178 THE PHEASANT-MALAY FOWL. 



and undismayed by curious inspectors, and with evidently an 

 appetite for breakfast. The Pullet was certainly a great 

 beauty ; and I was pleased to find them of the same type as 

 the " Pheasant Breed" with which I had been previously 

 acquainted. Their richness of colour, and increase of size, 

 being the result of skilful selection and feeding for several 

 generations. The colour of the legs being quite white, did not 

 agree with the Norfolk specimens, but the several varieties of 

 Game Fowl exhibit much greater differences among each other. 

 However, I now quite believe that the Norfolk specimens I 

 had seen, had a dash of the blood of that variety of Ham- 

 burgh Fowls known as Copper Moss. This comparison of 

 individuals, bred more than three hundred miles apart, 

 establishes the existence of the Pheasant-Malays as a perma- 

 nent variety of Fowls. The only discrepancy, which is more 

 apparent than real, lies in the varying size of the Eggs; 

 but I have seen so many changes in that respect in the same 

 Hen, under altered circumstances, as to attach no importance 

 to variation of size, unless shape and colour were also found 

 to be diiferent. 



The Cocks display considerable courage; the Hens are 

 jealously affectionate towards their Chicks, bustling, and petu- 

 lant, thus exhibiting in disposition an affinity to the Game 

 breed. 



Mr. Whitaker adds : " My male birds have a very peculiar 

 feathering on the neck the neck feathers being very long 

 and full, dark-red, and black at the tips, but the under part 

 of a downy white. The consequence is an appearance of 

 mixed dark-red and white about the neck, which is the more 

 peculiar from its being so particularly at variance with the 

 glossy black neck-feathering of the female. The feathering 

 of the back and wings is rather scanty, and the tail is not very 

 full. The bird has a good, erect carriage. 



" The Chickens hatched in June always succeed better than 



