544 THE DESCENT OF MAN 



voices, and perform strange antics in the presence of the 

 females. Even well-armed males, who, it might be thought, 

 would altogether depend for success on the law of battle, are 

 in most cases highly ornamented ; and their ornaments have 

 been acquired at the expense of some loss of power. In other 

 cases ornaments have been acquired at the cost of increased 

 risk from birds and beasts of prey. With rarious species 

 many individuals of both sexes congregate at the same 

 spot, and their courtship is a prolonged affair. There is 

 even reason to suspect that the males and females within 

 the same district do not always succeed in pleasing each 

 other and pairing. 



What, then, are we to conclude from these facts and 

 considerations ? Does the male parade his charms with so 

 much pomp and rivalry for no purpose ? Are we not justi- 

 fied in believing that the female exerts a choice, and that 

 she redeives the addresses of the male who pleases her most ? 

 It is not probable that she consciously deliberates; but she 

 is most excited or attracted by the most beautiful, or melo- 

 dious, or gallant males. Nor need it be supposed that the 

 female studies each stripe or spot of color; that the peahen, 

 for instance, admires each detail in the gorgeous train of the 

 peacock — she is probably struck only by the general effect. 

 Nevertheless, after hearing how carefully the male Argus 

 pheasant displays his elegant primary wing-feathers, and 

 erects his ocellated plumes in the right position for their 

 full effect; or again, how the male goldfinch alternately 

 displays his gold-bespangled wings, we ought not to feel 

 too sure that the female does not attend to each detail of 

 beauty. We can judge, as already remarked, of choice 

 being exerted, only from analogy; and the mental powers 

 of birds do not differ fundamentally from ours. Prom these 

 various considerations we may conclude that the pairing of 

 birds is not left to chance; but that those males which are 

 best able by their various charms to please or excite the 

 female, are under ordinary circumstances accepted. If this 

 be admitted, there is not much difficulty in understanding 



