The African Oiol Pigeon. 213 



we have but little information regarding these birds, and can only judge 

 of them as they appear. How they originated or came to be located in 

 Tunis is a mystery. The great proportion of those brought to this country 

 are quite worthless in comparison with the select few in each shipment, 

 so that Mr. Baily told me that latterly it did not pay to import them, as, 

 when the one or two good ones had been picked out, the rest were unsale- 

 able. From the careless treatment they generally get on the voyage, as 

 well as from the fact that a great proportion of them arrive in their neat 

 feathers, canker and other diseases of the head and throat are very pre- 

 valent among those that come to this country, so that I have known only 

 some ten or fifteen per cent, of a lot survive the first month of their 

 residence here. They are very delicate pigeons, but when acclimatised 

 are fairly hardy and good breeders. I have bred them both here and in 

 India, where they do very well. 



In detailing the properties of the African or Tunisian owl, I may say 

 that the nearer all the frill-breasted gulleted pigeons approach its ideal 

 standard of conformation, the better they are. Some fanciers agree with 

 me, others do not. Under each variety I shall describe the various 

 differences of feather, size, &c., which constitute them separate breeds. 



Size. — The African owl is the smallest domestic pigeon known. A 

 good pair will weigh about a pound, and hens are sometimes found not 

 over seven ounces in weight. The smaller they are the more they are 

 valued, if good in the various properties which constitute the breed. 



Shape. — Short in neck, broad-chested, short in flights and tail, the legs 

 long enough to make the thighs visible in profile, the back rather hollow, 

 and the rump rather full. 



Carriage very erect, the head carried well up, and the chest full and 

 prominent. 



Head as round as possible, both from the nape to the beak wattle, and 

 from eye to eye. The prevailing fault in the head is more or less flatness 

 on the crown, and there is often a prominence at the back, which is 

 undesirable. The forehead very broad ; the cheeks full. 



Beah, short and thick ; the upper mandible as much as possible in the 

 same curve as the head, so that from the nape to the point of the beak a 

 half circle should be described. The under mandible should approach the 

 upper in consistency as much as possible, and fit closely to it, or, in the 

 language of pigeon fanciers, the beak should be " boxed." The only dif- 



