288 THE COLLARED TURTLE. 



is golden yellow ; the shanks are red ; the upper part of the 

 body is reddish white, the under part is pure white ; the back 

 of the neck is adorned with a black crescent, the points of 

 which turn forward, and the lower part is edged with white ; 

 the shafts of the quill and tail feathers are dusky. 

 The female is whiter than the male. 



HABITATION This species is a native of India and China, from which 



it has been brought to Europe. It is very common among our peasants, 

 who fancy it has the power of curing their colds and rheumatisms *. They 

 assign these poor birds some grated place near the stove, sometimes under 

 a bench ; if they are allowed to range, their wings must be clipped, to 

 prevent their flying against the windows, and breaking them. They will 

 generally run under the stove, as they are fond of warmth. They may be 

 accustomed to the dovecot, but their showy plumage often occasions them 

 to fall a prey to carnivorous birds. It is also necessary either to warm the 

 dovecot, or remove them to a heated room during the winter. 



FOOD They prefer wheat, and this should be their common food ; they 



will also eat millet, linseed, poppy, and rape-seed, and even bread. The 

 peasants give them the siftings of their corn. 



BREEDING. A piece of fur, or soft stuff, or still better, a little basket, 

 serves as the foundation for their nests. To this they merely add a little 

 straw, on which they lay two white eggs. They sit on these a fortnight, 

 but rarely hatch more than one, either from the egg being unfruitful, or 

 from the carelessness of the parent birds. It is therefore rare to see them 

 rear six young ones in the year. These resemble the old ones, and the 

 sex is known by the absence or presence of the reddish colour. 



DISEASES Besides decline, they are subject to all the diseases that 



attack the persons shut up in the same room ; small-pox, when the children 

 have it ; swollen legs, when any one is attacked with this complaint ; and 

 tumours in the feet, when these are prevalent. Thus we see they partake 

 of the diseases of their masters, but without curing them, which is contrary 

 to the ridiculous persuasion of the ignorant peasant. Yet with all these 

 evils they will live seven years. 



ATTRACTIVE QUALITIES. These birds are very neat and gentle. Their 

 cooing resembles laughter ; but, besides this, the male has other tones still 

 more tender, to invite his mate to come to the nest, and he passes the 

 night close to her side. When he coos he does not turn like the domestic 

 pigeon, but hops forward a little, then stops, bends his head to the ground, 

 and swells his crop. 



* An erroneous opinion, which displays more egotism than humanity; yet do 

 people generally act with more equity and disinterestedness ? 



