22



I. Harman—The Peacock as a Pet



having seen a single specimen in any of the great parks they control. In

private parks and gardens Waterfowl prevail, with Cranes as a next

best thing—but Peacocks, no ! I suppose it will be up to Ornamental

Pheasant fans—and may their tribe increase—to reintroduce the

Peacock to aviculturists and park owners.


Strange as it may seem to level-headed folks, one of the main reasons

why the Peacock is not liked as a living ornament of the lawn is pure

superstition. I am informed on good authority that many people,'

especially ladies, simply won’t be tempted to have one of these most

lovely of Pheasants about the home because they are “ supposed to be

unlucky In this respect, may I remind my readers that, strictly

speaking, it is not the bird but its tail feathers (that is the train feathers,

really) which are unlucky when brought into the house. Possibly this

idea was spread about by someone who kept these birds and got tired

of having people pull out their feathers ! That is my idea as to how it

arose, anyway.


The Peacock must have been the first foreign bird to have been

brought to Britain. It was brought over by the Roman conquerors

as a table-bird, which it remained until well into the seventeenth

century. When it was first brought into Europe is a little uncertain.

It was, however, known in Palestine in Solomon’s time, and, as it is

always associated with Juno, the Greek Queen of Heaven, we can

presume that it was known more than four hundred years b.c.


Though the Peacock has always lived a semi-domesticated state in

the West, it is still found in a wild state in certain parts of India and

Ceylon. At liberty as a wildling, the Peafowl is an inhabitant of fairly

thick jungle, especially where it is intersected by small rivers and

streams and varied with low ranges of hills. In such jungles the birds

live in small parties (says Hugh Whistler), resting and lazily feeding

in the undergrowth by day, roosting on the trees at night, and when

surroundings permit moving out into cultivation for the morning and

evening feed. They are very wary and shy, running swiftly on foot

amongst the bushes when approached, and being persuaded to fly

with the utmost difficulty ; though once on the wing they can travel

fast with regular flaps of comparatively slow beat, sustained and

without the gliding motion common to most game birds.



