181. _The WILD SWAN, or HOOPER_ (Anas cygnus), _is distinguished from the
tame swan (182) by having the cere or naked skin at the base of the bill
yellow and not black; and being of smaller size._
_These birds are found in the northern parts of Europe, Asia, and
America._
On several of the lochs or lakes of Scotland wild swans are very numerous;
and they are known, at a great distance, by their cry, which is not much
unlike the sound of a clarionet blown by a novice in music.
About the month of August these birds change their feathers, during which,
in some countries, they are killed with clubs or hunted by dogs. Their
_flesh_ is esteemed a wholesome and palatable food, and the _eggs_ are
considered peculiarly delicious. Of the _skins_, which are used in England,
with the down upon them, for muffs, tippets, and powder-puffs, the
inhabitants of Iceland and Kamtschatka make garments of different kinds.
The North American Indians sometimes weave the down into ornamental
dresses; and form the large feathers into caps and plumes to decorate the
heads of their warriors.
182. _The TAME Swan_ (Anas olor, Fig. 47), _the largest of all British
birds, is distinguished from the wild swan (181) by its larger size, and
by the cere or naked skin at the base of the bill being black and not
yellow._
_It is an inhabitant both of Europe and Asia._
So highly were these beautiful and stately birds esteemed by our ancestors
that, by an act of Edward the Fourth, no person who possessed a freehold of
less yearly value than five marks was permitted to keep them. At this day
the stealing of swans is considered a felonious act; and there is a penalty
for stealing the eggs, of twenty shillings each.
Swans were formerly served up at almost every great feast. At Archbishop
Neville's feast in the reign of Edward the Fourth, there were no fewer than
400 of these birds. At present, the _cygnets_, or young swans, only are
eaten. Considerable numbers of these are annually fattened near Norwich,
about Christmas, and chiefly for the table of the corporation of that city.
The nest of the swan is formed, about the month of February, of grass, and
generally among reeds near the water. The eggs are six or eight in number,
of large size and white colour.
183. _The WILD GOOSE_ (Anas anser) _is distinguished by having a somewhat
cylindrical bill, the body ash-coloured above and paler beneath, and the
neck striate._
_Large flocks of wild geese frequent all the fenny districts of England,
and are also found in the northern parts of the continents of Europe,
Asia, and America._
These birds are killed on account of their _flesh_ which is an excellent
and nutritive food; and they are the stock from which our common or _tame
geese_ have been obtained.
Vast numbers of the latter are kept in the fens of Lincolnshire, and other
parts of England, and chiefly for the sake of their quills and feathers. Of
these they are unmercifully stripped, whilst alive, once every year for the
former, and five times for the latter. The _quills_, or large feathers of
the wings, are termed firsts, seconds, and thirds, from the order in which
they grow. The last two kinds are those principally used in writing, on
account of the larger size of their barrels. And as the utility and value
of quills, in the making of pens, greatly depend on their firmness and
elasticity, different expedients have been contrived to harden them. The
most simple of these is to thrust the barrels, for a few moments, into hot
sand or ashes, afterwards to press them almost flat with a penknife, and
then to restore their roundness by the fingers, with the assistance of a
piece of leather or woollen cloth, removing at the same time their external
roughness by the friction. But when great numbers are to be prepared, other
methods are adopted. Aqua-fortis is frequently employed in the preparation
of quills, by which they are stained a yellow colour.
All the best _feathers_ that are used in this country for making beds,
bolsters, and pillows, are those of geese: and such as are obtained in the
county of Somerset are generally esteemed the best. Great quantities of
goose and other feathers are annually imported from the north of Europe;
but these being insufficient for the demand, the feathers of cocks and
hens, and also of ducks and turkeys, all of which are much inferior to
those of geese, are frequently mixed with them. The best mode of preserving
feathers is to expose them, in a room, to the rays of the sun; and, as soon
as they are thoroughly dried, to put them loosely into bags, in which they
should be well beaten to cleanse them from dust and filth. Of late years
feathers have been manufactured into hats.
