DUCK 



2707 



DUCK-SHOOTING 



that of any other native breed. 

 But it is not altogether in favour 

 outside France, for it matures so 

 slowly that it often costs more in 

 food than it fetches in the market. 

 The Pekin duck, which came 

 originallv from China, may be re- 



Ib. Swedish and Flemish 

 are also bred to a 



Duck Bill. Oviparous mammal of 

 Australasia 



cognized by its yellowish-white 

 plumage and its very upright 

 carriage when walking, the legs 

 being set very far back. A large 

 specimen will weigh as much as 

 9 lb., but it is as an egg-layer that 

 the breed is valued. The Indian 

 runner is also a prolific layer of 

 small eggs, which are often prof- 

 fered for sale as those of the hen, 

 but otherwise it is not a useful 

 breed, as it seldom weighs more 



than 4 



ducks 



limited extent in 



Britain, and 



possess good table 



qualities. 



The demand 

 for ducklings far 

 exceeds that for 

 older birds, which 

 are apt to be 

 oily and strong in 

 flavqur, and the 

 breeder should, 

 therefore, aim at 

 mating the birds 

 early, Oct. being 

 the best time. 

 As ducks are not 

 good sitters, the 

 eggs are usually 

 taken to be hatched under a hen 

 or in the incubator. See Poultry 

 Farming. 



Duck (Dutch dock, linen cloth). 

 Untwilled fabric, lighter and finer 

 than canvas, used for clothing, 

 sails, wagon covers, bags, etc. It 

 is usually made of linen, sometimes 

 of cotton. The word also denotes 

 the creamy tint of linen yarn 

 during bleaching. 



Duck Bill, DUCK-BILLED PLATY- 

 PUS OR DUCKMOLE. Small web- 



Duck. 1. Mallard or wild duck, which breeds freely in captivity. 2. Rouen 

 duck, much favoured in France. Its plumage is similar to that of the 

 mild variety. 3. White Aylesbury ducks, the most esteemed and most com- 

 monly bred variety in Great Britain (from a drawing by Harrison Weir) 



Ducking StooL Example in the Priory Church, Leominster 



tooted and oviparous mammal 

 (Ornithorhynchus anatinus), with a 

 snout like the bill of a duck. It 

 is about 18 ins. in length. No ears 

 are visible above the fur, though 

 the hearing is acute ; the nostrils 

 are placed near the tip of the bill. 

 The hind feet of the male are 

 armed with hollow spurs, com- 

 municating with poison glands, 

 and probably used for fighting in 

 the nuptial season. The duck bill 

 has no teeth, but is provided with 

 two pairs of horny plates on each 

 jaw. It is peculiar to Australasia. 

 See Ornithorhynchus. 



Ducking Stool. Instrument 

 formerly in use in Great Britain 

 and in certain parts of the U.S.A. 

 for the punishment of scolds. It 

 consisted of a chair fastened to the 

 end of a beam which, projecting 

 over a pond or river, worked on a 

 pivot from a post at the water's 

 edge. The victim, usually a woman, 

 was tied in the chair, and ducked 

 by lowering the beam. The last 

 record of its infliction was at Leo- 

 minster, 1809. 



Duck-Shooting. Sport mostly 

 practised on the E. shores, inlets, 

 estuaries, and broads of Great 

 Britain. It may roughly - be 

 divided into ( 1 ) shooting with stan- 

 chion guns fixed in single or double 

 handled punts; (2) from a punt with 

 an ordinary gun while the birds are 

 in flight; (3) and following on foot 

 by open streams or drains. 



The British wild ducks prin- 

 cipally met with are the maUard, 

 shoveller, gadwall, pochard, teal, 

 and widgeon. These generally feed 

 on fresh waters, and are therefore 

 more valuable for eating purposes ; 

 scaup, eider, and the long-tailed 

 ducks seldom leave the sea, and are 

 useless as food. Wild ducks are 

 very difficult to approach, and 

 when using a punt it is necessary 

 to lie flat along the bottom directly 

 birds are sighted, and to remain 

 in that position until after the shot. 



