126 



wliltlsh spot on their outer web, which causes the wings to have two white bars, a 

 feature much prized on the Continent by amateurs, when introduced into the colouring 

 of any of the darker toys, and one of very rare occiu*rence in any English Pigeons ; 

 the whole of the lesser covert feathers of the wing shoulders, and the black or scapu- 

 lar feathers, have the white spots on both of the webs, which, when large, cause the 

 feathers to appear almost all whitish with gray down, a black shaft and a small trian- 

 gular bluish or slaty spot at the extremity, resembling ermine marks in heraldry, thus 

 at a little distance the general plumage of the bird seems of a soft creamy white, slightly 

 speckled with dark, but on closer inspection it is very beatifully and regulary marked 

 — the whitish over-colour on the lower part of the neck across the crop gives place to 

 a cresc«nt-shaped band of an orange-brown shade, the rump and hinder parts are slaty- 

 gray ; in the young birds these white markings are of brownish or brindled colour, 

 known to the Fancy as **kite" or "hawked," but this colour only remains so long as 

 they maintain their nest feathers, and they lose it with them and attain the creamy 

 white shade at their first moult. 



334. If these Pigeons are bred to a darker shade, either by crossing with a black 

 Pigeon or selecting the darkest for two or more generations, they present a very pretty 

 appearance, becoming almost black, with two white bars across the wings, and the 

 shoulders being spangled (not " mottled"), with white pearl-like spots. 



335. The Germans have also what they call a Eed Suab, or " Roth Schwaben," the 

 ground colour of which is a brown-red, but the whitish spangling is not so clear on 

 Sieir shoulders, having a very faint pinkish tint, and being slightly marbled with red ; 

 the few I have seen of this variety had white upper mandibles, and also the crown of 

 the head white, and a black iris. 



336. The French have several sub-varieties, more or less spangled, some on a black 

 ground, others on a clear blue, which are very pretty ; some of them are spangled with 

 buff, fawn, or red-brown, instead of the creamy white ; some of the French birds 

 are much larger than the German, and seem as if they had been crossed with other 

 large birds. Tiiese varieties are all, as yet, but little known in England ; I believe 

 I was the first to bring the true Suabian Pigeon into this country from Germany, 

 in the year 1843. 



THE PEIEST. 



337. The Priest, or '' Die Pfaf-feu Taube" of the Germans, is a variety of the toys 

 but little known in England, but a few may be met with among the collections of the 

 cm-ious amateurs, though in some parts of Germany they are very plentiful. These 

 Pigeons are a little larger than the common Dovehouse Pigeon, which they much re- 

 semble in build ; they are equally quick ajud active, and field well ; they have broad 

 turned crowns, and their feet are generally somewhat feathered ; their colour is various, 

 their chief property is their white head, the upper mandible is flesh coloured, and the 

 white of the scalp reaches down in a line from the corners of the mouth across the eyes, 

 while the under mandible, the hood, and the whole of the remaining plumage should 

 be dark, except in the few that are spangled on the wings. The irides are gravel- 

 coloured, but often appear half dark and half-light. They derive their name from their 

 white head bearing some resemblance to the tonsure of a Romish priest. 



338. Herr Gottlob Neumeister enumerates five sub- varieties as follow: — 



339. 1st. — The Black Priest Pigeon ; both with and without the white wing bars, 

 and occasionally with the spangled shoulders of the Suabian Pigeon cross. 



340. 2nd. — The Blue Priest Pigeon, with either black or white wing bars ; also occa- 

 sionally spangled Uke the foregoing. 



341. 3rd. — The Brown-red Priest Pigeon ; these rarely have the white wing bars, 

 but when they do, the flight and tail are usually strawberry coloured. The chief point 

 is to have them of an uniform dark brown red. 



342. 4th. — The Yellow Priest Pigeon ; has markings similar to the red, and are equally 

 rare with white wing bars. 



343. 5th. — The Stock Dove, or Wild Blue Priest Pigeon ; their colour is a light or 

 mealy blue, with the white head, like all the others, but without any other mark whatever. 



