CHAPTER XXII 



THE CRESTED CANARY 



The " Crested " Canary takes its name heautifnl ercsted birds used to be Ijred in 

 from the to]ii)in<i', or erest, wliieli adorns Xorwieh, aiui tiiouyli tlicy laeked eoiour, 

 its head. It was rormcrly tiiey were essentially true to type in shape 

 known as. and is still some- and feather. This abscnec of eoiour may 

 times called by old breeders, the "Topping"' have led to the supposition that these old 

 or "Turncrown" Canary. The term was Turnerowns were of inferior blood, and, 

 orioinally used for any crested Canary, while rejoicing in a good crest, were used 

 and not for the Norwich type in particular ; to produce crest-formation among higher- 

 for it is a feature of old date, and common class birds. It is more probable that the 

 enough among German song-birds. It is old crest-breeders Avere obliged to relinquish 

 most striking, and just one of those points colour in following up good strains, and 

 likely to catch the eye of a fancier when that although there is such a disparity 

 even in an imjicrfect form, and on which between the colour of the Norwich Plain- 

 he would expend some pains to build it head and the Crest, they may, after all, 

 U]) to his ideal standard; and so furnishes be not so distantly related, and the crest 

 a cai)ital illustration of his work, as dis- or turncrown may have been a native 

 tinct from that of the naturalist. The feature. 



crest, once permanently fixed, would soon For years, great effort has been made 



attract attention and be grafted into more to imj^rove the style by im])orting good 



than one \ariety. Prominent among such crest from every available source, the 



stiinils the Norwich type, on which the object being, after having bred m the crest, 



erest has been so carefully cultivated as to breed out all those points in which the 



to have long become an established variety. olTspring dilTer from the high-bred Norwich 



We say Norwich, though the bird is now stem upon which the crest is grafted ; and 



far removed from that type; but the in doing this considerable judgment and 



fancier's aim is to |)roduce a chubby-built care ai-e recjuired to ensure success, anil a 



bird, though " Crest " in his Crested l)irds s|)eeimen showing the correct jn'operties 



and massiveness of hciid with density and of a, Norwich l'lainh(;iil with ;i large crest 



length of head feathei- in his Ciestbrcds is still the- exee])tion. l''or many years 



are the first considerations. now the type has Ixcn so altered from that 



Wi- also liiid the crest existing under its oF Ihc (jrigiiKil that the word "' Norwich " 



old name of " Co|)j)y "' in Ihc i.ancashire has been almost dropped, and the bird 



oT to-day, but wc do ikjI regard this on called the "Crest CaiKiry." 



that account as the original stock. For From llic cliMraeler ol' IVatliering oT t he 



both it and the old Norwich Turncrown Norwich ( :iii:iry. there is a boimd beyond 



nnist have long (lourishcd eoincidcntly in which it ciniLol p;iss in crest -development. 



days of dilliciill Iraxcl with Ihc existence Breeders have I'oniid that to ni:iin1;iiii the 



of each scarcely known to the other. 'I'he larger crest it is necessary to (Icjiarl Ironi 



crest now is more oT .1 made-up tyi)e tliaii that severe ty])e which demands a (piality 



the old Norwich Tuiiierowu. which is seldom of leathering at variance with the reipiisites 



seen now, though sctme years ago very for a I'idl erest. Crest in conjunel ion only 



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