THE DOMESTIC FOWL. 57 



well as the proportions of the bird are different. Aldro- 

 vandi perceived the distinction. He calls the one " our 

 farmyard hen, known to everybody, entirely white and 

 crested like a lark ;" the other is his Paduan fowl. The 

 first, of whatever color, is of a peculiar taper form, in- 

 clining forwards, as Aldrovandi's old-fashioned wood- 

 cut well represents, with a moderate, depressed, back- 

 ward-directed crest, and deficient in the neatness of the 

 legs and feet so conspicuous in the Polands ; the latter 

 are of more upright carriage and a more squarely-built 

 frame. Set the two side by side, and their discrepancy 

 will be apparent. 



Lark-crested fowls are of various colors ; pure snow- 

 white, brown with yellow hackles, and black. How far 

 these sorts require to be subdivided, has not yet been 

 investigated. The first of these are perhaps of a more 

 brilliant white than is seen in any other domesticated 

 gallinaceous bird, and the color is much more dazzling 

 than that of the white Guinea fowl, or the white pea 

 fowl. This white variety is in great esteem with many 

 farmers' wives, in England, who will keep it to the en- 

 tire exclusion of any other sort. They are represented 

 to have a remarkably neat and lively appearance when 

 rambling about a homestead, and look very clean and 

 attractive when dressed for market.. An old bird, 

 cleverly trussed, will be apparently as delicate and 

 transparent in the skin and flesh as an ordinary chicken. 

 The feathers- are also more saleable than those from 

 darker-colored fowls. By some, this breed is thought to 

 be more tender than other kinds, yet they are con- 

 sidered, on every account, preferable to the white Dork- 

 ings. 



In the cocks, a single upright comb sometimes almost 

 entirely takes the place of the crest. The hens, too, 

 vary in their degree of crestedness, some not having 

 above half a dozen feathers in their head dress. If they 

 were not of average merit as to their laying and sitting 

 qualifications, they Would not retain the favor they do 

 with the thrifty housewives by whom they are chiefly 

 reared. 



3* 



