ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY BULLETIN 
33 
sometimes brought to this country, while others 
have never been captured and scarcely are 
known to man. Next, there are several remark¬ 
able chapters on the various Argus pheasants, 
fascinating both as to their structure and habits. 
The male birds frequently have six-foot tail 
feathers, wing feathers enormously lengthened, 
and, as if realizing that they are the possessors 
of rare beauty, they see to it that their charms 
shall not be wasted, by clearing arenas in the 
jungle where the females, coming to their call, 
may have an unobstructed vision of the grand 
display. 
Lastly, the home and nature of the various 
peacocks are described, birds that most of us 
only think of as decorating some lovely lawn 
or garden, yet who in their native land are as 
difficult of approach as the woodcock or moun¬ 
tain grouse. 
There are, perhaps, three principal qualities 
that, combined together, go to make these vol¬ 
umes unique in the annals of scientific writing. 
First, of course, particularly in a monograph, 
the technical detail must be complete. In this 
phase of the work more than full measure is 
provided. The scientific description of each 
species as to structure and coloration meets 
the needs of the most exacting student. The 
enthusiasm of the layman is not allowed to 
suffer, however, because, to the essentially 
technical, is added that which every reader 
craves—be he scientist or just plain bird-lover 
and nature-lover—and that is a vivid and com¬ 
plete description of the habits and life of the 
bird and its relation to the country in which 
it lives. In making reference to these additional 
qualities in this work we cannot do better than 
look for an instant at some of the characteristic 
passages with which this monograph is replete. 
“Stand close to a dozen Golden Pheas¬ 
ants thus courting, with the hot sun beating 
down, and idly watch them for many min¬ 
utes. The circling, dizzy movements and 
play of blazing colours will soon have its 
effect, and one presently ceases to watch 
definite birds, or definite actions, the 
whole scene resolving itself into a sooth¬ 
ing kaleidoscopic display, one’s eyes and 
mind being content to register only the 
general polychrome effect. One finds one’s 
self day-dreaming, the eyes focusing on 
no particular object. It seems to me that 
the most reasonable explanation of the 
wonderful performance is of a mental effect 
upon the hens, not aesthetic, not directly 
critical or attentional, but a slow indirect 
influence upon the nerves, the arousing of 
a soothing, pleasing emotion which stim¬ 
ulates the wonderful sequence of instincts 
which will result in nest-making, egg- 
laying, the weeks of patient brooding and 
the subsequent care of the young through 
day and night, in fair weather and in storm. 
“This explanation implies no deprecation 
of the importance of sexual selection. It 
is that particular male which, either by 
vanquishing his rivals or by strength and 
persistency, most frequently and effectively 
displays, which will win the hen, regardless 
of whether the actual process be by 
aesthetic appreciation or by some sub¬ 
conscious, hypnotic-like influence. Yet, 
when we remember how impossible of 
definite explanation the term aesthetic ap¬ 
preciation is in ourselves—how no two 
people in the world have the same appre¬ 
ciation of art, music or nature, and how 
widely apart are the ideals of beauty of 
the various races of mankind, we may per¬ 
haps say that mv explanation lias rather 
worked around in a circle, and that it is, 
after all, a very primitive form of aesthetic 
feeling. 
“The human explanation, however, like 
the man-given name, is a matter of sec¬ 
ondary importance. The phenomenon re¬ 
mains ever as wonderful, and the courtship 
of tire Golden Pheasant in spring is some¬ 
thing I try never to miss seeing.” 
From the high mountains of western China 
we are carried to the heavy humid Malayan 
jungle. 
“The bird, alert as the wildest of wild 
things, walked slowly close to the edge of 
the glade, and coming to a log half sunk 
into the mould, began pecking and scratch¬ 
ing vigorously. A large gourd-like fruit 
fell crashing to the ground near by. The 
drongos ceased their tree-top dance, and a 
tupaia fled away into the jungle at frantic 
speed. The pheasant stretched its neck 
high, cackled, looked in every direction for 
a moment and went on witli its feeding. 
“The usual tiling finally happened to me: 
a family of babblers found me out and 
shrieked their discovery to the world, 
father, mother and children all joining in 
the outcry. The Peacock Pheasant hardly 
waited to glance in my direction, but slipped 
away into the jungle shadow. Again in my 
pheasant study did I realize with what 
certainty the wild creatures interpret the 
sounds they hear. The crashing of a gourd 
as of a cannon-ball falling to earth is 
