PHEASANT RAISING IN THE UNITED STATES. 
11 
ward, and whose general appearance strikingly supports the belief 
that they are the birds from which our domesticated chickens are 
derived (fig. 10). 
HISTORY OF PHEASANT RAISING. 
EUROPE. 
The English pheasant (Phasianus colchicus) derives its specific 
name from the ancient country of Colchis, on the eastern shore of the 
Fig. 10.—Red jungle fowl (Gallus bankiva ). (From photograph of specimens in the U. S. National Museum 
mounted by Nelson R. Wood.) 
Black Sea. It was imported thence into Europe by the Greeks, proba¬ 
bly under Alexander the Great, and was by them reared for food. 
Perhaps at the same time, but probably one or two centuries later, 
it was brought from the adjoining country of Media to Egypt, where 
it was reared in the palace at Alexandria and was highly esteemed as 
a dainty for the table. Its propagation in confinement was continued 
in the days of the Roman Empire, under which it appears to have 
been carried throughout much of Europe and as far west as Britain. 
It was introduced into Ireland and Scotland before the close of the six¬ 
teenth century, and has recently been established in Sweden and 
Norway. It is now acclimatized practically all over Europe, and has 
been introduced into the United States, Canada, Australia, and New 
Zealand. 
390 
