forty
times within the minute, in the same aerial space. The
pennies that ought to have been spent on biscuits to appease
the mid-day appetite, were hoarded up till such a sum was
accumulated as would cause some well-known performer to
change ownership; and then there was joy in fetching it
home, the basket being opened many times on the way
for " another look." I should think there are more Tumbler
pigeons kept in this country than there are of all other
fancy kinds put together, and that the accumulation of
genuine pleasure derived by their owners from them exceeds
that from all other kinds. Many a fancier has begun with
Tumblers, and but few refuse to provide a place for their
312 FANCY PIGEONS.
first favourites, into whatever other channels their fancy
may roam.
The Tumbler derives its name from its inherited propensity
of turning over backwards in its flight. What causes it
to tumble over in this way is not known, though many
theories have been propounded to account for it. Some well-
bred birds never attain to it, while others carry it to such
an excess that they cannot rise from the ground a couple of
feet. The latter kind, known as Ground Tumblers, often
resume flying and tumbling in the air, and again become
Grounders. House Tumblers are such as can rise from
the ground, but often tumble in their flight across a room ;
they do not, however, always perform when required to
do so. Air Tumblers sometimes become so proficient and
systematic in their performances that they change hands
for 10s. each and upwards among poor men. Such birds
will sometimes go off tumbling, and fall in value to
the normal price of a shilling, and, after remaining very
ordinary ones for a year or two, suddenly become good ones
again, and rise in value in proportion. Many a good Tumbler
has never given a turn till two or three years old, and some
can never get more than half over in their attempts to turn.
I certainly think that, in the case of ordinary Tumblers,
tumbling is a real pleasure to them, and that they do it
voluntarily; but the habit grows on some birds to such
an extent, that they either cannot rise from the ground, or,
when in mid air, lose command of themselves, and, striking
against some projection, destroy themselves.
There are many styles of tumbling, and the one most
generally admired is that in which the bird turns over once
at a time, and often, but without losing way in its flight.
At the same time, those that rise and fall in the air by
alternate soaring and rolling each roll being composed of
several backward turns are also liked by many people.
Some birds make the most extraordinary motions in the air,
313 THE TUMBLER.
turning at right angles in their flight, and throwing them-
selves about so rapidly that the eye can scarcely follow
their turns. High-flying Tumblers generally tumble only
when ascending or descending; but they sometimes go so
high in fact, quite out of sight that it is impossible to
follow them in their movements. I have watched them, on a
clear day, till they seemed no bigger than mites, and then
lost them altogether. Some remaining on the housetops are
seen by those in the air, and this tends to bring them down
sooner than they might otherwise come. Tumblers, when
allowed unlimited freedom, become lazy, and unwilling to fly,
and seldom fly in concert.
Great care and much trouble are necessary in getting up a
good flight of Tumblers; birds that will not rise must be
weeded out. To insure success, the birds must be flown only
at stated times. The morning is the best time, before they
are fed; and after they return to their loft they should be
confined till late in the afternoon, or till next morning,
according to the wishes of their owner. To fly Tumblers
systematically is, indeed, a separate branch of the pigeon
fancy, which is only excelled in by such as lay themselves
out for it. I have known fanciers, including myself, buy
the best soaring birds that could be got, and I have seen
them gradually deteriorate for want of the necessary atten-
tion. Tumblers require special training for flying time
matches. Dried peas, and other grain, are considered the
best foods for them, as such take long to digest, and assist
in keeping up their strength during the time they keep
on the wing. Without such special foods they would be
unable to fly so long as they do.
Mr. G. Smith, a breeder of high-flying Tumblers and
Tipplers in Nottingham, has lately published a little book
giving information, derived from experience, on this
fancy.
314 FANCY PIGEONS.
The following Tippler handicap was flown Tuesday, 30th
March, 1886, at Leicester :
NAMES. TIME. START.
W.Warner llhr. 9min Scratch.
W. Holland 11 4 Scratch.
W. Allen 10 45 Scratch.
E.Collins 4 7 30min.
G. Seal 2 4 90min.
The birds were started at 8.0 a.m.
Mr. W. Holland, of 15, "New Walk, Leicester, made a match
to fly his birds for twelve hours. The birds were started on
Monday, 12th April, at 6 a.m., and had to be dropped at
night. Time, 13hrs. 45min. the best on record with Tipplers.
Common Tumblers.
The Tumbler is spread in great variety throughout Europe
and Asia. It has long been known in this country, and is
described by Willughby (1678). He says: "These are small,
and of divers colours. They have strange motions, turning
themselves backwards over their heads, and show like foot-
balls in the air." The ordinary Tumbler of this country
is a small pigeon, thin in the neck, full in the breast, of
medium length in flights and tail, short-legged, and free of
leg and foot feather. The head is rounded, and free from sharp
angles, and the forehead of middle height. The beak should
be short and thin, or what is known as a spindle beak. The
beak wattle and eye wattle should not be greatly developed.
The eye should be white or pearl-coloured in the iris, but is
usually of a red pearl, not nearly so white as in the Conti-
nental Cumulet. There are, however, many yellow, red, and
hazel-eyed birds as good performers as ever flew; but I am
describing the Tumbler as it ought to be when shown, and
as it is in many lofts where kept only to be flown, for good-
looking birds that are good performers as well, may be got
315 THE TUMBLER.
by selection from the immense numbers kept in every large
town. I have seen good clean-legged Tumblers with shell
crests, and also peak -headed ones. I once bred several peaked
yellow whole feathers from a pair of smooth-headed ones. I
could only account for this variation as a natural sport.
The Tumbler is found in all the principal colours, such as
whole blue, silver, black, red, yellow, dun, and white; and in
such infinite variety of Mottles, Grizzles, and Splashes, that
it would be no difficult matter to put up a hundred matched
pairs, any one of which might easily be distinguished from
the rest. Birds are matched together for their excellence
in tumbling, no matter what colour they are, and there-
fore produce a great variety of curiously- coloured and marked
offspring. It is generally from Tumblers so matched up for
their powers of tumbling that the House and Ground Tumblers
are produced, and, accordingly, many of them have little in
their appearance, from a fancy point of view, to recommend
them in the way of feather. Such are out of place in the
show-pen, however, for which the colours must be pure and
good to enable them to compete successfully.
Among those races of Tumblers of the best quality, as
regards performances in the air, which have been kept to
feather to a certain extent, I may mention the red Mottles,
not marked so exactly as show Mottles ought to be, but mottled
over the whole wing coverts, and often with white feathers
on the head and neck; black and yellow Mottles of the same
character; blacks with white flight feathers, white beaks, and
reddish eye wattle; whites ticked on the neck with red; and,
lastly, almond-feathered ones. I have known fanciers confine
themselves to some of these breeds, and, by careful selection
of such as were good flyers and performers, establish flights
which would breed very true to feather.
Exhibition Tumblers.
Show Tumblers are sub-divided into Self-colours, Mottles,
316 FANCY PIGEONS.
Baldheads, and Beards. I am of opinion that foreign
elements have been, in some cases, introduced into the
breeding of the self colours and Mottles, to give colour,
and that few of the pretty birds to be seen at shows
would be of much account in a flight; but there is this to
be said of showing Tumblers, that, independently of per-
formance in the air, they are worth show recognition from
a fancy point of view. The show Tumbler should have, in
the first place, all the character in shape of head, beak,
and body, of the best type of the real performing Tumbler,
and on no account have about the head even a suspicion
of any cross with the Short-faced Tumbler. Many people
erroneously think, or used to think, that the half or quarter-
bred Short-face, being neater in head, is better for the show-
pen ; but this idea is on the wane, if it be not altogether eradi-
cated. There is a medium between shortness and too great
length of face, and between too thick and too thin a beak
for the show Tumbler. I have known a quarter-bred Barb
win all through a season as a common black Tumbler. The
Barb cross gave colour, pearl eyes, and a white beak ; but
the latter was too thick, and there was too much beak and
eye wattle to deceive me. The reddish tinge on beak and
eye wattles was no conclusive proof of the cross, because this
accompanies fine colour in black, red, and yellow, and I have
had the very best performers so coloured in the eye wattles.
The black, red, and yellow colours ought to be as sound,
and accompanied with as much metallic lustre, as possible.
Glossy blacks may be seen, but I have never seen reds and
yellows within many shades of the colour to be seen in many
foreign pigeons. These colours not being in the breed, there-
fore, in their best possible tints, any crosses with other
varieties which do possess them must result in the loss of
the tumbling propensity, however much the appearance of
the pure Tumbler may be retained ; but as the tumbling pro-
pensity is of no account, and cannot be tested in the show-
317 THE TUMBLER.
pen, shape and feather are all that are looked for in the
Tumbler as a show pigeon.
Macclesfield Tipplers.
A well-known variety of the flying Tumbler is known as
the Macclesfield Tippler, which must only make single turns
in its flight. Some of these birds are very fine flyers, and
so rapid in their tumbling that the eye can scarcely follow
them. I believe the Tippler is of various colours, but there
is one especial marking which I have seen many of that is,
white, with dark head, flights, and tail. The colour is
generally Kity-black, the flight feathers showing sometimes
black, brown, and white. The marking of the head is not
cut off sharply, like that of the Nun, but gradually dis-
appears in mottling, and there are sometimes grizzled feathers
on the neck, breast, and body. This variety breeds true to
these characteristics, but with some variation in colour of
points, and is known locally, I believe, as the Printed Tippler.
Birmingham Rollers.
In addition to such Tumblers as I have described, Moore
mentions the Dutch Tumbler, as "much of the same make,
but larger, often feather-leg'd, and more jowlter-headed with
a thin Flesh or Skin round the Eye, not unlike a very sheer
Dragoon ; some People don't esteem them upon this Account,
tho' I have known very good ones of the Dutch breed, not
any Ways inferior to what they call the English. Others
have remarked that they are apt to tumble too much, and to
lose Ground, that is, sink beneath the rest of the Flight,
which is a very great Fault, but I have observ'd the same
by the English, and am apt to believe that most of the
extraordinary Feathers have been produc'd by mixing with
the Dutch breed ; for it is generally observ'd that the English
Tumblers are chiefly black, blue, or white." This is a good
description of what are now known as Birmingham Boilers,
318 FANCY PIGEONS.
many of which are much larger and coarser pigeons than
the neat, trim, clean-legged Tumblers.
Rollers are of many colours, such as whole-feathers ;
mottles ; saddles, marked exactly the same as the Magpie ;
white sides, or with white wing coverts and under body when
through the moult, but self-coloured as nestlings; badges,
which are all coloured, except with some white sprinkling
about the head, white flights, and white leg- feathering from
the hocks down ; grizzles, of various shades, and oddities of
all kinds of uneven markings. Rollers may be smooth or
feather-legged. Many are heavily hocked, with feathers
on the feet Sin. to 4in. long. They are much fancied in
Birmingham and the Midland counties, where great numbers
of them are kept, and, when bred for good shape, colour,
and markings, they realise considerable prices for show pur-
poses. I have seen Tumblers imported from the Continent
with much of the character of these pigeons.
The Mottled Tumbler Pigeon.
Mottled flying Tumblers for the show-pen are either black,
red, or yellow, though I have occasionally seen duns. The
mottling of these birds should either be a rose pinion on the
shoulders, composed of single white feathers, no two of which
should be in contact, or run together, or the same marking
accompanied by what is known as a "handkerchief back,'*
which is a Y-shaped figure on the back, between the shoulders,
also composed, when right, of single, separated white feathers;
while the mottling of the rose pinion is on the wing coverts,
the handkerchief back is on the scapular feathers. Some
admire the rose wing alone, others the compound marking.
The chief defect in Mottles is an excess of white feathers,
and, when these are not absolutely in patches, weeding can
transform a bird nearly right into perfection. Removing a
few superfluous white feathers is not so difficult as supplying
some to a wing rather undermarked; but there are men who
319 THE TUMBLER.
will stick at nothing to win somehow, and I have known of
a self-coloured bird transformed into a perfect Mottle, the
white feathers being pasted in. There can be no doubt that
no pigeon has its toilet made to a greater extent than the
show Mottle, and that, if absolute perfection has been seen,
it has been but rarely.
In breeding Mottles, the best plan is to ascertain how
the pigeons to be mated have been bred for as many genera-
tions back as can be found out. If they should have de-
scended through some generations of nearly perfectly marked
birds, they ought to breed many such themselves; but as the
general plan is to mate a self-coloured bird, bred in most
cases from a Mottle and a self-colour, to a Mottle bred in
the same way, self-colours and Mottles are produced from
such mating. Self-colours, therefore, are part of the Mottle
breeder's stock, and represent more than they appear to do.
To put a self-coloured to a gay bird is not the plan that ex-
perience has taught as most likely to produce the right
marking, for the produce is ever inclined to run too gay.
And yet, if the self-colour and Mottle matching results in
an undue proportion of undermarked birds, one rather over-
marked must be thrown in occasionally. To attain success
in Mottle breeding, a fancier cannot know too much of the
pedigree of his stock birds, and, the longer he has the strain,
the better he should be able to produce good ones.
The young Mottle does not leave the nest as it appears
after its first moult, but entirely self-coloured. If a bird has
even a few grizzled feathers about it as a nestling, it often
becomes too white after moulting. It is during its first
autumnal moult, therefore, that its beauties become apparent,
and that is the time when eager eyes are on the watch for
a coming wonder. Many flying Tumblers which are self-
coloured as nestlings become more than half white during
their first moult. The mottled flying Tumbler is not nearly so
difficult to breed good as the Short-faced Mottle; but yet it
320 FANCY PIGEONS.
is difficult enough to breed, and, if the majority of birds
seen at shows were penned unweeded, they would be found
very mismarked. Foul feathers in the neck and breast are
very prevalent ; but as it is easy to remove many such with-
out the possibility of detection, many fanciers who admire the
Mottle prefer rather to spend their time over pigeons not
so easily manufactured for the show-pen.
The Baldhead Tumbler Pigeon.
When Moore, in his description of the Tumbler, said, " This
Pigeon affords a very great Variety of Colours in its Plumage,
as blacks, blues, whites, reds, yellows, Duns, Silvers, and, in
short, a pleasant mixture of all these Colours with the
white," it is probable that he included Baldheads and Beards
as "pleasant mixtures." We are, however, indebted to the
author of the Treatise of 1765 for the first account of these
favourite varieties of the Tumbler, and his description of them,
which is one of the original pieces in his book, is as follows :
"The Bald-pated Tumblers, which are of various colours in
their body, as blacks, blues, &c., with a clean white head, a
pearl eye, white flight, and white tail, are esteemed good flyers,
and are very pretty, even when flying in the air, for the
contrast of the feather appears at that distance when the
weather is clear and fine ; but the blue ones are reputed to rise
higher than any other colour. There are also some called blue
or black-bearded that is, either of those colours having a long
white spot from the under jaw and cheek, a little way down the
throat, and regularly shaped, which has a pretty effect as an
ornament ; and if they run clean in the flight and tail, as
before mentioned in the Bald-pated ones, they are accounted
handsome."
Baldheads are found in black, blue, silver, red, and yellow,
and in off colours, as chequers and mealies. The correct
marking is as follows : Both mandibles should be white ;
and the whole head, above a line running about iin. under
321 THE TUMBLER.
the eyes, should also be white. The line should be cut straight
and sharp. This marking is known as "high cut," in opposi-
tion to that in which the white extends farther down the
neck, which is called " low cut "; and if the line of demarcation
is uneven, or if the white in any case dips down in patches,
the bird is said to be "slobbered." The Baldhead ought to
have pearl eyes, but many otherwise good ones are spoilt by
having one or both eyes bull, or dark hazel, in colour. This,
however, in a flying Baldhead, is an intolerable fault for the
show-pen. The primary nights should be white ; and, as they
almost invariably number ten in each wing, the correct mark-
ing in the Baldhead is spoken of as "ten-a-side." White to
the turn of the flight would be the more correct standard, as
Tumblers sometimes have only nine primary flight feathers.
Next, if the bird be lifted up by its wings, it should be all
white below them, including the rump and tail, with its upper
and under coverts. If it has any coloured feathers on thighs
or vent, it is foul-thighed or vented both very great faults.
If the colour of the breast does not finish off in a straight,
sharp line, about an inch before the thighs evenly belted,
as it is called it is faulty. In shape of head, beak, and body,
and in size and carriage, the Baldhead is similar to the small,
clean-legged, flying Tumbler. I have never seen any with
feathered legs, and I am not aware if such exist.
The Baldhead is a good flyer, and a favourite pigeon with
many, on account of its beauty, both when seen close or in
the air. It is sometimes a good tumbler, though not so gene-
rally as the common Tumblers first described, for, having
in many cases been bred for feather, or for high flying alone,
the tumbling propensity has not been so carefully cultivated;
at the same time, I have had and seen many really first-class,
tumbling Baldheads.
I have never seen any almond-feathered common Baldheads,
but they might be produced in time by crossing with the
common Almond Tumbler. I have seen yellows with a few
2 F
322 FANCY PIGEONS.
black ticks through the hackle, but I think fanciers are
agreed that the almond feather is not suitable in any pigeon
with white markings, such as the Baldhead or Pouter, and
that, however well it might look in its early beauty, it would
not compare with black, red, and yellow, in their best tints,
when it began to darken with age.
The Beard Tumbler Pigeon.
The Beard Tumbler, like the Baldhead, is found in black,
blue, silver, red, and yellow. The ordinary variety of flying,
tumbling Beard, is similar in size, &c., to the common Bald-
head and other Tumblers. It is always clean-legged, as far
as I have noticed, and ought to be marked in the following
manner : The upper mandible should be coloured, though reds
and yellows may have it white; and the lower, in all cases,
white. The beard, from which the bird has its name, is a
dash of white, extending from eye to eye, across the throat.
Commencing below the eye as a point, it widens to about
half-an-inch below the beak, and it should be exactly alike
on each cheek. This is the marking as described in the
Treatise before-mentioned; but another style of Beard, known
as the Pepper-faced, or Peppered Beard, has this dash of
white sprinkled with coloured feathers. I think this is an
undesirable marking, though it was liked by many in days
gone by. There are also Beards with a coloured line down
the throat, dividing the white into two parts. In addition to
the 'white beard, the flights should be white to the turn, and
the tail, with its coverts, upper and under, should be white;
all else should be coloured. I am aware that it is not easy
to get Beards, entirely dark-thighed, with ten white flights
a side; but that is no reason why the standard should be
reduced. Such birds have been seen, and are all the more
valuable because scarce. It is considered that seven or eight-
a-side is good enough for a dark-thighed bird; but I have
had a strain of Tumblers with far less white about them than
i
!
I
THE EEAED TUMBLER.
323 THE TUMBLER.
the Beard viz., blacks, all coloured except the primary flights,
which were white and they bred true. And when Beards are
once got full-flighted and dark-thighed, they will breed true
after a time, though it may be difficult to fix such marking
without trouble. Standards of excellence in pigeons should
be standards difficult of attainment, and they should also be
artistically beautiful to entitle them to support. Although
the Beard ought to be entirely dark-thighed, there is always
some white where the feathers finish off at the hocks ; but the
less of this the better. The Beard ought to have pearl eyes,
and, as the whole head above the eyes is coloured, this is not
a difficult point to maintain.
Among blue Beards, the hens were formerly always smoky
in colour, and I have never seen any of a good bright blue.
This fault appears to be in the breed, as it is in some other
breeds of blue-marked pigeons. It might possibly be eradi-
cated by crossing blue Beard cocks with good coloured
all blue hens; but as such experiments take years to com-
plete, and the result is so remote, and the reward so uncer-
tain, who will be at the trouble of it, neglecting what
might truly be reckoned more important work in the fancy P
Black, blue, and silver Beards, of the common flying Tumbler
type, were, when I kept them in my boyhood, capital flyers
and tumblers.
A flight of Balds and Beards, assorted in colour, is a
pretty sight; in clear weather the white markings tell well
against the coloured body at a considerable height in the air-
To make them fly high, and well together, however, they
require all the attention necessary in raising a flight of
Tumblers, and must not be allowed continual liberty, other-
wise they will give little satisfaction as high flyers.
For those who employ feeders for all small, high-
class pigeons, they answer every requirement, being careful
nurses and breeders the year through, except in the
depth of winter; and, when kept for this purpose alone,
2r2
324 FANCY PIGEONS.
they are all the better for unlimited freedom, as in country
places they gather much green food, and other things service-
able in the rearing of young birds, which they could not
procure if kept confined.
Foreign Tumblers.
Numerous varieties of the Tumbler exist throughout India,
Persia, and Asia Minor, according to recent writers who have
referred to pigeons in their works. In 1885, some common-
looking Tumblers, undistinguished by specific marking, but
which could not rise a yard from the ground without
tumbling, were brought to Dundee in a vessel from Cal-
cutta. When I resided in Calcutta (from 1865 to 1872) I
knew many fanciers who kept large numbers of Tumblers,
which no doubt are, in their numerous varieties, the most
universally fancied of all pigeons. There is a breed of blue
Tumblers in Calcutta, similar in size and shape to the com-
mon British Tumbler, but with the eye wattle which is
very narrow of a dark blue, like that of a Mahomet Pigeon ;
they have clear white irides.
THE TURKISH ROLLER. These Tumblers were introduced
from Smyrna by Mr. H. P. Caridia, and first described, in
1874, by Mr. Ludlow, of Birmingham. They are longer in
head and beak than our Tumblers, the head being flatter,
and wanting the high forehead, and the beak thicker and
stronger. The neck is rather short, as are the legs. The
back is hollow, and the tail is carried rather elevated, and
over the flights. The tail is peculiar, being long, and com-
posed of from fourteen to twenty-two feathers, the average
being about sixteen; these feathers have no approach or
resemblance to a fan tail, but lie one over the other, in
two divisions, showing a slight parting, or split, between
them. As is common with other varieties having an abnor-
mal number of tail feathers, a double feather growing from
pne quill is often seen in this breed. The oil gland above
325 THE TUMBLER.
the tail is also wanting. Turkish Rollers are of many colours,
such as black, white, dun, and almond splash, the blacks being
well-lustred, and with white, black-tipped beaks as is usual
with good-coloured blacks, among British Tumblers. I have
not had any of these birds myself, but Mr. Ludlow, from
whose description I have gathered the above, asserts that
they are capital performers and flyers.
THE DOUBLE-CRESTED TUMBLER. The first of this in-
teresting variety, comprising a pair each of Almonds and
Blacks or, probably, Kites were brought to Liverpool, from
some Mediterranean port (probably Smyrna), in the spring of
1886. The Almonds were purchased by me, and their descrip-
tion is as follows: The cock is rather dark, of a mahogany
ground colour, and well spangled with black: the hen light
buff in ground, and showing very little black spangling,
except in neck. In size and shape they resemble the best
type of flying Tumbler, having extremely good carriage, with
head thrown back, and full, prominent breast. The flights
are generally carried low. In head, beak, and eye, they are
similar to our common Tumblers, and their legs and feet are
unfeathered. They have a broad shell crest on the nape, and
a rose on the forehead similar in formation to that of the
Trumpeter, but smaller. I was told they were guaranteed
to tumble well; but I have not tested their powers, being
afraid of losing them before I had bred some young ones
from them. Their first three nests produced three pairs of
almonds, all with the head feathering of the parents. Their
fourth nest contained one almond and a white, or albino,
both double-crested.
THE RUSSIAN FRONTAL-CRESTED TUMBLER. Herr Priitz,
in his new book on pigeons, illustrates this curious variety,
which may be described as a Tumbler of the common smooth-
legged type, with a frontal tuft on the forehead, but un-
crested on the nape, thereby resembling the Altenburg
Drummer. These pigeons are represented of a dark reddish
326 FANCY PIGEONS.
strawberry colour, with a few black spots, or ink marks,
interspersed.
THE RIGA TUMBLER. In my youthful days, and probably
still, though I never now watch the arrival of Baltic traders,
as I then did, vessels from Russia often brought to Dundee
what we used to call Riga Tumblers. They were self-coloured
blacks, reds, and yellows, of large size, with heavily feathered
legs and feet (the quills on the latter often 4in. in length),
and a large shell crest. They were very similar in shape
and size to the Trumpeter as we then had it, except as to
the tuft of feathers over the beak. They were very good
flyers and tumblers.
GERMAN TUMBLERS. Numerous varieties of the Tumbler
are spread over Germany and Austria, many of which are,
no doubt, bred chiefly for their marking. They vary greatly
in type, some being long and flat headed, while others are
short and thick beaked, with a high forehead. The principal
varieties, some of them now well-known in this country, are
the following :
The White-Tailed Tumbler. These birds, with clean legs
and pearl eyes, are similar in size and style to our common
Tumblers. Some have a shell crest. They are of various
ground colours, with a pure white tail and tail coverts. There
is another pure breed, similar in all respects to these, except
that their primary flight feathers also are white.
The Coloured- Tailed Tumbler. Birds of this variety are all
white, with coloured tails. They have clear pearl eyes, and
some have shell crests.
The Konigsberg Moorhead. These pigeons have large shell
crests, pearl eyes, coloured tails, and heavily feathered legs and
feet, and are marked on the head like a Nun. I believe they
are either black or blue marked.
The Brunswick Beard is now well-known in this country.
It is rather long in face, and flat in head, with pearl eyes
and clean legs, though I believe a variety with feathered
327 THE TUMBLER.
ones also exists. These birds are found of very good and glossy
colours, in black, red, and yellow. The beard in this variety
ought not to extend to the eyes, but should appear as a
round white spot under the lower mandible, which ought also
to be white in all colours. The flight feathers are white,
the rest of the plumage being coloured.
The White-barred Prague Tumbler is short and thick in beak,
with a high forehead, pearl eyes, and smooth legs. In colour
these pigeons resemble Briinner Pigmy Pouters, being either
light blue or light fawn, with white wing bars.
The Hungarian Magpie Tumbler resembles, in marking, our
common Magpie Pigeon, except that the head is white above
a line running through the eyes. It is shell-crested.
