202 CLASS AVES. 



upon the ground, and the bird of prey in the cloud, whose 

 approach she dreads, not for herself, but for them, and 

 announces by a plaintive cry, which warns them to take 

 tefuge under her wings. 



Continually occupied with their welfare, she excites them 

 to follow her and to eat. She comminutes their food ; she 

 scrapes the earth in search of worms, which she abandons to 

 them ; she stops from time to time, crouches down, and, 

 forming a cradle with her wings, invites her tender nurse- 

 lings to assemble underneath them for shelter and for 

 warmth. 



She continues to lavish these cares upon them until they 

 are no longer needed, which happens when the chickens are 

 covered with all their plumes, and have attained about one 

 half of their specific size. 



Man, who is perpetually interfering with and perverting 

 nature, either for the gratification of his appetites, the fur- 

 therance of his interest, or through mere caprice, has 

 bethought himself of mutilating this fine bird, the cock, and 

 producing what are called capons. These preserve their 

 flesh as white, delicate, and tender as it was in their early 

 age ; and, no longer excited by the stimuli of desire or of 

 resentment, they acquire in a state of absolute indifi*erence a 

 perfect degree of obesity. 



This practice of making capons is very ancient. It was 

 prevalent in old times in Judea and at Rome. It is singular 

 enough that it should be utterly discountenanced in Egypt, 

 as well as a similar mutilation of any other animal. This 

 perhaps is a remnant of the ancient superstition of the 

 ■country. It would be well if the modern Egyptians were 

 equally scrupulous respecting the integrity of their own 

 species. 



Columella says, that capons can be made by cutting off the 



