Homer has a long bill, its head in front of the eye is large. 

 The bill of a common pigeon is short, its bill is more hooked 

 and is sharper pointed, its head is shorter and more rounding 

 on top. This is the kind of pigeon seen in the streets. They 

 are bred only for use by undertakers at funerals, or by trap- 

 shooters. They will live anj^where but a Homer has only 

 one home. They cannot find their way back to their usual 

 roosts if they wander away, but a Horner always flies straight 

 hoime. The common pigeons will alight on any buildings. 

 A Homer will alight only on its own squab house, and if 

 prevented from so doing will remain circling in the air over- 

 head for hours. Common pigeons will move from one neigh- 

 borhood to another and will foul different springs and wells, 

 becoming a nuisance in a country community. A Homer 

 drinks at its own home. A common pigeon has little intelli- 

 gence. A Homer has the largest brain and the most intelli- 

 gence of any variety of pigeons. Common pigeons are worth 

 about fifty cents a pair and are sold to the unsuspecting as 

 Homers. "See how large they are," the dealer will say. But 

 as we have said before, the size is one of feathers and not of 

 flesh, and the squabs are worth only ten to twenty cents a 

 pair, and cannot be sold in an intelligent market. It is use- 

 less to think of starting with common pigeons and improv- 

 ing them as you go along by mating them with Homers. 

 At every mating you take from the Homer side the desirable 

 quahties and add only undesirable qualities. It is like 

 trying to make champagne out of dishwater. You 

 can do something practical only when you have 



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