The usual weight of a fine goose is fifteen or sixteen pounds, but it is
scarcely credible how far this weight may be increased, by cramming the
birds with bean-meal, and other fattening diet. It some places it is
customary to nail them to the floor by the webs of the feet, to prevent any
possibility of action, and thus to fatten them the more readily. In Vienna
the _livers_ of geese are esteemed a great delicacy. They are eaten stewed,
and some of the German poulterers have a method of making them grow to an
enormous size.
In the choosing of geese for the table, care should be taken that the feet
and legs be yellow, which is an indication of the bird's being young: the
legs of old geese are red. If recently killed, the legs will be pliable,
but if stale they will generally be found dry and stiff.
These birds are denominated _green geese_ until they are three or four
months old; and, at this immature age, they are held by many persons in
great esteem for the table.
Besides the present, there are several other species of goose, which are
useful on account of their quills and feathers, and likewise as supplying
mankind with food.
184. _The WILD DUCK_ (Anas boschas) _is distinguished by the general
cinereous colour of its plumage, by having a narrow white mark round the
neck, the bill being straight, and the tail feathers of the male curved
upward._
_The male is called_ mallard, _or_ drake, _and the female has the name
of_ duck.
_Wild ducks are very common, in most of the fenny parts of England: they
are also found on the continent of Europe, in Asia, and America._
One mode of catching wild ducks, in the fens of Lincolnshire and some other
countries, is by what are called _decoys_. These are ponds, generally
formed in marshy situations, and surrounded with wood or reeds, and if
possible with both. The wild birds are attracted into nets placed in the
ditches of the decoy, by ducks trained for the purpose, and called
decoy-birds. The latter fly abroad, but regularly return, for food, to the
pond of the decoy, where they mix with tame ducks, which never quit the
place. When it is required to catch the wild birds a quantity of hemp-seed
is thrown into the ditches. The decoy and tame ducks lead them in search of
this, along the ditches, which generally have reed-skreens at certain
intervals on each side, to prevent the decoy-man from being seen. And as
soon as they have advanced to the part of the ditch over which the net is
extended, the man appears behind. Fearful of returning past him, and unable
to escape by flight, they proceed onward to the end of the net, which
terminates on the land, and are there caught by a man stationed for the
purpose. The trained birds return back, past the decoy-man, into the pond
again. The general season for catching wild ducks is from the latter end of
October until the beginning of February; and we are informed that, in ten
decoys which are near Wainfleet, as many as 31,200 wild ducks, wigeon,
teal, and other water fowl, were caught in a single season.
These birds are the original to which we are indebted for our valuable
breed, the common or _tame duck_.
185. _The TEAL and WIGEON_ (Anas crecca _and_ penelope) _are two small
species of duck, of which the former has a green spot on each wing, and a
white line about and beneath the eyes; and the latter has the tail
somewhat pointed, the under part near the tail black, the head brown, the
front white, and the back waved with ash-coloured and blackish marks._
Both these species are common in England, and are killed for the table.
186. _The EIDER DUCK_ (Anas mollissima, Fig. 48) _is about twice the size
of the common duck, and known by its bill being cylindric, and the cere
or naked skin at the base being divided into two parts at the back, and
wrinkled._
_These birds inhabit the northern parts of Europe, Asia, and America, and
generally form their nests on small islands not far from the sea-shore._
The nests of eider ducks are constructed, externally, of marine plants, and
lined with white down, which the birds pluck from their own breasts. This
is the substance called _eider down_. It is collected, from the nests, by
the bird-catchers, who, for that purpose, carefully remove the females, and
then take away a certain portion both of down and eggs from each. More down
is plucked from their breasts, and more eggs are laid to supply the place
of those that have been taken. The nests are plundered in the same manner
as before; and when the young ones are fledged, the whole of the down that
remains is collected. It is generally reckoned that the down of one nest,
after it has been picked and cleansed, will weigh about a quarter of a
pound; and the bulk of the whole quantity may easily be imagined, when it
is stated that three quarters of an ounce of eider down is more than
sufficient to fill the crown of a large hat. The use of this down is for
making beds, but, particularly, for making what are called down quilts, a
kind of covering almost like a feather bed, which is used in the northern
countries of Europe, as a protection against cold, instead of a common
quilt, or blanket.
