HOUWINK'S EXPER. CONC. THE ORIGIN OF SOME DOMESTIC ANIMALS 223 
due solely to his initial success in producing the hybrids for others (MR. 
C. J. himself left for home), to prosecute the experiments. 
In an ideal run of large size, with ample shade and cover, and with 
alittle stream running through it, he produced in all some thirty hy- 
brid chicks in the first two years. In this run he had a jungle cock and 
three domestic hens, the jungle cock, monogamous as he is, however 
mated with one of them only and ignored the others. All the hybrids 
came from this one pair. 
In the wild state, MR. THomas tells us, that the jungle cock is known 
to tread the domestic hens in outlying villages, probably, we surmise, 
such jungle-cocks had lost their mates. 
Many of the JOHNSON hybrids died, some at an early age, some when 
older, others still were devoured by wild cats tearing through the 
netting, others again perished through severe monsoon rains or through 
chicken-pox and gapes. 
The F, chicks are very small in size and remarkably active. They are 
all marked alike and very like pure jungle chicks in appearance, per- 
haps a little lighter in color. At two weeks old they fly already and were 
all found perched up in a tree 12 feet from the ground , the disconsolate 
mother hen below” as MR. JOHNSON wrote. 
The F, hybrids were almost like pure lafayetti; the hens, when seen 
apart, were invariably mistaken for jungle hens +). The hybrid-cocks also 
were very similar to lafayetti. None however had such orange centres 
of the comb as the wild birds, but there was in some an attempt at the 
yellow patch or streak. „This mark only appaered in the hybrids after 
they were full grown and since many died young it is impossible to say 
what they would have been like. It was an interesting fact, that this 
yellowish streak was not always observed. Sometimes it would almost 
disappear, while at other timesit was very clearly seen and well defined.” 
The characteristic purple patch at the throat of the wild male was 
observed in one of the hybrid cocks, while in the others it was merely a 
dark patch. 
Allthe pullets had the voice of the wild hen, one of the cocks had the 
voice of the wild bird, others a voice which was neither that of the wild 
bird nor that of the barndoor cock. Legs mostly yellow, like the wild 
1) The F, hybrid-hens consequently must have been crossbarred and have had 
the white and black breast of the jungle hen. Unfortunately all we know of the 
mother is that she was „a common mongrel domestic”. 
