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THE LIVING ANIMALS OF THE WORLD 



The Hamburgs are of two kinds — the 

 Spangled, which is of English, and the 

 PexcilleI), of Contincncal origin. 



A \ery old breed is the Polish. It figures 

 often in the pictures of the old Dutch 

 masters. One of its chief characteristics is 

 the huge crest of feathers rising from the 

 crown of the head. The development of this 

 crest has had a \^ery extraordinary efil'ect upon 

 the conformation of the bones of the skull, 

 entirely altering the shape of the brain-case. 

 . , Perhaps the most artificial of all breeds of 



L- fowl are the SEBRIGHT Baxtams. These are 



diminutive birds, the result of a cross between 

 the Polisli with " laced " feathers and a bantam. 

 The feathers of this cross are beautifully 

 " laced " — that is, they are white, edged with 

 black. Another interesting diminutive breed 

 is the Japanese Bantam. The cock carries its tail, which is long, remarkably high, giving a 

 very quaint effect. This breed is fiirther interesting, since it furnishes us with an instance 

 of the breeder's power of localising colour by selection. Tlie tail is black and the body 

 white. Yet another interesting Japanese fowl is the remarkable long-tailed breed in which 

 the tail-coverts grow continuousl}', attaining a length of from 9 feet to, it is said, 18 feet. 

 The birds are kept for show purposes. The greater jiart of their lives is passed tethered 

 on high perches. Once a day they are taken 



BLACK-CHESTED CRESTED GUINEA-FOWL 



Thli ii a hhck bifd^ ivtth light hint ipols 



down for exercise, when the long feathers are 

 carefully rolled up and securel)' fastened out 

 of harm's way. 



The Argus-pheasaxt axd PKArocK axd 

 THEIR Allies 



The Argus-PHEASANT most certainly 

 demands notice, on account of the extra- 

 ordinary development of the wing-quills, 

 which are nearly a }'ard long, and the 

 wondrous beauty of the pattern thereon. 

 This pattern takes the form of a number of 

 eyes, so shaded as to give the appearance, 

 when fully displayed, of a number of balls 

 l\'ing in a socket. These enormous quills 

 are borne only by the male, and used, like 

 the ornamental feathers of its allies, in cap- 

 tivating the female. When fully displayed, 

 the two wings are spread out to form one 

 huge fan, producing an effect which words 

 cannot adequately describe. The argus- 

 pheasants are found in the forests of Siam, 

 the Malay Peninsula, and Sumatra, and are 

 excessively wary birds. 



The Peacock is too well known to need 

 a very long description. But a word as to 

 the so-called " tail." This magnificent wealth 



BLACK-CHESTED CRESTED GUINEA-FOWL 



At Durban thtie birdi are often haivked by Kaffir bunten^ the jiah 

 being "very delicate and much esteemed 