The Brander is a Copenhagen Tumbler, of a black ground
colour, but strongly glossed with reddish bronze. A good bird
should appear all over of the same colour as that on the breast
of the bronzed Archangel Pigeon, except that the points of the
primary and secondary flights, as well as a bar across the end
of the tail, should be black. The Brander is smooth-headed
and legged, and is, doubtless, the breed referred to by Neu-
meister as the Fire Pigeon. The hen of a pair in my possession
answers the above description; the cock is darker, showing
less bronze over the black ground colour.
The Shaking Tumbler. All the specimens of this breed I
have seen came from Germany, and were yellow whole-feathers,
with grouse-muffed legs. They resembled our common Tumblers
in general appearance, but had a trembling neck, similar,
though less in degree, to what the Indian Mookee displays.
I was informed that they exist in various colours, both self-
coloured and Magpie marked, and that the Magpies ought to
have a small white crescent on the breast.
The German Ancient. The Altstammer, or Ancient, bears some-
what the same relation to the Shaking Tumbler as our Short-
faced do to our Common Tumblers. Its appearance betokens
Barb descent, it having a rather pronounced red eye wattle, a
328 FANCY PIGEONS.
thick, short beak, and a broad skull; otherwise, in colour,
markings, and grouse-feathered legs, it resembles the Shaker;
but I believe the trembling neck is seldom found in them.
Mr. O. Neef, of the German Consulate in London, who in-
troduced this beautiful variety into England, being desirous
of making known its merits, has requested me to publish
the following:
"The Ancient Pigeon (Altstammer], though German, is not
a Toy Pigeon like the Feldtaube, such as the Swallow, Ice,
and others, which have long, thin beaks, and heavily-built
bodies, as characteristics of their type, but is one of the few
German varieties with the distinguishing features of a short
beak, round head, and elegantly- shaped body.
"It is, moreover, a special Berlin variety, reared almost ex-
clusively there, but also largely represented in Stettin; in
other parts of Germany it is seldom met with.
" Really good specimens are very rare, and command a
high price. Thus, for instance, at a late exhibition at
Konigsberg, an offer of 1000 marks (about 50) was declined
for a single pair of them. The sum of 25 was also offered
at the Berlin Exhibition, in 1882, by a Birmingham dealer, for
a pair, and likewise refused.
"The Ancient Pigeon, as the name implies, is a very old
variety, the origin of which is unknown, and all explana-
tions hitherto advanced concerning it are mere suppositions,
devoid of any positive proof. This much, however, is fact : If
the Ancient be crossed with another variety, its character-
istics are at once lost.
"Friends at Berlin have lately elected a body of breeders
of this variety for the express purpose of ascertaining its
origin and age; but as yet their efforts have been fruitless.
From investigation of special and other literature on pigeons,
it appears that the Ancient was known as early as 1779, but
nothing has been discovered regarding its origin, or where
it came from.
329 THE TUMBLER.
"The Ancient is found in black, red, and yellow colours,
with white i.e., marked like the Magpie with the additional
white mark on the breast, like the English Pouter. In blue
they are very scarce, and never particularly good. It is a
remarkable fact that these pigeons produce self-coloured
specimens in all these colours, as well as pure whites. If
a pure white Ancient be paired to a whole black, red, or yellow,
the coloured one ought always to have six or eight white
flight feathers in each wing ; they then often produce the best
specimens of Magpie colour. This is a singular characteristic
of the breed, and is probably peculiar to it alone.
" There are also extant some with long beaks viz., the
Flugtaube in all the four prime colours, both self-coloured
and Magpie-marked. The difference between these and the
former kind is about the same as that between the Short
and Long-faced Tumblers."
The Vienna Gansel, This breed, as represented by Priitz,
greatly resembles the Ancient in style of head and beak, ap-
pearing, from its broad, ribbed-up forehead, thick beak, and
rather broad, red wattle, to be descended from the Barb. It is
smooth-legged and Magpie-marked; but the head and upper
neck are white, the white coming down in front, and forming
a deep bib. The Gansel exists in black, red, yellow, blue,
and silver.
The foregoing descriptions do not exhaust the Continental
breeds of Tumblers. There are an immense number of local
varieties spread over middle Europe. It is the custom in
some places to castrate these birds, probably with the inten-
tion of making them better flyers, for the purpose of training
the young birds in their flight.
Chapter XXVI.
X VARIETIES ORIGINALLY TUMBLERS. X
| EYERAL varieties, long bred for colour and
marking, in which the tumbling propensity
no longer remains, are considered, from their
formation of head and beak, size, and shape, to
have been derived from the common Tumbler.
The Nun, Magpie, and Helmet Pigeons, may be included in
this category.
The Nun Pigeon.
This beautiful breed, from its striking contrast of colours,
has always held a high place among fancy pigeons. It is
supposed to derive its name from the arrangement of its
marking, but in France it is the Jacobin, with its coloured
body and white head, that is called a Nun (Nonnairi). The
French call the Nun, Pigeon Coquille Hollondais, or Dutch
Shell Pigeon, from its shell crown; and the Germans, Das
Nonnchen, or little Nun,, to distinguish it from a somewhat
similarly marked variety. Neumeister says that, although
hitherto considered as belonging to the field, or dovehouse,
type of pigeons, the Nun is an undoubted Tumbler in forma-
tion, and in this I agree with him. Having been bred so long,
THE NUN PIGEON.
331 THE NUN.
however it is described by Willughby under the name of
Helmet for mere markings, it has lost the tumbling propensity.
The Nun is a compact, trimly-built pigeon, of upright car-
riage, with a Tumbler's head, beak, and pearl eye, which latter }
in the black variety, is surrounded with a narrow blackish
cere. The shell, which is sometimes miscalled a hood, should
be very extensive, and resemble a cockle shell filled with plaster
of Paris, stuck, as it were, on the back of the bird's head. It
should on no account take a cupped form, but, when viewed
in profile, be perpendicular, and so extensive that, when seen
from before, it should describe three-quarters of a circle.
The more even its edge, so as to form an unbroken line, the
better, and although but few have it so large, it should come
down below the level of the eyes; and the more it stands out
from the head the better, when it resembles the halo around
the head of a mediaeval saint.
The Nun is found of several colours, such as black, blue,
dun, red, and yellow-headed. I shall take the black first in
my description, and, although it is comparatively easy to breed
this colour good, yet many Nuns are to be found very off-
coloured in their black.
The black Nun, however good in colour, must not have a
light beak like other black-headed pigeons, such as Barbs,
which are preferred white-beaked, but its beak should be
as black as possible ; and, I may say, it never is white-beaked
as far as I have noticed. The head, as far back as the
shell, which should stand up, and be purely white, must be black.
As the shell feathers grow with a forward inclination, and
those of the crown of the head backward, the latter, where
they meet the shell feathers, take an upward turn, and form
the support of the shell. If all the backward-growing feathers
of the crown are black, the shell will, therefore, have a black
lining, which, being unwished for, causes the dodging exhibitor
to cut or pluck them, and so show a clean white shell.
When the young Nun is about twelve days old, the head
3S2 FANCY PIGEONS.
feathers will, in a good one, be black only a little way behind
the middle of the crown, and those feathers which adjoin
the rising shell will be white. By the time the feathers are
full grown the black will reach the shell, but not rise
against it. The black marking of the head should run round
the corners of the shell, so that, when the bird is viewed from
behind, two black, pointed patches, are seen, and the colour
should run down the sides of the neck to the breast, with a
wide sweep, forming the bib, which ought to be evenly cut.
The flight feathers, or ten primaries, should be black. Moore
only speaks of six coloured flights in the Nun, but no bird with
less than ten-a-side can be reckoned a standard one now. Eight-
a-side certainly looks a full flight when the wing is closed,
but not when the bird is flying; however, eight-a-side, with
quite clean butts of the wings, is preferable to more black
flights with the spurious wing and adjacent feathers coloured,
a very common fault with all Nuns, especially with full-
flighted ones. Here, again, plucking is often resorted to ; but
an examination of the open wing will enable the searcher to
detect it, if at all extensive. The twelve tail feathers, with
their upper and under coverts, must also be black, and cut
sharply across. There should be no black feathers over the
rest of the body, nor white ones among the black markings ;
but a prevailing foul marking is at the knees, or hocks, where
the thigh feathers finish off.
The feet and legs of the black Nun, when in the nest, are
either quite black or heavily patched with black, but this
generally wears away afterwards, though some birds retain it
partly, especially those of a very rich colour. The black Nun looks
much better, however, with bright vermilion- coloured legs and
feet. The nails of the toes should be quite black, though many
a good bird has a small fault in having some of them light.
Probably on account of the less contrast in colour, red
and yellow-headed Nuns have not been so much fancied by
breeders as blacks; at least, they do not exist in such per-
333 THE MAGPIE.
fection, being, as a rule, very deficient both in shell and
quality of colour; and it so happens, that the marking of the
Nun encroaches on those parts of the bird which present
the very greatest difficulty to the breeder of red and yellow
pigeons the tail and flights. Could red and yellow Nuns be
produced of such rich and lustrous colour as some kinds of
pigeons display, I would consider them very much finer
examples of the breeder's skill than blacks, though, at the
same time, they would lack the contrast ; the red, however, would
not be much behind even there. Bed and yellow Nuns have
light beaks and toe nails.
The Magpie Pigeon.
This beautiful variety of the Tumbler, known in Germany
as the Elstertummler, is now extensively fancied in this
country. During late years competition has been strong
among its admirers, who have drawn up a standard of its
points, and formed a club for its encouragement. Although
few of the pretty birds to be seen at shows would be able
to tumble in the air, as they are bred mostly for appear-
ance, the tumbling propensity is not entirely eradicated,
as I have seen some of them perform creditably when
flown. What is wanted at present in a show Magpie is
a very small, slenderly-built pigeon, with a flattish head and
long, slender beak, a thin neck, and short flights and tail.
The iris should be as pearly white as possible, and the legs
and feet free of feathers. The colours are black, red, yellow,
dun, blue, and silver, marked as follows: The head, neck, and
breast, are coloured to a line running between the butts of
the wings; the scapular feathers are coloured so as to form
the saddle, or heart-shaped figure, on the back; the back and
tail, with its upper and under coverts, are coloured; the rest
of the feathers ought to be white. This marking is so fixed,
that the Magpie breeds very true to it. Absolute perfec-
tion, however, is so rare, that, to make the lines of
334 FANCY PIGEONS.
demarcation between the white and coloured portions of the
plumage exact, the bird is understood to be as subject to
having its show toilet made as the Nun, or Mottle Tumbler.
The beak in blacks, reds, and yellows the chief show colours
is preferred to be flesh-coloured, but in the black is often
tipped with Yandyke brown. Varieties of the Magpie with
peak and shell crests exist on the Continent, but such
are in no request here at present. The colours of the Magpie
are, for the most part, rich and lustrous, reds being at pre-
sent the most deficient in this respect, but they have lately
shown signs of improvement.
The Helmet Pigeon.
The pigeon known at present as the Helmet is a German
Tumbler. Neumeister describes it under the name of Der
Farbenplattige Tilmmler oder die Calottentaube (Coloured-
headed Tumbler, or Calotte Pigeon), and says that it has long
been bred in the greatest perfection in Hamburg. The Helmet
is of the size of our ordinary flying Tumblers, and is
similarly formed in head, beak, and body. The upper mandible
is coloured, the lower white; the head is black, blue, red, or
yellow, the tail, with its coverts, matching the same. The line
of demarcation of the helmet, or coloured cap, should run
through the eye, as it were, and dip somewhat at the back of
the head. The iris should be pearly white in colour. The
Helmet is generally smooth-headed and clean-legged, but Brent
mentions a variety with feathered legs and feet, coloured, he
says, from the hocks down, to match the head and tail.
Neumeister says that some Helmets are hooded, and that
such are more valued, having an additional beauty to commend
them to the breeder.
Chapter XXVII.
<X THE SHORT-FACED TUMBLER PIGEON. X>
The Almond.
OON" after the death of Moore, a variety of
Tumbler called the Almond became in great
estimation in London, and supplanted the
Pouter and Carrier in the lofts of many
breeders. We are enabled to trace its history
with some degree of accuracy. There is no doubt that its culti-
vation began before Moore wrote, as will be seen from the fol-
lowing passage from his book. He says, in writing of Tumblers :
"But amongst all, there is Mixture of three Colours, vulgarly
call'd an Almond, perhaps from the quantity of Almond
colour'd Feathers that are found in the Hackle: Others
call it an Ermine, I suppose from the black Spots that are
generally in it; however I am sensible the Name is not com-
patible to the Term so call'd in Heraldry, which is only
white spotted with black; yet as the Gentlemen of the Fancy
have assign'd this Name to this mottley Colour, I shan't
quarrel with them about a Term: if the three Colours run
thro' the Feathers of the Flight and Tail, it is reckon'd a
very good Almond, or Ermine, and is much valued.
336 FANCY PIGEONS.
"KB. An ermine Tumbler never conies to the full Beauty
of its Feather, till it has twice molted off, and when it
grows very old will decline, till it runs away to a down-right
Mottle or other Colour."
The Almond Tumbler was, therefore, very much valued
when the three colours ran through the nights and tail, as
early as 1735; and a standard had by that time been esta-
blished for it in regard to feather. But it seems unlikely, if
it was then anything else than an almond-feathered common
Tumbler, that Moore would have omitted to describe its.
peculiarities of head, beak, and carriage. It seems probable,
therefore, that at this date it had not altered much in size
and shape from the common Tumbler, seeing that Moore
describes it as a variety of that breed.
Thirty years afterwards the Almond Tumbler had made
great progress in London, for it is described by the author
of the Treatise of 1765 at length, and as then distinct in
character from the common Tumblers. It was then "a very
small Pigeon, with a short body, short legs, a full chest, a
thin neck, a very short and spindle beak, and a round
button head, and the iris of the eye a bright pearl colour."
But the illustration which accompanies this description is
disappointing, as it represents a pigeon of a much commoner
type, compared to the modern Short-faced Tumbler, than some
of the author's other illustrations are, compared to their
modern representatives. The author had, however, become
enamoured of the Almond, and considered that the title of
the King of Pigeons, conferred by former fanciers on the
Carrier, might, with greater propriety, be conferred on the
new favourite. Some of the reasons he gives for this opinion
are its exceeding beauty and diversity of plumage, its in-
creasing value twenty guineas having been paid for five pairs,
and those not of the best and the ease with which it could
be bred, compared with the Pouter and Carrier. Then, after
dilating, through four pages of his work, on the difficulties of
337 THE SHORT-FACED TUMBLER.
Pouter breeding, lie adds : " The above, and many other in-
conveniences too tedious to mention attending the Pouter,
and no trouble at all (comparatively speaking) attending the
other, easily accounts for the preference given to the Almond
Tumbler," which requires "no attendance while breeding,
provided you supply them with meat and water, and throw
them a little straw." Considering that he himself quotes a
sale of Pouters by auction, where the prices realised were as
high as sixteen guineas a pair, and that Moore had known
eight guineas refused for a single Pouter, the price of the
Almond Tumblers two guineas each was nothing great ; but
then he says they were not the best; and probably some of
the lot of five pairs were worth much more than the average
price of the whole.
The fancy for the Almond Tumbler was now established,
and, the year before (1764), a standard had been published
setting forth the perfections and imperfections of the bird.
This was entitled " Ordinances Established by the Columbarian
Society," and was headed by a picture of an Almond, " elegantly
engraved on copperplate." The Almond went on increasing
in popularity after this, and its name, at least, became so
widely known that people who would not have recognised
the bird had they seen it, had heard of it. The Sporting
Magazine, some years after its commencement, in 1792,
had a portrait of a choice specimen ; and, in 1802, a
monograph on the breed was published in London, by
" An Old Fancier." The author was Mr. W. P. Windus, a
solicitor, a member, and afterwards the president, of the
Columbarian Society. An engraved circular, dated 1813,
signed by him, and headed by a picture of an Almond,
calling a meeting of the society, is in my possession. His
treatise was the first book ever published on any single variety
of fancy pigeon, and it goes thoroughly into its subject.
We learn from it, that though it had been necessary to limit
the length of face, from the point of the beak to the iris, or
2 G
338 FANCY PIGEOMS.
inner circle of the eye, to |in., it was usual, when he wrote,
to see birds scarcely fin. in face, so that a great improvement
had been made.
In 1851, Mr. Eaton, an enthusiastic fancier of the Almond
Tumbler, published another monograph on the breed; so that
this pigeon has been twice honoured above all other fancy
varieties. Mr. Eaton's book is an unacknowledged reprint of
the 1802 one, with additions describing the Almond as it was
in his day; and this brings us down to modern times.
Although it is expressly stated by the author of the Treatise
of 1765 that "this beautiful and very valuable species were
originally produced from the common Tumblers, being properly
matched so as to intermix the feather, viz., blacks, black-grisles,
black- splash' d, yellows, whites, duns, &c., and are always attain-
able if you are endowed with patience sufficient for the
tedious process, which requires a length of time," I have to
submit that, as regards the almond feather alone, it is not con-
fined to the Tumbler. The author of the Treatise (1765) men-
tions an Almond Barb, and an Almond Narrow-tailed Shaker,
which were purchased by a certain nobleman, and I have seen
Almond Runts and almond-feathered pigeons in India, besides
a very good commencement for this colour in a yellow ground,
broken to some extent with black, in Turbits and Jacobins.
The Oriental Holler and Double-crested Oriental Tumbler also
exist almond coloured. The Short-faced Tumbler, however,
independent of colour, is a different matter, and how it was
produced is a question worth some attention. Not to admit
the possibility of its origin from the common Tumbler alone
would be a denial of all I have advanced when writing of the
origin of fancy pigeons; but certain facts having presented
themselves to me in my experience and observation of
pigeons, I have acquired the belief that the Short-faced
Tumbler is a composite breed, and derived from the com-
mon Tumbler and some other varieties. When in India,
the love of pigeons, which has possessed me from my child-
339 THE SHORT-FACED TUMBLER.
hood, caused me to associate witli pigeon fanciers there;
and when I saw a race of birds (the Goolees) having all
the shape and carriage of Short-faced Tumblers, of much
the same size, and of the same style of head, it struck me
that, as the Mookee had been described by "Willughby in
1676, the Goolee might also have been in England at that
time, and have helped to found the breed of Short-faces.
About the year 1878, being in London, I met the late Mr.
Jayne, of Croydon, one of the principal breeders of Almond
Tumblers, and as he invited me to see his stud of birds, I
gladly availed myself of the opportunity. After seeing his
stock, I asked him if he believed that the Short-faced
Tumbler had been bred from the common Tumbler and
nothing else. He replied that it was the result of crosses
between the Tumbler and other varieties, that the African
Owl had been used in producing it, and that his friend, the
late Mr. Morey, was the only man he ever knew who could
give its true history. Eaton in his 1858 book, at page 187,
says : " The late Mr. Harry Edward Morey, chairman of the
City Columbarian Society, and an excellent old fancier, used
to say, however low his stud of birds was reduced, he had
never been without pigeons for the last sixty years." The
combined evidence of Mr. Jayne and Mr. Morey, therefore,
goes back to the last century, and it is probable enough that
Mr. Morey had spoken in his youth to men who had been
pigeon fanciers before the Treatise of 1765 was ever designed,
and that was about the time the Almond Tumbler became of
consequence in the fancy. Since speaking with Mr. Jayne on
this subject, I found in the Field newspaper of 19th Oct.,
1872, a report of an address he delivered to the members of
the National Peristeronic Society when he was president.
His subject was "The Almond Tumbler," and I quote the
following sentences: "You are aware my only hobby has
been a Short-faced pigeon, and, of all the varieties, none can
equal, in my idea, the Almond Tumbler; if for no other
2 G 2
340 FANCY PIGEONS.
reason, I should admire it as a purely English-manufactured
pigeon. How often and how deeply have I lamented that I
allowed to escape the knowledge of this beautiful bird
possessed by my esteemed companion, the late Mr. Morey.
He was the only person that I ever heard give a description
of the thirty-two crosses by which this Almond Tumbler was
produced."
Without having seen Mr. Jayne and conversed with him
on the subject, I should not have known what to understand
by the thirty-two crosses he refers to whether they were
merely crosses of different- coloured Tumblers to produce the
almond feather, or of other breeds of fancy pigeons as well,
to produce the Short-faced Tumbler. The latter is what he
meant, and as the knowledge Mr. Morey possessed is lost,
all I can say is that there is good evidence for my belief
that the Short-face has something more in its composition
than the common Tumbler.
The pictures of the Almond Tumbler in the Treatises of
1765, 1802, and 1851, show the gradual improvements made
in eighty-six years. I do not put much stress on the wings
being carried over the tail in the 1765 and 1802 pictures, as
they might have been so represented on account of trailing
wings being considered faulty. Windus says, regarding car-
riage : "The bird should stand low, with a fine, prominent,
and full, or, as the Fanciers term it, a square chest, which
is thrown up considerably by the bird's elevating himself on
tiptoe, and thereby depressing his tail, so that the point of
it touches the flooring of the area, penn, or whatever place
he stands upon."
As interesting to the fancier of Short-faces, on account of
the light it throws on the materials used about eighty years
ago for breeding Almonds, I here give a copy of a little
handbill in my possession, which is probably unique. I
found it, with the circular signed by Windus, in a copy of
the 1802 Treatise which has the autograph of Thos. G-arle,
341 THE SHORT-FACED TUMBLER.
Jan., 7th Feb., 1809. The reward offered would imply that
the pigeons were valuable. Though the bill is undated, the
type shows it to have been issued not later than 1810.
Fifteen Guineas
EEWAED.
WHEEEAS the DOVE-HOUSE of MB. PAEE, of Bethnal-Green,
was on FBIDAY Night, the 13th inst., BEOKE OPEN, and the
following
TWELVE TUMBLEE PIGEONS
Stole therein :
A very fine Feathered ALMOND COCK, small Size, remarkable
bright Pearl Eyes, fine Beak, the end of upper Bill rather Brown,
owing to the Canker when young.
A Eich ALMOND COCK, large size, a little White on the Back of
his Neck, no Yellow in his Tail except a little in the middle of one
Feather, a Brown mark on one side of his Neck in front.
A Eich ALMOND COCK, small short Body, good Shape, Pearl
Eyes, and fine Beak.
A Broad-Chested SPLASH COCK, stands low, bold Head, Pearl
Eyes, fine Beak which droops at the Point, stocking Leg'd.
Another SPLASH COCK, small round Head, Pearl Eyes, short
straight Beak.
A Soft Ground HEN, round Head, good Shape, a few rich Dun
Feathers about her Neck and Flights, stocking Leg'd, a little broken
Eyed.
A DUN HEN, fine Pearl Eyes, straight Beak, rather thin Face.
An ALMOND HEN, strong Ground, a few Kite Feathers in her
Left Flight, bright Pearl Eyes, and fine straight Beak.
A remarkable clear BLACK SPLASH COCK, Pearl Eyes, round
Head, a little coarse in Beak & Wattle.
A large dark SPLASH COCK, lofty round Head, broken Eyes,
short down Beak.
A soft ground ALMOND COCK, dull pearl Eyes.
Also a EED COCK, his right Wing only two thirds grown.
Whoever will discover the Offender or Offenders, shall on Eecovery
of the said Pigeons, receive FIVE GUINEAS, and in Proportion for
342 FANCY PIGEONS.
any Part thereof ; and on Conviction, a further Eeward of TEN
GUINEAS to be paid by Mr. PAKE, No. 103, Holborn-Hill.
Or if any Person will give Mr. PAEE a Hint respecting the said
Eobbery, his Name shall be kept secret, and frilly satisfied for such
Information.
It will have been noticed that Mr. Jayne mentioned the
African Owl as a progenitor of the Short-faced Tumbler.
The first pair of these beautiful pigeons known to the pre-
sent generation was exhibited in 1858; but that they were
known in this country in the last century I quite believe,
and Mr. Jayne had, no doubt, very good reasons for his
statement, Mr. Morey probably having mentioned such birds
as part of the composition of the Short-face.
Having dealt with the history of the Short-faced Tumbler,
so far as I have been able to trace it, at some length, I
now come to a consideration of the bird as it exists. The
almond-feathered Short-face first demands attention, both
because it has always been considered the representative
of its race, and because it best answers the standard of
perfection laid down. It has always been a matter of specu-
lation, from Moore downwards, why this pigeon got the name
of Almond Tumbler, and it has generally been supposed
that it was so called from the almond nut- coloured feathers
which compose its ground tint. The nut itself, as well as
the shell, both inside and outside, in all stages from ripe
to rotten, have been fixed on by authorities as "the reason
why." I could never see why only one of the colours in this
bird should give it its name, and think that a whole-feathered
yellow pigeon would be more appropriately called an Almond.
I incline to the belief that the name is not derived from
either the nut or its shell, but that, as suggested by Brent,
the word almond is a corruption of Allemand, the French
word signifying German, and that almond-feathered pigeons
of some sort, brought from France under the name of
Allemand Pigeons, originated the name. Such coloured
343 THE SHORT-FACED TUMBLER.
French Tumbler Pigeons were described by Boitard and
Corbie, in 1824, as Pigeons Culbutant Savoyard.
Taking the Almond as the representative of all the
Short-faced Tumblers, it may be described as a very small
pigeon, only larger than the African Owl, and generally said
to have five properties Feather, carriage, head, beak, and
eye.
FEATHER. A standard Almond is one having its twelve
primary tail feathers, and its primary nights, whether nine
or ten-a-side, composed of the three colours black, red, and
yellow. A bird with nine-a-side, all standard feathers, is
preferable, in my opinion, to one with ten-a-side having
only nine in each wing standard feathers, because it is full
flighted; but if the bird with ten-a-side had only the shortest
flight in each wing out in colour, it would be much nearer
perfection than if any of its other flight feathers were wrong
in colour. There are, however, so many other properties in
the Almond, that it is unlikely such close competition will
often arise; but where it is a case of showing standard
birds only, the whole of the flight feathers, whether nine or
ten-a-side, must show the three colours. The ground colour
of the Almond should be of as deep and rich a yellow as can
be got ; but it is generally either mealy and spotty in colour,
or of a reddish colour which can neither be called red nor
yellow like unpolished mahogany wood. As the most diffi-
cult thing to produce is the bright yellow ground which,
indeed, has been seen but seldom this is the point of most
consequence ; in fact, however good in head and beak a bird
may be, it is not a real Almond if it has not the ground
colour. If the bird does not come out of the nest of a good
ground colour on back, wings, and rump, it can never attain to
it later in life. The ground colour being right, it must be
pencilled over with black of as intense a deepness as possible,
not in any particular pattern, but to show well as a whole.
