H S TRA Y FEA THERS FROM MANY BIRDS. 



descendants of the common Jungle Fowl of India ; but 

 it is more than probable that all these wild species have 

 been repeatedly crossed and recrossed in producing the 

 several distinct types of Domestic Fowl. The breeding 

 of poultry has reached the dignity of a science ; and 

 man's careful selection of suitable variations, which have 

 been judiciously crossed, has been crowned with 

 marvellous success. We need only visit one of the 

 many famous poultry shows to see almost at a glance 

 the endless breeds and strains and varieties of these 

 birds which artificial selection has produced the 

 beautiful and numerous variations of colour, of form, 

 and of structure which have all been evolved from one 

 or two wild species by the ingenuity of man. The 

 annual consumption of poultry is enormous, but the 

 limits to the industry of poultry-breeding are by no 

 means reached, and the demand steadily increases for 

 this highly nourishing and delicious article of food. A 

 passing allusion must here be made to Geese and Ducks 

 both descendants from wild ancestors, the former 

 from the Grey-lag Goose, the latter from the Mallard 

 or Wild Duck. Both these birds are in high demand 

 for food ; the vast quantities of Michaelmas Geese that 

 crowd the markets from October onwards being a 

 convincing proof of that bird's commercial im- 

 portance. The Turkey, a native of the woods of North 

 America, is another species of Game Bird that has been 



