292 ANNUAL, REPORT OF THE Off. Doc. 



familiar with the LangshaD characteristics I might state, that this 

 bird, of all our varieties, comes nearer to being a turkey in quality 

 of skin and flavor than any of the others that we have. These are 

 the Langshans; it is a little hard to bring them in before an audience 

 this morning. 



These fowls conic in two colors, the white and the black, but 

 both of them have a peculiar skin, not found in any other of the 

 Asiatic varieties. If you will turn up the wing you will find that 

 the skin is of a pinkish white. If they were yellow they would be 

 thrown out of the show-room entirely. 



When vou come to roast that fowl — dress it out — vou will find 

 that the skin is of a pinkish white indicating the difference between 

 the Asiatic fowls and the American varieties. The Brahmas, Co- 

 chins, also the Plymouth Rock, are rather yellow skinned, and have 

 yellow shanks. 



If you go into the London market or the Paris market or especially 

 the New York market, you will never see a French chef — one of 

 those chefs of the great hotels in New York, selecting any of those 

 yellow shank fowls if he can buy one that is white skinned, because 

 of the fact that he knows that a yellow skinned bird is a thick- 

 fckinned bird with coarse fibre — a bird whose flesh is of a coarse 

 fibre, and is also accompanied by a less sporty quality or flavor. 

 He knows that with the thin skin you have always a fine texture and 

 a superior quality. Here is the bird (exhibiting one) that comes 

 nearer to the American turkej' in quality than anything we have. 

 The nearest approach to it now is an English variety recently intro- 

 duced. All my life I have been a fancier of the American varieties, 

 and as I have said, the American bird is good enough for me, but 

 I want to say that we are sitting at the feet of people who have 

 forgotten more than most of us know about this subject of poultry. 



(Mr. Orr exhibited the fowls to the audience, and said): This hen 

 illustrates a variety of fowl bred for show purposes. You will note 

 these beautiful penciled feathers, each feather marked with two 

 shades of brown, and these circles running around each feather. 

 We have in this variety what is known as the Partridge-Cochin. 

 These birds are inclined to be rather broody. If you want to have 

 early birds, you get them to lay early and they will become broodv 

 and will furnish hatchers for your early birds. Notice the feath- 

 ering on the shanks and on the heads. The English people are 

 surpassing us in this variety, having birds so heavily feathered 

 you will hardly recognize them. They exhibit a great mass of 

 feathers. (Mr Orr exhibited to the audience another specimen of 

 the fowls taken from one of the pens on the platform.) 



Orpingtons were originated by Mr. William Cook, of Orpington 

 House. England. He has been a lifetime in developing fancy fowls. 



