196 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[June 27 
5. Middle-sized Mixed Pigeon : Pigeon Mondain Moyen; 
Columba admista Media .—Of all pigeons these are the most 
common; at the present da}-, all the economical dove-cots, 
where they do not seek to possess pure races, are inhabited 
by them; and they, with the stock-dove, furnish the mar¬ 
kets. We shall not give their characters, because they con¬ 
sist precisely in not having any; only they are smaller than 
the preceding, and generally larger than the following. The 
facts related of the generality of this race apply particularly 
to these. They are of every colour, with or without crests, 
rough-footed or not, and their numerous varieties cannot be 
described, because they are the produce of mixings infinitely 
combined. Their distinctive character can only be their size, 
which equals that of a pullet three months old. 
6 . Berlin Mixed Pigeon: Pigeon Mondain de Berlin; 
Columba admista Berolini .—This pretty variety, brought from 
Prussia in 1808, has a red filament round the eyes ; the 
plumage of a beautiful black, streaked with white, and a row 
of small round and white spots, like pearls, on the wing. I 
have seen these handsome birds in the Paris Museum of 
Natural History ; but I do not know whether they are bred 
here, or whether they are very productive. 
(To be continued.') 
THE DOMESTIC PIGEON. 
general history of tigeons. 
(Continued from p. 166.) 
The jealousy of pigeons, and especially of the males, is un¬ 
bridled ; and they occasionally beat their unfaithful females 
with an exasperation that is only equalled by the fury with 
which these defend themselves ; and it is only after numerous 
battles that they succeed in bringing their capricious com¬ 
panions back to constancy. They are not only jealous of 
their own wives, but they are, also, so of others ; and are 
always ready to interfere with the caresses of a strange couple 
whenever an opportunity otters. This is frequently followed 
by a struggle, in which they display a rancour very opposite 
to that idea of gentleness which authors are pleased to give 
us of their character. They are even cruel and unmerciful 
enough to kill the young defenceless pigeons that have, by 
any accident, been precipitated from their nest. It may be 
concluded, therefore, from what we have just said, that the 
gentleness, the chastity, and all those virtues that have been 
chimerically attributed to these animals, exist only in the 
brilliant descriptions given of them by some writers. 
“ It is easy," says Button, “to domesticateunwieldly birds, 
such as the cock, the turkey-cock, and peacock; but those 
that are light and that fly rapidly require more art to subdue 
them. A low thatched building, enclosed, is sufficient to 
contain and rear our poultry in, but towers and high build¬ 
ings made on purpose, well plastered without and furnished 
with numerous cells within, are requisite to attract, retain, 
and lodge pigeons. They are not really either domestic, like 
dogs and horses, or prisoners, like hens ; they are rather 
voluntary captives, or fugitive guests, who only remain in the 
lodging offered them so long as they are pleased with it, and 
they find therein an abundance of food, an agreeable dwell¬ 
ing, and all the necessary conveniences of life. Should they 
be displeased or want anything, they quit the place and dis¬ 
perse for the purpose of removing elsewhere ; there are some 
which even prefer the deep holes in old walls to the cleanest 
pigeon-hole in our dove-houses ; others, which dwell in clefts j 
and the hollow parts of trees ; others, again, which appear to 
shun our habitations, and cannot by any means be attracted 
to them; whilst, on the contrary, we see some which dare 
not leave them, and which it is necessary to feed round their 
pigeon-house, which they never leave.” There is no bird 
existing whose species is so multiplied and so widely extended 
as the pigeon; it is found in the southern and temperate j 
parts of the two Continents, and even in very cold climates, I 
whither, doubtless, they have been transported. They thrive 
best, however, in temperate or even rather warm climates, j 
where they increase much quicker than in cooler latitudes, 
and produce more valuable varieties. The dove-cot pigeons 
are known from the earliest antiquity ; it appears that even 
in the time of Aristotle they had attained a high degree of 
perfection; since that ancient preceptor of Alexander the 
Great said, in his Histoiy of Animals, that these pigeons 
produce ten or eleven times a year, and those in Egypt as 
many as twelve. In the time of this philosopher, however, 
there were none known but those that we call at the present 
day the dove-cot, and none of those that now stock the large 
pigeon houses. He neither distinguishes the differences 
between the divers domestic pigeons, nor mentions their 
numerous varieties, which, perhaps, at that time only existed 
in small numbers. The Romans, doubtless, were greater 
amateurs than the Greeks; for Pliny speaks of several varie¬ 
ties, and particularly of the great pigeons of Campanie, in 
Italy, for which the fanciers paid a high price. The common 
value of a pair of these Italian pigeons was four hundred 
Roman pennies, which, at the present time, would make about 
00 shillings, the ordinary price of our handsome races. 
Others paid very considerable sums for these birds; they 
bestowed upon them their titles of nobility, related their 
origin, and reared them in towers placed on the tops of 
houses and palaces. 
Great differences exist in the form of these birds, which 
would be sufficient to establish several species, if they did 
not produce together fruitful individuals capable of perpe 
tuating their race. The bill varies its proportion according 
to the varieties ; in some we see it very thick, in others very 
delicate, long or short; the partitions of the nostrils very 
thin, or covered with a thick membranous cartilaginous or 
fleshy protuberance. Their voice is sometimes a mournful 
and tender ciy; with others, it resembles the sound of a 
drum. The noise they make with their voice is expressed 
by the word cooing; in the male, it is always more full, 
longer sustained, more frequent, and stronger than in the 
female. The riding colour of their plumage is grey, or a 
greyish brown, but the domestic state has more or less 
altered these colours. They love to wash and roll in the 
dust to free themselves from parasitical insects, with which 
they are frequently inconvenienced. After this operation 
they generally dress their feathers, which they like to keep 
very clean. Their flight is rapid and long, especially when 
pursued by the sparrow-hawk, the kite (their most cruel 
enemy), or other birds of prey. Notwithstanding their being 
very quick-sighted and possessing great sensibility of hear¬ 
ing, and although the organs of these senses are always in a 
state of activity, they frequently become the victims of these 
voracious creatures, who employ against them both their 
arms and stratagem. 
HINTS ON GARDENING FOR YOUNG rEOBLE. 
How to get plants for your little plots .—In resuming this 
subject, I shall next say a few words on the subject of cut 
tings; these you may ask for without danger of being thought 
greedy, and if you succeed in striking them yourself, you 
will value those plants more than any you have. In the 
days of my youthful gardening, I and many others had an 
idea that only certain plants would grow by cuttings ; and in 
my old book there was a list of such, most of which I could 
not obtain. The first cuttings I ever struck were some 
sprigs of lavender, and I still remember the pride and plea- 