This pencilling ought to increase with the autumnal moults
344 FANCY PIGEONS.
till the bird is from two to three years of age, when it comes
to its best, after which it gets annually darker, till it becomes
more black than yellow, and the tail and nights lose their
standard character through absence of white. Even then the
bird is beautiful, though past its best from a standard point
of view. In the Treatise of 1765 the author says, at page 57 :
" I have had some in my collection that have had few feathers
in them but what have contained the three colours that con-
stitute the Almond, or Ermine viz., black, white, and yellow,
variously and richly interspersed." This has been often quoted
as to mean that the three colours should run through all the
feathers of the Almond ; but no white must appear elsewhere
than in nights and tail at any period of the bird's existence.
When the ground colour is only a yellow tinged with white,
it is called an Almond Splash, and to breed from such for
colour is to go backwards, and is like breeding from bad
coloured pigeons of any sort. The Almond Tumbler is one
of the varieties which show a sexual difference in colouring,
the hens, for the most part, being weaker in their ground
colour than the cocks, and wanting the black pencilling evenly
distributed over the body. There is generally less break in
the feather, and the black is seldom of so deep a tint. A
really good hen takes longer to come to perfection than a
cock, and consequently remains longer in feather. There is
no such thing as a standard-feathered hen in nights and
tail, or, at least, such is of the greatest rarity.
CARRIAGE. The shape and carriage of the Almond is the
next property to be mentioned. The breast ought to be
broad and prominent, the neck short and thin, the back
hollow, the rump rather full, and the tail carried above the
nights, which should touch the ground, but not drag on it.
The head should be thrown back, and the bird should walk
on tiptoe, on short, unfeathered legs. Nothing is more attrac-
tive in an Almond than excellent carriage, and it is a sign of
good blood; for, however fine a bird may be in its other pro-
345 THE SHORT-FACED TUMBLER.
perties, it never can look well without good carriage. Shape
and carriage have been called one and the same thing ; but a
bird may have all the necessary conformation, and yet lack
that spirit and vivaciousness which enable it to carry itself
properly. The Almond shows best when salacious, and when
driving his hen to nest.
BEAK. Two distinct forms of beak are seen in Short-faces,
and that which is most generally admired, and which I
admire, is what is known as the "goldfinch beak," which is
formed like that of the well-known song bird. The gold-
finch beak, from its shape, is generally longer, and more in-
clined to keep growing at the point, than the other form,
which more resembles a grain of barley, dipping a little
at the end. The goldfinch form is, however, so distinct from
the beak of any other variety of pigeon, that, in my opinion,
it is the most worthy of encouragement; but whichever style
of beak a Short-face may have, it must be straight out
from its head, with neither an upward nor downward inclina-
tion, and as short and fine as possible. The beak wattle
should be small, and delicate in appearance, any coarseness
being considered a great fault.
HEAD. The head ought to be very lofty, broad, and over-
hanging the beak, if it can be got so. Though the skull itself
may not do so, the feathers growing out from the forehead some-
times give it that appearance in a fine bird, which then has a
deep stop, or indentation, at the root of the beak. The head
itself ought to be round from all points of view; and, when the
cheek feathers are puffed out, or muffed, as it is called, it adds
wonderfully to the natty appearance of the Short-face.
EYE. The iris ought to be white or pearl coloured, and
surrounded by a fine and narrow eye wattle, of which the
less there is the better. A full and prominent eye adds
greatly to the appearance. The faults of eye are a reddish
pearl, a dusky or clouded iris, and a broken iris, which looks
very bad, and spoils the appearance of any bird.
346 FANCY PIGEONS.
As the Almond feather is a composite one, made up of
various colours, it is preserved by the judicious crossing of
its various sub-varieties, such as Kites, Duns, Agates, and
Whole-feathers. Kites are of various shades, from such as
are almost black, with only the primaries bronzed with yellow,
to such as have the yellow cast on their feathers more or less
all over them, especially on the breast. Duns also show the
yellow on their neck and breast feathers when rich in colour,
and are then called Golden Duns. Duns are almost invari-
ably hens, and, when bred from two well-grounded Almonds,
are useful for matching with a rich Almond. Agates are
such as are red or yellow, splashed or mottled with white.
They are of various markings, some showing a preponderance
of colour, and others of white. Whole-feathers are either red
or yellow, and when sound in colour through nights and
tail (which is sometimes seen in reds, and very rarely in
yellows), they are both valuable for Almond breeding and for
themselves, as they are the choicest of the sub-varieties of
the Almond. Black Splashes, or what might be called black
Agates, appear to have been formerly used in Almond breed-
ing; but this colour seems to have been bred entirely out of
our modern birds, which is, perhaps, the cause of the black
pencilling in our Almonds being usually of a kitey or dun
black, and, on this account, a cross of a good black mottle,
or mottle-bred black, might be of advantage. Even the
darkest Kites always show a smoky tail, barred at the end
with darker colour; and, however much such birds may assist
in breaking the feather in Almond breeding, they cannot
impart the desired velvety black colour. Bed and yellow
Whole-feathers, grizzled with white in flights and tail, or Agate
Whole-feathers, as they have been called, are merely unsound
reds and yellows, weak in strength of colour. All these sub-
varieties of the Almond are used in Almond breeding, and
are matched with Almonds according to the way they
are themselves bred. Although it is not unusual to breed
347 THE SHORT-FACED TUMBLER.
Almonds together occasionally, such breeding from richly-
grounded ones often results in young ones entirely or almost
white, with what are called "bladder" eyes, and almost or quite
blind. When such a result happens, the pair must be dis-
matched at once, and some of the off colours used. I have
seen a pair of Almonds produce all the colours I have men-
tioned except blacks and black Splashes; so it will easily be
seen that there is much uncertainty in the production of this
beautiful pigeon, and that it is a study in itself. When I
was young in the fancy I thought the Almond Tumbler the
finest and the most beautiful of all pigeons, and I was never
weary of admiring my first pair, which were Spitalfields-
bred birds and cost me a sum of 5. It is over twenty-
five years ago since then, but I well remember that I bred
five birds from them during their first season (two Almond
cocks-, an Almond hen, and two Golden Dun hens), which
realised me 12, and pigeons were cheaper in those days than
of late years.
Since the secret, so well kept for so long, and which was
in reality a trade secret, of manufacturing the heads of Short-
faced Tumblers, was given to the world in Fulton's "Book of
Pigeons," the Almond fancy has declined; but after a time it
will rise again, when the importance attached to the head of
the bird gives way to its other beautiful properties. There
is enough in the natural Short-faced Tumbler, in all its varie-
ties, to entitle it to the position of a very high-class pigeon.
The shaping of the skull, which is begun when the squab is a
few days old, and continued during its growth in the nest,
is done by pressing with a wooden instrument shaped for the
purpose, or with the thumb nail, at the root of its beak, and
so forcing the bone back into the head, which gives breadth,
height, and a deep stop. This is a cruel process, which kills
many in the doing, and which renders the lives of those
that survive it, for the most part, miserable. No pigeon is so
much troubled with vermin as the Short-face, as it is unable,
348 FANCY PIGEONS.
with its tiny beak, to free itself entirely from them; and, when
the beak is distorted in the shaping of the skull, as it often
is, the bird is quite unfit to keep itself free from parasites.
The signs to know a made-faced bird are when it is up-faced,
which is never natural; and if the lower mandible protrudes
beyond the upper at the point, it may be taken as certain that
the operator has been at work. Wry beaks are, no doubt, often
produced naturally in Short-faces, but there is something about
a natural wry beak different from one which is the effect of
shaping the skull. The natural wry beak, though crossing at the
point, generally fits closely farther back, which is not the case
with the artificial one. As I have seen many Short-faces
of high quality which I know were never tampered with when
young, I would not condemn the whole race, as some do,
because manipulated birds may sometimes get away undetected;
but I would hold for absolute disqualification of all birds which
clearly showed they had been tampered with, because the whole
system of making heads is a swindle, and only done to obtain
money under false pretences.
Many a man has gone into the Short-faced fancy, and
finding he could never produce birds anything like so good
as those he began with, for the simple reason that they were
unnatural, has given it up in bewilderment; or, learning how
the thing was done, he has become a modeller himself, and
then cheated others as he was cheated himself. The decline in
this fancy is principally on account of the unsatisfactoriness
of merely producing quality in pigeons by hand. Honest
men wish to breed quality, not to make it with a wooden
spoon. I think it may be safely said that when a bird does
not show that something has been done to it, there has been
so little done that it may be allowed to pass as natural ;
but when the skull has been forced in, the upper mandible
is always displaced to a certain extent, and a bird showing
this should invariably be passed over. The under mandible
may be turned up, but it cannot be forced back. I think
349 THE SHORT-FACED TUMBLER.
that it depends on the judges whether the Short-faced fancy
is to decline still further, or whether it is to rise again. The
Short-face is naturally a charming pigeon, beautiful in all
its colourings, and original in many ways.
One of my set of eight life-size, very old, oil paintings of
fancy pigeons, is an Almond Tumbler. From a careful study
of these paintings, I conclude they are the work of a faithful
and conscientious artist, and if not older than Moore's " Colum-
barium," they are at least older than the Treatise of 1765.
The Almond represents a common Tumbler in shape and
general style, carrying its wings over its tail. It is a rich-
feathered bird, showing white in its flight feathers. The
pictures are evidently portraits, as many little faults are
represented which would have been left out had the artist
meant to depict perfect birds.
The Mottle Short-faced Tumbler.
As already pointed out from the Treatise on pigeons of
1765, and from the old handbill, black Splashes and black
Grizzles were formerly sub-varieties of the Short-faced Almond
Tumbler. These gradually settled down into a separate
variety, and are referred to at page 64 of that book as
follows : " There was also a prize last season for black
Mottled Tumblers, whose properties should agree with those
of the Almond Tumbler, except the feather, which should be
a black ground, the body mottled with white, with a black
tail and flight ; and, when they are in perfection, they are an
excessively pretty fancy, and very valuable. There is also
another very pretty fancy, equal at least, if not superior, to
the black Mottled, viz., the yellow Mottled Tumbler, whose
properties likewise agree with the Almond Tumbler, except
the feather, which should be a yellow ground, the body
mottled with white, and a yellow flight and tail. Either of
these two last-mentioned fancies are extremely useful (pro-
vided they answer in their other properties) to intermix occa-
350 FANCY PIGEONS.
sionally with the Almond." The illustration of the Mottle
accompanying these remarks represents a long-legged, common-
looking type of Tumbler, with a black flight and tail, and
white body, over which are dotted about thirty-four well-
separated black feathers. I scarcely think it represents the
author's intentions, as he expressly says, "a black ground,
the body mottled with white." The Mottle may, however, be
said to have been then in its infancy, and a standard more
difficult of attainment would soon be aimed at. The present
standard is the same as that mentioned for the Mottled flying
Tumbler, viz., a self-coloured pigeon with a rose pinion of
single, well-separated white feathers on the shoulder, either
with or without the Y-shaped handkerchief back, but with it
for choice. This standard of feather, accompanying good Short-
face properties of head, beak, eye, and carriage, makes up
one of the most difficult standards in fancy pigeons to breed
at all good. "When a fancier with such experience of Short-
faced Tumblers as Mr. Fulton, has said that he has only
seen a few pairs of Mottles that could even be trimmed into
something like perfection, and that the nearest approach to
a perfect bird he ever knew of had to be weeded on both
breast and shoulders, it will be seen how much remains to
be done for the Short-faced Mottle. Whoever follows after
this fancy, then, has not only to contend against made heads,
as in the Almond, but also against trimming ; and so he sets
himself a difficult task. Perhaps there have been but few
Long-faced Mottles ever produced perfectly marked; but there
are certain inherent faults of marking in the Short-faced
Mottle, as it exists, which make it harder to produce than the
Long-faced. There still exists, however, what may be called
the remnants of a good strain of black Mottles, in which the
ground colour is good, but which are much inclined to a
blaze of white on the forehead, and to orange instead of
white eyes. Both are great faults, and a white-eyed bird
has only to be seen by the side of a yellow or orange-eyed
351 THE SHORT-FACED TUMBLER.
one to show how very nmcli better it looks. From the
amount of colour in the Mottle there is but little to contend
with in the way of broken eyes, as in the Almond. In head
and beak they are, though sometimes passable, never so
broad nor so lofty as the best Almonds, while in carriage
they are sometimes very good indeed, which is a great set-
off to their appearance. In breeding black Mottles, the blaze
face should be avoided, however good they may otherwise
be, and it might be eradicated in time, as in black pied
Pouters, which nearly always had it many years ago.
About the year 1872, I bought two pairs of black Mottles
from the late Mr. James Ford, of London, who then had
a good strain of them. Two of them were very fairly
marked, and the others were Mottle-bred black Whole-feathers
of the same strain. As the Mottles were quite free of blaze
on the forehead, I managed to keep it out of the great
proportion of the produce; but the orange eye, which one
of the "Whole-feathers had, was difficult to alter, the best
marked young ones generally coming with it. I found that
a bird which had any white on it as a nestling became too
gay when it moulted off, and that when a bird moulted
something like what a Mottle ought to be, it came out of
the nest all black. There was, therefore, no distinguishing
between what were to become fair Mottles or remain Whole-
feathers till after the first moult. Dun Mottles are occa-
sionally bred from blacks, and they are useful for breeding
back to blacks, but dun being an off-colour, few care for
them.
Red and yellow Mottles would each be more difficult to
keep good in colour than blacks, but I am not aware that
any long-standing strain of either is in existence. In Almond
breeding, both red and yellow Agates are often produced
well marked to the Mottle standard. These, however, have
generally a weak, washed-out colour in flight and tail feathers,
and white rumps as well ; but it is from the judicious
352 FANCY PIGEONS.
breeding of such with red and yellow Whole-feathers and
Agate Whole-feathers that a strain of red and yellow Mottles
might be produced. Such red and yellow Mottles as were
in existence when the fancy for them was at its best were
doubtless produced in this way.
Considering the difficulty there is in producing Short-faced
Mottles, and remembering the fact that none have ever been
seen naturally perfect in marking, it is a question if the
standard of feather for them is not too high. A standard
that would allow of white feathers on the head, neck, breast,
wings, and back, but retaining the entirely dark flights, tail,
rump, and under body, would be a pleasing one. There would
also be great difficulty in keeping the white feathers separate,
as they are always inclined to run together.
The Blue Short-faced Tumbler.
There is another whole-feathered Short-faced Tumbler, now
seldom seen, viz., the Blue. It was formerly bred to great
perfection in London. Eaton, who has a picture of one in
his Treatise of 1858, says: "I cannot by any possibility let
the opportunity pass without noticing the observations and
great admiration the venerable and much-respected old
Fanciers bestow upon the amazingly pretty little compact
Sky or Powder Blue Whole-feather, with its black bars, black
as ebony, the Short -faced head and beak, with its other
properties the pretty little Blue Tumbler. Whenever they
have the opportunity to see one, I have almost fancied they
would have gone into fits in observing a good one with its
five splendid properties head, beak, eye, carriage or shape,
and feather. It appeared to me almost to make them boys
again ; it has as great or greater an effect upon them as
going to the mill to be ground young again. Unfortunately,
it is seldom you have the opportunity to see one ; they are
very scarce at this time (1858)."
It was soon after this time (in 1862) that I saw in the
353 THE SHORT-FACED TUMBLER.
possession of Mr. Fulton, who then lived in Deptford, a very
fine pair of Short-faced Blue Tumblers ; I have often spoken
to him about them since. I believe such good birds as they
were are not now in existence. Though probably made-faced,
they were broad and lofty in skull, with good colour and
fine carriage.
Baldheads and Beards.
Short-faced Baldheads of good quality are now extremely
scarce. They have always been rare, but formerly there were
at least some very fair ones in blacks, blues, and silvers.
Blacks are scarcest at the present time, and it is now about
twenty years since I saw a good pair of that colour.
During the past twenty years Short-faced Balds have been
represented chiefly by the strain of Mr. Woodhouse, who has
shown blues and silvers, with which he has carried off many
prizes at the principal shows where classes were given for
Balds. Red and yellow Balds have lately been shown of very
fair colour and quality, and I understand they were produced
from a cross with the Almond and its sub-varieties. They
were bred by Mr. Burchett, a London fancier, who sold off
some years ago, when they were distributed among the
breeders of this very beautiful and interesting variety. The
standard of feather for the Short-faced is the same as for the
Long-faced Bald; but there are very few, if any, really well-
marked ones in existence which combine good Short-faced pro-
perties of head, beak, eye, and carriage. Compared to the
best Almonds they are far behind, and all I have seen, which
I knew to be untampered with about the head, could only
be called pleasant faced at the best. I have, however, seen
of late several of each colour excepting the blacks, which
seem nowhere at present manufactured into very passable
ones. I say manufactured, because it was plain from their
appearance that they had been tampered with, and the young
ones they produced showed it clearly. Beards are even of
2 H
354 FANCY PIGEONS.
lower quality, as judged by the Short-faced standard, than
Balds, and the only colours in existence at all good are the
blues and silvers. Mr. Woodhouse has bred some of the best.
As for black, red, and yellow really Short-faced Beards, I
have never seen any. Beards ought to be marked exactly
the same as the flying ones.
All Short-faced Tumblers of high quality have a difficulty
in shedding their flight and tail feathers during the moult.
The feathers will grow to their complete length without
bursting from their sheaths, and, if allowed to do so, their
fibres will rot. The upper skin of the feather should be
scraped off with the thumb nail as it continues to grow, and
the inside core of the feather carefully removed. By this
means the feathers may be preserved good.
Chapter XXVIII.
X HOMING PIGEONS. X
HE well-known love of pigeons generally for
their homes has been taken advantage of,
from the earliest ages, by making use of them
as messengers. The flying fancier can point
to Anacreon's "Ode to the Carrier Pigeon,"
written twenty-five centuries ago, as a proof of the existence
of his fancy in early times:
" Tell me why, my sweetest dove,
Thus your humid pinions move ? "
" Curious stranger ! I belong
To the bard of Teian song ;
With his mandate now I fly
To the nymph of azure eye."
Throughout history there are records of the use of Carrier
Pigeons as messengers to and from beleaguered cities : from
the amphitheatre, to tell the results of the sports or combats ;
and from caravans, to announce their setting out or arrival
Many passages from mediaeval writers have recently been
brought to light regarding their employment ; and if, in modern
356 FANCY PIGEONS.
times, the telegraph has superseded them in Europe as swift
carriers of news, railways have afforded such facile means
of training them, that probably at no other period of the
world's history have such immense numbers of these birds
been kept, by sweepstakes and others fliers, as at the present
time.
The pigeons formerly used in this country as messengers
were mainly of Carrier descent, such as Horsemen, Dragoons,
Skinnums, and Long-faced Beards. All such have been for
long known amongst us as Homing Pigeons, and are so re-
ferred to by Moore in his "Columbarium," where, at page
5, in describing the construction of the " Trap, or Airy," he
says : " Others build them very wide and lofty, designing
them to give Room and Air to Pigeons of the homing Sort."
Again, at page 32, under the Horseman : " This Practice is
of admirable Service to 'em, when they come to be train'd
for the homing Part"; and elsewhere, when writing of the
" Powting Horseman."
The Skinnum Pigeon.
The Horseman and Dragoon have been already described,
and the Skinnum, probably named from the somewhat
skinny appearance of its eye wattles, is merely some mixture
of the Dragoon and Tumbler varieties. For short distances
the Skinnum is capable of quick work.
The London Beard Pigeon.
The Long-faced, or London Beard, is a pigeon of respect-
able homing powers, having in recent years done as much
as 100 miles, when carefully trained. These bold, intelligent-
looking pigeons, are found chiefly in black, blue, silver, and
dun, as well as in chequers of these colours. They ought to
be marked exactly the same as the English Beard Tumbler.
They vary in type, some having a considerable amount of
eye wattle, denoting Dragoon blood; but the correct type is
357 HOMING PIGEONS.
that of the flying Tumbler on a large scale. Although some
birds have measured more, Ifin. in face, from the point of
the beak to the centre of the eye, may be considered the
standard for a cock of the Tumbler type, hens being about
T Vin. less.
The Antwerp Carrier Pigeon.
On the Continent, the pigeon now chiefly used for match
flying is the Antwerp Carrier, or Belgian Yoyageur, which
has been bred from a judicious mixture of several long and
high-flying varieties. The first of these a pigeon that can
itself do long distances is the Smerle of Liege, which is
quoted in Mr. Tegetmeier's book as capable, when matured, of
doing 500 miles in twelve hours, in fine weather. The Smerle
is the opposite in appearance of the .Dragoon type, being
arched and broad in skull, with a short, thick beak, and with
evident appearance of Owl descent, some of them even show-
ing the frilled breast. The next mixture is the Continental
Cumulet, a pigeon noted for the length of time it can keep
on the wing. I have seen it mentioned that these pigeons
have flown as long as thirteen hours at a stretch, the distance
covered during that time being probably several hundred
miles. They are of various colours, but blacks and reds,
with white tails or white flights, or with both, are known as
varieties, while pure whites, ticked with red on the head and
neck, are also a well-known race, distinguished in France as
Pigeons Volant cou- Rouge. The Cumulet is much alike in
size and shape to the common clean-legged flying Tumbler,
but is rather longer in beak. It has a pure white iris, which
is larger than usual in pigeons, the pupil being small and
contracted. The third ingredient of the composite bird now
known as the Antwerp Carrier is the English Dragoon,
known in Belgium as the Sec-Anglais. The fusion of these
three varieties has taken place during the present century,
and a race of pigeons has been established remarkable for
358 FANCY PIGEONS.
their power of flying long distances in quick time. The cross
of the Dragoon with the Smerle, or the Cumulet, is called
a Demi-bee, and the cross of the Dragoon-Smerle with the
Cumulet, or Dragoon-Cumulet with the Smerle, a Quart-bee.
The Quart-bee, bred over again to the Smerle, or the Cumulet,
takes after its progenitors; so that among the best pigeons
there are various types of skull, some being after the Owl
strain, while others are more run out in head and beak. The
chief colours found in the Antwerp are blue, blue chequer,
mealy, and red chequer, and these colours pied to some
extent with white. These colours are the most natural, being
what are found among semi-wild pigeons, and in process of
time have doubtless asserted themselves as the hardiest and
fittest for the severe work they have to perform.
Coming now to the consideration of the wonderful per-
formances of Antwerps in returning distances of 500 miles
and more, there is no doubt that training has much to do
with it, that great numbers of them are lost in the severe
training they get, and that the percentage of birds that
would return from a first toss of 400 miles would be but
small. Still, they have been known to return to their domi-
cile from such a distance without any previous training,
and therefore there remains something still unexplained in
connection with them, which may never be satisfactorily
elucidated. Dogs, cats, and other animals, have been known
to return immense distances when taken from home; they
have been sent by sea, and have returned by land. But then
we hear of such incidents when they happen, and of those
who do not so distinguish themselves we never hear.
Some years ago Mr. James Huie, of Glasgow, the well-
known Pouter fancier, a writer whose diction and style of
composition have caused many to wish that he had written
otherwise than only fugitively on fancy pigeons, contributed
the following article on the Antwerp Carrier to the Journal
of Horticulture :
359 HOMING PIGEONS.
" POWER OF WING AND COMPASS.
" I hear a voice you cannot hear,
Which bids me not to stay ;
I see a hand yon cannot see,
Which beckons me away.
"There has been much, interesting writing on the powers
of the Carrier Pigeon, the length and rapidity of their nights,
and modes of training, along with speculations as to their
guide for their homeward course. The latter points to the
theory of this bird flying by sight alone. I find that the
Rev. E. S. Dixon, in his very interesting work, 'The Dove-
cote and Aviary,' takes this same view; and though I always
hesitate to place my opinion against that of such men of
letters as Mr. Dixon, still on this point (the guide of the
Carrier on the wing) I beg most respectfully to differ. It
is pretty well known that I am not an Antwerp Carrier
fancier, and do not encourage the Antwerp as a bird that
ought to be in the fancy, for several reasons which I shall
not discuss at present. But Antwerps I keep for two pur-
poses: First, as feeders for my young Pouters; and second,
for table use. For both these purposes I find them most
suitable. First, then, as to the power of wing possessed by
this bird. I do not think this point is yet fully developed in
this country; but, so far as my personal experience goes, I
shall give it. The plain narrative, I think, may answer the
purpose best. It may be interesting, and I hope will not
weary readers.
" Several years ago, when in Manchester, I called on Mr. W.
Millward, bird dealer, from whom I had all my Belgian Cana-
ries. He had lately arrived from the Continent, and brought
with him a stock of Antwerp Carriers, which he then found
to be most unprofitable. Not having before seen such birds
which I could be sure of having been imported, I purchased
three pairs. The stock consisted of mostly blues, some
mealies, and some nameless colours ; but all were self-
360 FANCY PIGEONS.
coloured, and all showing a cross of the Owl a slight divi-
sion of the feathers on the breast. Some of them had the
breast feathers slightly turned, indicating the frill. They
were wild as newly-caught hawks, and strong enough to
carry before them a pane of window glass, as one of them
did when in my possession. After much care and caution I
found them to be hardy birds, breeders almost the year
round indeed, I am never without some few young ones.
