﻿CHEER 
  PHEASANT 
  57 
  

  

  I 
  got 
  a 
  brace, 
  and 
  after 
  that 
  I 
  never 
  went 
  home 
  without 
  one 
  or 
  two, 
  and, 
  strange 
  to 
  say, 
  

   my 
  weekly, 
  and 
  sometimes 
  bi-weekly, 
  visits 
  never 
  had 
  the 
  effect 
  of 
  driving 
  them 
  away, 
  

   and 
  what 
  is 
  more, 
  in 
  October 
  seven 
  years 
  afterward, 
  when 
  I 
  again 
  visited 
  the 
  place, 
  I 
  

   found 
  my 
  friends 
  in 
  their 
  old 
  locality, 
  and 
  got 
  three 
  brace 
  then 
  and 
  there. 
  

  

  " 
  I 
  found 
  another 
  nest 
  with 
  several 
  eggs 
  late 
  in 
  May, 
  in 
  a 
  very 
  similar 
  situation, 
  on 
  

   Nagtiber, 
  at, 
  I 
  suppose, 
  an 
  elevation 
  of 
  about 
  six 
  thousand 
  feet, 
  and 
  a 
  third, 
  containing 
  

   four 
  eggs, 
  which 
  I 
  took 
  very 
  early 
  in 
  May, 
  a 
  few 
  miles 
  from 
  Juggutsook, 
  in 
  the 
  upper 
  

   valley 
  of 
  the 
  Beas. 
  This, 
  too, 
  was 
  similarly 
  situated." 
  

  

  My 
  observations 
  on 
  the 
  preference 
  of 
  individuals 
  of 
  this 
  pheasant 
  for 
  some 
  one 
  

   locality 
  are, 
  of 
  course, 
  not 
  as 
  valuable 
  as 
  if 
  extended 
  over 
  a 
  longer 
  period 
  of 
  time. 
  

   The 
  flock 
  which 
  I 
  so 
  unexpectedly 
  flushed 
  from 
  the 
  steep 
  hillside 
  did 
  not 
  visit 
  

   the 
  same 
  spot 
  again 
  within 
  the 
  succeeding 
  two 
  weeks. 
  In 
  another 
  locality 
  some 
  

   distance 
  away 
  later 
  in 
  the 
  spring 
  I 
  found 
  Cheer 
  in 
  pairs 
  and 
  beginning 
  to 
  nest, 
  

   and 
  here 
  they 
  were, 
  of 
  course, 
  exceedingly 
  sedentary, 
  and 
  I 
  could 
  tell 
  within 
  a 
  few 
  dozen 
  

   yards 
  just 
  where 
  I 
  could 
  find 
  them. 
  Fortunately 
  there 
  were 
  no 
  sportsmen 
  about, 
  nor, 
  

   judging 
  from 
  the 
  birds, 
  had 
  there 
  been 
  any 
  shooting 
  hereabouts, 
  and 
  I 
  had 
  no 
  difficulty 
  

   in 
  watching 
  the 
  birds 
  from 
  well-selected 
  points 
  of 
  observation. 
  I 
  spent 
  many 
  hours 
  

   with 
  a 
  pair 
  of 
  Cheer 
  in 
  full 
  view, 
  but 
  sometimes 
  after 
  a 
  whole 
  afternoon 
  of 
  such 
  

   observation 
  I 
  would 
  have 
  no 
  fact 
  of 
  interest 
  to 
  record. 
  Much 
  of 
  the 
  time 
  I 
  might 
  

   as 
  well 
  have 
  watched 
  a 
  rooster 
  and 
  hen 
  from 
  a 
  native 
  barn-yard 
  as 
  far 
  as 
  unusual 
  traits 
  

   were 
  concerned. 
  

