162 OUR DOMESTIC FOWLS. 



Beatecl, one of whom seems as if lie were rub- 

 bing sometbmg into a duck ; one hand is 

 closed, as it would be if it were full of salt, 

 and with the other he is raising one of the 

 •wings apparently for the purpose of rubbing 

 in the salt. The other figure appears to be 

 plucking the feathers off the neck of a duck, but 

 Roselini describes him as sprinkling a handful 

 of salt upon it." In the British Museum, 

 among the provisions found in a tomb in Egypt, 

 are two birds, of course very dry and shrivelled, 

 which appear to us to be young ducks, or teal, 

 or at least small water-fowl of some species. 



Whether ducks, geese, or other waterfowl 

 were used as food by the ancient Hebrews, 

 does not appear from any passage in the 

 Scriptures. They do not seem to have been 

 interdicted, and as the Hebrews must have 

 witnessed the extensive consumption of these 

 birds while sojourning in Egypt, especially 

 ducks and geese, they may, perhaps, have 

 adopted their use ; nevertheless, we suspect 

 that, influenced by their feelings of aversion 

 with respect to Egyptian rites and ceremonies, 

 the Hebrews may have regarded the duck and 

 goose with the same disgust as they did the 

 dog, which was a favourite iu Egypt, 