During the season, when early light, they take two flights
per day, the cocks and unoccupied hens at about 7 a.m., the
hens and unoccupied cocks about 1 p.m. The flock invariably
fly southward, and are away for about an hour and a half
each time. I have seen them fully ten miles south still hold-
ing in that direction. When first noticed on their return
they are always at a very great height; but should it be
blowing hard (the weather seems of little consequence to them),
they often return from the northward, having, no doubt,
been carried to the east or west, beyond their home. Three
years passed, when a friend came on a visit from Ledbury,
Herefordshire. This friend saw my An twerps, and expressed
a wish for a pair or two to breed for table use. After his
leaving for home I caught three pairs, all bred in my loft
(Antwerp loft, for with them I have nothing else). They
were put into a box (not a basket or cage), and addressed to
a mutual friend in Manchester, as they could not reach
Ledbury in one day from Glasgow. They reached Man-
chester in the evening, were re-booked for Ledbury next
morning, and reached their destination that evening, but
until then were not taken out of the box in which I had
placed them. Before sending the birds away I pulled the
flight feathers out of the right wing of each bird, and my
instructions were : ' Keep them confined, with such a netting
as will let them see the locality, till they have each a nest
of young ones, and are sitting upon their second eggs.'
Those instructions were rigidly adhered to. One night the
361 HOMING PIGEONS.
netting was removed according to instructions, and the birds
were at liberty next morning. A man was set to watch.
The cocks took sundry short nights, and by-and-by relieved
their mates occupied in incubation; the hens came out, and
at once took wing, The date now I cannot give precisely
let me call it the 18th of July. On the morning of the 20th
I had a letter from my friend, dated the day before (the
19th), saying: 'The birds were yesterday morning let out,
but two of them have not returned. I am afraid they are
lost.' While in the act of reading my friend's letter, my
man who attends to those birds came into my office, saying :
' I think two of Mr. 's birds are back.' Scarcely believing
him, 1 went out into the yard, and there certainly were two of
the hens I had sent to Ledbury.
"Now I can tell to a mile the distance between Glasgow
and Ledbury, Herefordshire, by railway; but I will let our
readers measure the distance as the crow flies, and decide
whether or not this is a very long flight. Mark, first, those
birds had never been trained; second, they had never been
in the hands of anyone till caught by me, when I pulled
the flight feathers from one wing of each bird. These birds
would leave their cote at Ledbury about 10 or 11 a.m. on
the 18th, and, as I did not know what day or week they
were to be set at liberty, of course I did not expect them,
and at all events I certainly did not expect they would at
any time return to Glasgow on the wing. For all I know,
they may have reached on the evening of the 18th, or during
the day of the 19th. Two months after this I gave a pair
to a friend in Paisley a pair of young ones. They had only
been two days outside the loft, and never had left it beyond
a hundred yards. They were taken away squeakers, and con-
fined, with a netting in front, for three weeks. When let
out, they were at their birthplace in ten or twelve minutes.
It is only seven miles to Paisley by road. Those birds had
never been flown."
2 i
362 FANCY PIGEONS.
The following was published in the Fanciers' Chronicle of 20th
August, 1880, and was noticed also in the Field and other
papers: "Wonderful performance of a Homer. In February
last year I bought from Mr. Mills, Brussels, some homing
pigeons. On Sunday, the 8th instant, I gave one of these
birds its liberty, and it disappeared. I thought no more of
it, but on Thursday last I was surprised to receive from
Mr. Mills a letter, saying that the bird reached his loft on
Wednesday morning. I send you this information, as I con-
sider this a most marvellous performance, the bird having
been in confinement many months, and had to travel over
about four hundred miles of country which it had never
seen. The pigeon in question is a three-year-old blue chequer
hen, and will be again in my possession to-night or to-morrow
morning, Mr. Mills having sent it off yesterday. JAMES P.
TAYLOR, Moss Croft, Gateshead-on-Tyne."
This is a record of a truly wonderful performance, one
similar to that which was accomplished by the birds of Mr.
Huie, of Glasgow. Training brings out the natural homing
powers of these pigeons, but that they do not fly by sight alone
the above proves. And in training for the long Continental
matches the final stages often exceed a hundred miles, over
which the best birds fly straight home. What guides them
on their way?
That some pigeons, especially certain breeds, both from
a strong natural and inherited love of home, will return
from long distances without any previous training, is there-
fore an established fact. But at the same time, little de-
pendence could be placed on even the best bred flying pigeons
without training. They must, therefore be flown first from
a short distance, and gradually by increased stages, till
perfect at their work, during which process of training many
of them will of course be lost. It has been recommended by
writers on this subject, that birds in their first year should
not be flown above a hundred miles from home, and not
363 HOMING PIGEONS.
over two hundred miles in their second year, as they are
not fully matured till over two years of age.
It is an established fact that pedigree in homing birds
is of the first consequence, so that those entering on pigeon
flying should by all means endeavour to procure stock from
fliers of repute. If the best Homers could be selected by
appearance there would be no need to go further ; but it is well
known that some of the best have had little in their looks
to recommend them.
The most absurd stories regarding Carrier pigeons are
often circulated in the newspapers, such as the return of
some sent to the Arctic regions to their home in Ayrshire,
the flight of others across the Atlantic Ocean, and the capture
of others at sea with stamps on their wings showing them
to have been employed during the Siege of Paris, which
happened seven or eight years before their capture, and since
which event their flight feathers must have been renewed
annually. It seems impossible to kill these fables, and they
crop up at regular intervals. One or more Carriers were
captured at sea during the Siege of Paris, and were shown
at exhibitions of pigeons as objects of interest. Since then
the story has been repeatedly re-published as a late event,
and it will probably continue to be published in time to
come, as it comes under the observation of those who do not
understand the way in which pigeons are used as messengers.
On the Continent the flying fancy is much followed. In
Belgium there are hundreds of clubs or societies for the cul-
tivation of the Yoyageur Pigeon, whilst they also abound in
France and Germany. In this country the fancy is increasing,
and rising in public estimation, many gentlemen and respectable
people being devoted to it. The use of the Yoyageur for war
purposes has been recognised on the Continent, and Govern-
ment studs of them have been established in France, Germany,
and other countries. The principal foreign flying matches
take place in July, and extend over distances of from 200 to
364 FANCY PIGEONS.
500 miles. Twice have races been organised from Rome to
Belgium, a distance of some 900 miles, but with so little
success, both as to time and the percentage of returns, that it
is now recognised that this long fly can only be attained at
too great a sacrifice.
The following interesting account of the origin of the Belgian
Homing Pigeons was sent to me, in 1880, by M. Yictor La
Perre de Boo, so well known on the Continent for his researches
into the subject, and as the adviser of nearly all the Con-
tinental Governments as to the adoption of these pigeons for
war purposes.
" As regards the Belgian Homing Pigeons, they are very much
like our street dogs (chiens de rue) ; they are the result of
numerous crossings between the Carrier and the different
varieties of pigeons which existed in Belgium about a century
ago. In other words, they are degenerated Carriers, as the
wattle on the upper mandible of the beak and round the eye
shows clearly. Some have thick, short beaks ; but as a rule
they have thin beaks, like those sent you by M. Gere.
" There are some birds with round heads, very short beaks, and
frills like Owls ; but they are very small birds, and are not so
much liked in Belgium as the large Antwerp birds, their wings
not being so powerful. These birds have undoubtedly been
obtained by crossing the degenerated Carrier with the Owl.
" The Carrier was brought to Belgium by Dutch sailors, got
neglected, and soon degenerated.
" There are also birds with white eyes, and these are supposed
to be a cross between the degenerated Carrier and the Pigeon
Volant, or Highflier (the Cumulet).
"But all these birds have been crossed, as I state in my
book, dans nos fermes et nos basses cours, with the Pigeon
Biset (the Blue Bock Pigeon) and all the other varieties of
pigeons which existed in Belgium a century ago, as is gene-
rally the case with pigeons which are kept only for table
purposes.
365 HOMING PIGEONS.
" My father died twenty years ago, at the age of seventy-six,
and he often told me that the birds he had when he was a boy
had more wattle on the beak and round the eye than the birds
I kept about thirty years ago; but at that time a pigeon which
had flown a distance of twenty-five miles was looked upon as a
very good bird, and the very few birds which had been sent
to be thrown from Paris that is, about a hundred and fifty
miles from Brussels were considered to be most wonderful
and exceptional birds.
"Since then you know what regular training has done.
During the season, about 100,000 to 150,000 pigeons are sent
every Saturday from all parts of Belgium, to be thrown from
all parts of France, and Auch, Bordeaux, Bayonne, Biarritz,
and St. Sebastien (Spain), are now the stations they are
generally sent to.
"There are now upwards of 1000 pigeon societies in
Belgium."
M. La Perre de Roo sent me several lots of Antwerp Carriers,
all of which were descended from the birds presented to the
French Government, after the war of 1870, by MM. D'Hanis
and Gits. I have kept the strain pure, and supplied numerous
fanciers with their produce, many of which have flown long
distances. They are easily trained up to 100 miles during
their first season.
As feeders for my Pouters these Antwerps are the best birds
I ever employed. They are larger than the Homers usually
seen, and such prolific breeders that I am never without fat
squabs for the table.
Exhibition Antwerp Pigeons.
Although a Homing Antwerp Carrier of the highest type
has little in its appearance to distinguish it from birds which
could not possibly home a moderate distance with certainty,
it has been usual for some years to exhibit the Homer for
prizes in the show-pen. This method has been of great use
366 FANCY PIGEONS.
in one respect, as the immense classes of these so-called
Homers have proved serviceable in providing funds for the
encouragement of real fancy pigeons which might not other-
wise have been provided with classes. No doubt many really
good flying birds are of good colour and style; while others
as good, or better, have nothing in their appearance to re-
commend them ; so that showing the Homer is a mere lottery
as far as being able to pick out the best flying bird is
concerned.
Where prizes for homing pigeons are offered at shows, the
following remarks on judging them, by Mr. W. B. Tegetmeier,
who is an authority on the subject, will be found of value.
He says:
" The classes for Homing Antwerps which are now common
at many shows offer considerable difficulty to those who have
to award the prizes, unless, indeed, as not very often happens,
they are practically acquainted with the breed.
" When the judge is not in this position the birds selected
are usually of the short-faced Birmingham type ; and I have
seen, at Bingley Hall and elsewhere, prizes given to a set of
bad show birds, the best of which would have been lost at
twenty or thirty miles, even if they could have been trained
that distance. It should be borne in mind, that the properties
of a homing pigeon lie in the wing more than in the head,
and a judge who simply looks at a pen and decides the
prizes upon the appearance of the birds proves that he
knows nothing whatever about the subject on which he under-
takes to decide.
"At the exhibition of the birds that won in the late (1876)
race to Brussels from the Alexandra Palace several distinct
types were recognisable. Some of the birds were rather light,
and fine in the head, whilst others were heavy, thicker in head,
and stouter in body. Although the lighter birds are generally
regarded as flying well in fine weather, and for short distances,
the stouter are usually regarded as the standard type.
367
HOMING PIGEONS.
" Of the three engravings which accompany this article, the
first (Fig. 14) represents, life size, a head which may be regarded
as that of a very handsome Belgian Yoyageur cock. It may
be taken as that of the bird which Mons. Ch. Mills and Mr.
C. L. Sutherland both practical men gave me the first prize
for at the Alexandra Poultry Show, 1875; but it was not
drawn from that bird, but from a cock I obtained of Mons.
Ch. Mills. The bird has all the properties that I desire to
FIG. 14.
see in the head of a flying pigeon a full-developed brain
case, showing a large brain, and such a structure of head as
indicates strength and endurance and he is without any
tendency to the absurd exaggeration of any fancy point. Of
course, no really practical judge would give a prize in a homing
class, even to such a bird, unless he were in first-rate condition,
with his plumage hard and firm, the flight feathers broad and
overlapping, and the bones of the wing well clothed with power-
368
FANCY PIGEONS.
ful muscles. To prove that this bird is as good as he looks,
I may give his history. He was hatched, early in 1874, from
a bird of Mons. Ch. Mills' that was one of the first winners
in the great annual national match from Marseilles, in the
south of France, to Belgium a 500 miles race. The same
year, as a young bird, he flew from St. Quentin and Creil
(about 200 miles), and in 1875 he again flew from St. Quentin,
taking first prize ; also from Paris, Orleans, and was a winner
in the race from London 200 miles.
FIG. 15.
" At my request Mons. Ch. Mills sent him over to show
at the Alexandra Poultry Show, 19th Oct., 1875, and I induced
him very reluctantly, I am afraid to part with him. The
bird was, necessarily, useless to me to fly, for on liberation
he would doubtless have returned to Brussels, as I have had
birds do after two years' confinement in England ; but I kept
him to breed from, and his early progeny are very good indeed.
369 HOMING PIGEONS.
" So good is the bird in appearance, that I have repeatedly
refused the offer of 5 for him merely as a stock bird.
"Fig. 15 represents a Homing Antwerp belonging to me to
which the judges gave the silver cup at the Crystal Palace
Poultry Show in 1875. The bird was certainly a handsome
one, but not, in my opinion, equal to the former, even in looks ;
he was purely Belgian bred, and was a good Homer, having
flown about 100 miles in previous years. In 1876, I entered
him in a private race from Brussels, but the truth must be
told I have never seen him since he was let off in that
pleasant city on the morning of the 20th July, and was lost,
although his companion in the race, not half as good looking,
is walking about before my eyes.
" I have now shown what is regarded as the most esteemed
FIG. 16.
type of Belgian birds viz., as regards cocks, for the hens are
generally less stout in the head and beak ; and I may state, that
the sketches are executed with the most extreme accuracy, not
only as regards the form, but also as to the expression of the
birds. Mr. T. W. Wood, one of the most accurate of natural
history draughtsmen, devoted very great care to their delinea-
tion, and I may state that the drawings are not altered to suit
my views of what a good Homer should be, but show the birds
exactly as they are.
" I now wish to show whajb is not an uncommon view of a
homing bird amongst some amateurs. The outline sketch (Fig.
16) is traced with the closest accuracy from one of the drawings
2 K
370 FANCY PIGEONS.
of Mr. Ludlow, of Birmingham, published in the New York
Pet Stock and Poultry Bulletin. The drawing represented,
with all Mr. Ludlow's skill, an indifferent Birmingham show
Antwerp, with pert, upright carriage, short, stubby beak, large
eyes, small head and brain, and is no more like a Belgian
Yoyageur than I to Hercules. Such a bird could not fly fifty
miles, and would not fly five.
" I have visited over and over again the lofts of the Belgian
amateurs ; I have owned, and still own, hundreds of these birds ;
I have had thousands pass through my hands; but in all
Belgium I never saw a bird approaching the form that is
apparently regarded by Mr. Ludlow and the Birmingham
fanciers as that of a Belgian Yoyageur.
" The exhibition of the right sort of birds is very much pro-
moted by their liberation after being judged in the pens, the
prizes being withheld if the birds are not returned at a given
time. It is true some of the birds may live close to the show,
and have their flying powers very slightly tested, but really
good flyers are certain to be sent for the selection of the judge,
and the Short-faced show birds will be kept at home.
"The liberation clause should always be qualified with the
stipulation, 'weather permitting,' for it would be a serious
matter if, during the worst flying months of the year, a flight
of really good birds should be liberated in a fog, or in hazy
weather, when they could not see their way home. For, in spite
of all the nonsense written about flying by instinct, all practical
men know that a bird flies by sight. I have lost some of the
best birds I ever possessed from trying to fly them across
London on a foggy day."
The Short-faced Antwerp Pigeon.
This pigeon has been produced principally from the Smerle
of Liege, one of the varieties from which the Belgian
Yoyageur descends, as mentioned already. According to
Fulton, who ought to know, some breeders have made use of
371 HOMING PIGEONS.
the Barb in breeding it. Its chief properties lie in its head,
which must be capacious, and present in profile an unbroken
curve from the nape to the point of the beak. The beak
itself ought to be thick and short, the under mandible ap-
proaching the upper in consistency as much as possible, and
fitting close to it, or, as fanciers say, boxed. Any gullet is
objectionable, and detracts from the appearance and value of
this variety in the opinion of its admirers. Viewed in front,
the head ought also to be round from eye to eye. The
irides should be orange or blood red in colour, light or pearl
eyes being faulty. The eyes must be prominent, or bolting,
and be surrounded with a fair but not excessive amount of
wattle. Like other pigeons of this type of head, the beak
wattle thickens with age; it should be of considerable sub-
stance, lying well spread on each side, and by the time the
bird arrives at maturity some three or four years it should
have filled up all inequalities in the curve of the head, and
even if it stands out a little beyond the curve it is not con-
sidered any fault in a good bird. Mere shortness of face,
therefore, is no desideratum in this bird, but rather the
reverse, for room is required for the forehead behind the beak
wattle to fill out, and this is the point which gives a finish to
a good bird, and makes it massive in skull.
The Short-faced Antwerp should be a large pigeon, bold in
appearance, upstanding, and tight-feathered. The choicest
colour is the mealy, almost always now called silver dun, which
is a good sounding name ; but there is certainly no silver in this
colour, neither is there any dun. The mealy colour may be said
to have been bred to perfection in this pigeon. The cocks are
sometimes finely powdered on the head and upper neck, while
the lower neck, breast, and wing bars, are of a rich brown or
red ; but it is difficult to get the same colour in the hens, which
are generally dark-headed. Next comes the red chequer, both
dark and light ; the blue chequer, also of various shades ; and
the black-barred blue, the original colour of wild pigeons.
2K2
372 FANCY PIGEONS.
These are the chief colours, valued, I believe, in the order
named. Then come silvers, preferred with bars of as dark a
dun as possible ; dun chequers, called silver chequers ; yellow
mealies, called creamies ; and lastly blacks, which are sooty or
blue black, showing bars of a deeper black.
My opinion of the Short-faced Antwerp is in accordance with
that of a great many men who are the mainstays of the pigeon
fancy. I cannot admit that it has one original point in its
composition entitling it to be called an original variety, and all
the diagrams and illustrations published of it only confirm this
opinion. The chief difference between it and the Owl is said to
be that the latter is essentially a short-faced pigeon, which the
Antwerp ought not to be. No doubt all the Owl tribe are known
as Short-faced Frilled Pigeons ; but they would quite as correctly
be called blunt-faced, for mere shortness of face is not any desi-
deratum in them, as it takes away room for the filling up of the
forehead behind the beak wattle. This when well-developed
gives them, above all else, a look of quality, just as it does
the Antwerp.
The Short-faced Antwerp may be difficult to breed good
according to the standard laid down for it ; but, when bred as
good as can be, it is no more than a pigeon with some Owl points
in its head, and, for the most part, clothed in the mere off
colours of fancy pigeons. I think the encouragement it gets
tends to foster low art in pigeon breeding, wastes time and
trouble that might be much better employed, and that there is
no result, from an artistic point of view, in its production.
Many fanciers, whose judgment of pigeons is acknowledged to
be sound, agree with me in this opinion.
The Long-faced Antwerp Pigeon.
During the past few years this variety, bred for the show-pen,
has come into considerable prominence. Those birds I have seen
were very large pigeons, mealy and red chequer in colour, with
enormous, long, arched heads, and a considerable amount of
373
HOMING PIGEONS.
beak and eye wattle. A great winner was a mealy one, called
" Goose," who with his son, known as " Young Goose," swept
the boards for a long time. They were aptly named, having,
with their small, sunken eyes, the look of being descended from
the Runt, which as Moore says is Goose-headed.
The Medium -faced Antwerp Pigeon.
There is still another show Antwerp, known as the Medium-
faced, and there are frequent disputes over prize birds,
difference of opinion existing as to what type they really
belong.
Chapter XXIX.
X TURKESTAN PIGEONS. X>
B. T. B. COOMBE WILLIAMS, M.A., lias
lately described, and illustrated with wood-
cuts, in the periodical Poultry (July 3
Oct. 30, 1885), a series of skins of fancy pigeons
belonging to the Zoological Department of the
British Museum, South Kensington. They were collected by
Dr. Scully, a member of an expedition that visited Turkestan
in 1875, and were procured in the city of Yarkand. The
following is part of a note written by Dr. Scully regarding
them :
"In the spring and summer of 1875 I purchased all the
varieties of domestic pigeons that I could find in the place.
When I found that my stay in the country would be limited
to a short time, I thought it might be worth while to pre-
pare skins of all the varieties to which the natives give
distinct names. In this way I found that there were about
twenty-six named varieties, of which the accompanying skins
are specimens.
" These varieties are said by the Tarkandis to breed true,
and the fanciers select and match the different kinds. The
375 TURKESTAN PIGEONS.
natives of Eastern Turkestan assert that the differences which
are found among the pigeons are due to the direct inter-
position of Providence, but they know that the varieties can
only be regularly perpetuated by interbreeding. They also
add, that by crossing different varieties they could predict
almost exactly what the resulting progeny would be like; in
short, they seemed to think that pigeons could be bred to a
feather.
" The people were well aware of the great fondness domestic
pigeons have for salt. A Yarkandi fancier advised me to give
my birds plenty of salt. He said the result of this would be
that my pigeons would attract those of other people to the
place where the salt was to be found, and that I should thus
greatly increase my stock of pigeons at a very trifling cost.
" The domestic pigeons of Kashgaria are very fond of
perching. In almost every house where pigeons are kept, a
pole is placed across the open courtyard, from wall to wall,
for them to perch on, and several other plans are resorted to
for the same object. In the house where I kept my pigeons,
I had sticks placed across in various directions, and I found
that they preferred perching on them to standing on the
ground. Great fights often took place among the birds to
secure favourite places.
"In Eastern Turkestan I never saw any of the dovecotes
tenanted by semi-domesticated pigeons in nearly the same
livery as the wild stock which are commonly met with about
the villages in Egypt.
" I have given all the native names first in the Persi Arabic
character, as written by the Tarkandis, then a translation of
the words into Roman character, and, wherever it is known
to me, I have added the meaning in English. It will be
noticed that many of the names (Damdar, Palang, Zagh, &c.)
are Persian, and that others have reference to China.
" All the measurements were made in the flesh, before skin-
ning. The length is from the tip of the beak to the tip of
376 FANCY PIGEONS.
the longest tail feathers ; the wing, from the point of the
carpal joint to the end of the longest primary; the tail, from
the vent to the end of the longest tail feather; and the bill,
straight from the angle of the gape to the tip of the upper
mandible. The measurements are in English inches and
decimals of inches ; the weight, in ounces and decimals of
ounces avoirdupois."
Mr. Williams has added the length of face from centre of
eye to point of beak; but these measurements, being taken
from the skins, can only be regarded as approximately correct.
The varieties he has made drawings of are the five follow-
ing : Ak Bash Zagh, Char Bash, Kara Tokum Damdar,
Sidam Rakhshi, and Sidam Borghul.
The following is Mr. Williams' description of these Yarkand
pigeons. I give the weight, but not all the measurements
only the length of face and feather.
KASHKA KOK. Male. Beak, black; eyes, orange-yellow;
head and neck, silvery, with much green lustre ; breast, vinous ;
shoulders, silver, with dark bars; nights, bluish dun; tail,
silvery blue, with dark bar. Face, T35 ; length, 13'5. Weight,
lloz.
SIDAM KOK. Male. Beak, greyish black; eyes, bright red;
general colour, light blue, with black wing bars ; neck and
breast, darker, and lustred; belly, light; flights, slightly grizzled
with white; tail, blue, with Kity tinge and black bars. A few
white feathers at back of skull. Face, 1*5 ; length, 13*5.
Weight, 12-2oz.
AK BASH KOK (White-headed Blue}. Male. Upper mandible,
flesh-coloured, with dark stripe; lower, black; eyes, reddish-
brown; head, white above eyes; body, blue; neck and breast,
darker, and lustred; belly, dark; grizzled black wing bars;
rump, white ; tail, blue, with black bar. Face, 1'32 ; length, 13.
Weight, 10-3oz.
GORA BAJINI (Bajini = Chinese). Male, very short-faced.
Beak, livid, horny ; eyes, dark straw ; general colour, white, with
377 TURKESTAN PIGEONS.
vinous tint, the quill of nearly every feather being red; top of
head, dark red ; a few black feathers on neck ; quills of nights,
ruddy ; tail feathers, some white, others with ruddy quills ; legs
slightly feathered. Face '82 ; length, 12'3. Weight, 97oz.
AK BASH ZAGH (White-headed Crow) ; also called Siah
Palang (Black Leopard). Male. Beak, light, horny ; eyes,
reddish brown; colour, white, with blackish cheek markings
like a Turbiteen, rusty black shoulders like a Turbit, and
coloured breast and belly within lines drawn across breast
and vent. Face, T25; length, 13'2. Weight, 9'6oz.
KHUTANI (from Khotan, a town in Turkestan). Male.
Closely resembles the foregoing in marking ; colour, bluish
chequer, with red bronze wing bars. Face, 1*33 ; length, 13.
Weight, 8'7oz.
KIZIL BASH (Bed Head). Female. Beak, livid, horny; eyes,
orange ; head, white, with reddish tinge, which becomes darker
on neck and breast; shoulders and nights, white; tail, white,
with a little bluish red in it. Face, 112 ; length, 13'8. Weight,
12'25oz.
KOK BASH (Grey or Blue Head). Male. Upper mandible,
dark; lower, light; both with great substance. Eyes, orange-
red ; head and neck, silvery blue, lustred with green and red.
The colour is cut off across the breast like a low-cut Magpie,
and the remainder of the bird should, probably, be white, but
it has some foul feathers on body. Face, 1'07 ; length, 14*5.
Weight, 12'25oz.
CHAR BASH. Male. Beak, light; eyes, orange. Yery pecu-
liar pigeon, black in colour, except shoulders as in a Turbit,
and under body from breast to vent, which are white; beak,
short and thick. Is crested up the forehead, from beak wattle
to crown of head, in shape like that of a rose-combed fowl ; the
feathers rise up over each eye, and meet together in the centre,
a form of head crest not known in Europe. Face, 1'08; length,
13'9. Weight, ll-6oz.
KARA BASH (Black Head). Male. Marked like the preceding,
378 FANCY PIGEONS.
and with the peculiar frontal tuft, but rather smaller. Face,
1-07 ; length, 13'5. Weight, lO3oz.
ALDI POPSHAK ALA KARGHA (Frontal Top-knot Variegated
Crow}. Female. Beak, very short and thick; eyes, golden
yellow; marked like the Char Bash; frontal tuft wonderfully
developed. Face, '82; length, 121. Weight, 8'25oz. Some of
the short-faced Yarkand pigeons tumble in the air, but not
to any great extent.
