38



Sydney Porter—Wanderings in the Far East



The bird market, or, at least, the market where birds were sold for

“ chow ”, I shall remember to my dying day. Of all the nauseating

cruelty, filth, and wretchedness I have never seen the like. Bundles of

Wild Duck, from tiny Baikal Teal to Chinese Yellow Bills, tied by the

legs to the end of a bamboo pole, being dipped alive in huge cauldrons

of boiling water in order that their feathers would come off the easier ;

men ankle deep in blood and writhing bodies of dying birds—I never

saw the like and hope never to again. On this Calvary of feathered

creatures it is better not to dwell, sufficient to say that though I am

not squeamish I couldn’t relish my food for days afterwards. Amongst

the wretched motley I saw a great many Bamboo Partridges, Chinese

Francolins, Japanese and Painted Quail, many Duck including the

lovely little Baikal Teal, Chinese Yellow-bills, Mandarins, Summer Teal,

and many others ; there were even Herons and snow-white Egrets.


We inquired about Pheasants, and at one stall we thought we had

found something when the proprietor said that he had some Pheasants,

but Our hopes sank when he returned with a bunch of “ Ringnecks ”,

so “ high ” that we were even able to smell them above the general

odoriferousness of the market. When we examined them millions of tiny

flies poured out of their plumage !


Round about Hong Kong, especially on the wooded slopes of the

Peak, one sees quite a few of the commoner birds, the most conspicuous

being old favourites of mine, the Chinese White-naped Bulbuls. I

have frequently kept these birds in years past and found them one of the

most delightful of cage birds. Here they were very familiar, haunting

the environs of gardens, feeding on the various fruits and berries, and

searching clusters of leaves for insects. Another common bird is the

Red-vented Bulbul, which moves about in small bands or flocks, the

red undertail coverts being very noticeable. This bird has a fine

melodious song. Another lovely bird which I often came across was the

Durian Redstart (Phoenicurus auroreus), the most beautiful as well as the

most conspicuous of the Redstarts. I was surprised that none of the

bird dealers had any of these attractive creatures in their emporiums,

but cage birds are only valued by the Chinese if they sing. I saw many

small Warblers, but was unable to distinguish their species. Also many

Wagtails were to be seen on the low-lying areas by the water ; these



