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 

 j)art 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^ 



