S02 DOMESTIC GOOSE. Chap. VIU. 



persecuted by any enemies, the reduction of their wings had 

 probably been caused by gradual disuse. Hence, during the 

 earlier stages of the process of reduction, such birds would 

 probably have resembled our domesticated ducks in the state 

 of their organs of flight. This is the case with the water- 

 hen (Gallinula nesiotis) of Tristan d'Acunha, which " can 

 flutter a little, but obviously uses its legs, and not its wings, 

 as a mode of escape." Now Mr. Sclater^^ finds in this bird 

 that the wings, sternum, and coracoids are all reduced in 

 length, and the crest of the sternum in depth, in comparison 

 with the same bones in the European water-hen {G.chloropus). 

 On the other hand, the thigh-bones and pelvis are increased 

 in length, the former by four lines, relatively to the same 

 bones in the common water-hen. Hence in the skeleton oi 

 this natiiral species nearly the same changes have occurred, 

 only carried a little further, as with our domestic diicks, and 

 in this latter case I presume no one will dispute that they 

 have resulted from the lessened use of the wings and the in- 

 creased use of the legs. 



The Goose. 



This bird deserves some notice, as hardly any other anciently 

 domesticated bird or quadruped has varied so little. That 

 geese were anciently domesticated we know from certain 

 verses in Homer ; and from these birds having been kept 

 (388 B.C.) in the Capitol at Eome as sacred to Juno, which 

 sacredness implies great antiquity.^" That the goose has 

 varied in some degree, we may infer from naturalists not 

 being unanimous with respect to its wild parent-form ; 

 though the difficulty is chiefly due to the existence of three 

 or four closely allied wild European species.^^ A large 

 m!ijority of capable judges are convinced that our geese are 

 descended from the wild Grey-leg goose (J., ferus) ; the 



i» ' Proc. Zoolog. Soc.,' 18G1, p. Poultry,' by Rev. E. S. Dixon, 184-8, 



261. p. 132. The goose figured on the 



^° ' Ceylon,' by Sir J. E. Tennent, Egyptian monuments seems to have 



1859, vol. i. p. 485; also J. Crawf'urd been the K'ed goose of Egypt, 

 on the ' Relation of Domest. Animals '' Jlacgillivray's 'British Biril;. 



to Civilisation,' read before Brit. vol. iv. p. 593. 

 Assoc. 1860. See also 'Ornamental 



