THE RUNT. 



181 



The distinction between these different lands of Emits is not accurately marked 

 at the present time, whatever might hare been the case when Moore wrote. At 

 the shows held a few years since at the Crystal Palace, prizes were offered for both 

 Spanish and Leghorn Runts; but birds similar in character were shown in 

 both classes, consequently at no other poultry show has it been attempted to 

 maintain the distinction. 



Large varieties of pigeons have always been bred along the shores of the Medi- 

 terranean, and fair specimens are not unfrequently brought to England by the 

 sailors. The size of these birds has long been a subject of notoriety. The Rev. 

 E. S. Dixon, in his '•' Dovecote and Aviary," quotes a letter from Mr. Edward 

 Browne to Mr. Craven, written in 1664, in which the writer states : — 



" Wee came home by the island of Nisida, some two miles in compasse, belong- 

 ing to one gentleman, who in it keeps all creatures tame by force, haueing no way 

 to get from him, in sight of Caprea, once the delight of Tiberius, and so under 

 the mountain Pausilippo again, with torches in our hands, it being night before 

 wee could reach it, which wee passed safely ; the better by reason that the holy 

 virgin is gouuernesse of this cauern, and hath a chappell dedicated to her in the 

 middle of it. By this time you must coniecture wee had a good stomach to our 

 supper, which wee made of pigeons, the best heare without controuersy in the 

 -world, as big as pullets." 



Mr. Dixon did not appear ever to have seen any really good specimens of the 

 breed, for he gives the weight of two pairs in his possession as two pounds seven 

 ounces and three pounds seven ounces, respectively, and writes of their ponderous 

 character. Runts have been exhibited of very much greater weight. Four pounds 

 fifteen ounces have been reached by the birds in a show-pen, and as these must 

 necessarily have lost somewhat from the excitement of their journey to the show, &c, 

 ■we may take five pounds as the weight of a first-rate pair. At the present time, 

 Runts not weighing more than four pounds a pair have no chance whatever of 

 -winning in a strong competition. 



Runts vary considerably in form and colour. One of the largest birds we ever 

 remember to have seen was the cock belonging to Mr. Butt which is alluded to at 

 page 32. It was a mottled bird, with a turned crown and hog mane, and strongly 

 Tesembles Moore's description of the Finnikin, a breed no longer recognized as 

 distinct from other varieties. The record of the exact weight of this bird was not 

 kept, but the size of the stuffed specimen now in our possession far surpasses 

 that of any other pigeon we have ever seen. 



Under the French title of Bagadais, the German of Bagadotten, and the English 

 of Scanderoons, a very large, long-legged, long-necked, close-feathered variety of 

 pigeon is much valued on the Continent. Scanderoons have small eye and beak- 

 -wattles, and are remarkable for the extreme length of their beaks. In some birds 

 these are straight, in others much curved. In their size, length of limbs, and 

 closeness of feathering, they strongly remind the observer of Malay fowls, and are 

 amongst the most striking of all the varieties of pigeons. We have not seen a 



