THE DOMESTIC FOWL. 61 



of fowls, in a similar way in which that of Angora is 

 said to soften and lengthen the hair of various animals, 

 from the fur of cats and goats, to the hair and beard of 

 men ; and whether, poultry being unknown to the Teu- 

 tonic tribes before their conquest by the Romans, the 

 growth of a topknot or a muff be the result of an intro- 

 duction to trans-alpine influences, is a speculation which 

 we have no present means of pursuing. 



There is no evidence that any breed of fowls with 

 topknots was known to the ancients; but we first meet 

 with them in the middle ages. Aldrovandi, quoted by 

 Willoughby, in his " Ornithology" gives us many kinds, 

 or rather rarities, of hens, among which was one white 

 and " copped," but this is believed to be the lark-crested 

 barn-door fowl of the present day. Aldrovandi also 

 gives two large spirited figures, each occupying the 

 whole of his folio page, which he calls the Paduan fowls, 

 but in which we recognize what would now be called 

 Polands. His description reads as follows : — 



" There exist cocks for the most part larger than our 

 own, which the common people call Paduan, even as 

 such hensare larger than our own hens. We exhibit 

 the likeness of the male and the female. The male was 

 most beautiful to behold highly decorated with five 

 colors, namely, black, white, green, red, and ochre. For 

 the whole body was black. The neck was covered with 

 very white feathers. But the wings and the back con- 

 sisted partly of black, and partly of green. Tho tail 

 likewise was of the same color, but the roots of the 

 feathers were whitish. Some of the quill feathers, 

 (remigibus,) were white above. Its head was adorned 

 with a very haudsome crest ; but the roots of the crest 

 were white. A red spot encircled the eyes. The comb 

 was very small; the bill and feet yellowish. But in the 

 whole hen, there was not the least white, except that 

 white skin, which is usual about the openings of the ears, 

 but she was altogether black, shining with green. The 

 feet were light-yellow ; the comb very small, and scarcely 

 of a red color." 



A difficulty about such varieties recorded so long ago 



