Birds. ' 1329 



our own language exactly parallel? A day scarcely elapses without the sentiment jo- 

 cosely echoing in our ears, " that such and such a thing is just as likely to take place 

 as a pig to fly." Which at once expresses in familiar language the force of the above 

 quotations. In fact, the very essence of them may be simply put down thus. Such a 

 person would be " a bird so rare upon the earth, that you might just as well expect a 

 swan to become black," as a novelty of that sort to exist. And the second, in like 

 manner, may be expressed as follows : " A fortunate man (like Quintilian) is so un- 

 common, that you might as well expect a crow to become white," as for many to oc- 

 cur like him, unless born under the same stars. By which it will be seen, that, so far 

 from being known to the ancients, " Black Swans'' and " White Crows " were not only 

 considered impossible, but the very idea of them so ridiculous, that they were actually 

 selected as the absurdest examples of improbability for their comparisons to be opposed 

 to. And, furthermore, it is worth observing, that, whether in prose or verse, through- 

 out the whole series of Latin authors (when not speaking ironically) I can discover but 

 one epithet, referring to colour, applied to Cygnus (or, which is the same thing, — to 

 Olor) in addition to the constantly recurring ones of albus, niveus, &c, all of which 

 have the same meaniug, viz., " white." The one I refer to is purpureas. It is used 

 in Horace (Ode I. Carmen 10) : 



" Purpureis ales oloribus." 

 But it is evident that "purpureis " only means splendid, shining, or glittering, as in- 

 deed it does in numberless cases. Witness the two following : 



" Nivem purpuream," (Lactant. de Phoenice, 74), 

 which cannot mean the purple snow. And 



" Aera purpureum," (Claud. 29, 7) 

 which cannot possibly mean the purple air. The ancient poets used to call any strong 

 or vivid colour by the name of " purple " (without any reference to the actual hue), be- 

 cause that was their richest colour. Thus " purpureum mare," " purpurea? comae," 

 I purpureo capillo," — from whence also our own poet, Spenser, 



" The morrow next appeared with purple hair." 

 from which data, two deductions are apparent. First: that the old epithets of " niger " 

 and " purpureus," when applied to the swan, have no reference whatever to their ac- 

 tual colour (the owe being merely used ironically and the other figuratively). Secondly: 

 that no such thing as a black swan, to their knowledge, was in existence, (the expres- 

 sion being satirically used as the very acme of an improbability). If, therefore, Mr. 

 King, when in the name of the black swans of Australia, he stood forward so gallantly 

 and bore testimony to the accomplishments ascribed to them by the ancients ; if his 

 opinions of their notoriety in the golden or silver ages of Roman literature ; i.e. in the 

 ages of Horace or Juvenal, — alone rested on the epithets we have discussed ; let him 

 review the above observations, and, if he considers them correct, let him own himself 

 convinced. If he does not consider them correct, then let him retain his own opinions ; 

 let him assume that the Jirst epithet we have referred to was not used " ironically," and 

 that the second was not used *' figuratively : " but let him also take into account the 

 record of its discovery in 1698, which we have already mentioned, and he will find he 

 has two intolerable difficulties to surmount. First : the concurrence of commentators 

 in the passages to which we have referred. And secondly : the truth of a statement 

 which we have no warrant to suspect. I can, of course, anticipate his reply ; viz., that 

 although black swans were mentioned, his observation was equally true for white ones, 

 as both have much the 6ame habits, and therefore, if one is loquacious, e consequential 

 IV 5 A 



