THE PHEASANT. 



Pliny called these birds " Phasianae aves," birds of 

 the Phasis, in Asia Minor. They are brought from the 

 banks of that river, which flows into the Euxine Sea, 

 and are now spread, in a partially domesticated state, 

 over the whole of temperate Europe. In our part of 

 it the pheasant is common, and thrives tolerably well. 

 This is not the case in many situations ; it is subject to 

 disease, and thus great mortality arises. The beauty 

 of its plumage, and the delicacy of its flesh, render it 

 attractive and valuable. 



When Croesus, king of Lydia, was seated on his 

 throne, arrayed in all the royal magnificence of the 

 East, he asked Solon, the celebrated Grecian philo- 

 sopher, if he had ever beheld anything so fine ? Solon, 

 unmoved by the splendour before him, replied, that after 

 having seen the beautiful plumage of the pheasant, he 

 could be astonished at no other finery. 



The splendid bird still meets the view, but the male 

 alone is remarkable for its beauty: a quiet dress of 



