[Illustration: CHINA OR HONG KONG GOOSE.]
This bird figures under a variety of _aliases_: Knob goose, Hong Kong
goose, Asiatic goose, Swan goose, Chinese Swan Guinea goose, Polish
goose, Muscovy goose, and, probably, others.
There is something in the aspect of this creature--in the dark-brown
stripe down its neck, its small, bright eye, its harsh voice, its
ceremonious strut, and its affectation of seldom being in a hurry--which
seems to say that it came from China. If so, it has no doubt been
domesticated for many hundred years, perhaps as long as the pea fowl or
the common fowl. They may be made to lay a large number of eggs by an
increased supply of nourishing food. If liberally furnished with oats,
boiled rice, etc., the China goose will, in the spring, lay from twenty
to thirty eggs before she begins to sit, and again in the autumn, after
her moult, from ten to fifteen more. Another peculiarity is their
deficient power of flight, compared with other geese, owing to the
larger proportionate size of their bodies. Indeed, of all geese, this is
the worst flyer; there is no occasion to pinion them; the common
domestic goose flies much more strongly.
The prevailing color of their plumage is brown, comparable to the color
of wheat. The different shades are very harmoniously blended, and are
well relieved by the black tuberculated bill, and the pure white of the
abdomen. Their movements on the water are graceful and swan-like. Slight
variations occur in the color of the feet and legs, some having them of
a dull orange, others black; a delicate fringe of minute white feathers
is occasionally seen at the base of the bill. These peculiarities are
hereditarily transmitted.
The male is almost as much disproportionately larger than the female as
the Musk drake is in comparison with his mate. He is much inclined to
libertine wanderings, without, however, neglecting proper attention at
home. If there is any other gander on the premises, a disagreement is
sure to result. Both male and female are, perhaps, the noisiest of all
geese; at night, the least footfall or motion in their neighborhood is
sufficient to call forth their clangor and resonant trumpetings.
The eggs are somewhat less than those of the domestic kind, of a short
oval, with a smooth, thick shell, white, but slightly tinged with yellow
at the smaller end. The goslings, when first hatched, are usually very
strong. They are of a dirty green, like the color produced by mixing
India-ink and yellow ochre, with darker patches here and there. The legs
and feet are lead-color, but afterward change to a dull red. With good
pasturage, they require no farther attention than that bestowed by their
parents. After a time, a little grain will strengthen and forward them.
If well fed, they come to maturity very rapidly; in between three and
four months from the time of leaving the shell, they will be full-grown
and ready for food. They do not bear being shut up to fatten so well as
common geese, and, therefore, those destined for the table are the
better for profuse hand-feeding. Their flesh is well-flavored, short,
and tender; their eggs, excellent for cooking purposes.
They are said to be a short-lived species; the ganders, at least, not
lasting more than ten or a dozen years. Hybrids between them and the
common goose are prolific with the latter; the second and third cross is
much prized by some farmers, particularly for their ganders; and in many
flocks the blood of the China goose may be traced oftentimes by the more
erect gait of the birds, accompanied by a faint stripe down the back of
the neck. With the White-grented goose they also breed freely.
_The White-China._ These are larger than the preceding, and apparently
more terrestrial in their habits; the knob on the head is not only of
greater proportion, but of a different shape. It is of a spotless, pure
white--though a very few gray feathers occasionally appear--more
swan-like than the brown, with a bright orange-colored bill, and a large
knot of the same color at its base. It is particularly beautiful,
either in or out of the water, its neck being long, slender, and
gracefully arched when swimming. It breeds three or four times in the
season; the egg is quite small for the size of the bird, being not more
than half the size of that of the common goose.
In many instances, efforts to obtain young from their eggs have been
unsuccessful; but if the female is supplied with the eggs of the common
goose, she invariably hatches and rears the goslings. They sit
remarkably well, never showing themselves out of the nest by day; but,
possibly, they may leave the nest too long in the cold of the night.
Some think that a quiet lake is more to their taste than a rapid running
stream, and more conducive to the fecundity of their eggs. It is also
believed by many that, under favorable circumstances, they would be very
prolific.