348 
The Illustrated Book of Pigeons. 
PORCELAINS. 
“ These are closely allied to Suabians, and therefore partake of the same general features. 
Colour only in this case constitutes the difference, as by description will at once be obvious. 
These birds are of a nice rich brown upon head, upper part of neck, breast, and back (beneath the 
saddle), and rump, the under parts being of an ashen tint, with the brownish cast partially inter- 
mixed. The flights and tail are somewhat of a darker shade, the brown and black prevailing, 
with lighter parts towards the quills. The shoulders, sides, and back are of the most exquisite 
beauty, delicate and refined both in tint and markings to the superlative degree ; the ground tint 
is of an extremely pale, creamy colour, upon which is worked out an elaborate, dart-shaped 
tracery of a wider mesh, as it were, more nearly resembling the opener markings of the Siberian 
Ice, which I should think formed some part of their composition. The markings are of a very fine 
character — light, soft, and lacy, and of paler colour, in perfect accord with the delicacy and apparent 
purity in the general aspect of the birds, the markings running each way almost at right angles 
with the shaft of feather, which is also tinted and in beautiful harmony with the fine course of 
point-edging in which the entire body is enveloped. In some of these birds the head, entire neck, 
breast, thighs, rump, tail, and flights are completely of a dark neutral colour, a sort of invisible 
brown or chocolate colour, and these are particularly beautiful by reason of the extreme contrast 
with the uncommon delicacy of sides, shoulders, and back, and the nice set-off of ‘ tippet ’ against 
back, or breast, and thigh against their sides. In these pencilled varieties there are various colours 
and shades of ground tint, and numerous peculiarities of markings, from heavy to light, broad to 
fine, black to pale pencillings; ‘spangled,’ ‘laced,’ or ‘tipped ;’ ‘crested’ or ‘plain heads;’ ‘feather- 
footed ’ or ‘ clear-legged ; ’ the latter are in the majority. The eye is sometimes pearlish, but orange- 
red is the proper colour ; beak and nails black ; flights, when extended, are evenly variegated, 
but apparently plain when closed. As with the Suabians, spots of white upon outer extremities 
of flights, are now and then produced, and are desirable, but are quite exceptions to the rule. 
STARLINGS. 
“ These birds are entirely of black plumage, excepting the bars across the wing-coverts, and a 
crescent or half moon of white in front of breast. Upon the head of many specimens there is a 
sprinkling of white spots, extending from forehead to neck, into which it gradually merges; this I 
conceive to be the proper marking, and from which probably the term * Starling ’ originated, for in 
that particular there is a great similarity to the wild bird which bears that name. The eye is red, 
the beak and nails black, and the variety chiefly clear-legged and plain-headed, although if the 
legs be fairly clothed with feathers, or the head adorned with a good crest (which it occasionally is), 
they are — at least in my eyes — of equal value. The chief points to be observed are intensity of black, 
purity and accuracy of white crescent and bars, and regularity of Starling spots upon the head. I 
have no doubt whatever but that these birds are closely allied to both Suabians and Porcelains. 
Careful selection and judicious mating from time to time of those which more closely resemble 
each other has resulted in the fair establishment of these varieties, until now each kind may be said 
to breed pretty true to their several properties ; but to those who may have made but casual trials 
with either, this simple assertion perhaps would not be convincing, and for this reason, that the 
progeny of any of the variegated pencilled varieties rarely ever resemble their parents (however 
perfect such may be) until after the first or second moult ; their nestling feathers are invariably 
of a very unattractive appearance, dull and dingy, smeared and apparently worthless ‘ run outs.’ 
But here patience is necessary, when by its exercise one gets rewarded, for at the fall of this 
