412 THE DOMESTIC GOOSE. 



The Domestic Gander is polygamous, but he is not an in- 

 discriminate libertine : he will rarely couple with females of 

 any other species. Hybrid common Geese are almost always 

 produced by the union of a Wild Gander with a Domestic 

 Goose, not vice versd. 



Of the Domestic Goose there really is but one variety, indi- 

 viduals of which are found varying from entirely white plumage, 

 through different degrees of patchedness with gray, to entirely 

 gray colouring, except on the abdomen. The Ganders are 

 generally, not invariably, white. -Such are sometimes called 

 Einbden Geese, from a town of Hanover, famous also for 

 groats. Fine white Geese may doubtless be hatched at 

 Embden, as well as in Middlesex, and, if actually imported, 

 may claim the name of -their native place, but cannot on that 

 account be allowed to form themselves into a separate clan. 

 High feeding, care, and moderate warmth, will induce a habit 

 of prolificacy, which becomes in some measure hereditary. 

 The season of the year at which the young are hatched (and 

 in England they may be reared at any season) influences their 

 future size and development. After allowing for these causes 

 of diversity, it will be found that the Domestic Goose consti- 

 tutes only one species or permanent variety. 



Mr. Bagshaw, of Norwich, annually fats several thousand 

 Geese for the London market. He has sometimes as many 

 as two thousand Geese at once on his extensive premises. 

 The birds are collected from all parts, wherever, in short, they 

 can be most advantageously obtained. Some are English, more 

 are from Holland, but the greater part are procured from 

 Prussia. Having been obligingly permitted to inspect this 

 vast assemblage, I could find nothing that had the least claim 

 to be called a variety, though they came from so many dif- 

 ferent quarters. The nearest approach to it was that some 

 had bills of a dull.black, others had the nail of the bill black, 

 others again had it white, but there was nothing either in 



