129 EAST INDIAN VARIETIES. 



feathered, smooth-headed, bare-legged, boldly upstanding, 

 rather long-faced pigeon, not unlike the cross between a 

 Dragoon and Tumbler. It is invariably pied in colour, the 

 head and neck, as far as in Triganica, or Nun Pigeons, 

 being usually coloured. The rest of the plumage is white, 

 on which irregular patches of colour, differing in different 

 individuals, may be found. It is difficult to find any two birds 

 exactly alike in marking. The four large flocks are of four 

 colours, one being black pied, and the others red, yellow, 

 and blue pied. The houses these flocks are kept in were 

 formerly dwelling houses, in the upper rooms of which I 

 was told the pigeons were bred. The keeper of each flight 

 has a long bamboo, to which is attached a small flag, and 

 a jar of seed, something like millet in appearance. He 

 must also be an adept in uttering a shrill whistle, 

 produced by placing his first and second fingers between his 

 lips. It will, therefore, be seen that the modus operandi of 

 directing the pigeons is exactly the same as that in use in 

 Modena. The flight I observed first was composed of blue 

 pieds, whose keeper drove them out of the lower hall of 

 the house in which they were with his bamboo. They all 

 settled on a large rack, such as is fitted up in greenhouses 

 for placing the pots on, which stood in front of the house. 

 He then gave his shrill whistle, waved his flag, and the 

 whole flock rose into the air. The other flights were up at 

 the same time, and it was a fine sight to see them inter- 

 mingling, separating, and wheeling round in their flight, the 

 dense masses casting shadows on the ground like passing 

 clouds, and the whizzing of their many wings being pleasant 

 to hear. After they had flown for some time, I asked the 

 keeper to bring them down, and I could then see how quick 

 they were, for, the moment he dropped his flag, and put his 

 hand into the seed jar, they stopped in their flight, hung 

 in the air for a moment, and then came down to the 

 ground at my feet with a rush. The keeper went in amongst 



N 