The _flesh_ and the _eggs_ of these birds are used for food, and their
_skins_ are sewed together and made into under garments by the inhabitants
of Greenland.
187. _The PUFFIN_ (Alca arctica, Fig. 49) _is a marine bird about the
size of a pigeon, and distinguished by having a large bill compressed at
the sides and marked with four grooves; the top of the head, a ring round
the throat, and all the upper parts of the plumage, black, and the under
parts white._
_These are birds of passage, arriving in this country about the beginning
of April, and leaving it in August. They are chiefly found on rocks and
elevated ground, in unfrequented places, near the sea-shore._
The breeding of puffins is encouraged in the island of Prestholme, North
Wales, and other parts of the British dominions, as a source of profit. The
birds, which, in some places, are numerous beyond all calculation, form
their nests in holes in the ground, each nest containing only a single
white egg. The young ones are seized before they are quite fledged; and,
after the bones are taken out, the skin is closed round the flesh, and they
are pickled in vinegar impregnated with spices. In this state they are sold
as a delicacy for the table. The flesh of the old birds is rank and
unpalatable, in consequence of their feeding on seaweeds and fish. We are
informed, by Dr. Caius, that in Roman Catholic countries, puffins are
permitted to be eaten instead of fish during Lent, and on other fast days.
188. _PENGUINS_ (Fig 50.) _are a tribe of marine birds with straight and
narrow bills, furrowed at the sides; the legs situated so far back that
they walk in an upright position; and the wings small, not calculated for
flight, and covered with a broad and strong membrane._
_Most of the penguins are found in different islands of the South Seas._
Vast numbers of these birds inhabit the Falkland islands, and, to mariners,
they have sometimes afforded a very seasonable supply of food. They are in
general extremely fat, and must be skinned before they are eaten. Sometimes
they have been salted and packed in casks to supply the place of beef.
These birds are so fearless of the approach of mankind, that there is no
difficulty in knocking them down and killing them with sticks.
Penguins form their nests in holes in the ground, and generally lay one egg
in each nest. The _eggs_ are an excellent food.
189. _PELECANS, or CORVORANTS, are a tribe of birds distinguished by
their bills being hooked at the end, and furnished with a nail at the
point and a pouch beneath, and having their face naked._
_There are more than thirty known species of pelecans, some of which are
found in nearly every part of the world._
Of these the most remarkable species is the great, or WHITE PELECAN
(_Pelecanus onocrolalus_). It is furnished with a bag attached to the lower
mandible of its bill, so large as to be capable of containing a great
number of fish. On these the pelecan feeds, and, by means of this bag, is
enabled to convey them as food for its offspring. We are informed that the
inhabitants of Mexico sometimes obtain a supply of fish by cruelly breaking
the wing of a live pelecan, and then tying the bird to a tree. Its screams
are said to attract other pelecans to the place, which give up a portion of
the provisions they have collected to their imprisoned companion. As soon
as this is observed the men, who are concealed at a little distance, rush
to the spot, and take away all except a small portion, sufficient for the
support of the prisoner.
The Chinese train one of the species (_Pelecanus sinensis_) to catch fish,
and the birds are so well trained that they do not appear to swallow any,
but such as are given to them for encouragement and food.
190. The GANNET (_Pelecanus bassanus_, Fig. 51) is a species of pelecan so
numerous, and, at the same time, so important to the inhabitants of some
parts of Scotland, that, in the island of St. Kilda only, more than 20,000
are said to be annually killed by the inhabitants as food. The young birds,
however, alone are eatable; and, to obtain these and the eggs, the
bird-catchers undergo the greatest risks. They not only climb the rocks,
but even allow themselves to be lowered from the top of the most dangerous
precipices, by ropes, to the ledges on which the nests are placed. As
gannets and their eggs are a principal support of the inhabitants of St.
Kilda throughout the year, they are preserved, for this purpose, in a
frozen state, in small pyramidal stone buildings covered with turf and
ashes.
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