inEOKIES.] 



POULTEY. 



[destuovixq biuds. 



of opposition as was made to geological truths 

 Bomo years ai»o. AVero an observant ami ro- 

 ileotinc; naturalist, driven by pressure and per- 

 secution, to make such a recantation, it would 

 be of as little value to his opponents, as a 

 triumph, as Galileo's denial of his deliberate 

 statement that the earth moved; and niij^ht, 

 like his, be (]uielly followed by the private as- 

 fertiou that the earth did niovo nevertheless. 

 But suppose that, to avoid the charge of insin- 

 cerity and cowardice, our speculator were to 

 seize the dilemma by one of its horns, and 

 render himself liable to be suspected of be- 

 lieving the native Australian man to be a dis- 

 tinct and peculiar species ; other naturalists, 

 of deservedly high reputation, have previously 

 entertained t!ie same suspicion, and declared 

 their doubts whether the negro and tiie Euro- 

 pean have proceeded from the same origin. It 

 is impossible to say that much has yet been 

 done in the way of taming and incorporating 

 into civilised Anglo-Saxon society any one 

 tribe of Australian natives. They still remain, 

 as yet, both physically and morally undomesti- 

 cated. AVhat are the prospects of the abo- 

 rigines of Tasmania? Even tlie more domes- 

 ticated iXew Zealanders diminish in num- 

 bers, while they are trying to fall in with 

 the ways of civilised life. Their constitution 

 cannot stand it. Keither has the Red Indian 

 proved a rcclaimable animal. Captain Fitzroy's 

 well-meant experiment wltli the boy and girl 

 from Terra del Euego cannot be called a suc- 

 cessful one. Darwin's description of the loild 

 men he saw there, in his voyage in the 

 Beagle, impresses most readers with the 

 idea of beholding a totally distinct species of 

 human creature. 



" Some people are bold enough to aver, that 

 the more they consider, the more they are con- 

 vinced that the solution thus given of the 

 mystery about the derivation, or rather non- 

 derivation of many domesticated from wild 

 creatures, is correct ; and they also feel equally 

 assured that there are certain races of men, 

 whom to concentrate and domesticate, is to 

 destroy. Immense sums, and great pains have 

 been extended on the education of children of 

 the Australian aborigines. Tliey are found 

 docile ; they learn to read and write, even 

 more quickly than white children ; but, as 

 they attain the age of puberty, they either die, 



or tako to the woods. A geutlcinau in Aus- 

 tralia had two orphans, whom he saved amidst 

 the slaughttr of a hohtilu tribe. They were 

 faithful even to death; one was killed at hia 

 side — but nothing could prevent them Iroui 

 periodically associating with their black brotliers 

 and sisters. The Kew Zealanders, on the 

 other hand, are perfectly capable of civilisa- 

 tion ; but, in spito of that, their numbers de- 

 crease." 



Tiio possibility that our domestic fowls are, 

 jierhaps, rather a chanco possession than other- 

 wise, is strengthened by the acknowledged 

 fact that animals, in a state of nature, and un- 

 protected, are liable to extermination, nut only 

 in consequence of the assaults of man, but 

 from the persecutions of other species, often 

 those most nearly allied to their own. A lew 

 years ago there was a violent onslaught made 

 upon the hawk tribe, in consequence of their 

 imagined propensity to destroy game. In 

 some of the sporting journals and periodicals, 

 letters appeared upon the subject ; some fear- 

 ing that the whole race of the Falconidcc 

 would fall victims to the cruel prejudice 

 which had risen against them ; whilst others 

 rejoiced in the destruction of these beauti- 

 ful birds. One of the latter says — "Tour 

 description of the hen-harrier is excellent, 

 &c. You will, I have no doubt, remember 

 how plentiful hen-harriers and other hawks 

 were here, when wc took the gi-ouud; you 

 will therefore scarcely credit it, when I tell 

 you that I have not seen a hen-harrier for 

 the last two years ; I have exterminated them 

 by trapping them at the remains of what they 

 killed themselves. In five years we have killed 

 upwards of 900 head of vermin ; and the result 

 is, that we have now live head of game for 

 every one we had on our taking the moors. Wo 

 have had two merlins' nests here every year 

 since I have been here. They build in the long 

 heather, similarly to the hen-harrier; I have 

 known them carry grouse poults to their young 

 heavier than themselves. The sparrow-hawk 

 builds in trees, and is very destructive to 

 grouse in the months of April and j\lay ; sho 

 kills principally the hen birds, these being, at 

 this season of the year, very slow and heavy in 

 their flight, and consequently fall a very easy 

 prey ; I have tra[)ped hundreds of hen sparrow- 

 hawks at grouse and partridges which they had 



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