LL-L "Games" 2008.04.19 (04) [E]

[Lowlands-L List]

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L O W L A N D S - L - 13 April 2008 - Volume 04
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From: Mark Dreyer <mrdreyer at lantic.net>
Subject: LL-L "Games" 2008.04.18 (09) [E]

 Beste Luc:

Subject: LL-L "Games"

I apologise: It was in an evil moment I forgot the gustatory proclivities of
a significant element of our Lowlands community. As for 'die hondevreters',
let it be remembered as a tragic resort of an evil time (not the first or
only in the whole World), & a memorial of the same encapsulated in gallows
humour, "I can't help thinking how Fido would have enjoyed the bones..."

I wrote:

Pigeons had (for all I know still have) the same domestic status as dogs &
horses. Only unregenerate parvenus would stoop to eating the noble bird.
Don't you have chickens?

You wrote:

Oops, maybe we're just cannibals, but we eat them all: horses and pigeons,
and even dogs (the latter only during wartime, nickname of inhabitants of
Boom still is "d'honnefrètters"). Pigeon meat is considered a delicacy, and
used to be given only to ill people or people recovering from a disease;
nowadays, you can buy pigeon in most supermarkets. At the same time, the
bird is still held in high regard though.

Yrs,
Mark

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From: Tom Mc Rae <t.mcrae at uq.net.au>
Subject: LL-L "Games" 2008.04.18 (09) [E]

On 19/04/2008, at 10:32 AM,
Luc Hellinckx <luc.hellinckx at gmail.com> wrote:

 Pigeon meat is considered a delicacy,


It most certainly is, in earlier times in Scotland and England all noble
houses and castles had a pigeon loft
to ensure a supply of good meat. During my days in Northern Ghana I would
shoot the large West African Green Pigeons,
as they feed largely on wild figs the meat is fantastic. North Africa of
course has its famous Bstilla, a dish of stewed pigeon
in a savoury custard sauce layered with filo pastry an dusted lightly with
icing sugar.

Regards

Tom Mc Rae

Brisbane Australia

Oh Wad Some Power the Giftie Gie Us

Tae See Oorsel's as Ithers See Us

Robert Burns

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From: Paul Finlow-Bates <wolf_thunder51 at yahoo.co.uk>
Subject: LL-L "Games" 2008.04.18 (06) [E]

Dear Elsie, Roger, Mark and all,

Subject: LL-L "Games"

Re pigeon racing

It has always been quite popular in England, traditionally associated with
the Northern English working class, though it certainly has followers in
other areas and other social groups.
The recovery of the peregrine falcon from the brink of extinction has led to
some fanciers actually calling for a return to the persecution! Tough luck I
say: if you don't like predators eating a prey animal, don't race prey
animals.  Given the millions of feral pigeons  ("sky-rats") in UK cities, I
don't suppose the peregrines get around to too many prize racers anyway.

Paul Finlow-Bates

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From: Mike Morgan <mwmosaka at gmail.com>
Subject: LL-L "Games" 2008.04.18 (06) [E]

Luc wrote:

PS: Pigeon racing still happens, but is not as popular as it used to be (
> http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duivensport). I was once told that the best
> pigeons are sold for an awful lot of money to the Japanese.


Yes, true. Although he was not in THAT class of people (rich enough to buy
the best), I had a Japanese Deaf friend who used to go to Taiwan every year
to buy racing / homing pigeons and spent a healthy (unhealthy?) portion of
his salary on that hobby. That was about 10 years ago, and I have lost touch
with him, but I would guess he still pursues the hobby.

MWM || マイク || Мика || माईक || માઈક || ਮਾਈਕ
================
Dr Michael W Morgan
Managing Director
Ishara Foundation
Mumbai (Bombay), India
++++++++++++++++
माईकल मोर्गन (पी.एच.डी.)
मेनेजिंग डॉयरेक्टर
ईशारा फॉउंडेशन (मुंबई )
++++++++++++++++
茂流岸マイク(言語学博士)
イシャラ基金の専務理事・事務局長
ムンバイ(ボンベイ)、インド

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From: Sandy Fleming <sandy at scotstext.org>
Subject: LL-L "Games" 2008.04.18 (01) [E]

> From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
> Subject: Games

> I understand that pigeon racing is or used to be very common in
> Belgium and Britain as well. What about the Netherlands and other
> countries?

This was very popular in my village in Scotland and the men often
enthusiastically discussed their pigeons ("dous" /du:z/) and many
gardens had a doucot (/'duk@?/).

These men also often ate one of their pigeons. Motivation for the other
pigeons to win races?  :)

Sandy Fleming
http://scotstext.org/

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From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
Subject: Games

Pigeon meat used to be eaten all over Europe and in many other parts of the
world. However, the favorite has always be squab, which is young pigeon
meat.

My father raced pigeons and bred racing pigeons, and he separated inferior
stock for the pot. We children hated it for several reasons. When I invited
my Chinese roommate and his girlfriend to the first, newly opened "Western"
restaurant in Nanjing, the only main dish on the menu that evening included
pigeon, a whole pigeon for each person, as tough as old boots, obviously not
the squab kind. (You should have seen some of the customers trying to handle
it with chopsticks!)

Horse meat is traditionally eaten in Central Asia, France, Belgium and --
unbeknown to many -- in parts of Germany, including the north (also in the
Netherlands?). When I was a child there was a horse meat shop in the
neighborhood. My father made me eat horse steak a few times, and I hated it.
Besides, it, too, was as tough as tough can be. I suspect we were partaking
of retired race and draft horses ...

Dog meat is eaten in various parts of the world also, for instance in some
parts of Siberia, Manchuria, China and Korea. I once was tricked into eating
it in China. I was not a happy camper when I found out, even though at the
time I used to be a more adventurous eater and didn't have the ethical and
spiritual position that I have now.

(I love most types of animals and have particularly good rapport with birds,
cats, dogs and horses, easily befriend even the most timid ones, so much so
that once in Victoria, Canada, a draft horse Charlie followed me on the
sidewalk, complete with his large, heavy "handsome car", much to the
driver's consternation ...)

Regards,
Reinhard/Ron
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