CHAPTER LXXIII. 



FOREIGN WATTLED PIGEONS. 



Thebe are various kinds of beak and eye-wattled pigeons described by 

 continental writers, all of which are called Bagdads or Turks, which serves 

 to show they are considered to be of Eastern origin. Such as seem of 

 distinct breed from our carriers, though undoubtedly belonging to the 

 same family, are described as follows by Boitard and Corbie, whose work 

 on pigeons, it must be remembered, was published in Paris in 1824, 

 Whether or not the varieties mentioned are still in existence is more than 

 I can say. 



" Pigfeon Bagadais d Grande Morille (Great Wattled or Mushroomed 

 Bagdad). — A mushroom, or large ileshy excrescence on the beak ; large 

 ribbon round the eyes, forming when the bird is old a second eyehd, fleshy 

 and reddish, which falls over the eyes and prevents it from seeing. These 

 ribbons (eye-wattleg) are sometimes so large that they join at the top of 

 the head ; beak curved and crooked ; eye black. This bird is thick, high 

 on the legs, large, and short in the body, the neck fine and long, wings 

 short, legs bare. Its backmost part is always of an inflamed red. 

 There are several sub-varieties with plumage black, red, black and white, 

 dun, &o. They all produce little and with difficulty ; they have also 

 become very rare, and are scarcely preserved, except as a curiosity." 



"Pigeon Bagadais Batave. — Some authors call it grand Batavian, 

 because the first of them were brought from Batavia ; they think also 

 that it, and not the blue rock pigeon, ought to be regarded as the primi- 

 tive stock of the Bagdads. Larger than the great mushroomed Bagdad, 

 though with less beak and eye wattle ; pearled eyes ; very long beak, 

 attaining up to dix-huit lignes de longeur ; n&ok extremely long; body 

 large, short, and very high on the legs ; feet and legs of the colour of 

 blood, often long enough to get a good finger length beyond the tail when 



