Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 16.djvu/26

* PIGEON. 12 PIGEON. heads, and great numbers were killed bj' the breaking of i)ranelies. The inhabitants of the neighboring country would assemble, shoot them, knock them down Avith poles, stille them by means of pots of burning sulphur, cut down trees in order to bring them in great numbers to the ground, eat them fresh, salt them, and bring nogs to fatten on them. Wolves, foxes, lyn.xcs, cougars, bears, raccoons, opossums, polecats, eagles, hawks, and vultures congregated to sliare the spoils. Such are the facts given by Wilson, Audubon, and the early historians of the West, and abun- dantly verified. The disappearance of these birds," as soon as settlers began to invade and clear away the woods, was so rapid as properly to be called sudden; and it is not easily ex- plained. Of the pigeons of the Old World, the most interesting is doubtless the blue rock pigeon, or rock dove {Columba livia), the 'biset' of the French, a bird of extensive geographical range. It is found as far north as the Faroe Islands and over the greater part of Europe, and breeds in crevices of rocks and often within caverns which oi)en on the sea. In a wild state this bird exliibits great uniformity both in size and plumage; the prevailing color is bluish-gray, with two di.stinct bars of black across the closed wings. It is connnonly believed that domestic pigeons are all descended, from this species, although possibly some were derived from tlie very similar CoUimha intermedia. The ordinary domestic pigeon differs from the wild cliielly in color, and a tendency to revert to the original coloring has been observed. There are "250 or more domestic breeds, and they have undergone many remarkable clianges under the selective care taken by intelligent fanciers, who often pay very high prices for fine birds. 8ome of the varieties which exhibit very strange peculiarities are known as 'fancy' pigeons, and are carefully tended and |)reserved by pigeon- fanciers. Of these may be mentioned, as among the most interest- ing, the rough-footed pigeon, having the feet feathered; the .lacobin, which has a range of feathers inverted over the head, and e.vtending down each side on the neck, as a hood ; the fan- tail, in which the number of the tail feathers is greatly increased, and the bird has the power of erecting its tail like that of a turkey-cock; the tumbler, so called from turning somersaults in the air in its fliglit. and further characterized by a very short bill; the pouter or 'cropper,' which has the power of blowing up its crop to an extraordinary degree so that the head seems fastened on the top of an inflated bladder; and the black nun. Xone of these have the popular interest and value, however, reached by the carrier, or 'hom- ing" breed, which is trained to return to its home from great distances, and is utilized for carrying messages in places where, sometimes, no other means of communication Is available. This represents the highest example of pigeon develop- ment. This breed is of large size, about 15 inches long, and has the cere very large and caninculated. the eyes surrounded with a broad circle of naked red skin, and the wings reacliing nearly to the extremity of the tail. Carrier pigeons are trained by being conveyed, when young, to short distances of a few miles from home and then let loose, the distance being grad- ually increased until at last as much as 100 miles may be added, and the pigeon made to re- turn accurately and swiftly from 500 to tiUO miles away. Pigeons intended for this use must be brought from the place to which they are to return within a short period (not exceeding a fortnight) of their being let loose, and at a time when they have young in their nest, their re- markable fecundity afiording particular facilities for their employment in this way. The impulse of the bird is to return to its family with the utmost haste. The use of carrier pigeons is very ancient in the Orient, and was brought to the attention of Kurope at the time of the First Crusade, when the Saracens were found to have tlie birds in regular use for the conveyance of information ; and the Christian commanders employed falcons to chase and intercept tliis pigeon-post on sev- eral occasions, and on others caught the tired birds, .substituted misleading messages for tho.se they were carrying, and sent them on to deceive the enemy. Arabic writers attril)ute to the per- fection of a system of pigeon -posts elaborated by the Mohammedan .sovereign Xureddin a large part of his success in welding together the scat- tered parts of his broad empire. Although their use, publicly and as an amusement, continued, it was not until the Franco-Prussian War of 1870 that pigeons were again of conspicuous public service. During the siege of Paris con- stant communication between the beleaguered city and the outside world was obtained by this means, microphotographs of military despatches, private Icttcis. and even newspapers, being printed upon films of collodion and carried by the birds — as much as 30,000 words in some in- stances. These would then be enlarged by pho- tography and made legible. Subsequently the German, French, and other European govern- ments established regular pigeon-corps in the intelligence departments of their armies and navies, and thousands of birds were trained, and many continue to be kept for use as messengers. Experiments were trred extensively by the French in the employment of pigeons at .sea. It was found that they bore voyages well, and would fly from a distance of over .300 miles to shore- stations with great accuracy; but that they could not be depended upon to go from ship to ship. In 18!)7 many trials were made in the United States Xavy, especially by Admiral Sicard. and considerable success was attained. A similar news-service was also attempted by certain news- papers in cooperation with some of the Atlantic .steamship companies, but was not long main- tained. The flight of one of these birds is steady, direct, and rapid, but the rate of speed has been ex- aggerated, and is now known to be on the average only about ;iO miles an hour and rarely 45 miles. It begins with a spiral flight upward as soon as the bird is released from its confine- ment (usually in a portable dark basket!, which is continued to a sufficient height to enable the bird, searching the horizon, to catch sight of some landmark with which it has previously been made familiar. Its memory in this respect is marvelous: and it may he assisted by that instinctive faculty for direction which seems innate in many wild animals. (See Migb.tion' OF Amm.ls.) It then directs its course straight toward that point, when it will sight