FLORENTINES — SWALLOWS. 



205 



and cany the tail nearly npright and the- neck far back, so as 

 almost to touch. The flights are also short and carried higli, 

 nearly meeting just under the tail. It will be readily seen, 

 from this description, as also from the engraving, that the 

 pigeon has a most ridiculous resemblance to a Bantam fowL 

 They are found botli 

 as whole-colowrs and 

 mottles. Mr. Ludlow 

 considers the breed 

 related to the Leg- 

 horn Runt, and on 

 comparing the figure 

 with that of the latter 

 bird, as given by 

 Eaton (see p. 193), 

 this wiU appear not 

 improbable. 



Swallows are very 

 pretty and striking 

 birds, and sometimes 

 (though rarely) get a 

 class to themselves. 

 Tlie beak is rather 

 long and thin, neck 

 shortish, legs muffed 

 fl,nd generally rather vultured, and the head adorned with 

 a well-defined shell-crest. The colour is as follows : — Head 

 coloured, clean cut through the mouth and eye, and reaching 

 to the base of the crest, which, with all the rest of the head 

 and neck, is white. The entire wing is also coloured, leaving 

 the tail, wing-coverts, and all the rest of the bird white, 

 except the s/tajiWeather, the thighs beiug white. Swallows 

 are bred in all the usual colours, but blues are found of 

 a pure self -wing as well as black - barred. The chief 



Flobehtibe, or Bubmese. 



