1S62.] LETTER FROM DR. LAMPREY. 221 



Eagle, which is the form generally given to the representation of it 

 in heraldry, &c., and current among westerns of the present day. It 

 may yet be discovered, by some explorer of the extensive mountain- 

 ranges adjacent on all sides to the north of China, that there is a 

 bird in plumage and general character resembling the Fung ; perhaps 

 it may be a hybrid between two of the Pheasant tribe. 



" I have seen, in all, four distinct kinds of Pheasants in the markets 

 of Tien Tsin : the uninterrupted cold of winter allows of their being 

 brought in large quantities from remote places, and preserves them 

 fit for use till the spring. Of one of these Pheasants I sent a specimen 

 last year to Mr. Swinhoe, Consul of Formosa, and one of your corre- 

 sponding members, which he describes as being * a kind of Crosso- 

 ptilon, perhaps the female of the C. tibetanumJ' The bird had all the 

 appearance of a male, in having spurs, though it was impossible to 

 ascertain its sex, as it had been previously gutted. No doubt this 

 bird will be brought to your notice by this zealous naturalist on his 

 arrival in England. During the last winter, I procured another fine 

 specimen of this bird ; but after preparing the skin, a young dog un- 

 fortunately got at it and tore it up. Its plumage was the same as 

 that of the previous specimen. The meat of this kind of Pheasant 

 is exceedingly delicate, and the body is nearly as bulky as that of a 

 small-sized Turkey. 



" Another kind of Pheasant found in the Tien Tsin market bears 

 out the description of the JEuplocamus pucrasia of the 'Naturalist's 

 Library,' so common on the hills in India. Although the preserved 

 skins of this bird are in too bad a condition for mounting, they 

 may serve to identify the species. They remained too long in a 

 frozen state to admit of their being preserved properly. 



" In the event of the P. superbus not reaching home alive, I have 

 by me good skins of the male and female, though the tail-feathers do 

 not show their full length. The fact is that the longest feathers are 

 removed before exposing the bird for sale, and appropriated for de- 

 corating the dress of warrior-chiefs in theatrical representations. 



" The common Ring-necked Pheasant (P. torquatus) constitutes 

 the fourth and most abundant kind found in the markets. The num- 

 bers of these birds that are sold every winter is wonderful. It was 

 noticed that in birds apparently of the same age there was frequently 

 a great disparity of size, almost giving one the idea of two species, 

 though it is not improbable that this diflFerence may be attributed to 

 the different circumstances of food and locality. 



" The Partridges found in the market at Tien Tsin are not unlike 

 the English (Perdix cinered), except that the marking on the breast 

 of the Chinese bird is darker. They were abundant last winter. I 

 am also assured that the Red-legged Partridge was shot in the hills 

 north of Pekin, though this bird did not make its appearance in the 

 market at Tien Tsin. 



" Quails are very common ; they are sold mostly alive, and trained 

 for fighting, as in India. There is a second kind, which might be 

 designated the Bush Quail, — a solitary bird smaller than the other, 

 and speckled." 



