12fi 



others very peculiar ; advantage having been taken of very singularly and regularly 

 marked birds, and, after careful breeding and selecting for a few generations, the 

 variety has become fixed ; but, should they, from careless breeding, lose their regularity 

 of marking, they at once lose all caste, and figure as nothing better than a common 

 mixture or mongrel. On the other hand, should a fancy Pigeon lose its peculiar mark- 

 ing or colour, it would nevertheless remain a fancy Pigeon. Thus, for instance, a 

 Pouter, Tumbler, Fantail, or any other, might be bred to any variety of marking or to 

 a whole colour, and yet remain a true Pouter, Tumbler, or what not ; but suppose a 

 Nun, Spot, or any other toy, to lose any of its peculiar marks, it would become 

 worthless, or no better than any other common bird to be found among our country 

 Dovecots. 



330. Many of our fancy Pigeons seem to have had local origins, or to have been 

 brought from distant countries, which I consider another point in favour of the dis- 

 tinctness of the breeds, in opposition to the generally received opinion that all our tame 

 Pigeons are descended from the wild Blue Rock. The Carrier, for instance, is said to 

 come originally from Persia. Barbs are said to be found in a wild state in Barbary, 

 Trumpeters to come from Egypt, Laughers from the Holy Land, Jacobins from 

 Cyprus, and Fantails firom the Phillippine Isles ; and though all fancy Pigeons have 

 not localities assigned to them, yet it is not very difficult to believe that each had a 

 different origin ; for I think no Fancier will pretend to say he could produce a Pouter, 

 Fantail, or any other of those Pigeons which I have already named, from the Stock 

 Dove, Blue Rock, or Dovehouse Pigeon. Nor do I believe it possible, with the assist- 

 ance of all the others, any given one could be produced ; but I think that almost any 

 of the toys, at least such as I am about to describe under that name, might, by 

 careful breeding, be produced from the Dovehouse Pigeon by crossing with other varie- 

 ties. Thus it will appear that the toys are necessarily very numerous, and ever liable 

 to have their number increased ; and as most civilised countries have several varieties 

 of this class, it is impossible for me to enumerate them all ; but as I am acquainted 

 with many varieties, I shall proceed to describe them ; and though I should have pre- 

 ferred commencing with the two or three best know^n in England, yet, as the beautiful 

 spangled feathering of the Suabian Pigeon has been introduced by the Continental 

 amateurs into most of the varieties of toys, it will perhaps be most proper to describe 

 that first ; then taking the Nun, the Priest, and the Monk ; for though I did not 

 hesitate to separate the Nun from the Jacobin, my system does not make it neces- 

 sary for me to deprive her of every father confessor. 



TOY PIGEONS. 

 THE SCHWAB, OK SUABIAN SPANGLED PIGEON. 



331. The Suabian Spangled Pigeons, or as they are called in Germany "Schwaben 

 Tauben," are I consider, the prettiest variety of toys. They are doubtless the origin 

 of all those pretty spangled toys occasionally seen in England and known by various 

 names, as Porcelains, Hyacinths, Ermines, &c. 



332. The Suabian Pigeons are about the size of Nuns in shape and make, and 

 much resemble the Dovehouse Pigeon in their manners, have generally a turned crown, 

 gravel eye, and clean feet. They are rather shy. sharp flyers, and easily learn to 

 find their food in the fields, as indeed is the case with nearly all the varieties of toys, un- 

 less incapacitated for walking on the ploughed land by the long feathers on the feet, 

 which a few of them have, with which exception it may be taken as a rule that all the 

 Pigeons to be described in this section are good "fielders," or caterers — and conse- 

 quently well adapted for country amateurs — while the fancy Pigeons generally require 

 to be house-fed, and therefore belong more particulary to the town Fanciers. 



333. The chief, if not the only property of the Suabian Pigeon consists in its beau- 

 tiful spangled plumage, the ground colour of which resembles that of a dark chequered 

 Dovecot Pigeon ; the feathers on the head and neck are tipped with cream colour, or 

 a soft whitish stone colour ; the tail is a dark slaty colour barred with black near the 

 extremity ; the flight feathers are of the same hue, but they have a small whitish spot 

 at the extremity of each, hke the white spots on the pinion of a Goldfinch ; the second- 

 ary wing feathers, as also the primary covert feathers of the same, have a large 



