THE PHEASANT. 145 



Those whom soon will science instruct us to know, 

 By their white-yellow beaks from the black of the 

 Crow. — 



white varied with rufous; — the White Pheasant, white, with 

 small black spots on the neck ; — the Pied Pheasant, rufous, varied 

 with brown j — the Turkey Pheasant. Inhabits Europe, Asia, and 

 Africa ; from two to three feet long ; domesticated every where ; 

 in breeding time, above the ears on each side, is a golden fea- 

 thered tuft like a horn. From its being a bird of heavy flight, 

 it has never been able to visit America. It is said, however, to 

 be reared in St. Domingo, where it was taken by the Spaniards. 

 Of all birds, except the peacock, the pheasant has the most 

 beautiful and variegated plumage. The varieties are produced 

 either by climate or domestication. In its wild state, it feeds 

 upon all kinds of grain and herbage, and, doubtless, worms. The 

 nest is rude, and on the ground, in some secret place ; eggs from 

 twelve to twenty ; when they are carried away, the female conti- 

 nues to lay like the common hen. The young must be supplied 

 with ant's eggs, their only proper food. From its size, and the 

 delicacy of its flesh, the pheasant is, of course, a valuable bird ; 

 although plentiful in some districts of this country, it is not so 

 common in the north, and is rarely seen in Scotland ; nor is it 

 found often on marshy land, even in the west, although plenti- 

 fully there on hilly regions, where shelter and food can be ob- 

 tained. Pope has finely, yet painfully, described the Pheasant 

 in his Windsor Forest: 



"See! from the brake the whirring pheasant springs, 

 And mounts exulting on triumphant wings; 

 Short is his joy, he feels the fiery wound, 

 Flutters in blood, and panting, beats the ground. 

 Ah ! what avail his glossy varying dyes, 

 His purple crest and scarlet-circled eyes, 

 The vivid green his shining plumes unfold, 

 His painted wings, and breast that flames with gold !" 



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