148 HISTORY OF 



It is far beyond the power of the pencil to draw 

 any thing so glossy, so bright, or points so finely 

 blending into each other. We are told that when 

 Crcesus,, king of Lydia, was seated on his throne, 

 adorned with royal magnificence, and all the bar- 

 barous pomp of eastern splendour, he asked 

 Solon if he had ever beheld any thing so fine ? 

 The Greek philosopher, na way moved by the 

 objects before him, or taking a pride in his native 

 simplicity, replied, that after having seen the 

 beautiful plumage of the pheasant, lie could be 

 astonished at no other finery. 



In fact, nothing can satisfy the eye with a 

 greater variety and richness of ornament than 

 this beautiful creature. The iris of the eye is 

 yellow ; and the eyes themselves are surrounded 

 with a scarlet colour, sprinkled with small specks 

 of black. On the fore-part of the head there are 

 blackish feathers mixed with' a shining purple. 

 The top of the head and the upper part of the 

 neck are tinged with a darkish green that shines 

 like silk. In some, the top of the head is of a 

 shining blue, and the head itself, as well as the 

 upper part of the neck, appears sometimes blue 

 and sometimes green, as it is differently placed to 

 the eye of the spectator. The feathers of the 

 breast, the shoulders-, the middle of the back,, and 

 the sides under the wings, have a blackish 

 ground, with edges tinged of an exquisite colour, 

 which appears sometimes black and sometimes 

 purple, according to the different lights it is plac- 

 ed in ; under the purple there is a transverse 

 streak of gold colour. The tail, from the middle 