SIDAM RAKHSHI. Male. A very curious bird. Beak, light;
eyes, yellow ; colour, black ; head, white above eyes ; white
stripe down the gullet, about an inch long ; white flight
feathers ; shoulders, as in a Turbit, whitish, but showing black
through the white, the quills and under down being dark. Face,
1-07; length, 12-7. Weight, 9-5oz.
DAMDAR (Blower, or Trumpeter}. Male. Beak, light, red
flesh-colour at base ; eye ceres, orange ; eyes, dark brown ; peak,
crested ; legs, feathered ; a few toe feathers ; colour, pure white.
Face, 1-37 ; length, 127. Weight, 10'5oz.
KIZIL TOKUM DAMDAR (Red Blower}. Male. Beak, light;
eyes, dark brown; shell crest; stocking legs; colour, white,
with ashy-red shoulders; breast, mottled, with about twenty
feathers, well separated. Face, 1'25 ; length, 13. Weight, 9'4oz.
KARA TOKUM DAMDAR (Black Blower}. Female. Beak,
light; eyes, dark brown; shell crest; legs unfeathered; Kity
black shoulders; mottled breast. Face, 1'24; length, 13*2.
Weight, 7'25oz.
KAGHAZI (Kaghaz means Paper}. Female. All white Dove-
like pigeon; eyes, dark brown. Face, T25; length, 12'3.
Weight, 8-9oz.
PELANG (Leopard, or Mottled}. Female. Upper mandible,
light ; lower, dark ; eyes, bright red ; head and neck with Tur-
biteen cheek markings ; shoulders, Kity black ; rest of body
plumage white, flecked with black; some flights white, others
black; tail, rusty black. Face, T25; length, 12'5. Weight,
8'25oz.
379 TURKESTAN PIGEONS.
SID AM ZAGH (Zagh, Persian for Crow}. Female. Beak,
brownish black ; eyes, orange-yellow ; plumage, black through-
out. Face, 1-25 ; length, 13. Weight, 10'5oz.
SIDAM ARGHTTNI. Male. Beak brown; eyes, light pink;
general colour, Kity black; breast, all bronze lustre, which
turns to green towards thighs; rump, ashy black. Face, 1*1;
length, 12. Weight, 7oz.
SIDAM ARGHTJNI. Male. Beak, .black ; eyes, orange-yellow ;
plumage, black, grizzled with blue, and exceedingly lustrous.
Face, 112; length, 12'9. Weight, lO75oz.
MIGIZI (Brain (?) Pigeon). Female. Beak, brownish; eyes,
orange-yellow ; plumage, blue and black chequered ; neck much
lustred; black-barred tail. Face, 1-25; length, 131. Weight,
8'5oz.
SIDAM BORGHUL. Female. Beak, black; eyes, orange;
excepting tail, which is dark blue with bar, every feather on
this bird is black with a white tip ; the head and neck appear
as if powdered with white; breast has a green, bronze lustre.
Thighs, ashy and lustrous; shoulders, creamy white, with the
black at the roots of the feathers showing in places through the
white; nights, black and white, with white tips. Face, T23;
length, 12. Weight, 810oz.
SIDAM BORGHUL. Female. Plumage same as foregoing,
but has a peak crest and frontal tuft like the Char Bash.
Face, 1*24; length, 121. Weight, 8oz.
KOSH POPSHAK ARGHUNI (Double Top-knot). Male. Beak,
greyish black; eyes, orange-red; frontal tuft and peak crest;
head, neck, and breast, black, richly lustred with green and
purple; shoulders, brownish blue, tipped with black; rump,
ashy black; nights, bluish brown; tail, blue, with black bars.
Face, 1-07 ; length, 13'9. Weight, 12'2oz.
AK KOYRTJK BAJINI (White-tailed Chinese). Female. Beak,
greyish black; eyes, orange; head, black, with white frontal
spot; neck and breast, black, lustred with green and bronze;
shell crest ; thighs, dark ashy black ; body feathers, black, with
380 FANCY PIGEONS.
white tips, causing the shoulders to appear nearly white ;
nights, black, with white tips. Face, '93 ; length, 13. Weight,
lOoz.
SIDAM BAJINI. Female. Beak, dusky ; eyes, orange-yellow ;
head, neck, and breast, dark, with bronze lustre; shoulders,
creamy white, tinged with red, and some feathers ticked with
black ; rump, ashy black, lustred with green ; flights, creamy
white and black mixed, darker towards their ends, and having
signs of a white tip ; tail, blue-black, with dark bar. Face, 1*13 ;
length, 11-6. Weight, 8oz.
BALDAK (a Ladder ; in allusion to the marks on the wings).
Female. Beak, greyish black; eyes, light pink; small frontal
tuft ; colour, dusky blue, with white wing bars. Face, 1 ;
length, 12-1. Weight, 8'3oz.
BORGHUL. Female. A great novelty. Mandibles, dusky;
eyes, dark straw colour. In each feather of the head there is
black, white, and almond-yellow, well broken ; the neck feathers
show most of the black colour. Breast lustred with purple ; the
belly a darker shade, but the feathers tricolour, with a bronze
lustre; shoulders, white, with ruddy edges and black base;
flights, light at base ; quills, black, the ends dark, with white
and almond tips ; rump, black and white, with but little almond
colour; tail feathers mostly black. Face, 1'13; length, 11*3.
Weight, 8oz.
It will be seen from the foregoing interesting descriptions
that there are still many curious pigeons in the possession of
Asiatic fanciers that we know very little about. I mentioned,
in the first chapter of the first edition of this book, written
about 1878, that we might still expect to get something new
from Central Asia and China.
Appendix.
X PIGEON LITERATURE.
AVING for many years been a collector of
books relating to domestic pigeons, I have
now a collection of them, in various languages,
which it would be difficult to match. Some
of the works are of great rarity, and have only
been got after years of search. When it is considered that
few fanciers consider it necessary to publish their experiences,
it is surprising to find how many books have been written
on the subject from time to time. It is true that the great
proportion of them are merely reprints or abridgments of
previous works; but the publication of so many editions of
Girton's " Complete Pigeon-Fancier," for instance, shows that
the demand for them must have been considerable.
Early Printed Books.
PLINY'S " NATURAL HISTORY." The first edition was printed
at Venice, by Joannes de Spira, in 1469, and is, I suppose,
the first printed book containing any reference to the pigeon
fancy. The notices are in Chaps, lii.-liii. of Book X., as already
mentioned in Chapter I. of this work. The first edition is
382 FANCY PIGEONS.
a rare and expensive book, copies having been sold at from
50 to 120, though I was once offered an imperfect one for
much less; but many later editions were published before
1550, and these can occasionally be purchased for little money.
An English translation of Pliny, by Dr. Philemon Holland,
was published in 1601, and another by Bostock, in 6 vols., in
late years, by Bohn. Pliny's "History" is a great storehouse
of ancient learning, all that is known of the writings of hun-
dreds of lost authors being preserved in it. The author was a
man of the most indefatigable industry, and wrote many
other works. Being near the Bay of Naples, in command of a
Roman fleet, when the eruption of Vesuvius that destroyed
Pompeii and Herculaneum (A.D. 79) broke out, he sailed
near, and went on shore to observe more closely its effects.
A midnight-like darkness coming on, from the quantity
of dust and fine ashes in the air, the party hurried back to
the shore; but Pliny, then fifty-six years of age, being
corpulent, and his breathing becoming affected, was unable
to proceed, and soon after lay down and died. These particu-
lars are recorded in the letters of his nephew, Pliny the
Younger.
ALDROVANDI, ULYSSIS : " OKNITHOLOGIA." Bonnonise, 1599-
1603, 3 vols.; 2nd Ed., Francofurti, 1610, 2 vols., folio.
Aldrovandi (1522-1607), the Italian naturalist, began the
publication of his works on natural history in 1599, and they
were continued for many years after his death, the series being
concluded in 1668. In the second volume of the Frankfort
edition of his "Ornithology" there are sixty closely-printed
folio pages containing quotations from ancient authors who
have referred in any way to the pigeon, and everything extant
on the subject, from Homer to Tasso, seems to have been
known to the writer. I find almost everything mentioned
about pigeons that I had discovered in my reading of Greek
and Roman authors, and much more besides; and I think
Aldrovandi's account may be considered an epitome of ancient
383 PIGEON LITERATURE.
references to them. Several varieties of domestic pigeons,
including some malformed ones, are figured in his engravings.
The Jacobin and Frizzled breeds are recognisable; also a bird
having a resemblance to the Leghorn Bunt as portrayed in
the London Treatise on Pigeons of 1765.
WILLUGHBY'S "ORNITHOLOGY." London: 1676 and 1678. Folio.
Francis Willughby (1635-1672), according to John Bay
(1628-1704), who edited the "Ornithology," was a man of
great ability, who, before his death at the age of thirty-
seven, had travelled over a great part of the Continent in
pursuit of knowledge connected with natural history. Bay
writes as follows: "Of his skill in Natural Philosophy,
chiefly the History of Animals, I shall say no more at present,
but that it hath not yet been my hap to meet with any man,
either in England or beyond Seas, of so general and compre-
hensive knowledge therein." The first description of fancy
pigeons published in England, so far as I am aware, is by
"Willughby, whose book was first published, in 1676, in Latin,
and then, in 1678, in English. At pages 181, 182 of the
latter edition is an interesting account, so far as it goes, of
seventeen varieties of tame pigeons, much of which I have
already referred to in the preceding pages. The figures he
gives on Plates XXXIII. and XXXIY. are partly copied
from Aldrovandi and partly original; but it is impossible to
believe that his plates of the Pouter, Carrier, Jacobin, and
Fantail, represent the best birds existing in London at the
time he wrote. Bay says: "But because Mr. Willughby
(though sparing neither pains nor cost) could not procure,
and consequently did not describe, all sorts of Birds, to
perfect the Work I have added the Descriptions and His-
tories of those that were wanting out of Gesner, Aldrovandus,
Bellonius, Marggravius, Clusius, Hernandez, Bontius, Wormius,
and Piso" It may be that additional information on
domestic pigeons exists in the writings of these old authors.
Gesner is quoted by German writers on pigeons.
384 FANCY PIGEONS.
English Books.
"COLUMBARIUM; OR, THE PlGEON HOUSE : BEING AN IN-
TRODUCTION TO A NATURAL HISTORY OF TAME PIGEONS.
By John Moore. London : Printed for J. Wilford, behind the
Chapter House in St. Paul's Churchyard, MDCCXXXY."
"MOORE'S COLUMBARIUM. Reprinted Verbatim et Literatim
from the Original Edition of 1735, with a Brief Notice of the
Author by W. B. Tegetmeier, F.Z.S. London: The Field
Office, 346, Strand, W.C., 1879."
For many years the only known copy of the " Columbarium "
among pigeon fanciers was that in the possession of Mr. F. C.
Esquilant, from which Mr. Tegetmeier made his reprint, in
1879 ; but soon afterwards a copy turned up in London, at one
of Puttick & Simpson's sales, which passed into my possession
on 5th November, 1879. J. M. Eaton, the writer on pigeons,
possessed a copy in 1852, which, there is no doubt, was de-
stroyed. The book is extremely rare. My copy measures
7fin. by 4fin., and is printed (from the signatures) in quarto.
The title-page, dedication, and preface, occupy seven leaves
(i.-xiv.), and the body of the book thirty leaves, paged 1-60.
There are four copies in the British Museum, according to
Mr. Tegetmeier, one of which is paged up to 80, the additional
matter being headed
An ACCOUNT of some medecines prepar'd by JOHN MOOEE, Apothe-
cary at the Pestle and Mortar, in Lawrence Pountney's Lane, the
first great Gates on the left Hand from Cannon Street ; who formerly
lived at the Pestle & Mortar in Abchurch Lane, London, with a faith-
ful Narrative of some cures effected by them.
Eaton's copy had these twenty extra pages, to which he
refers in his Treatises on Pigeons (1852 and 1858).
Moore was proprietor of a worm powder, and seems, from
the references to him in contemporary literature, to have been
well known. The Rev. Alex. Headley, rector of Hardenhuish,
"Wilts, who writes on pigeons under the nom de plume, " Wilt-
shire Rector," first called attention to Pope's lines entitled
385 PIGEON LITERATURE.
To Mr. JOHN MOORE,
Author of the celebrated WORM-POWDER,
a witty production of ten verses, that may be found in the
poet's works.
I have also discovered that Moore is referred to by Swift in
" A Letter from a G-entleman in the Country to his Friend in
Town," who compares his existence to that of a tenant of some
house, saying:
"At this present time I live in a poor, little, sorry house of clay
.... and, what is worst of all, am liable to be turned out at a
minute's warning I might have had my tenement (such as it
is) upon better terms if it had not been for a fault of my great grand-
father; he and his wife together, with the advice of an ill neighbour,
were concerned in robbing an orchard belonging to the lord of the
manor When I am turned out, I understand my lodge, or what-
ever you please to call it, depends upon a low-spirited, creeping
family, remarkable for nothing but being instrumental in advancing
the reputation of the Great Moor in Abchurch Lane."
Mr. Tegetmeier says, in the Introduction to his reprint:
" Twenty-two years before the issue of the ' Columbarium ' he
(Moore) published a work with the following title:
"Arcana Mooreana ; or a Succinct and Lucid Discourse of the Origine,
Essence, Scituation, Symptoms, Causes, and Cure of the Cholick. In
all its various Denominations, different Kinds, Degrees and Compli-
cations. Done by Mr. John Moore, Apothecary, at the Pestle and
Mortar, in Abchurch Lane, near Lumbard Street, London : Printed
for the Author 1713."
He also says : " It is probable that the writer must have been
in business some time, as he states:
"If ever any person upon the face of the universe who devoted his
whole life to the doing good, and rendering himself beneficial to man-
kind, has reason to complain of the ill and barbarous usage he ha&
encountered .... I am the Man."
Though said to be " Reprinted verbatim et literatim from
the original edition of 1735," Mr. Tegetmeier's reprint con-
2 L
386 FANCY PIGEONS.
tains a few misprints when compared with my copy of the
original.
The Gentleman's Magazine for February, 1735, notices the
" Columbarium " in a list of lately published books, " price Is."
The author only lived a short time after this, his death being
mentioned in the Gentleman's Magazine for 1737, page 252, as
follows : " April 12. Mr. John Moor, of Abchurch Lane, the
noted "Worm Doctor. He will now shortly verify Mr. Pope's
witty Observation, viz.:
" learned Friend of Abchurch-lane,
Who sets our Intrails free,
Vain is thy Art, thy Powder vain,
Since Worms shall eat ev'n thee."
Moore may be called the Father of the pigeon fancy in
England; his descriptions are so accurate, concise, and clear,
that, generally speaking, they stand good now ; and, with the
exception of what was written on Short-faced Tumblers, nothing
to any great extent original was added on the subject till
recent times. From the rarity of the " Columbarium," I should
suppose that only a very limited number of copies were printed.
"A TREATISE ON DOMESTIC PIGEONS. London: Printed
for and sold by C. Barry, in Ingram Court, Fenchurch Street.
MDCCLXY."
This book, the author of which is unknown, is inscribed to
John Mayor, Esq. It should contain thirteen full-page copper-
plate engravings of the principal varieties, and a frontispiece
representing the pigeon loft, matching pen, grain hopper, water-
fountain, and net for catching the birds. Some copies differ
in the plates of the Almond and Mottled Tumblers, two sets
of which appear to have been executed. The title-page,
dedication, and preface, occupy eight leaves (i.-xvi.), and the
remainder of the book seventy-two leaves, paged 1-144, printed
in 8vo. It is by no means scarce, at least thirty copies having
come under my observation, some of them containing book-
387 PIGEON LITERATURE.
plates with coats of arms. They are often very much cut
down, but I have one fine uncut copy, which measures 8fin. by
5fin., illustrated with fifteen plates, those of the Almond and
Mottled Tumblers, that differ in some copies, having been added.
The author, who was an experienced pigeon fancier, says in
his preface: "In regard to the model of this treatise, we do
not offer it to the public as an entire new work, but have
proceeded on the plan of Mr. Moore, have corrected some
errors, and made many additions. And, as Mr. Moore's essay
is very deficient for want of cuts to convey a just idea of the
different species, in order to supply that defect we have pro-
cured engravings from the best hands, at a very great expence,
in order to illustrate this work, all which are done from the
life, and very masterly executed, under the inspection of the
author, and other fanciers."
He refers to " a kind of standard, calculated for the better
judging of Almond Tumblers, lately published by some of the
admirers of this fancy, elegantly engraved on copper-plate, at
the top of which is an Almond Tumbler, very finely executed
from life, the outlines being inimitably well performed, and by
much the best I ever saw, and at so reasonable a price as six-
pence." A copy of this "standard" is given in Eaton's 1858
book, at page 186. It is entitled "Ordinances established by
the Columbarian Society, at the Globe Tavern, Fleet Street,
respecting the perfections and imperfections of Almond or
Ermin Tumblers, 1764." Its illustration is the one found in
some copies of the Treatise with the words " Simpson, sculpt.,"
on it. The author also refers to " the standard now published
and in use among the Columbarians " for judging Pouters.
This is uniform with the " Ordinances " for judging Almond
Tumblers. It is a large sheet, headed by the same portrait
of a Pouter which the Treatise contains.
The author says, with reference to his own experience in the
fancy, that he had kept pigeons for many years, " having been
possessed (I believe I may venture to say without vanity, of
2 L 2
388 FANCY PIGEONS.
as good, if not the best, in England) of fancy pigeons, besides
Toys of all kinds."
The most original part of this book is the long account of
the Almond Tumbler, a variety no more than mentioned by
Moore, but which had risen, in 1765, to great estimation in
London. The Mahomet Pigeon, which Willughby had de-
scribed, but which Moore had evidently never seen, is also
well described ; but most of the work is, as the author
acknowledges in his preface, "on the plan of Mr. Moore."
(1.) " A TREATISE ON DOMESTIC PIGEONS. London : Printed
for the Proprietors, and sold by all the Booksellers in Town
and Country. Price only Two Shillings and Six-pence."
(2.) " THE NEW AND COMPLETE PIGEON FANCYER ; OR,
MODERN TREATISE ON DOMESTIC PIGEONS. By Mr. Daniel
Girton, of the County of Bucks. London: Printed for Alex.
Hogg, No. 16, Paternoster-Row. Price Two Shillings."
(3.) " THE NEW AND COMPLETE PIGEON FANCYER ; OR,
MODERN TREATISE ON DOMESTIC PIGEONS. By Daniel Girton,
of the County of Bucks. London: Printed for Alex. Hogg,
at the King's Arms, No. 16, Pater-noster-Row. Price only
One Shilling and Sixpence."
These three books, with the exception of their title-pages,
are the same imprint. The second leaf contains a preface (iii.,
iv.). The remainder of the book consists of sixty-four leaves,
paged 13-140. All the copies I have seen are similar, beginning
at page 13, though none have more than two leaves of title
and preface. They have, when perfect, a folding plate con-
taining the figures of twelve pigeons, copied in reduced size
from those in the large Treatise of 1765. Full-sized copies
should measure 6fin. by 4fin. The work is compiled from the
large Treatise, from Willughby as regards the Smiter Pigeon,
and from writers such as Worlidge and Lisle, whose agricultural
works refer to pigeons as farm stock. Whether the name
Girton was a mere nom de plume, taken, as some suppose, from
Moore's reference to " one Girton," who had a flight of Turbits
389 PIGEON LITERATURE.
that would mount almost as high as Tumblers, or the actual
name of the compiler, cannot now be determined. The history
of the book I imagine to be something like this: The large
Treatise was probably too dear for the majority of pigeon
fanciers, and the first form, at 2s. 6d., was published, to be
succeeded by the second, at 2s. These are both so extremely
scarce that not many copies can have been issued. The third
form, at Is. 6d., seems to have been more successful, as it is
not uncommon.
The book was probably printed about 1770, and issued, with
its various title-pages, from that date till about 1780. Alex.
Hogg, the publisher, dealt in remainders, and probably pur-
chased the unsold copies of the first form, issuing them with
new title-pages.
(4.) "THE COMPLETE PIGEON FANCIER; OR, A NEW
TREATISE ON DOMESTIC PIGEONS. By Daniel Girton, of the
County of Bucks. London : Printed for Alexander Hogg, No.
16, Pater-noster Row. Price only Is. 6d."
This edition, with the same folding plate of twelve pigeons,
is a verbatim reprint of the preceding, page for page, the leaves
also being numbered 13-140. The probable date of issue was
from 1780-90.
(5.) "THE NEW AND COMPLETE PIGEON FANCIER; OR,
MODERN TREATISE ON DOMESTIC PIGEONS. By Daniel
Girton, Esq., of the County of Bucks. A New Edition, Revised
and Improved by Mr. ~W. Thompson, Author of 'The New
and Complete Bird Fancier.' London : Printed by S. Couch-
man, Throgmorton Street, for Alex. Hogg and Co., at the
King's Arms, No. 16, Paternoster Row. Price only One Shilling
and Sixpence."
This form, illustrated with the same folding plate of twelve
pigeons, is an abridged edition of the preceding, in smaller
type. The preface is on the back of the title-page ; the second
leaf contains a list of " Contents," and the paging is 5-64. The
last page contains an advertisement of the " Treatise on the
390 FANCY PIGEONS.
Almond Tumbler/' by "W. P. Windus, which was published in
1802. The date of issue of this edition was probably about 1805.
T. Ward, a London bird-dealer, "at the Sell and Bird-
Cage, the corner of Silver Street, in Wood Street, near Cripple-
gate," published early in last century a little book on song birds,
which, he says in the preface, is the first of its kind " wholly
treating thereof." The copy in my possession is entitled, " THE
BIRD-FANCIER'S RECREATION : BEING CURIOUS REMARKS ON
THE NATURE OF SONG BIRDS. Third Edition, London, 1735."
Many editions of this little book were published by Hogg to-
wards the end of last century, under the title of the " New and
Complete Bird Fancier ; or, Bird-Fancier's Recreation and
Delight, by Mr. Wm. Thompson, late Gardener to the Duke of
Ancaster, and Author of the 'New Gardener's Chronicle.'"
Although his name is on the title-page of many editions of
both "Complete Bird and Pigeon Fanciers," this Thompson
had nothing to do in the composition of either.
(6.) "THE NEW AND COMPLETE PIGEON-FANCIER; OR,
MODERN TREATISE ON DOMESTIC PIGEONS. By Daniel
Girton, Esq., of the County of Bucks. A New Edition, Re-
vised and Improved by Mr. W. Thompson. London : Printed
by Rider and Weed, Little Britain, for Hogg and Co., No. 16,
Paternoster Row. Price only One Shilling and Sixpence."
This contains folding plate, title-page, and preface on first
leaf, contents on second, and pages 1-56. It is a reprint of
No. 5, and the date may be about 1810.
(7.) "THE NEW AND COMPLETE PIGEON-FANCIER; OR,
MODERN TREATISE ON DOMESTIC PIGEONS. By Daniel
Girton, Esq., of the County of Bucks. A New Edition, Re-
vised and Improved by Mr. W. Thompson. London : Printed
by Weed and Rider, Little Britain, for H. Hogg, No. 16,
Paternoster Row. Price only One Shilling and Sixpence."
This contains folding plate (a very worn impression); title-
page; preface, one leaf (iii., iv.); contents, one leaf (v., vi.); and
pages 1-66. Descriptions of several foreign wild doves have
391 PIGEON LITERATURE.
been added to previous editions, and the date, from the type,
appears to be 1810-20. While No. 6 was printed by Rider
and Weed, this edition was by Weed and Rider.
(8.) "THE NEW AND COMPLETE PIGEON-FANCIER; OR,
MODERN TREATISE ON DOMESTIC PIGEONS. By Daniel
Girton, Esq., of the County of Bucks. A New Edition, Re-
vised and Improved by Mr. "W". Thompson. London : Printed
for T. Kelly, 17, Paternoster-Bow. Price only One Shilling."
This edition was printed at Maidstone, by W. Hill, printer,
Bank Street, and has the folding plate of twelve pigeons,
which had been re-touched; and it has a second plate of
"Improved Pigeon-Houses and Nest Apparatus, by Dr. Dick-
son, copied by permission from his ' Live Stock and Cattle
Management,' " a work first published in 1805. It contains
title-page ; preface, one leaf (iii., iv.) ; contents (v., vi.) ; pages
1-60, and is a reprint of No. 7, apparently printed about
1820-30.
(9.) "THE NEW AND COMPLETE PIGEON-FANCIER; OR,
MODERN TREATISE ON DOMESTIC PIGEONS. Printed and
Published by J. Bailey, 188, Fleet Street." The probable date
of this might be found from an old London Directory. A
publisher of same name issued "The Young Sportsman's
Pocket Companion," from 116, Chancery Lane.
(10.) "THE PIGEON-FANCIER, London: Printed and Pub-
lished by W. Mason, 21, Clerkenwell Green." Plate of six
pigeons, copied from Girton. This is Girton cut down to
thirty-six pages. About 1820.
(11.) "THE COMPLETE PIGEON-FANCIER. London: Orlando
Hodgson, Cloth Fair." Coloured plate of six pigeons, copied
from Girton; twenty-four pages small type. An exact reprint
of- No. 10. One of a series of sixpenny pamphlets, green paper
cover. About 1830.
(12.) " THE PIGEON AND BIRD-FANCIER. Derby : Published
by Thomas Richardson. Simpkin, Marshall, and Co., London ;
S. Horsey, Portsea." Twenty-four pages small type, half on
392 FANCY PIGEONS.
pigeons, half on cage birds. An abridgment of No. 10. About
1840.
I daresay other editions of this manual, which appears to
have been in good demand for three-quarters of a century,
may yet be found. Small pamphlets in paper covers are apt
to be thrown aside and destroyed; hence their scarcity. The
earlier editions are generally found bound, often with other
small books, in the same volume, and are not nearly so scarce
as the later ones.
