Pintada. 45 



Solomon is a voucher for the antiquity of. 

 the peacock, and also the choice of the god- 

 dess Juno, who selected this for her favour- 

 ite bird, from its gorgeous and brilliant plu- 

 mage and majesty of demeanor. It is as- 

 serted by the ancient writers, that the first 

 peacock was honoured with a pubHc exhi- 

 bition at Athens, that many people travelled 

 thither from Macedon, to be spectators of 

 that beautiful phenonemon, the paragon of 

 the feathered race. It is probable, the an- 

 cients as well as the moderns, introduced the 

 peacock upon the table, rather as an orna- 

 ment than a viand. There are varieties of 

 this bird, some white ; they perch on trees 

 like the turkey. Their age extends to 

 twenty years, and at three, the tail of the 

 cock is full and complete. The cock re- 

 quires from two to four hens, and where 

 the country agrees with them, they are 

 very prolific. They are granivorous like 

 other domestic fowls, preferring barley. 



The Pintada or Guinea Hen has been 

 said to unite the character and properties of 

 the pheasant and the turkey. It is about the 



