A SWADESHI BIRD 157 



as the myna, the crow, and the blue jay, the cock is 

 indistinguishable from the hen. In others, as, for 

 example, the sparrow, the sexes differ slightly in 

 appearance. In others, again, the cock differs from the 

 hen as the sun does from the moon. The peafowl is one 

 of these. 



Zoologists have for years been trying to find out 

 why in some species the cock resembles the hen while 

 in others it does not. Humiliating though it be, we 

 must, if we are honest, admit that we are little, if any, 

 nearer the explanation of the phenomenon than we were 

 a couple of centuries ago. Darwin thought that the 

 pretty plumage of the males was due to selection on 

 the part of the females. He tried to prove that hens 

 are able to pick and choose their mates, that they have 

 a keen eye for beauty. Just as political economists 

 of Ricardo's school teach us that every man marries 

 the richest woman who will have him, so does Darwin 

 ask us to believe that hens always mate with the 

 best-looking of their suitors, that they quiz each with 

 the eye of an art critic, and pronounce judgment 

 somewhat as follows : " Number one is no class ; his 

 train is too short. I would not be seen dead beside 

 number two ; he looks as though he had issued from 

 a fifth-rate dyer's shop. I'll take number three, he is 

 the pick of the bunch." Darwin argued that the 

 showy cocks are fully alive to their good looks, and 

 know how to show them off to best advantage. There 

 is much to be said in favour of his theory. A peacock, 

 when he sees a hen that he admires, promptly turns his 

 back upon her, erects his great train and his paltry 