  

  I 
  regretted 
  not 
  being 
  earlier 
  on 
  the 
  ground 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  be 
  able 
  to 
  watch 
  the 
  method 
  

   of 
  courtship 
  employed. 
  In 
  spite 
  of 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  times 
  that 
  this 
  species 
  has 
  bred 
  

   in 
  captivity, 
  no 
  record 
  has 
  been 
  kept 
  of 
  this 
  interesting 
  performance, 
  and 
  all 
  that 
  has 
  

   been 
  written 
  of 
  it 
  is 
  a 
  single 
  paragraph 
  by 
  Finn 
  : 
  " 
  This 
  species 
  is 
  said 
  not 
  to 
  show 
  off, 
  

   but 
  a 
  vicious 
  male 
  in 
  the 
  Calcutta 
  Zoo 
  used 
  to 
  show 
  off 
  in 
  the 
  common 
  pheasant's 
  

   attitude, 
  aslant 
  with 
  spread 
  tail, 
  when 
  trying 
  to 
  attack, 
  and 
  as 
  the 
  show 
  position 
  

   so 
  commonly 
  seems 
  to 
  be 
  the 
  fighting 
  one 
  too, 
  I 
  expect 
  the 
  species 
  does 
  thus 
  display 
  

   when 
  courting." 
  I 
  saw 
  this 
  twice 
  in 
  wild 
  birds, 
  both 
  times 
  as 
  a 
  challenge 
  or 
  pose 
  

   of 
  defiance, 
  once 
  against 
  a 
  crow 
  and 
  again 
  when 
  a 
  brace 
  of 
  partridges 
  approached 
  

   closely 
  to 
  the 
  Cheer's 
  nest. 
  The 
  attack, 
  which 
  was 
  not 
  actually 
  made 
  in 
  either 
  case, 
  

   was 
  apparently 
  intended 
  to 
  be 
  by 
  means 
  of 
  the 
  spurs. 
  The 
  pheasant 
  did 
  not 
  approach 
  

   the 
  intruders 
  directly, 
  but 
  with 
  a 
  curious 
  sidling 
  gait 
  which 
  took 
  it 
  in 
  a 
  curve 
  first 
  

   to 
  one 
  side 
  then 
  to 
  the 
  other. 
  Whichever 
  side 
  was 
  presented 
  was 
  the 
  one 
  upon 
  which 
  

   the 
  display 
  was 
  made, 
  and 
  which 
  differed 
  in 
  no 
  essential 
  particular, 
  as 
  far 
  as 
  I 
  could 
  

   see 
  through 
  my 
  field-glasses, 
  from 
  the 
  courtship 
  attitude 
  of 
  the 
  common 
  pheasant. 
  

   The 
  back 
  was 
  flattened, 
  the 
  wings 
  lowered 
  and 
  raised 
  respectively, 
  and 
  the 
  tail 
  slanted 
  

   and 
  spread 
  widely 
  and 
  rather 
  suddenly 
  toward 
  the 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  sidling 
  walk. 
  In 
  fact 
  

   it 
  was 
  the 
  sudden 
  display 
  of 
  this 
  conspicuously 
  marked 
  and 
  coloured 
  organ 
  which 
  

   dismayed 
  the 
  objects 
  of 
  the 
  Cheer's 
  agitation, 
  causing 
  the 
  crow 
  to 
  take 
  to 
  flight 
  with 
  

   a 
  low 
  croak 
  and 
  the 
  partridges 
  to 
  run 
  to 
  cover. 
  The 
  Cheer 
  recovered 
  his 
  equanimity 
  

   at 
  once, 
  and 
  after 
  standing 
  at 
  attention 
  for 
  a 
  few 
  moments, 
  began 
  to 
  wander 
  off 
  

   down 
  the 
  ridge 
  without 
  a 
  glance 
  in 
  the 
  direction 
  in 
  which 
  I 
  knew 
  his 
  nest 
  to 
  be. 
  

  

  Within 
  a 
  radius 
  of 
  a 
  mile 
  there 
  were 
  three 
  pairs 
  of 
  Cheer, 
  all, 
  I 
  am 
  certain, 
  

   nesting, 
  although 
  I 
  was 
  able 
  to 
  find 
  the 
  nest 
  of 
  but 
  one. 
  By 
  walking 
  slowly 
  past 
  the 
  

  

  