FARM ANIMALS 405 



tries. Some are still thus distinguished, as the Pekin 

 and Muscovy ducks, Egyptian goose, and so on. 



Neither ducks nor geese are raised as generally as chick- 

 ens. This is partly because they do best near ponds of water 

 which cannot be found everywhere. Ducks, however, can 

 do very well without such water, if plenty of good drinking 

 water is supplied. Geese are most generally seen where 

 there are at least wet meadows, and they need more space 

 than ducks. In northern Germany they are herded on 

 meadows like sheep, mostly by little girls. " Breast of goose " 

 there takes ' the place of the Christmas turkey. In India 

 geese are kept as swans are with us, and are considered very 

 wise and beautiful. 



While ducks, particularly the white Pekin, are frequently 

 kept for egg laying, geese are raised almost entirely for their 

 meat and feathers. The feathers are " plucked" in some 

 countries as regularly as sheep are sheared for wool, and our 

 soft feather pillows are filled with the down of geese. Goose 

 quills from the wings were used for making writing pens 

 until steel pens were invented. 



Pigeons. There are about 500 different kinds of 

 wild pigeons, and it is not at all certain from which of 

 these kinds our domestic pigeons came, especially as 

 there are so many varieties of these, such as the pouter, 

 the fantail, and others. Our common pigeons prob- 

 ably came from the rock pigeon of Europe. Of the 

 wild pigeons of the United States the dove (called from 

 its plaintive song the mourning dove) and the passenger 

 pigeon are the most generally known. The last-named 

 once passed in countless numbers over the Eastern and 



