BREEDING THE NORWICH CANARY 



225 



throughout our nests ; but the result of 

 the season's breeding may show sucli a 

 marked difference in their respective 

 numbers as to puzzle us how to pair 

 them the next season without imminent 

 risk of injury to feather, which, in the 

 Canary, is a serious matter, because many 

 of the fancy points sought depend entirely 

 upon that display of feather caused by 

 the union of Yellow and Buff. 



For this reason we recommend pairing 

 a Buff bred from Yellow and Buff to a 

 Buff bred from two Buffs, if this mating 

 of like colours is necessary for more than 

 one year. The balance is, we admit, 

 pretty evenly maintained ; but the diffi- 

 culty is at the root of nuich of the failure 

 of some breeders through lack of thought 

 in pairing. 



The pairing of Yellow and Buff also affects 

 colour most materially. The Yellow is 

 undoubtedly the fountain of 

 colour, for though good Buffs 



The Source 

 of Colour. 



frequently display it in great 

 purity, yet the tendency of an ordinary 

 Buff is in the opposite direction. This is 

 sometimes a reason for pairing two Yellows, 

 the philosophy of the thing being nothing 

 more than a concentration into one channel 

 of the power to jiroduce yellow. Occasion- 

 ally it is found necessary to do this, owing 

 to some peculiar feature in the colour of 

 the feather, arising from too much con- 

 centration of Buff blood at some previous 

 stage, through which the brilliancy of the 

 yellow has been clouded by a decided 

 leaning towards the semi-opacity of the 

 duller shade. Its lustre must not be 

 dimmed by the suspicion of even the 

 fringe of meal, shown of late years in 

 many Yellows owing to abuse in double 

 buffing, ^yhere such Yellows occur we have 

 found that the pairing of " double Yellows " 

 ■ — i.e. the offspring of two Yellows — show- 

 ing this extra proportion of Buff blood 

 restores the proper balance of colour. 

 Buffs bred from loosely-feathered high- 

 coloured Yellows similarly paired have 

 the same effect, and the tendency to close- 

 ness of feather is also intensified. 



These observations apply simi:)ly to the 

 29 



general way in which colour can be affected 

 by systematic pairing. The whole thing 

 lies in a nutshell, so far as the simple 

 principles involved are concerned. The 

 Yellow bird represents brilliant colour, the 

 Buff bird subdued colour ; the former 

 fine, delicate feathering, the latter excess 

 of feather. The elements in each case are 

 simple, requiring nothing more than the 

 exercise of the most ordinary common 

 sense to control them, their mixture being 

 almost mechanical in its action. These 

 remarks are strictly general in their bear- 

 ing ; and when we refer to the pairing of 

 two Yellows or two Buffs, or the uniting 

 of these opposites, the question of the 

 degree of colour in either is not taken into 

 account in laying down a rule applicable 

 not only to the Norwich variety, but to 

 all Canaries, and which is intended to do 

 nothing more than indicate what is required 

 in the first place, whatever may be the 

 quality of the birds so put up for breeding, 

 whether as regards colour, distinctive plum- 

 age, shape, size, or any other feature. 

 The distinctions which are peculiar to 

 Buff and Yellow birds respectively are 

 possibly entirely the result of selection 

 in breeding, and are not native to birds 

 in a wild state, though there are different 

 degrees of colour in some of these. They 

 are, therefore, properties which can be 

 retained or lost, improved and made 

 thoroughly distinct in character, or allowed 

 to deteriorate by neglect. 



The necessity which exists for working 

 with two sets of birds, if we may so express 

 it, may make the business of breeding some- 

 times rather complicated ; but the pairing 

 of the two produces each in its beauty, 

 and even here the principles of pedigree 

 breeding can assist a thoughtful breeder 

 in directing the course of the channel in 

 which he may wish any stream to flow. 



We will assume that to produce Clear 



Norwichs is the aim of the breeder, and the 



" question is how to do it. 

 The Value pg^j^. q^^^^.^ Jj^ ^.j^g ^^ 



of Greens. . ■' 



have mentioned, and Clear 



offspring will be the result. There may, 



perhaps, be one here and there not quite 



