58 
The Illustrated Book of Pigeons. 
known as ‘ diamond eyes,’ that is, the flesh of the inside of the eye shaped like a diamond. I am 
of opinion they are more heavily bred, and with age generally make the stoutest pigeons. 
“ The skull of the Carrier should be flat and narrow, but the narrowness is in a measure 
governed by the size of the eye, which, if of full growth, and properly formed, would roll over 
the head ; and I have seen birds whose eyes have so nearly touched as to render the top part of 
the head almost invisible. I do not look upon the skull as of so much importance as the three 
preceding properties, although a bird with a very wide skull has not an attractive appearance. 
“ The correct colours are a brilliant raven black, a soft golden dun, a sound bright blue with 
black bars ; and a few years since were some excellent white birds with bull eyes, which I regret 
to say appear to have now become almost extinct. 
“To assist the colour in pairing birds, a black cock with a dun hen, or vice versa, is considered 
the most desirable mode of proceeding, the result being generally that the young blacks are 
cocks and the duns are hens ; to this in a measure I attribute the present scarcity of black hens. 
At the same time, I think the colour is much improved by pairing in this manner ; otherwise I 
fear the blacks would soon become sooty or blue black, and the duns a light washed-out colour, 
and in bc-th should not be surprised to see signs of a bar across the wings, infallible signs of the 
hardness of the feather. 
“ For brilliancy of colour, I consider no birds equal those in the West of England, but I fear 
Fig. 3i- 
they have there become very scarce ; and the fanciers, in their anxiety for colour and symmetry, 
have sacrificed other and more important properties. 
“ To Blue Carriers I have not given much attention, but they appear to me far inferior to the 
Blacks and Duns in head properties, although I have noticed the majority are large in frame and 
long in feather. 
“ To remark generally, I consider this variety has greatly deteriorated within the last few 
years ; and where I have formerly seen many first-class birds in one loft, it is now almost impossible 
to find one. The cause I attribute chiefly to the numerous exhibitions held in all parts of the 
United Kingdom, which greatly distress the birds, and soon cause their death. These exhibitions 
have also been the cause of numerous persons (who arc utterly incompetent to manage their stock) 
becoming purchasers at enormous prices, solely for the pleasure of gratifying their desire to 
win prizes. The birds are repeatedly shown without the slightest regard to their constitution, 
which is often thoroughly destroyed ; and even if they still live, their produce are miserably 
weakly birds without size or strength, possessing none of the vigour which characterised their 
parents when young.” 
So far Mr. Wiltshire’s excellent description of a good Carrier. But as it is very desirable, 
for the young fancier especially, to have the various properties described with greater minuteness 
and detail, we will now proceed to do so, illustrating our remarks by a diagram which has been 
exactly traced from the coloured plate of the Black Carrier cock. 
The first point in order is the beak ; or, as many fanciers term it, the face. This, in a good 
Carrier, must ] osscss three “properties,” viz., length, thickness, and a proper shape; and is one of 
