PIGEONS AND ALL ABOUT THEM. 205 



spouts. The neck is short and tapers gradually from the 

 square shoulders to the head. The breast is broad and full 

 and should stand well out, but not detract from the plump 

 body lines. Back broad and flat. The wings rest above the 

 tail, which latter is of medium length, and the legs are 

 short. Barbs come in Blacks, Reds, Duns, Yellows and 

 Whites. 



A great deal depends on keeping the wattle in good shape. 

 It is so large that it is apt to become the abiding place for 

 little ulcerations. The tendency to these sores does not come 

 from heredity, but is the effect of dirt and extraneous matter 

 that gets into the little crevices. When a barb is to be shown, 

 the most caieful attention must be shown to its wattles. 



The Barb is a bird that must be kept in confinement, as a 

 well developed specimen cannot see either in front or behind. 

 The old authorities are fond of referring to the Barb as a 

 "spool-head" and looking at it from the front, its head has 

 much the appearance of a spool with the winding part of the 

 spool as a base, and the two sides for the eye wattle. 



It is hard to breed Barbs without good nurses. Their fec- 

 undity is great, but. through peculiar head formation, they 

 lack the ability to feed their young. As in many other birds 

 where the egg must be removed, it is not well to let the lien^ 

 over-lay. They should be allowed to set on their own eggs 

 or on "dummies"' until nature has a chance. 



The Barb does not reach its show form till about three 

 years old, and it is hard to tell just how the average young- 

 ster in the loft will turn out. If it has the proper head for- 

 mation the chances are that the wattle will come all right 



