ABSTRACT
The Feng Huang ( •• ) like the dragon of leg~nd IS a composite conception, combining all that IS beautiful m the ornithological kingdom. The derivation of its name implies that it is
Phoenix - 81-
the emperor of birds, just as the unicorn surpasses every animal on earth. One author, whose imagination must have outrun his scientific approach described it as resembling a wild swan in front, and a unicorn behind. He gave it the throat of a. swallow, the bill of a chicken, the neck of a serpent, and the tail of a fish. In this it had twelve feathers, but an extra one grew in an intercalary year. The forehead is that of a Manchurian crane, but it is crested like the mandarin drake, and, whilst it is striped like the tiger, its back has the dome shaped appearance of the tortoise.
