The English Carrier. 247 



The earliest description of the English carrier known to me is Wil- 

 Inghby's. He describes them as "of equal bigness with common pigeons 

 or somewhat less, of a dark blue or blackish colour; their eyes are com- 

 passed about with a broad circle of naked, tuberous, white, furfnraceous 

 skin, the upper chap of the bill is covered above half way from the head 

 with a double crust of the like fungous skin." The beak is described 

 as black in colour, and not short, but of a moderate length. " Of this 

 kind," he says, " we saw in the King's aviary in St. James's Park, and 

 at Mr. Cope's, an embroiderer, in Jewin-street, London." Prom the 

 repeated mention of him by Willughby, Mr. Cope aeema to have been a 

 very prominent fancier in London then; and King Charles II., in addition 

 to his fondness for the breed of spaniels which now bears his name, was 

 evidently a carrier fancier. " Charles was also extremely fond of saun- 

 tering in St. James's Park, where he would feed the birds, with which it 

 was well stocked, with his own hands, and on these occasions very much 

 preferred being attended by only one or two of his personal friends 

 rather than by a retinue." This may be found in the short account of 

 the King's personal history in Bohn's edition of Count Grammont's 

 " Memoirs of the Court of Charles II." 



It seems strange that among the many admirers of the carrier, no one 

 should have written a treatise on it, which might well have been done, 

 considering how much there is in connection with it worth writing about. 

 Some enthusiastic fancier may yet do as much for this pigeon as Windus 

 and Eaton have done for the almond tumbler. What might have become 

 a monograph on the English carrier was begun in a serial way in the 

 pages of " The Pigeon," by its editor, Mr. Thomas M. Denne, of London, 

 but was never completed, on account of the cessation of that journal 

 through the iU-health of Mr. Denne. 



The carrier takes three years and upwards to come to maturity. At 

 some of the principal exhibitions, classes are provided for birds bred 

 during the preceding season ; but, generally, the carrier classes are only 

 available for old birds. This pigeon looks particularly well during two 

 periods of its existence, viz., when under a year old, when its noble shape 

 and carriage are at their best, and then again when its head properties 

 are fully developed. A careful study of aU that our old books on pigeons 

 contain regarding it, proves that it has steadily advanced in excellence 

 since Moore's time. Like other varieties which take long to mature. 



