THE ORIGIN OF THE VARIETIES OF PIGEONS. 35 



speaking broadly, I may say that this is the way in which all our varied races of 

 domestic animals have arisen ; and you must understand that it is not one pecu- 

 liarity or one characteristic alone in which animals may vary. There is not a 

 single peculiarity or characteristic of any kind, bodily or mental, in which offspring 

 may not vary to a certain extent from the parent and other animals. 



" A striking case of what may be done by selective breeding has been studied 

 very carefully by Mr. Darwin, — the case of the domestic pigeons. I daresay 

 there may be some, among you who may be pigeon fanciers, and I wish you to 

 understand that in approaching the subject, I would speak with all humility and 

 hesitation, as I regret to say that I am not a pigeon fancier. I know it is a great 

 art and mystery, and a thing upon which a man must not speak lightly ; but I 

 shall endeavour, as far as my understanding goes, to give you a summary of the 

 published and unpublished information which I have gained from Mr. Darwin. 



"Among the enormous variety, — I believe there are somewhere about a hundred 

 and fifty kinds of pigeons, — there are four kinds which may be selected as repre- 

 senting the estremest divergences of one kind from another. Their names are the 

 Carrier, the Pouter, the Fantail, and the Tumbler. In these large diagrams that 

 I have here, they are each represented in their relative sizes to each other. This 

 first one is the Carrier ; you will notice this large excrescence on its beak ; it 

 has a comparatively small head ; there is a bare space round the eyes ; it has a 

 long neck, a very long beak, very strong legs, large feet, long wings, and so on. 

 The second one is the Pouter, a very large bird, with very long legs and beak. It 

 is called the Pouter because it is in the habit of causing its gullet to swell up by 

 inflating it with air. I should tell you that all pigeons have a tendency to do this 

 at times, but in the Pouter it is carried to an enormous extent. The birds appear 

 to be quite proud of their power of swelling and puffing themselves out in this 

 way ; and I think it is about as droll a sight as you can well see to look at a cage 

 full of these pigeons puffing and blowing themselves out in this ridiculous 

 manner. 



" This diagram is a representation of the third kind I mentioned — the Fan tail. 

 It is, you see, a small bird, with exceedingly small legs and a very small beak. 

 It is most curiously distinguished by the size and extent of its tail, which, 

 instead of containing twelve feathers, may have many more, — say thirty, or even 

 more — I believe there are some with as many as forty-two. This bird has a 

 curious habit of spreading out the feathers of its tail in such a way that they 

 reach forward and touch its head ; and if this can be accomplished, I believe it is 

 looked upon as a point of great beauty. 



" But here is the last great variety — the Tumbler ; and of that great variety, 

 one of the principal kinds, and one most prized, is the specimen represented here 

 — the Short-faced Tumbler. Its beak, you see, is reduced to a mere nothing. 

 Just compare the beak of this one and that of the first one, the Carrier. I believe 

 the orthodox comparison of the head and beak of a thoroughly well-bred Tumbler 

 is to stick an oat into a cherry, and that will give you the proper relative propor- 



