"His Majesty's Dragon" [.]

[fiefoe]

Dragon lore within this book is fascinating, partially because the author wears her erudition lightly.

• The Chinese had been breading dragons for thousands of years before the Romans had ever domesticated the wild breeds of Europe; they were violently jealous of their work.
• The Chinese breed first for intelligence and grace; they have such overwhelming air superiority they do not need to seek such abilities in their lines. Japanese dragons are far more likely among the Oriental breeds to have any special offensive capabilities.
• This anatomical peculiarity renders them both more useful for breeding down into light-combat and courier breeds, rather than into heavy-combat breeds...
• It was Roger Bacon who first proposed the notion of breeding females of the smaller Bright Copper species to the great sire Conquistador, brought to England as part of the dowry of Eleanor of Castile. Though his suggestions were founded in the erroneous supposition of the time, which thought colour to be indicative of some elemental influence, and the shared ornage colour of the two breeds a sign of underlying congruence...
• Where was I to take him? To Russia? He will outlive me by two centuries, and you must know how they treat dragons there.

__ His usual bankers were Drummonds, in London, but... he had written to his prize-agent to direct the funds from the capture of the Ameitie here.
__ (The Chinese) may still choose to be quarrelsome about it; their regard for the laws of other nations is very small, and vanishes entirely where it conflicts with their own notions of proper behavior.