USEFUL BREEDS BOOKS. 141 



quitting the nest, through the rough hands of scores 

 of unfeeling blackguards ; its feathers pulled, its 

 wings braced^ starved, and forced to fly against its 

 inclination, matched, then unmatched, and its dearest 

 ties broken ; sold, re-sold, exposed in cages, im- 

 mured in cellars, coal-holes, and loaded with every 

 misery which can be inflicted by the wanton caprice, 

 neglect, and beastly ignorance, of the two-legged 

 race, its tyrants." British Field Sports. 



It is necessary to apprize the reader, that I have 

 never had the honour to be initiated in the pigeon 

 fancy, but have been simply a keeper of pigeons, 

 for the use of the table, with some additional plea- 

 sure in their flight, and a degree of attention to 

 those breeds which are of the largest size. On the 

 subject of the fancy, the best authority with which 

 I am acquainted, is a Treatise on Domestic Pigeons, 

 published by Barry, of Fenchurch-street, in 1765, 

 with very good plates, descriptive of the chief fancy 

 varieties. That treatise has been succeeded by 

 Moor's Columbarium. The only breeds which I 

 have kept, exclusive of the common, were TUMBLERS, 



HORSEMEN, CARRIERS, TURTLES, DRAGOONS, (com- 



monly called DRAGONS,) and RUNTS ; the latter, both 

 Spanish and Leghorn, for their great size. As 

 breeders, no fancy pigeons will, in general, equal 

 the common dove-house kind, unless, perhaps, with 

 great care and attention. 



The PIGEON is monoganous, that is, the male at- 

 taches and confines himself to one female, and the 

 attachment is reciprocal ; the fidelity of the dove to 

 its mate being proverbial. Young pigeons are 

 termed SQUEAKERS, and begin to breed at about the 