Short descriptions of fancy pigeons, taken from authors
mentioned, may be found in many works published in the
eighteenth century, such as ALBIN'S " HISTORY OF BIRDS,"
"THE COMPLETE SPORTSMAN," "DICTIONARY OF COUNTRY
AFFAIRS," "THE COUNTRY GENTLEMAN'S BEST GUIDE," and
"THE SPORTSMAN'S DICTIONARY." "THE NEW FOUNDLING
HOSPITAL FOR WIT," vol. vi., 1784, contains some amusing
verses on fancy pigeons.
(1.) "A NEW AND COMPLEAT TREATISE ON THE ART OF
BREEDING AND MANAGING THE ALMOND TUMBLER. London:
Printed for the Author by W. Williams, No. 35, Chancery
Lane. Price Seven Shillings. 1802."
(2.) " A NEW AND COMPLEAT TREATISE ON THE ART OF
BREEDING AND MANAGING THE ALMOND TUMBLER. London:
Printed for the Author by W. Williams, No. 35, Chancery Lane.
Price Five Shillings. 1802."
(3.) "A NEW AND COMPLEAT TREATISE ON THE ART OF
BREEDING AND MANAGING THE ALMOND TUMBLER. By an
Old Fancier, and a Member of the Columbarian Society, held
at the Queen's Head Tavern, Holborn. London: Printed for
Alex. Hogg and Co., at the King's Arms, No. 16, Paternoster-
Bow. Price 4s., in extra Boards."
These are three forms of the same imprint, full-sized, uncut
copies of which should measure 8in. by 5fin. Frontispiece of
an Almond Tumbler, coloured. Title-page, one leaf. Dedi-
cation to the Gentlemen of the Columbarian Society, four
393
PIGEON LITERATURE.
leaves (i.-virj.), and pages 9-104. No. 3 has an extra leaf
following the title-page, containing advertisements of Hogg's
" Complete Bird and Pigeon Fanciers " on one side, and
" Contents of this Work " on the other. The author was
"W. P. Windus, a solicitor in London, who says in the book
he had been a fancier of Almond Tumblers for ten or twelve
years. He continued in the fancy for some time, for I have
a circular letter signed by him in 1813, which I found in aC
copy of his book which belonged to " Thomas Garle, jun.,
1809," who, with his father, was long connected with the
Columbarian Society. The circular is partly engraved, the
portion I print in italics being in the autograph of Mr.
Windus. It is headed by an engraving of an Almond
Tumbler, of which I give a copy (Fig. 17).
FIG. 17.
Sir, You are requested to Dine with the Colombarians, on Tuesday
next, the 7th of Deer., at four o'clock precisely, to declare Birds, to
choose Committee, President, and Deputy, and to audit accounts.
Yours, &c., W. P. WINDUS, Secy.
2d Deer., 1813.
394 FANCY PIGEONS.
With the above I also found a card, of which the following
is a copy:
Colomberian Society Meetings,
Queen's Head Tavern,
Holborn,
rhe first Wednesday in the following months :
February Shew Day
April
June
August
October
December
J. BEADSHAW,
President.
The sketch heading the circular was probably etched by
Jas. "Ward, R.A., himself; it bears his initials. There is a
portrait of an Almond Tumbler by him in the Sporting
Magazine of the year 1808; and there is another, which I
have, in the Sporting Magazine for March, 1825, from a
painting by him, the description of which is as follows :
This bird was sister to a famous pigeon called Columbine, and
was bred (we believe) from birds of Mr. Parry's, by French Stevens,
about the year 1803, who sold her to Richard Latham, Esq., in whose
possession she remained some time, during which Edward Whitehead
offered him thirty guineas for her. She was one of the most perfect
birds of her day, and her family having been successfully continued,
has contributed most essentially to the perfection of the present breed ;
and, notwithstanding the pains that have been taken in the rearing of
this breed of pigeons by several amateurs, the feathers of the specimen
we lay before our readers have not been surpassed in the present race
of Almond Tumblers. We believe she was afterwards in the possession
of Sir John Sebright, or Lord Heathfield. The portrait was painted for
E. Latham, Esq., by his valued friend, James Ward, E.A.
In the Gentleman's Magazine for 1792, page 1152, there is a
notice of the marriage of Mr. W. P. Windus.
There is no edition of the "Treatise on the Almond Tum-
bler" dated 1804, as stated by Eaton. The edition by Hogg,
395 PIGEON LITERATURE.
who bought the remainder, is not uncommon. The author's
editions, especially the seven-shilling one, are very scarce. He
probably disposed of very few copies.
(1.) "A TREATISE ON DOMESTIC POULTRY, PIGEONS, ANI>
BABBITS. By Bonington Moubray, Esq. London, 1815."
12mo. Pages i.-viii., and 1-218.
This was written by John Lawrence, author of veterinary,
agricultural, and sporting works, under the assumed name of
" Moubray." He was also author of " British Field Sports,"
and "The Sportsman's Repository," published under the
assumed name of "W. H. Scott," as I found in an edition of
his " Treatise on Horses," where he lays claim to these works.
He says in the preface: "I may presume to style myself
practical, since I have throughout my life been a breeder and
keeper, and also an amateur of domestic poultry, pigeons,
and rabbits ; " also that he had kept a Stud Book for his
poultry and pigeons. He gives a very good account of the
way to keep and breed pigeons ; but, having kept them chiefly
for the table, his remarks are of little interest to fanciers.
He refers to "The Treatise on Pigeons, 1765," as the best
authority he knew of, and says: "The only breeds which I
have kept, exclusive of the Common, were Tumblers, Horsemen,
Carriers, Turtles, Dragoons (commonly called Dragons), and
Bunts." Being for some years the only book of its kind,
this work had an extensive sale, and went through nine
editions, gradually enlarged, before 1850.
(2.) " MOUBRAY'S TREATISE ON DOMESTIC AND ORNA-
MENTAL POULTRY." New Edition (the Tenth), Bevised and
greatly Enlarged by L. A. Meall. London, 1854." 8vo.
Coloured plates. Pages i.-viii., and 1-504. About fifty-five
pages are devoted to pigeons, and a good deal of information
is given regarding the principal fancy breeds. The com-
piler was acquainted with Eaton's and Brent's writings. The
correct origin of the name "Turbit" is here given for the
first time, I believe.
396 FANCY PIGEONS.
(1.) "THE BOY'S OWN BOOK: A COMPLETE ENCYCLOPEDIA
OF ALL THE DIVERSIONS OF BOYHOOD AND YOUTH. Tenth
Edition. Pp. 462. London: Yizetelly, Branston, & Co.,
Fleet Street. 1835."
(2.) " THE LITTLE BOY'S OWN BOOK OF SPORTS AND
PASTIMES. London : David Bogue, 86, Fleet Street." No
date (published 1854).
(3.) "THE BOY'S OWN BOOK: A COMPLETE ENCYCLOPEDIA
OF SPORTS AND PASTIMES. A New Edition, Revised and En-
larged. Pp. 696. London: Lockwood & Co. 1868."
The description of fancy pigeons in the various editions
of " The Boy's Own Book " appears to have been edited by a
practical fancier, for although evidently inspired by "Daniel
Girton, of the County of Bucks," there are a few original
observations added. A chapter on pigeon lofts and traps,
nicely illustrated, is new, and the pretty woodcuts were in
several instances drawn from birds in the possession of
London fanciers. All editions are beautifully printed, and
illustrated with charming vignettes, and must have been a
source of enjoyment to many. I cannot trace the date or
publisher of the first edition.
" THE LITTLE BOY'S OWN BOOK. By Augustus Goodf ellow.
"With Sixty Illustrations. London : George Goodfellow, Strand."
Small square 8vo, fancy boards. This differs from the pre-
vious volume of same title, being printed on 184 pages, in
large type. The account of pigeons, taken from Girton,
occupies pages 103-140, and the woodcuts of them are the
same as those in J. Rogers' "Pigeon Fancier's Guide" (1844),
to be afterwards noticed.
" THE POULTRY AND PIGEON KEEPER'S COMPANION.
London: G. Purkess, 286, Strand, "W.C." A small pamphlet
of thirty-six pages, in yellow paper covers, published probably
about 1855. Small woodcut illustrations. The pigeon part is
abridged from Girton.
"THE YOUNG ANGLER, NATURALIST, AND PIGEON AND
397 PIGEON LITERATURE.
BABBIT FANCIER. Ninety-eight illustrations. London: Rout-
ledge, Warne, and Boutledge. 1860." 12mo. 124 pages, cloth
gilt. The description and illustrations of pigeons, occupying
pages 69-86, are from "The Boy's Own Book."
"THE NATURAL HISTORY OF PIGEONS. By Prideaux John
Selby. Edinburgh, 1835." Thirty-two coloured plates, 8vo,
228 pages. One of the volumes of "Jardine's Naturalist's
Library," chiefly on wild pigeons or doves; contains a short
account of domestic pigeons, drawn chiefly from Boitard and
Corbie's work, published at Paris, 1824. The argument in
favour of the Blue Bock being the progenitor of all tame
pigeons is clearly stated.
"BEES, PIGEONS, BABBITS, AND THE CANARY BIRD FAMI-
LIARLY DESCRIBED. By Peter Boswell, Greenlaw. Glasgow:
W. B. McPhun; London: Hall, Arnold, & Co. 1840. Price One
Shilling." The author, who also published a manual on poultry,
seems to have had an acquaintance with some previous works
on pigeons, but in his brief description there is nothing new
on the subject. The book is a small one of 117 pages, in
green paper cover, and is now scarce. It was reprinted in
America, in 1842, by Wiley & Putnam, New York ; and also
in London, in 1852, by Boutledge.
(!.)"THE PIGEON FANCIER'S GUIDE: A COMPLETE DIREC-
TORY FOR THE PROPER TREATMENT AND MANAGEMENT OF
FANCY AND OTHER PIGEONS. By James Bogers. London :
Thomas Dean & Co., Threadneedle Street. Price One Shilling.
.., The Second Edition, Enlarged and much Improved." This has a
folding plate containing figures of seven pigeons, mostly from
Girton, and a pole locker. Other cuts are scattered through
the book, which is nicely printed on sixty- eight pages. It
may be called a compilation from Girton. Bogers was a
pigeon and bird dealer in the City Boad, London; and I
remember, when on my way from school at Taunton, to Scotland,
in the year 1857, standing entranced at Bogers' shop, looking
at his pigeons and lockers, of which latter he was a builder.
398 FANCY PIGEONS.
I induced my father, who was with me, to buy me a pair of
blue Turbits and a pair of black Jacobins. Several hundreds
of pairs were descended from the Turbits, which bred in-and-in
for fifteen years without any of the bad results which are
generally supposed to follow such a course. According to the
London Catalogue of Books, Rogers' " Pigeon Fancier's Guide "
was published in 1844.
(2.) "THE PIGEON KEEPER. By James Rogers. Seventh
Edition. London: Dean & Son, Ludgate Hill." This has
no date, but was published in 1860, at 6d., in paper covers.
It is an exact reprint, on forty-four pages, of "The Pigeon
Fancier's Guide," but has no folding plate.
(3.) " PIGEONS: How TO REAR, BREED, AND KEEP. By
James Rogers. New Edition, Revised by F. Crook, Esq.
32 pages. London: Dean & Son, E.G." A third form of
Rogers' book; no date, but published in 1880, at 6d., in
illustrated paper covers. The arrangement slightly altered,
and a few additions by Mr. Crook.
(4.) "POULTRY AND PIGEONS. By J. Moffat and J. Rogers.
Revised by F. Crook, Esq. With Oil-colour Illustrations.
London : Dean & Son, Ludgate Hill." Two of Dean's pamphlets,
issued in one volume, with the oil-colour plates from Meall's
1854 Edition of "Moubray" added. The pigeon part is the
same as No. 3. No date, but published in 1880.
"OuR DOMESTIC FOWLS AND SONG BIRDS. By W. C. L.
Martin. London." No' date (published 1847). 16mo. The
author, who devotes about thirty-eight pages to "The Colum-
bine, or Pigeon Group," acknowledges that he was "not of
the fancy ; " but he writes in a sensible way of the origin of
domestic pigeons, and gives a good account of the uses of
Carrier pigeons, from various authentic sources.
"THE PIGEON FANCIER'S ASSISTANT: CONTAINING PLAIN
DIRECTIONS FOR BREEDING AND REARING EVERY DESCRIP-
TION OF FANCY PIGEON. By G. Bignold, Dog, Rabbit, and
Pigeon Breeder and Dealer, Leadenhall Market, London.
399 PIGEON LITERATURE.
London: 1848." This is another variation of Girton, on
thirty-two pages, with a few cuts in the style of those
in "The Boy's Own Book." It is paged 33-64, has a
yellow paper cover, and was probably the second part of a
larger pamphlet which contained information on Dogs or
Rabbits.
"DOMESTIC PETS: THEIR HABITS AND MANAGEMENT. By
Mrs. London. London, 1851." 162 pages. The sixteen pages
devoted to pigeons contain nothing of special interest. The
book contains four woodcuts by Harrison Weir, in his best
style, of Dogs, Cats, Rabbits, and Birds.
(1.) "THE DOVECOTE AND THE AVIARY. By Rev. E. S.
Dixon, M.A., Author of 'Ornamental and Domestic Poultry.'
Woodcuts. London: John Murray, Albemarle Street. 1851."
8vo. Pages i.-xiv., and 1-458.
(2.) "THE DOVECOTE AND THE AVIARY. By Rev. E. S.
Dixon, M.A. London: Wm. S. Orr & Co."
These are the same impression, No. 2 differing only in title-
page, being issued by Orr & Co. after purchasing the remainder
from Murray. The author, who writes from Cringleford
Hall, Norwich, displays great research, and writes in a very
entertaining way. He treats pigeons more from a naturalist's
than from a critical fancier's point of view; but the book has
a charm of its own, and should be in the libraries of all pigeon
fanciers.
(3.) "PIGEONS AND RABBITS IN THEIR WlLD, DOMESTIC,
AND CAPTIVE STATES. By E. Sabastian Delamer. Illustra-
tions. London : G. Routledge & Co., 1854." 8vo. Pages i.-vij.,
and 1-151.
This book, as regards pigeons, is an abridgment of the
account of them in " The Dovecote and the Aviary." The name
" Delamer " was a nom de plume assumed by Mr. Dixon when
residing on the sea coast. The work must have had a con-
siderable sale, for many editions have been published. I have
six of them, all differing slightly, if only in the character of
400 FANCY PIGEONS.
the type on title-page. The woodcuts are by Harrison Weir.
The first edition, dated 1854 late editions have no date
was my first pigeon book, purchased, as I see from the date
on it, in October, 1854. I saw it in a bookseller's window
one day when trudging home from school, and began to save
up immediately for its acquisition. I soon had it by heart,
and such passages as " Tumblers, saith Willughby, are small,
and of divers colours; they have strange motions, turning
themselves backward over their head, and show like footballs
in the air," are indelibly imprinted on my memory.
(4.) " PIGEON KEEPING. By E. Sabastian Delamer. London :
George Routledge & Sons. Ninety-four pages." No date (pub-
lished 1885). This is merely the pigeon part of " Pigeons and
Babbits," printed from the stereotype plates. It has no
illustrations.
(1.) "A TREATISE ON THE ART OP BREEDING AND MANAG-
ING THE ALMOND TUMBLER. By John Matthews Eaton.
Published for the Author, 7, Islington Green, London. 1851."
Large 8vo. Pages i.-vj., and 7-50. Coloured Plate of Almond
Tumbler, by Dean Wolstenholme.
(2.) "A TREATISE ON THE ART OF BREEDING AND MANAG-
ING TAME, DOMESTIC, AND FANCY PIGEONS. By John
Matthews Eaton. Published for, and to be obtained of, the
Author, 7, Islington Green, London. 1852." Large 8vo. Pages
i.-xxij., 23-88 ; i.-vj., 7-50 ; i.-viij., or 146 in all. Coloured
Plate of Almond Tumbler by Dean Wolstenholme.
(3.) "A SET OP Six LIFE -SIZE COLOURED PORTRAITS OP
PIGEONS, viz., THE ALMOND, BLACK-MOTTLED, BALDHEAD,
AND BEARD TUMBLERS, CARRIER, AND POUTER. From Paint-
ings by Dean Wolstenholme. Published by J. M. Eaton, 7,
Islington Green, London, Dec. 8, 1852."
(4.) "A TREATISE ON THE ART OF BREEDING AND
MANAGING TAME, DOMESTICATED, FOREIGN, AND FANCY
PIGEONS. By John Matthews Eaton. Published for, and
to be obtained of, the Author, 81, Upper Street, Islington Green,
401 PIGEON LITERATURE.
London, N. 1858." Large 8vo. Pages i.-xix., 20-200. Thirty
coloured Portraits of Pigeons by Dean Wolstenholme.
(5.) "A SET OF Six LIFE-SIZE COLOURED PORTRAITS OF
PIGEONS, viz. : THE FANTAIL, JACOBIN, OWL, TURBIT, TRUM-
PETER, AND BARB. From Paintings by Dean "Wolstenholme.
Published by J. M. Eaton, 81, Upper Street, Islington, London,
Oct. 16, 1860."
(6.) "A NEW AND IMPROVED COLOURED DIAGRAM, OR A
PLAN OF BUILDING OR FITTING UP A PIGEONARY, EMBEL-
LISHED WITH TUMBLERS, POUTERS, AND CARRIERS. Pub-
lished by J. M. Eaton, London."
Eaton was an enthusiastic fancier of the Short-faced Tumbler,
and the above list of his publications shows how much he
contributed to spread knowledge concerning fancy pigeons in
general. Dean "Wolstenholme, who illustrated these works,
was also a fancier; he was born at Waltham Abbey, in 1798,
the son of an artist of the same name well known for his
pictures of sporting subjects, coloured prints of which may
sometimes be found in London print shops. Eaton informs
his readers in his work on the Almond that he was indebted
to a former work on the subject, but he does not indicate
what is his own and what he has copied out of the Treatise
by Windus published in 1802, he having reprinted a con-
siderable part of that work. Having obtained a copy of
Moore's "Columbarium," after spending pounds and years
searching for it, as he informs his readers, Eaton reprinted it
in 1852, taking it as the text of his Treatise on Pigeons, and
adding footnotes by himself and others. As will be seen from
the pagination of No. 2, the latter half of the book is merely
made up from the unsold copies of the treatise on the Almond,
bound up with the reprint of Moore.
The six life-size portraits of pigeons (No. 3), and the diagram
(No. 6) also, were, I believe, originally published by Dean
Wolstenholme, on his own account, in 1834. He sold the
plates to Eaton, who republished them in 1852.
2 M
402 FANCY PIGEONS.
Eaton's 1858 Treatise, containing in all 200 pages, and thirty
coloured illustrations of pigeons, two of which (the Almond
Tumbler) are identical, includes the whole of his previous writ-
ings, together with additional information on the subject,
taken chiefly from Brent's articles on pigeons. It is an epitome
of what had previously been published in this country on the
subject. Eaton sets all rules of grammar and composition at
defiance, introduces irrelevant anecdotes, and tells them in a
rambling fashion; but there is no doubt his book is a most
entertaining and instructive one. I believe the author was
once in good business as a tailor at Islington ; but his latter
days were sadly clouded with misfortune. In 1862, I found
liim keeping a pigeon shop in the City Road. A circular he
used to send to secretaries of shows, to induce them to order
copies of his books and pigeon portraits, which were some-
times given as prizes, is a great curiosity. The copy I have
is lithographed, from his own peculiar cramped handwriting,
on two-and-a-half leaves of paper 15in. by 6in. It is an
amusing production, and the space for the date and address
is filled up by himself: "Monday, 18th Dec., 1865. To the
Right Worshipful the Mayor of Cork. May your Show be
crowned with success."
(1.) "THE PIGEON BOOK; WHEREIN ALL THE KNOWN
VARIETIES OP THE DOMESTIC PIGEON ARE DESCRIBED AND
CLASSIFIED. By B. P. Brent. London: Cottage Gardener
Office, 162, Fleet Street." Small 8vo, 114 pages. No date
(about 1860).
(2.) "THE PIGEON BOOK: CONTAINING THE DESCRIPTION
AND CLASSIFICATION OF ALL THE KNOWN VARIETIES OF
THE DOMESTIC PIGEON. By B. P. Brent. Second Edition.
London : Journal of Horticulture and Cottage Gardener Office,
171, Fleet Street." 114 pages. No date (about 1865).
(3.) "THE PIGEON BOOK: CONTAINING THE DESCRIPTION
AND CLASSIFICATION OF ALL THE KNOWN VARIETIES OF
THE DOMESTIC PIGEON. By B. P. Brent. Third Edition.
403 PIGEON LITERATURE.
London : Journal of Horticulture and Cottage Gardener Office."
114 pages. No date (published 1871).
The three editions of Brent's book appear to be printed
from the same stereotype plates. Nos. 2 and 3 only differ
from No. 1 in having a few lines of additional matter on
p. 112, entitled "New Varieties." The author resided for
some time on the Continent, and was the first fancier who
published good descriptions of French and German varieties,
which appeared in the pages of the Poultry Chronicle (1854-5)
and Cottage Gardener. Most of the woodcuts in the "Pigeon
Book" were first published in the Cottage Gardener, during
1850-2, accompanying a translation of Boitard and Corbie's
" Les Pigeons de Voliere et de Colombier," Paris, 1824, which
was probably done by Brent, and they are copied, though not
improved in the process, from those in that book. Brent
was not only an ardent pigeon fancier, but had a good know-
ledge of poultry, cage birds, and all pet stock.
"HOME PETS. London: S. O. Beeton, 248, Strand, W.C."
This work was first published in fortnightly parts, com-
mencing 1st September, 1861. Parts 12 and 13, issued in
1862, each containing thirty-two pages, treat of pigeons. The
name of the compiler is unknown to me, but Brent and
Dixon are his chief authorities. The illustrations consist of
a coloured plate and various neat vignettes by Harrison "Weir.
" OUR FEATHERED FAMILIES : GAME AND WATER, BIRDS ;
TO WHICH IS ADDED A PRACTICAL CHAPTER ON DOVES AND
PIGEONS. By H. G. Adams. London: James Hogg & Sons."
No date (published 1863).
The appendix to this work (pages 315-340) consists of an
account of fancy pigeons gathered from Dixon's "Dovecote
and Aviary."
" PIGEONS : THEIR STRUCTURE, VARIETIES, HABITS, AND
MANAGEMENT. By W. B. Tegetmeier, F.Z.S. With Coloured
Representations of the Different Varieties, Drawn from Life
by Harrison Weir. London : George Boutledge & Sons. 1868."
404 FANCY PIGEONS.
This work was first issued in eight monthly shilling parts,
each containing two coloured plates and woodcuts, and then
as above, in one volume, imp. 8vo, pp. 190. The second
edition, also in monthly shilling parts, was published from
June, 1873, to January, 1874. The book is still being issued
by the publishers, but without a date. The author, the well-
known naturalist and pigeon fancier, says in the preface: "In
compiling the following pages the Editor has endeavoured to
produce a Treatise that should not only furnish the amateur
of pigeons with a greater amount of practical information on
the different varieties than is to be found in any previous
volume, but also to treat the whole subject in a more
scientific manner than has hitherto been attempted."
" THE VARIATION OF ANIMALS AND PLANTS UNDER
DOMESTICATION. By Charles Darwin, M.A., F.R.S., &c.
2 vols., 8vo. London: John Murray, Albemarle Street. 1868."
The great naturalist refers extensively to domestic pigeons,
and explains the experiments he made in breeding different
kinds together for the purpose of satisfying himself that
they all had a common origin. His book contains a great
amount of information most interesting to the pigeon fancier.
He refers to a Persian Treatise on Pigeons written by Sayzid
Mohammed Musari, who died in 1770, which Sir Walter Elliot
discovered when in Madras, and of which he sent him a
translation. I applied to Mr. Darwin for leave to copy this
Treatise, but he replied that he was unable to find it in his
library, and feared that, as it was in loose sheets, it had been
mislaid. I then wrote to Sir Walter Elliot, asking him if he
still had the original in Persian. He informed me it was
lost, with his library, on the voyage home.
(1.) " PIGEONS: THEIR VARIETIES, MANAGEMENT, BREED-
ING, AND DISEASES. By Hugh Piper. London: Groombridge
& Sons, 5, Paternoster Row. 1871." Small 8vo, 64 pages.
Coloured plate of seven varieties of pigeons.
(2.) "PIGEONS: THEIR VARIETIES, MANAGEMENT, BREED-
405 PIGEON LITERATURE.
ING, AND DISEASES. By Hugh Piper. London : Groombridge
& Sons." No date. Coloured plate. Blue paper cover. Issued
by Wm. F. Clay, 2, Teviot Place, Edinburgh. Published 1881.
(3.) " POULTRY AND PlGEONS : THEIR VARIETIES, MANAGE-
MENT, BREEDING, AND DISEASES. By Hugh Piper. London :
Groombridge & Sons, Paternoster Row, 1885." Coloured plate
of poultry only. Paged 1-64 and 1-64.
This is a handy little book, compiled from Dixon, Brent,
Tegetmeier, and others. The pigeon part in No. 3 is printed
from the same stereotypes as Nos. 1 and 2.
"THE ILLUSTRATED BOOK OP PIGEONS, WITH STANDARDS
FOR JUDGING. By Robert Fulton. Edited by Lewis Wright.
Illustrated with Fifty Coloured Plates from Paintings by J.
W. Ludlow. Cassell, Petter, & Galpin, London, Paris, and
New York." No date. 4to. Pages i-viij., and 1-392.
The publication of this fine work commenced in 1874, and
extended over two years, being completed in twenty-five
monthly shilling parts. It was then issued, as a complete
volume, in 1876. It has been re-published, both in parts and
in complete form, but the coloured plates of the first edition
are much superior to those in later issues. Since the book
was written many varieties of domestic pigeons existing in
various countries throughout the world have become known
which are not mentioned in it; but, so far as it goes, the
subject is treated in an exhaustive way.
"THE PRACTICAL PIGEON KEEPER. By Lewis "Wright.
