FOWL 



3279 



FOWLER 



held until the outbreak of the 

 Great War, when he was appointed 

 engineer-in-chief of the expedi- 

 tionary force, becoming adjutant- 

 general in France in 1916. He be- 

 came lieutenant-general in Jan.,. 

 1919, and was created K.C.B. in 

 1916 and K.C.M..G. in 1918. 



Fowl (A.S. fugol, bird). Name 

 loosely applied to the various 

 species of the genus Gallus of the 

 pheasant family of the zoological 

 owler Gallinae, to which the game 

 birds generally belong. Most of 

 them have handsome plumage, and 

 are provided with strong legs, being 

 better adapted for running than 

 for flight. They range in size from 

 the quail to the turkey, are mixed 

 feeders, and are all valued for 

 purposes of the table. 



Undoubtedly all the many va- 

 rieties of the domestic fowl are 

 descended from the wild jungle 

 fowl of India. The jungle fowl, 

 which flourishes well in captivity, 

 breeds freely with the domestic 

 varieties, and the hybrids are 

 always fertile. There is no record 

 of the original domestication of the 

 jungle fowl. It is very improbable 

 that it was at first used by the 

 ancient inhabitants of India for 

 cock-fighting (q.v.). It is far more 

 likely that the bird was caught in 

 greater numbers than were required 

 for food at the moment, and that it 

 was then found possible to keep it 

 for a time in captivity, where it 

 bred and thus suggested a means 

 of multiplying and maintaining a 

 supply of food always at hand. 

 Early Domestication 



The bird is entirely absent from 

 the remains of birds and animals 

 found in the kitchen middens of the 

 neolithic period, and it does not 

 appear to have been known to the 

 Greeks of the Homeric age. But it 

 is mentioned in a Chinese encyclo- 

 pedia compiled about 1400 B.C., 

 though it is not clear if the wild or 

 domesticated bird is meant. There 

 are, however, records in the Code of 

 Manu of cock-fighting in India 

 about 1000 B.C., and this makes it 

 probable though not certain 

 that domestication had taken place 

 at an earlier date. It is curious 

 that the spread of the domesticated 

 fowl westwards was due to the love 

 of cock-fighting rather than to any 

 appreciation of the value of the 

 bird as an article of food. Aristotle 

 in his History of Animals mentions 

 the domestic fowl and gives various 

 details of its habits and laying 

 powers ; but there is no mention of 

 domestic fowls in the Bible until 

 New Testament days. 



When the bird first reached 

 Great Britain is unknown, the 

 statement that it was brought by 

 the Phoenicians when they visited 



Cornwall to obtain tin being pure 

 speculation. It is thought that the 

 breed now known as Dorkings was 

 introduced by the Romans, but 

 here again decisive evidence is 

 lacking. But it is known that cock- 

 fighting was popular in Britain 

 many centuries back. The earliest 

 definite record dates from the reign 

 of Henry II, when William Fitz- 

 Stephen wrote an account of the 

 cock-fights that took place in 

 schools on Shrove Tuesday. 

 Size and Laying 



By selection in crossing, the little 

 jungle fowl, which only weighs 3 lb., 

 has developed into heavy breeds 

 such as the Brahma, the Cochin, 

 and the Houdan. The attention 

 of breeders has been variously 

 directed in the interests of egg pro- 

 duction, table qualities, or merely 

 ornamental character ; it is seldom 

 practicable to combine the three 

 qualities in any high degree of ex- 

 cellence in the same bird. Ob- 

 viously, a hen which lays freely can- 

 not put on much flesh at the same 

 time, as the food consumed goes 

 in the production of eggs. Thus it 

 will be noticed that the most pro- 

 lific laying strains all tend in the 

 direction of smallness. Even in the 

 same breed it will usually be found 

 that the small hen is the best layer, 

 though it does not follow that she 

 will make a good sitter. A good layer 

 seldom reaches a weight of 7 lb. 



