The Memoirs of Bābur 932.9.7

932.9.7

The (P.) _shārak_[1774] is another. It is numerous in the Lamghānāt and abounds lower down, all over Hindūstān. Like the parrot, it is of many kinds.—The kind that is numerous in the Lamghānāt has a black head; its primaries (_qānāt_) are spotted, its body rather larger and thicker[1775] than that of the (T.) _chūghūr-chūq_.[1776] People teach it to speak words.—Another kind they call _p:ndāwalī_[1777]; they bring it from Bengal; it is black all over and of much greater bulk than the _shārak_ (here, house-_mīna_). Its bill and foot are yellow and on each ear are yellow wattles which hang down and have a bad appearance.[1778] It learns to speak well and clearly.—Another kind of _shārak_ is slenderer than the last and is red round the eyes. It does not learn to speak. People call it the wood-_shārak_.[1779] Again, at the time when (934 AH.) I had made a bridge over Gang (Ganges), crossed it, and put my adversaries to flight, a kind of _shārak_ was seen, in the neighbourhood of Laknau and Aūd (Oude), for the first time, which had a white breast, piebald head, and black back. This kind does not learn to speak.[1780]