Cassell, Petter, Galpin, & Co., London." No date (published
1879). Pages i.-viii., and 1-232, 8vo. This book, by the editor
of Fulton's work, is a useful one for the young fancier. It is
illustrated by pretty woodcuts, which had previously appeared
in a German work by Baldamus. They are mostly copied
from Fulton's coloured plates.
"THE POUTER PIGEON. By Capt. Norman Hill. Also a
Report of the Committee appointed to draw up a Standard of
the Pouter. 1882." Octavo, 16 pages. One of the standards
406 FANCY PIGEONS.
drawn up by the National Peristeronic Society of London ;
others already issued include the Carrier, Dragoon, and Eastern
Frilled varieties. When completed, these standards might be
issued in book form by the Society, but they are not
printed uniformly.
"How TO BREED, BEAR, AND TRAIN THE MACCLESFIELD
TIPPLER AND THE HIGH-FLYING TUMBLER PIGEON. By
G. Smith, Nottingham. 1883." 58 pages; 4in. by 2fin.
This little book contains practical information on the sub-
ject of High-flying Tumblers, how to train and feed them
so that they may fly, as they do, for as long as ten to
twelve hours at a stretch. There seems to be nothing new, for I
have a copy of a Persian manuscript that was found in Delhi
which gives various recipes, such as the following : " To make
pigeons soar high and fast, and good tumblers during flight ; "
" A drink to make pigeons soar high ; " " For curing asthma
in pigeons," a recipe by Meer Bukar Ali, who was also author
of recipes for making Bulbuls and Quails fight well. Had
our old friend, " egregious Moore," " author of the celebrated
worm-powder," been born a subject of the Great Mogul, he
would have been an adept at this kind of thing.
" PIGEONS ; an Essay delivered before the Tunbridge Wells
Ornithological Society by O. E. Cresswell, Esq., on October 3rd,
1883. Tunbridge Wells." Small 8vo, 16 pages.
"PIGEONS FOR EXHIBITION AND PROFIT. London: J. &
B. Maxwell." 8vo, 32 pages. Woodcuts; coloured wrapper.
Published 1884.
" THE MANAGEMENT OF PIGEONS." Small pamphlet, 16
pages; coloured wrapper. Printed by Alex. Boyle, London,
1881.
"OuR FANCY PIGEONS, AND RAMBLING NOTES OF A
NATURALIST. By George Ure, Dundee. 1886." The author
repeats, with variations, the accounts of the Pouter and Fantail
"he wrote for Fulton's "Pigeon Book," and gives a description
of his early experience and fancier friends.
407 PIGEON LITERATURE.
"THE PLEASURES OP A PIGEON FANCIER. By the Rev.
J. Lucas. London: Sampson Low & Co., 1886." This work,
by a London clergyman, has just been announced. I have not
seen it.
To render the foregoing list of books on pigeons as complete
as possible, I here give the dates of publication of my own work
on the subject.
(1.) " FANCY PIGEONS " was originally published in the
pages of the Bazaar, Exchange and Mart, from November,
1878, to June, 1881.
(2.) In eleven monthly parts, commencing June, 1880.
(3.) In book form, 8vo, pp. 330. London : The Bazaar Office,
170, Strand, W.C. 1881.
(4.) Second Edition, 8vo, pp. 348. London: L. Upcott Gill,
170, Strand, W.C. 1883.
(5.) Second Edition, in eleven monthly parts, commencing
March, 1884.
(6.) Third Edition, in monthly parts, with coloured plates,
commencing September, 1885.
Books on Homing Pigeons.
"THE HOMING, OR CARRIER PIGEON (LE PIGEON YOYA-
GETJR): ITS HISTORY, GENERAL MANAGEMENT, AND METHOD
OF TRAINING. By W. B. Tegetmeier, F.Z.S. London: George
Routledge & Sons." No date (published 1871). 8vo, 124
" CARRIER PIGEONS. By R. W. Alldridge. 1871."
(1.) " CARRIER PIGEONS. By Hartley and Sons, Woolwich."
8vo, 32 pages. No date (about 1875).
(2.) "BELGIAN HOMING PIGEONS. Second Edition (of No. 1).
Published by the Authors, Hartley and Sons, Woolwich." 8vo,
32 pages. No date (published 1885).
"ON THE GENERAL TRAINING AND TREATMENT OF CAR-
RIER PIGEONS. By G. Alsteen, Ryde." A pamphlet of 8pp.,
translated from Dr. Chapuis. (Published 1881.)
408 FANCY PIGEONS.
(1.) "THE BELGIAN HOMING PIGEON. By J. L. Burgess.
8vo, 52 pages. London : Hamilton, Adams, & Co. Cirencester :
Keyworth & Everard." No date (published 1881).
(2.) "THE BELGIAN HOMING PIGEON. Second Edition. By
J. L. Burgess. 8vo, 79 pages. London: Kent & Co. Ciren-
cester: C. H. Savory." ISTo date (published 1882).
(3.) "THE HOMING FANCIER'S ANNUAL FOR 1882. Edited
by J. L. Burgess." 8vo, 94 pages.
(4.) "THE HOMING FANCIER'S ANNUAL FOR 1883. Edited
by J. L. Burgess." 8vo, 118 pages.
"THE HOMING PIGEON FANCIER'S GUIDE. By John W.
Logan. London : The Stock-keeper and Fancier's Chronicle
Office." 8vo, 112 pages. Published March, 1885.
This contains " Practical Hints on the Formation of a Loft
of Homing Pigeons," well illustrated; Rules of the United
Counties' Flying Club; and a List of Races for Season 1885
(should be 1884). The author has been, during the past few
years, one of the most prominent and influential fanciers of
homing pigeons.
Serial Literature.
GARDENER, FLORIST, AND AGRICULTURALIST. Yol. iii.
1848. This contains four chapters on fancy pigeons, illus-
trated, on pp. 83, 121, 324, 340.
THE COTTAGE GARDENER, commenced about 1848, now
incorporated with the Journal of Horticulture, formerly con-
tained much information on pigeons. A translation of Boitard
and Corbie's work on the subject (Paris, 1824) was published
during 1850-2. Brent wrote extensively in its pages; and,
about 1871, a series of well- written pigeon articles, illustrated
by Ludlow, appeared.
THE POULTRY CHRONICLE, a weekly periodical, edited by
Miss Watts, began on the 1st of March, 1854, and was con-
tinued for seventy-seven weeks, the last number being pub-
lished on 15th August, 1855, when it was incorporated with
409 PIGEON LITERATURE.
the Cottage Gardener. Complete sets of it, in three volumes,
small 4to, may occasionally be met with. It is interest-
ing as the first journal devoted entirely to the poultry and
pigeon fancy. Under the heading of the " Columbary," the
late Mr. Brent contributed to it many papers on fancy
pigeons.
THE FIELD newspaper, commenced about 1858, devoted
considerable space to poultry and pigeons for many years,
but latterly has left these < subjects almost entirely to the
various periodicals that cater specially for followers of these
fancies.
THE POULTRY REVIEW, edited by James Long, existed
from 21st June, 1873, to 31st December, 1874, and treated of
poultry, pigeons, dogs, and pet stock. A complete set con-
sists of eighty-one parts, making three vols. 4to.
THE PIGEON, edited by Thomas M. Denne, continued weekly
from 19th February, 1876, to 28th December, 1877; in all
ninety-eight parts, which make a thick 4to volume.
THE COUNTRY, a weekly periodical for fanciers, was published
from May, 1873, to October, 1879, when it was incorporated
with The Bazaar, Exchange and Mart.
THE BOY'S OWN PAPER contained, in 1881, a series of
illustrated articles on pigeons, entitled, "The Boy's Own
Pigeon Loft and Dovecote."
THE BAZAAR, EXCHANGE AND MART (from 1869), FANCIERS'
GAZETTE (1874) (afterwards LIVE STOCK JOURNAL, and again
FANCIERS' GAZETTE), FANCIERS' CHRONICLE (1879) (now
STOCK-KEEPER and FANCIERS' CHRONICLE), POULTRY (1883),
and THE SCOTTISH FANCIER (1884), are the periodicals
presently (October, 1886) being issued in this country for dog,
pigeon, poultry, and other pet stock fanciers.
Foreign Literature.
The quantity of foreign pigeon literature in existence is so
extensive that I would not attempt to give a detailed list of
2 N
410 FANCY PIGEONS.
it. I have in my possession over a hundred books on
pigeons in French, German, Dutch, Italian, and Spanish. A
considerable number of these have been published since 1870,
and many of them are on Homing or Carrier Pigeons. A
number of early essays on pigeons, compiled from Aldrovandi
and other sources, and written in mediaeval Latin, were pub-
lished in Germany from 1684 to 1751 ; but the earliest
Continental book on fancy pigeons and poultry was written
by M. Buchoz, the French botanist, and published in Paris
in 1777. The influence of this book may be traced in many
German ones published during the following half-century.
Since Boitard and Corbie's " LES PIGEONS DE VOLIERE
ET DE COLOMBIER " was published in Paris, in 1824, nothing
of great interest has appeared in France till Yictor La Perre
de Roo's recent publications.
The principal pigeon books published in Germany are the
" TATTBENBTJCH," Ulm, 1790; Riedel's Works, 1824; Putsche's
"TAUBEN KATECHISMUS," 1830; Neumeister's "DAS GANZE
DER TATJBENZUCHT," 1837 ; and the modern Works by Buhle,
Priitz, Baldamus, Durigen, Bungartz, &c. The "MusTER-
TAUBENBTJCH," the latest work by Priitz, now being issued,
will be the largest book on pigeons ever published. When
complete it will contain about 400 pages, large 4to, and eighty-
one coloured plates, with about 200 figures of fancy pigeons.
The Italian works by Malmusi, Martinelli, and Bonizzi, are
chiefly on the Triganica Pigeons of Modena.
The Dutch pigeon works are few and unimportant, excepting
La Perre de E-oo's "POSTDTJIF"; and the only Spanish work
I know of is a translation of some of La Perre de B-oo's
writings on homing pigeons.
Many poultry and pigeon journals are published in America ;
but, with the exception of reprints of Boswell (1842), and
Moore's " Columbarium " (1874), the only pigeon book I know of
is " THE STANDARD OF EXCELLENCE FOR JUDGING PIGEONS/'
compiled and illustrated with coloured plates by J. W. Ludlow,
411 PIGEON LITERATURE.
Birmingham, and revised by Wm. Simpson, Jim., New York,
1879.
A Japanese book, in six folio volumes, containing life-size
portraits of 150 pigeons, representing each bird on one page
facing the right, and on the accompanying page the left,
making in all 300 pictures, drawn and coloured by hand, was
recently offered to me by a bookseller on the Continent. After
seeing one of the volumes, I refused to purchase the work, as
the birds represented were merely common pigeons, differing
from each other only in colour, but not marked with any
degree of regularity. I have no doubt that similar works,
representing real fancy breeds, exist in China, Persia,
Turkestan, and India, but the difficulty is to get them.
Conclusion,
INCE writing about the Persian treatise on
pigeons on page 404 I was agreeably surprised
to learn that the work was still in existence.
Sir Walter Elliot found a translation of it
when arranging his papers, and sent it to
me. The work is a practical one, treating of the breeding
and management, and describing the varieties, of fancy pigeons
known to the author. It also contains critical marginal notes
by a fancier who had possessed the original. The Preface,
written in a conventional style common in the East, inter-
spersed with verses, may interest and amuse the British
reader, so I transcribe it. The names Khubin and Wali are
short names, such as Jack or Bob. The author gives his
proper name at the end of the Preface.
"KABUTAB, NAMAH (HISTORY OF PIGEONS).
"In the name of God the Gracious and Merciful.
"PREFACE.
" When Khubin asked a love-gift from his friend,
Wali this Treatise on the Pigeon penned.
" Boundless praise and infinite Glorification are due to the
Creator who hath caused the Pigeon of the human heart in
413 CONCLUSION.
this Dovecote (Dhabli) oil the bosom to hunger after the
delight of seeing Him, that it might gather from the Feeding-
court (Thatar) of his bounty the Grains of grief and care,
and might sit in the rapture of love apart from the world
on the Perching-place (Addah) of peace and contentment :
and who hath then shaken the Disturbing- staff (Chipi the
bamboo rod with flag attached) of desire that the pigeon,
urged by the shrill whistle (Zafil) of his prompting may
betake itself to flight : and who hath clipt the wings and the
tail of the Decoy pigeon (Kutti) of worldly appetite, that
sitting on the perch of amazement it may behold from afar
the outward show of things.
" Snatch gaily from my bird-like thought,
The song-flowers which its sweet note brings ;
From the soft pigeon's theme is caught
Thy poet's joys, thy poet's wings.
"And abundant praise to that illustrous Syed who hath well
ranged the strange pigeons (Parghara) of devious path and
erring flight in the bond of the followers of the Law, that they
may no more be scattered and distracted: and who hath
shewed the lamp of his guidance to them in the dovecote
of recklessness and in the darkness of night, that they may
become all trained in one system to the Circuit (Khalqa)
of obedience ; and who hath scattered over the Feeding- ground
(Tah) of human helplessness the Grain of high resolve to
persevere in the course of duty till they are exercised in
the discipline of coming and going (Bhuryan) and abstinence :
and at length escaping from the Feeding-tray of weakness,
they shall sport at will by the effort of divine grace ; and
shall finally arrive at the Terrace of proximity to Him and
taste the delight of the Sugared rice (chat used for bringing
pigeons down) of Union.
f
" Whene'er my heart in fairy joys would stray,
With gentle pigeons in rapt thought I play.
414 FANCY PIGEONS.
" The following pages on the diversion of Pigeon-flying form
a treatise on the various sorts of pigeons, with an account
of the color and character of each kind, and the method
of training them ; being composed by Syed Mohammad Musari,
the humble Fakeer, the dust of the feet of the travellers of
the region of fancy : and the author hath judged it best to
express his ideas on the subject in one introductory chapter
and three following sections.
" Of Pigeons Khubin bids me tell,
Whose friendship sweetly doth compel.
These artless pages Wall gives,
Wherein his soul embodied lives,
Along whose descant as it flows,
The hue, the fragrance of the rose,
As from a hundred bowers is shed :
And where the feast of soul is spread,
Each eye that scans this rich parterre,
Unsated culls the blossoms there."
FINIS.
X INDEX. X>
A.
African owl
Owl, fancy points of
Age of fancy pigeons . .
Air tumblers
Akbar, Emperor, a pigeon
fancier
Albinos
Aldrovandi's (Ulysse) " Orni
thologia "
Almond and blue grizzled
runts
Fancy points of the
History of the
Treatise on Breeding and
Managing the
Tumbler
Altenburg trumpeter . . .
Altstammer, die
Ancestor of fancy pigeons
Ancient, German ... . ...
Annatalozia pigeon
Antiquity of pigeon shows
Antwerp carrier
Carrier, how bred . . .
Carrier, Mr. Huie's article
on the
Carriers, homing ..
Carriers, performances of
Long-faced
Medium-faced
Short-faced
PAGE
. 193
. 194
. 109
. 312
a
5
. 47
. 382
d
. 142
. 343
. 335
d
. 392
. 335
. 151
. 327
. 9
. 327
. 102
. 50
. 357
. 357
e
. 358
. 365
>f
8, 362
. 372
. 373
. 370
Antwerps as feeders ...359
Exhibition
Archangel, the
Asian pigeons :
Capuchin .
PAGE
365
365
95
134
136
135
127
125
125
126
131
123
120
121
270
14
76
77
294
305
306
306
304
307
304
306
306
304
Chinese dewlap
Coral-eyed
East Indian flying
Goolee
Goolee, mottled
Lowtan
Mahomet
Mookee
Sherajee
Sherajee, mottled
Austrian klatcher, the
Aviary
Azure blue pigeon
B.
Badge of Honour pigeon
Bagdad carrier
Bagdads, Batavian
Batavian, lace-feathered
Batavian, little
French
German . .
Great wattled
Lace-feathered Batavian
Little Batavian
Mushroomed
416
FANCY PIGEONS.
Bagdads, Niirnberg 307
Short-faced Turkish ... 307
Turkish 307
Baldhead, short-faced 353
Tumbler 320
Baldpate tumbler, Mr. Wood-
house's sport from ... 12
arb 276
Fancy points of 278
History of 276
Barbary pigeon 276
Bartige taube 79
Baskets, pigeon, plan for
dividing 53
Show 52
Bathing water 33
Bavette, the 92
Bearded pigeon 79
Beards, Brunswick 326
London 356
Peppered 322
Short-faced 353
Tumbler 322
Bengal pouter 271
Birmingham rollers 317
Blaze face, the 74
Blondinettes, black laced ... 217
Blue 218
Brown 217
Satin 217
Silver 218
Sulphur 217
Blue Brunswick pigeon ... 86
Rock 8, 44
Boards, feeding 17
Bokhara trumpeter 145
Books on homing pigeons ... 407
On pigeons, early printed 381
On pigeons, English ... 384
Bottle, water 19
Bowels, inflammation of ... 56
Boxes, feeding 17
Nesting 21, 22
Show 51
Wall 14
Brander tumbler 327
Breaster pigeon 75
Breast pigeon 71
Breeding 35
PAGE
Breeding, elements of success
in 43
Power, differences in ... 38
Breeds, characteristics of ... 27
Brent's (B. P.) " Pigeon Book " 402
Breslau pouter 261
Bristle pigeon 104
Broad-tailed shakers, Wil-
lughby's 164
Briinn pigmy pouter 273
Brunswick beard 326
Brusttaube 75
Bullfinch pigeon 95
Burmese pigeon 159
C.
Calcutta, pigeon-flying at ... 128
Canker 57
Captain Hill's black pied
pigmy pouter 254
Capuchin, the 134
Carmelite, the 91
Carp-scale pigeon 102
Carriers, absurd stories re-
garding 363
Anacreon's ode to 355
Antwerp 357
Bagdad 294
English 282
Fancy points of 285
Himalayan ., 309
History of 282
Changes in colour 45
Characteristics of breeds ... 27
Chinese dewlap pigeon 13
Gulls 203
Cleaning pigeon houses ... 23
Club, Fantail 173
Cold 59
Coloured breasted pigeon ... 75
Headed pigeon 79
Tailed tumbler 326
Colours, changes in 45
Combinations of 48
Of fancy pigeons 44
Of pigeons, general re-
marks on ... 49
417
INDEX.
Colours of Triganica pigeons 118
Whole 47
Columba leuconota 12
Livia 8
" Columbarium," Moore's 6, 384
Combinations of colour 48
Common ancestor for fancy
pigeons 9
Pigeons 70
Tumblers 315
Coral-eyed pigeon 135
Core, the 59
Covering for floors of flights... 24
Crescent pigeon 71,77
Cropper or pouting pigeons :
Austrian klatcher 270
Bengal 271
Breslau 261
Briinn 273
Cavalier 259
Dutch 269
Dutch balloon 275
English pouter 223
Foreign pigmy 271
French 257
German 260
Lille 258
Norwich cropper 241
Old German 261
Pied pigmy 253
Pomeranian 262
Prague magpie 270
Prague pigmy 275
Saxon 269
Stork 275
Crossing African owl and
turbit 208
Cumulet, Continental 357
Curly Moor head pigeon ... 106
Cyprus pigeons of Aldro-
vandus'... .. 175
D.
Darwin's (Charles) " Variation
of Animals and Plants
under Domestication" 404
Delhi, pigeon-flying at 128
PAGE
Dewlap pigeon, Chinese ... 136
Diarrhoea 60
Diseases :
Bowels, inflammation of 56
Canker 57
Cold 59
Core 59
Diarrhoea 60
Egg-bound 60
Flesh wen 60
General remarks on ... 55
Gizzard fallen 61
Gorging 61
Insects 62
Leg weakness 63
Megrims 65
Moulting 64
Small-pox 64
Spouts 65
Vertigo 65
Wing 65
Dish, water 19
Dixon's " The Dovecote and
the Aviary" 399
Domestication, effects of ... 11
Domestic pigeons, varieties of 67
Domino, the 218
Double-crested tumbler . . . 325
Dovecote, wall 15
Dragoons 295
Fancy points of 297
National Peristeronic
Society's standard of 297
Origin of name " Dragon" 301
Value of 300
Drake pigeons 301
Drummer pigeon 144
Dundee fantails ... 166
Dutch balloon pouter 275
Pouter 269
Shell pigeon 330
Tumbler 317
Works on pigeons 410
E.
Early printed books on
pigeons 381
2 o
418
FANCY PIGEONS.
East Indian pigeons :
Capuchin 134
Chinese dewlap 136
Coral-eyed 135
Flying 127
Goolee 125
Goolee, mottled 125
Lowtan 126
Mahomet 131
Mookee 123
Sherajee 120
Sherajee, mottled 121
Eaton's (J. M.) works on
pigeons 400
Effects of domestication ... 11
Egg-bound 60
Eggs, chipped 39
Fertility of, determining 38
Thin-shelled 39
Without shells , 39
Egyptian records 1
Swift pigeon 107
English books on pigeons . . . 384
Carrier 282
Fantails 169
Fire pigeon 74
Owl 198
Pouter 223
Exhibiting pigeons 50
Exhibition Antwerps 365
Pens 54
System, value of pigeons
enhanced by 7
Tumblers 315
Experience, early, of pigeon-
keeping 26
F.
Familiar pigeons 27
Fanciers, young, pigeons for ... 27
Fancy pigeons, colours of ... 44
FantailClub 173
Fantails 164
Birthplace of 164
Dundee 166
English ... 169
Fancy points of 169
Fantails, history of
In Calcutta
Indian
Lace
Literature of .
PAGE
. 164
. 164
. 166
173
. 164
Fattening pigeons in France 71
Feathering, pigeons of peculiar :
Egyptian swift 107
Frillback 104
Frizzled 103
Lace 105
Mane 106
Swallow-tail 109
Feeders 40
Feeding 30
Boards 17
Box 17
Evils of neglecting 32
Grain, how to preserve ... 30
Grain, quality of 30
Grain used in 30
Ground 32
Hoppers 32
Mode of 32
Times for 32
Finnikin, the Ill
Fire pigeon 94
Pigeon, English 74
Flesh wen .' 60
Flights, open-air 16
Floors of nights, covering for 24
Florentine pigeon 160
Flying pigeons, East Indian... 127
Foods :
Barley 31
Beans 31
Green ... 32
Indian corn 31
Maize 31
Mixture of 32
Peas 31
Seeds 32
Tares 31
Wheat ... 31
Foreign literature on pigeons 409
Pigmy pouters :
Briinn ... 273
Dutch balloon 275
Prague 275
419
INDEX.
PAGE
Foreign varieties of pigeons... 12
Wattled pigeons 304
Form, variations in 9
Fountains, water 18
Fowl-like pigeons :
Burmese 159
Florentine 160
Hungarian 161
Leghorn runt 157
Maltese 160
Monteneur 162
Peculiarities of 157
Speckled hen 161
Strasser 163
French Bagdads 304
Pouters 257
Works on pigeons 410
Friesland runt 103
Frillback, the 104
Frill - breasted short - faced
pigeons :
African owl 193
Black -laced blondinette 217
Blondinette 216
Blue blondinette 218
Bluette 216
Brown blondinette ... 217
Brunette 215
Domino 218
English owl 198
History of 190
Italian owl 203
Peaked turbit 211
Satin blondinette 217
Satinette 214
Shell-crested turbit . . . 212
Silver blondinette 218
Silverette 216
Sulphur blondinettes ... 217
Turbit 205
Turbiteen 219
Turkish 212
Turkish nomenclature of 222
Turkish turbit 222
Vizor 219
Whiskered owl 203
Frizzled pigeon 103
Frontal - crested tumbler,
Russian .. 325
PAGE
Fulton's (Eobert) " Illustrated
Book of Pigeons " ... 405
G.
Gallinaceous pigeon 160
German ancient 327
Bagdads 307
Pouter, old 261
Pouters 260
Tumblers 326
Works on pigeons 410
Girton's "New and Complete
Pigeon Fancyer " ... 388
Gizzard fallen 61
Goolee pigeon 125
Gorging 61
Grain hopper ... 18
Greasy fairy pigeon 90
Grecian authors, reference by 2
Green foods 32
Ground tumblers 312
Gull pigeon, black-backed . . . 142
H.
Handicaps, tippler 314
Helmet pigeon 334
Pigeon of Germany ... 80
Hevernick, Herr William, on
the Pomeranian cropper 263
Hill's, Captain Norman, black
pied pigmy pouter . . . 254
Himalayan carrier 309
Hirondelles fauve etincele ... 89
Siam 89
Historical :
Aldrovandi, Ulyssis ... 6
Almond, the 335
Anacreon 2
Anacreon's " Ode to the
Carrier Pigeon " ... 355
Annals of Barneses III.... 2
Annals of Thothmes III. 1
Aristotle 3
Barb, the 276
Carrier, the 282
Charlemagne's Edicts ... 5
Egyptian records 1
2 o 2
420
FANCY PIGEONS.
PAGE
Historical :
English pouter 223
Fantail, the 164
Grecian authors reference
by 2
Homer 2
Jacobin, the 175
Juvenal 4
Latin authors,reference by 4
Middle Ages, the 6
Moore's" Columbarium " 6, 384
Norwich cropper 242
Pigeon-breeding in Asia,
North Africa, and Eu-
rope 7
Pigeon-flying, early ... 5
Pliny 4
Recent history 6
Short-faced frill-breasted
pigeons 190
Socrates 2
Tibullus 3
Vataces John Ducas ... 5
Willughby's " Ornitho-
logy" 6,384
Windsor, pigeons at ... 6
Homer, show, the 366
Homers, judging, Mr. W. B.
Tegetmeier on 366
Homing pigeons :
Antwerp carrier 357
Belgian, M. V. la Perre
de Eoo's account of the
origin of 364
Books on 407
Breeds used as 29
Exhibition Antwerps . . . 365
London beard 356
Long-faced Antwerp ... 372
Medium-faced Antwerp 373
Short-faced Antwerp ... 370
Skinnum 356
Hoppers 17
Horseman, Moore's description
of 295
House, pigeon 14
Tumblers 312
Hungarian magpie tumbler ... 327
Pigeon ... ,. 161
Hyacinth pigeon ...
