The Illustrated Book of Plgeons. 
190 
well-chosen flight of thirty good and true acrobats, brilliant Avorkers, composed of three-fourths 
good, strong-flying, ‘ mid-sky ’ workers, and the other fourth, or say ten or twelve, long Rollers of 
superlative merit as leaders. This, it is said, is the ideal at which a flier should aim, and I agree 
there is some rare fun in this combination of talent. Then there are others (chiefly in Lancashire 
I think) who believe the nearest realisation of merit is that of a flight of good ‘ Tipplers,’ such as 
perform, in a compact mass, their single evolutions with perfect accuracy and uniformity ; such as 
fly high, are always busy, and endure long flights with comparative ease. Further, there are others 
who display rapturous delight with their ‘kits’ of Tumblers, Rollers, and Twizzlers, and such again 
is unquestionably a singular and novel sight to persons who never before witnessed this amalgama- 
tion of funny pigeons. They will, upon being liberated and started up, gradually rise in a compact 
body, now flying in a uniform and regular manner, steadily rising as they go, and at every turn of 
about three minutes’ interval the whole lot will ‘ go off,’ as it were, simultaneously, like a sudden 
burst of fireworks, every bird passing through his evolutions clearly and well, and on the completion 
and recovery from each of these aerial circumgyrations the disordered flight speedily re-unite. The 
gaps are quickly filled up, every bird upon rallying hastening apparently to the front, with the utmost 
speed, until the little band arc again arranged in perfect order ; then flicker, flickering tip-to-tip in 
a neat manner, and within a wonderfully small space, circuit after circuit is traversed, roll after roll 
is, with regularity of time and precision of style, passed through with daily-flown and well- chosen 
flights. The perfect unanimity of action which they display is matter of astonishment at times even 
to their owners. The Rollers, which generally fly alone and to the front of the flight, by reason of 
their extraordinary series of evolutions at each exhibition, may be seen falling through the busy 
mass like spinning balls, even to a considerable distance beneath the lot; then with a strange and 
dexterous movement — wings outstretched and rudder outspread — they ‘catch themselves,’ as it is 
termed, i.e., steady themselves, and, upon regaining their equilibrium, speedily ascend to the busy 
company above, and describe their circles again and again. For my own part, I prefer a good 
flight of thirty or forty well-practised ordinary workers, picked birds of strong flying propensities 
to form the bulk, such as will rise quickly and work in order evenly and steadily as they ascend, 
until a stupendous height is attained, and then maintained for two or three hours ; and with such a 
flock as these I prefer to put half a dozen crack, well and carefully chosen, long Rollers, with a 
predilection for flying equal to their loft companions ; such as I mean arc known as ‘Top Sawyers,’ 
‘ Sky-scrapers/ or ‘ Leaders,’ for at whatever altitude the common flock may reach, these leaders 
will be above them, and will only descend to the bulk of the workers by one or a series of their 
remarkable ‘ rolls,’ such as they alone can perform. Thus they have greater space in which to 
perform their extraordinary feats than a larger number, with similar proclivities, would have when 
too crowded. One thing particularly noticeable is that the best birds invariably fly in front or 
above their fellows, as if to arrange for a clear space for the full exercise and development of their 
peculiar yet natural habit. 
“ I have heard it said of birds that habitually complete their day’s fly with a long ‘ roll ’ of 
say fifteen or twenty feet, and with a dexterous ‘stop within an ace of a bang against chimney 
or roof, ‘All 1 lie rolls with his ewes open. Now, although 1 should not like to say positively that 
they do or do not roll with open eyes, still 1 am inclined to believe, at least, most of their ordinary 
efforts are passed through with a clear vision ; yet, ot course, in some, of the more wonderful ‘ rolls,’ 
the bird becomes somewhat giddy or stupefied, on account of the rapidity or velocity at which lie 
revolves, and thus partially, or it may be entirely, loses his powers of vision. Still, those fanciers 
Avho habitually fly large numbers of good performers together, well know that notwithstanding the 
close and compact space in which they all move, and the regularity and unity of action, and the 