Of the domestic laying breeds, 

 the best one of British origin is the 

 Hamburg, an exceptionally hand- 

 some bird, with either black or gold 

 or silver spangled plumage. Its 

 egg-laying proclivities are extra- 

 ordinary, but the eggs are rather 

 small. The Eedcap resembles the 

 Hamburg in plumage, but is larger. 

 It has the advantage of producing 

 larger eggs and does best in hilly 

 districts. The Scottish Grey from 

 north of the Tweed is long in 

 the leg, with barred grey fea- 

 thers, and is a capital layer. Other 

 excellent laying strains are the Leg- 

 horn, which came from Italy ; the 

 Minorca, a fairly large Spanish 

 bird which lays eggs of unusually 

 large size ; the Houdan, of French 

 origin, both a table bird and a good 

 layer; and the Polish, of doubtful 

 nationality, which lays well but is 

 difficult to rear. 



Among British table birds, the 

 Dorking, which is one of the oldest 

 breeds known, stands pre-eminent, 

 but will not do well on a damp soil. 

 The various game fowl, which are 

 modifications of the old fighting 

 breed, make excellent table birds ; 

 the Sussex birds are famous every- 

 where under the misleading name 

 of Surrey fowls. 



In addition to these distinctively 

 egg-laying and table birds, there 



are several breeds which may be 

 described as of the general utility 

 order. Most of them are compara- 

 tively new varieties, and have been 

 bred as all-round birds. They lay 

 freely and sit well ; their eggs are 

 of good size and colour ; and their 

 table qualities are excellent. They 

 are favourites with poultry keepers 

 who do not specialise in breeds, 

 and are the birds for the small man. 

 The Orpington breed is a com- 

 paratively late one, but is already 

 one of the most popular. The birds 

 are large and deep in body, and the 

 plumage may be white, buff, or 

 spangled. They lay well in winter, 

 their eggs are of the popular tint, 

 and they mature very rapidly. 



The Wyandotte is one of the 

 handsomest breeds, yielding well 

 for the table and laying well 

 through the winter months. The 

 Plymouth Rock is exceptionally 

 hardy and flourishes under adverse 

 conditions. The Brahmas and the 

 Cochins are both Asiatic birds, of 

 large size and heavily feathered 

 down the legs. Formerly popular 

 for their great size, they do not pay 

 to keep and are seldom bred, ex- 

 cept for show purposes. 



Ornamental Breeds 

 Of the purely ornamental breeds 

 little need be said. They are of 

 handsome appearance, but since 

 bone and feather can only be pro- 

 duced at the cost of flesh, their 

 small size, slowness of growth, or 

 poor egg -laying powers make them 

 unprofitable for market purposes, 

 and breeders prefer to produce a 

 few prize birds which will command 

 fancy prices at poultry shows. 

 These include the bantams, the 

 Malayan fowl, the Silkies, and a few 

 other varieties. They are nearly 

 all of Asiatic origin. See Poultry; 

 also Ancona; Andalusian; Ban- 

 tam ; Dorking, illus. 



Bibliography. Our Poultry and 

 All about Them, Harrison Weir, 

 new edition, 1904; The Races of 

 Domestic Poultry, E. Brown, 1906 ; 

 Poultrv for Prizes and Profit, James 

 Long, 1909; The Book of Poultry, 

 L. Wright, 1910; Commercial Poul- 

 try Farming, T. W. Toovey, 1919. 



Fowler, ELLEN THORNEYCROFT 

 (b. 1860). British novelist. Daughter 

 of the IstViscountWolverhampton, 

 she married A. 

 L. Felkin in 

 1903. Her 

 novels, distin- 

 guished by skill 

 in character 

 drawing and a 

 I turn for epi- 

 I gram, include 

 % I Concerning 



? Isabel Cam- 



^ Fo^lTr? %' 1898 '' A 



British novelist DoubleThread, 

 Runeii 1899; Fuel of 