Pigeon, speckled
I.
PAGE
99
100
Ice pigeon
Indian fantail
Insects
Italian owl
Works on pigeons
J.
Jacobin
Fancy points of
History of
Literature of ...
Jacobins, foreign ...
Japanese work on pigeons
76
166
62
203
410
175
180
175
175
188
411
Judging homers, Mr. W. B.
Tegetmeier on 366
K.
Keeping several varieties of
pigeons 28
Kokah pigeon, Akbar's, prob-
able identity of 154
Konigsber'g Moorhead 326
Laced birds 48
Lace fantail 173
Pigeon 105
Lahore pigeon 122
Lark pigeon 93
Pigeon, Niirnberg 94
Latin authors, reference by . . 4
Latz pigeon 80
Shell pigeon 80
Laugher, the 153
Voice of 155
Leghorn runt 157
Eunt, Moore's description
of ... 157
421
INDEX.
PAGE
Leg weakness 63
Lille pouters 258
Lime required by pigeons ... 35
Literature :
Adams' (H. G.) "Our
Feathered Families "... 403
Aldrovandi's " Ornitho-
logia" 382
American 410
American serial 410
" A New and Compleat
Treatise on the Art of
Breeding and Managing
the Almond Tumbler" 392
" A Treatise on Domestic
Pigeons" 386
Bignold's (G.) " Pigeon
Fancier's Assistant"... 398
Books on homing pigeons 407
Boswell's (Peter) "Bees,
Pigeons, Babbits, and
the Canary Bird Fami-
liarly Described" ... 397
Brent's (B. P.) "Pigeon
Book" 402
Cresswell's (0. E.) essay
on pigeons 406
Darwin's "Variation of
Animals and Plants
under Domestication " 404
Dixon's (Eev. E. S.) " The
Dovecote and the
Aviary" 399
Dutch 410
Early printed books ... 381
Eaton's (J. M.) works
on pigeons 400
English 384
Foreign 409
French 410
Fulton's (Eobert) " Illus-
trated Book of Pigeons " 405
" Gardener, Florist, and
Agriculturalist" ... 408
German 410
Girton's " New and Com-
plete Pigeon Fancyer " 388
GoodfeUow's (A.) "The
Little Boy's Own Book " 396
PAGE
Literature :
Hill's (Capt. Norman)
"The Pouter Pigeon" 405
"Home Pets" 403
Homing pigeons, books on 407
Italian 410
Japanese 411
London's (Mrs.) " Domes-
tic Pets " 399
Lucas' (Eev. J.) "The
Pleasures of a Pigeon
Fancier" 406
Ly ell's (J. C.) "Fancy
Pigeons" 407
Martin's (W. C. L.) " Our
Domestic Fowls and
Song Birds" 398
Moore's " Columbarium " 384
Moub ray's (Bonington)
" Treatise on Domestic
Poultry, Pigeons, and
Eabbits" 395
Musari's (Sayzid Moham-
med) History of pigeons
404, 412
" Mustertaubenbuch," the 410
" New and Complete Bird
' Fancier" 390
Persian treatise on pigeons
404, 412
" Pigeons for Exhibition
and Profit" 406
Piper's (Hugh) " Pigeons :
their Varieties, Man-
agement, Breeding, and
Diseases" 404
Pliny's "Natural History" 381
Priitz's " Mustertauben-
buch" 410
Eogers' " Pigeon Fancier's
Guide" 397
Selby's (P. J.) "Natural
History of Pigeons "... 397
Serial 408
Smith's (G.) "How to
Breed, Eear, and Train
the Macclesfield Tippler
and the High-flying
Tumbler Pigeon " ... 406
'422
FANCY PIGEONS.
PAGE
Literature :
Spanish 410
Tegetmeier's (W. B.)
" Pigeons : their Struc-
ture, Varieties, Habits,
and Management " ... 403
"The Bird-fancier's Be-
creation : being Curious
Eemarks on the Nature
of Song Birds" 390
" The Boy's Own Paper " 409
" The Cottage Gardener " 408
"The Country" 409
"The Field" newspaper 409
" The Kabutar Namah " 412
"The Little Boy's Own
Book of Sports and
Pastimes" 396
" The Management of
Pigeons" 406
"The Pigeon" 409
" The Poultry and Pigeon
Keeper's Companion" 396
" The Poultry Chronicle " 408
" The Poultry Review "... 409
" The Standard of Ex-
cellence for Judging
Pigeons" * 410
" The Young Angler,
Naturalist, and Pigeon
and Babbit Fancier" 396
lire's (G.) "Our Fancy
Pigeons, and Bambling
Notes of a Naturalist " 406
Willughby's " Ornitho-
logy " 384
Windus' (W. P.) " A New
and Compleat Treatise
on the Art of Breeding
and Managing the
Almond Tumbler " ... 392
Wright's (Lewis) "Prac-
tical Pigeon Keeper " 405
Loft, pigeon 14
London beard 356
Long-faced Antwerp carrier... 372
Lowtan 126
Choteen 127
Kulmee . ..127
PAGE
Lowtan, sadhee 127
Lucas' (Bev. J.) " The Plea-
sures of a Pigeon Fan-
cier" 406
M.
Macclesfield tipplers 317
Magpie, the 333
Mahomet pigeon 131
Maltese pigeon 160
Management ... 30
Mane pigeon 106
Manure, pigeon 72
Market, pigeons for tho ... 71
Martin pigeon 122
Matching for breeding 36
Mating, how effected 36
Meal pigeon 76
Measuring pouters ...230,232
Medium-faced Antwerp carrier 373
Megrims 65
Melanoids 47
Messengers, pigeons formerly
used as 356
Middle Ages, the 6
Miroite, the 98
Modena, pigeon-flying at ... 115
Modern show system 50
Monk pigeon 88
Montauban pigeon 141
Monteneur pigeon 162
Mookee pigeon 123
Moon pigeon 77
Moore's (John) "Columbarium"
6, 384
Mottled tumbler 318
Moubray's " Treatise on Do-
mestic Poultry, Pigeons,
and Babbits" 395
Moulter pigeon 87
Moulting 64
Mourning pigeon 82
Musari's (Sayzid Mohammed)
History of pigeons 404, 412
N.
Narrow-tailed shaker 167
423
INDEX.
PAGE
Narrow-tailed shaker, Wil-
lughby's 123
Nesting 37
Boxes 21, 22
Pans, earthenware 23
Pans, wood 23
Neumeister and the origin of
fancy pigeons 68
Norwegian pigeon 141
Norwich cropper 241
Cropper, fancy points of 243
Nnn, the 330
Niirnberg lark pigeon 94
Swallow pigeon : 90
0.
Odd birds 42
Open-air flights ... 16
" Original " pigeons 67
Origin of fancy pigeons 8,68
Oude's, ex-king of, pigeons ... 128
Overcrowding 42
Overlaying 41
Owls, African 193
African, fancy points of 194
Description of, by Moore 191
English 198
English, fancy points of 199
Italian 203
Tunisian 193
Whiskered 203
P.
Pairing ... , 35
Parisian powter, description of,
by Moore 101
Pearl pigeon 104
Peculiar feathering, pigeons of 103
Voice, pigeons of 144
Pens, exhibition 54
Walking 54
Persian work on pigeons 404, 412
Piedmont pigeon 160
Pigeon aviary 14
Bagadais 304
PAGE
Pigeon cavalier 259
Chanteur du Soudan ... 154
Coquille barbu 79
Coquille etourneau ... 82
Coquille Hollondais ... 330
Coquille Souabe 82
Coquille tete de morte ... 80
Flying, antiquity of ... 355
Flying at Calcutta ...128
Flying at Delhi 128
Flying at Modena, anti-
quity of ... 5,116,117
Flying, early 5
Flying, modern, at Delhi 5
Flying on the Continent 363
Grosse gorge 258
Heurt<5 73
Hirondelle 89
House 15
House, sawdust for the
floor of 23
Houses, cleaning 23
Lillois 112,258,259
Lillois elegant 259
Loft 14
MaillS 100
Miroite" 99
Moine a bavette 93
Nonnain 188
Petit miroite 99
Polonais 277
Eomain 139
Shows, antiquity of ... 50
Soie 105
Suisse 77
Suisse bai Dor6, ou bis
Dor<5 79
Tambour glou-glou ... 144
Tournant Ill
Trembleur de la Guyane 174
Trembleur paon ... 106, 173
Turc 307
Volant cou-rouge 357
Voyageur de Beyrouth ... 137
Pigeonry, plan of author's 20-23
Small ... 19
Pigeons boulans 258
For the market 71
Mailles , , 99
424
FANCY PIGEONS.
PAGE
Pigeons mondain 71
Patu 71
Young 39
Pigmy pouter, pied 253
pouters, foreign 271
Pilferer pigeon 87
Piper's (Hugh) " Pigeons :
their Varieties, Ma-
nagement, Breeding,
and Diseases " 404
Pliny's " Natural History" ... 381
Plumage, pigeons of varied and
striking 28
Polish lynx pigeon ; 101
Pomeranian cropper, Herr
William Hevernick's
lecture on 262
Pouter 262
Porcelain pigeon 77, 100
Pouters, measuring ... 230, 232
Showing 240
Pouting horseman 242, 251
Or cropper pigeons :
Austrian klatcher . . . 269
Bengal 271
Breslau 261
Briinn 273
Cavalier 259
Dutch 269
Dutch balloon ... 275
English pouter ... 223
Foreign pigmy ... 271
French 257
German 260
Lille 258
Norwich cropper ... 241
Old German 261
Pied pigmy 253
Pomeranian 262
Prague magpie ... 270
Prague pigmy ... 275
Saxon 269
.. Stork 275
Powter, Parisian, Moore's de-
scription of 101
Prague magpie pouter 270
Pigmy pouter 275
Preparing birds for showing 53
Priests, common 85
Priests, double-crested 86
Starling - barred, white -
flighted and tailed .. 86
White-barred 86
White - flighted, barred
and tailed 86
White - flighted, white -
barred 86
White-stockinged 86
Printed tippler 317
Progenitor, probable, of tame
pigeons 8
Quarrelsome pigeons 27
E.
" Bace " pigeons 68
Racing pigeons 29
Bed Indian pigeon 102
Eiga tumbler 326
Eingbeater Ill
Neumeister's description
of 112
Eock pigeons 70
Wild blue 44
Eollers, Birmingham 317
Colours of 318
Turkish 324
Eoman pigeon 141
Eunt 141
Buff pigeon of Moore 1 76
Eunts, almond and blue-
grizzled 142
Antiquity of 138
As table pigeons 142
Black-backed gull 142
Blue 139
Blue and silver, weight of 139
Common 71
Fancy 139
Friesland 103
Leghorn 157
Montauban 141
Norwegian 141
425
INDEX.
PAGE
Bunts, Roman 141
Silver 139
Spanish 138
Russian frontal-crested tum-
bler 325
Trumpeter 145
S.
Sacred bird, pigeon a 3
Salt a necessity for pigeons ... 33
Cat 33
Earth box 34
Earth mixture 35
Satinette 214
Blue 216
Brunette 215
Silver 216
Saxon pigeon 75
Pouter 269
Scanderoon, the 307
Scheme of work 67
Scraper, steel 24
Seeds, pigeons fond of 32
Selection of stock 26
Separating sexes 42
Serial literature on the pigeon 408
Sexes, separating 42
Sex of young pigeons 41
Shaking tumbler 327
Sherajee 120
Mottled 121
Shield pigeon 84
Short, erect-tailed pigeons :
Burmese 159
Florentine 160
Hungarian 161
Leghorn runt 157
Maltese 160
> Monteneur 162
Speckled hen 161
Strasser 163
Short-faced Antwerp 370
Antwerp, properties of ... 371
Tumbler, history of ... 335
Tumblers :
Almond 335
Baldhead .. 353
PAGE
Short-faced tumblers :
Beard 353
Blue 352
Mottle 349
Frill-breasted pigeons :
African owl ... ... 193
Black laced blondi-
nette 217
Blondinette 216
Blue blondinette ... 218
Bluette 216
Brown blondinette ... 217
Brunette 215
Domino 218
English owl 198
History of 190
Italian owl 203
Peaked turbit ... 211
Satin blondinette ... 217
Satinette 214
Shell-crested turbit 212
Silver blondinette ... 218
Silverette 216
Sulphur blondinette 217
Turbit 205
Turbiteen 219
Turkish frilled ... 212
Turkish nomencla-
ture of 222
Turkish turbit ... 222
Vizor 219
Whiskered owl ... 203
Shovel 24
Show baskets 52
Boxes 51
Homing Antwerp 365
System, modern 50
Tumblers 315
Showing, preparing birds for 53
Shy pigeons 28
Silesian swallow pigeon ... 90
Silken-haired pigeon 105
Skinnum, the 356
Small-pox 64
Smerle, the 357
Smiter, the Ill
Smyrna runt 142
Soot pigeon, or russtaube ... 76
Spangled birds 48
426
FANCY PIGEONS.
Spanish runt 138
Sparkling fawn-coloured swal-
low pigeon 89
Speckled hen pigeon 161
Hyacinth pigeon 100
Spiteful pigeons 27
Spot, copper-winged white ... 74
Pigeon 73
White 74
White-barred 74
White, common 73
White-scaled 74
Spouts 65
Starling pigeon 80
Stock birds, selecting ... 26, 36
Stomacher pigeon 80
Stork pigeon 92
Strasser pigeon 163
Styles of tumbling 312
Suabian pigeon 82
Swallow pigeon 88
Pigeon, Bohemian 90
Pigeon, Niirnberg 90
Pigeon, Saxon ... ... 90
Pigeons, varieties in
colouring of 90
Tail pigeon 109
Swan-necked Egyptian pigeons 306
Swiss pigeon 77
T.
Table pigeons, runts as ... 142
Selecting for 72
Tailor pigeon 122
Tails, pigeons with short
erect :
Burmese 159
Florentine 160
Hungarian 161
Leghorn runt 157
Maltese 160
Monteneur 162
Speckled hen 161
Strasser 163
Tame pigeon, probable pro-
genitor of 8
PAGE
Tegetmeier's (W. B.) "Pigeons :
their Structure, Varie-
ties, Habits, and Man-
agement " 403
Tippler handicaps 314
Macclesfield 317
Printed 317
Triganica pigeon 115
Pigeons, colours of ... 118
Triganieri, pigeon-flying by ... 115
Terms used by 116
The 115
Trumpeters 144
Altenburg 151
Altenburg, voice of ... 153
Bokhara 145
Buff Altenburger 152
Fancy points of 147
Lavender Altenburger ... 152
Russian 145
Sub-varieties of 151
Voice of 149
Tumblers 311
Air 312
Almond 335
Baldhead ... 320
Baldhead, short-faced ... 353
Beard 322
Beard, short-faced ... 353
Birmingham roller ... 317
Blue, short-faced 352
Brander 327
Brunswick beard 326
Coloured-tailed 326
Colours of 315
Common 314
Common, a suitable breed
to commence pigeon
keeping with 27
Double-crested 325
Dutch 317
Exhibition 315
Foreign 324
German 326
German ancient 327
Ground 312
House 312
How and when to fly ... 31 3
Hungarian magpie ... 327
427
INDEX.
PAGE
Tumblers, Konigsberg Moor-
head 326
Macclesfield tippler ... 317
Mottled 318
Mottle, short-faced ,.. 349
Eiga 326
Russian frontal- crested... 325
Shaking 327
Short-faced 335
Almond 333
Baldhead 353
Beard 352
Blue 355
History of 335
Mottle 349
Show 315
Training, for flying ... 313
Turkish roller 324
Varieties originally ... 330
Vienna gansel 329
White-barred Prague ... 327
White-tailed 326
Tumbling, styles of 312
Tunisian owl 193
Turbiteen, the 219
Turbits 205
Description of, by Moore 191
Fancy points of 206
Peaked 211
Shell-crested 212
Turkish 222
Turkestan pigeons 374
Turkish Bagdads 307
Frilled pigeons 212
Roller 324
Turbit 222
Turks 304
Turner, the Ill
Tyrolese pigeon 85
U.
Uploper, the ..
Ural ice pigeon
242
77
V.
Vandelli' s description of pigeon-
flying at Modena ... 116
PAGE
Variations in form 9
Varieties of fancy pigeons :
African owl, the 193
Almond, the 335
Runt, the 142
Altenburg trumpeter, the 151
Ancient, German, the ... 327
Annatalozia, the 102
Antwerp carrier, the ... 357
Long-faced, the ... 372
Medium-faced, the ... 373
Short-faced, the ... 370
Archangel, the 95
Austrian klatcher, the ... 270
Azure blue, the 76
Badge of Honour, the ... 78
Bagdad, Batavian, the ... 305
Batavian, lace-
feathered, the ... 306
Batavian, little, the 306
Carrier, the 294
Great wattled, the ... 304
Mushroomed, the ... 304
Niirnberg, the 307
Short-faced Turkish,
the 307
Turkish 307
Baldhead tumbler, the ... 320
Tumbler, short-faced,
the 353
Barb, the 276
Bavette, the 92
Beard, Brunswick, the ... 326
London, the 356
Tumbler, the 322
Tumbler, short-faced,
the 353
Bearded pigeon, the ... 79
Bengal pouter, the ... 271
Birmingham roller, the ... 317
Blaze face, the 74
Blondinette, black-laced,
the 216
Blue, the 218
Brown, the 217
Satin, the 217
Silver, the 218
Sulphur, the 217
Blue Brunswick, the ... 86
428
FANCY PIGEONS.
PAGE
Varieties of fancy pigeons :
Blue grizzled runt, the ... 142
Eock, the ... 8, 44
Short-faced tumbler,
the 352
Bluette, the 216
Bohemian swallow, the ... 90
Bokhara trumpeter, the ... 145
Brander tumbler, the ... 327
Breast, the 75
Breslau pouter, the ... 261
Bristle, the 104
Brunette, the 215
Briinn pigmy pouter, the 273
Brunswick beard, the ... 326
Bullfinch, the 95
Burmese, the 159
Capuchin, the 134
Carmelite, the 91
Carp-scale, the 102
Carrier, Antwerp, the ... 357
Bagdad, the 294
English, the 282
Himalayan, the ... 309
Chinese dewlap, the ...136
Gull, the 203
Coloured breasted pigeon,
the 75
Headed pigeon, the 79
Tailed tumbler, the 326
Coral-eyed, the 135
Crescent, the 78
Cropper, Norwich, the . . . 241
Pomeranian, the ... 262
Stork, the 275
Cumulet, Continental, the 357
Curly Moor head, the ... 106
Dewlap, Chinese, the ...136
Domino, the 218
Double-crested tumbler,
the 325
Dragoon, the 295
Drummer, the 144
Dutch balloon pouter, the 275
Pouter, the 269
Shell, the 330
Egyptian swift, the ... 107
English carrier, the ... 282
Fantail, the 164
PAGE
Varieties of fancy pigeons :
English fire pigeon, the ... 94
Owl, the 198
Pouter, the 223
Fantail, the 164
Indian, the 166
Lace, the 173
Finnikin, the Ill
Fire pigeon, the ... ... 94
Pigeon, English, the 74
Florentine, the 160
Friesland runt, the ... 103
Frillback, the 104
Frizzled pigeon, the ... 103
Frontal-crested tumbler,
Eussian, the 325
Gallinaceous pigeon, the 160
Gansel, Vienna, the ... 329
German ancient, the ... 327
Pouter, old, the ... 261
Goolee, the 125
Mottled, the 125
Greasy fairy, the 90
Gull, black-backed, the... 142
Helmet, the 334
Himalayan carrier, the ... 309
Homer, show, the 366
Horseman, the ... ... 295
Hungarian magpie tum-
bler, the 327
The 161
Hyacinth, the 99
Speckled, the 100
Ice, the 76
Indian f antail, the 166
Italian owl, the 203
Jacobin, the 175
Konigsberg Moorhead,
the 326
Lace f antail, the 173
The 105
Lahore, the 122
Lark, the 93
Nurnberg, the ... 94
Latz, the 80
Shell, the 80
Laugher, the 153
Leghorn runt, the 157
Lille pouters 258
429
INDEX.
PAGE
Varieties of fancy pigeons :
London beard, the 356
Long-faced Antwerp, the 372
Lowtan, the 126
Macclesfield tippler, the 317
Magpie, the 333
Mahomet, the 131
Maltese, the 160
Mane, the 106
Martin, the 122
Meal, the 76
Medium-faced Antwerp,
the 373
Miroite, the 98
Monk, the 88
Montauban, the 141
Monteneur, the 162
Mookee, the 123
Moon, the 78
Moorhead, Konigsberg,
the 326
Mottle short-faced tum-
bler, the 349
Tumbler, the 318
Moulter, the 87
Mourning, the 82
Norwegian, the 141
Norwich cropper, the ... 241
Nun, the 330
Niirnberg lark, the ... 94
Swallow, the 90
Owl, African, the 193
English, the 198
Italian, the 293
Tunisian, the 193
Whiskered, the ... 203
Pearl, the 104
Piedmont, the 160
Pigmy pouter, pied, the . . . 253
Pilferer, the 87
Polish lynx, the 101
Pomeranian cropper, the 262
Porcelain, the 77,100
Pouter, cavalier, the ... 259
English, the 223
Lille, the 258
Old German, the ... 261
Pigmy, pied, the ... 253
Pomeranian, the ... 262
PAGE
Varieties of fancy pigeons :
Pouter, Saxon, the ... 269
Pouting horseman, the, 242, 251
Prague magpie pouter, the 270
Pigmy pouter, the ... 275
Priest, the 85
Printed tippler, the ...317
Bed Indian, the 102
Eiga tumbler, the 326
Eingbeater, the Ill
Eock, the 44, 70
Eoller, Birmingham, the 317
Turkish, the 324
Eoman runt, the ... ... 141
Eunt, the 138
Friesland, the ... 103
Leghorn, the 157
Norwegian, the ... 141
Smyrna, the 142
Spanish, the 138
Eussian frontal - crested
tumbler, the ... 325
Trumpeter, the ... 145
Satinette, the 214
Saxon, the 75
Pouter, the 269
Swallow, the 90
Scanderoon, the 307
Shaking tumbler, the ... 327
Sherajee, the 120
Mottled, the 121
Shield, the 84
Short-faced Antwerp, the 370
Tumbler, the 335
Siberian ice, the 77
Silesian swallow, the ... 90
Silken-haired pigeon, the 105
Silverette, the 216
Skinnum, the 356
Smerle, the 357
Smiter, the Ill
Smyrna runt, the 142
Soot, the 76
Spanish runt, the 138
Sparkling fawn-coloured
swallow, the ... 89
Speckled hen, the 161
Hyacinth, the 100
Spot, the 73
430
FANCY PIGEONS.
PAGE
Varieties of fancy pigeons :
Spot, white, the 74
Starling, the 80
Stomacher, the 80
Stork, the 92
Cropper, the 275
Strasser, the 163
Suabian, the ... 82
Swallow, the 88
tail, the 109
Swiss, the ... .' 77
Tailor, the 122
Tippler, Macclesfield, the 317
printed, the 317
Triganica, the 115
Trumpeter, the 144
Altenburg, the ... 151
Bokhara, the 145
Russian, the 145
Tumbler, the 311
Short-faced, the ... 335
Tunisian owl, the 193
Turbiteen, the 219
Turbit, the 205
Turkish, the 222
Turcs 307
Turkestan pigeons ... 374
Turkish Bagdad, the. ... 307
Roller, the 324
Turbit 222
Turner, the Ill
Tyrolese, the 85
Uploper, the 242
Ural ice, the 77
Veiled, the 79
Velvet fairy, the 90
Victoria, the 100
Vienna gansel, the ... 329
Vizor, the 219
Voyageur, Belgian, the ... 357
Whiskered owl, the ...203
White-barred Prague
tumbler, the ... 327
Whitehead, the 87
White spot, the 74
White-tailed tumbler, the 326
Wing, the 92
Yarkand pigeons 374
Veiled pigeon 79
PAGE
90
, 65
. 27
100
, 80
219
151
145
153
145
144
357
Velvet fairy pigeon
Vertigo
Vicious pigeons
Victoria pigeon
Vienna bodice pigeon ...
Vizor, the
Voice, pigeons of peculiar :
Altenburg trumpeter
Bokhara trumpeter
Laugher
Russian trumpeter
Trumpeter
Voyageur, Belgian
W.
Walking pens 54
Wall boxes 14
Boxes, disadvantage of... 14
Water 33
Bathing 33
Bottle 19
Dish 19
Fountains 18
Wattled pigeons :
Bagdad carrier 294
Barb 276
Batavian Bagdad 305
Dragoon 295
English carrier 282
Foreign 304
French Bagdads 304
German Bagdads 307
Great wattled, or mush-
roomed Bagdad 304
Himalayan carrier 309
Lace-feathered Batavian
Bagdad 306
Little Batavian Bagdad 306
Niirnb erg Bagdad 307
Short-faced Turkish Bag-
dad 307
Turkish Bagdads 307
Turks 304
Wen, flesh 60
Whiskered owl .. 203
431
INDEX.
PAGE
White-barred Prague tumbler 327
Whitehead pigeon 87
White-tailed tumbler 326
Whole colours ... ... ... 47
Wild blue rock, the 44
Willughby's " Ornithology " 383
Wing disease 65
Pigeon 92
Pigeons that look best on
the 27
Woodhouse's, Mr., baldpate... 10
Works, minor, in which fancy
pigeons are mentioned 392
Wright's (Lewis) " Practical
Pigeon Keeper"
405
X.
Xenophon
Y.
Yarkand pigeons
Young fanciers, pigeons for
Pigeons
Pigeons, sex of
374
27
39
41
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POKER BOOK, THE. How to Play Poker with Success. By E.
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SAILING GUIDE TO THE SOLENT AND FOOLE
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VAMPING. A Practical Guide to the Accompaniment of Songs by the
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VENTRILOQUISM, PRACTICAL, AND ITS SISTER ARTS.
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