292 



CANARIES, HYBRIDS, AND BRITISH BIRDS 



Viirictv as in all others : wliat is lackinu' 



ill one bird must be made up abundantly 



in the bird with wliich it is paired. This 



will ap]ily to all defects. 



The usual orthodox pairing of Yellow to 



BufT should be adopted unless there is some 



speeifie object for doing' 



Other Points otherwise : then sometimes 

 lor Breeders. 



Yellows arc ])aircd together. 



or Buffs, as the case may demand. Occa- 

 sional double-buffing in this variety assists 

 in getting close. (•()iu])act feather, just as 

 double-yellowing will intensify colour. If, 

 however, a little Green blood is introduced 

 occasionally by pairing a marked bird to 

 a Clear instead of Clear to Clcai-, there will 

 be little need to double Yellow, though the 

 process of double-yellowing will tend to 

 reduce stoutness as w'cU as improve colour. 

 Mr. Thos. Arnot, of Hawick, Scotland, 

 one of the partners of the well-known 

 exhibitors, Messrs. Arnot and 



Mr. Thos. Jameson, says : 



Arnot on 



Borders. 



" When pairing up my liirds 



I give special allcnlion lo lype and cpialily. 

 and extra care to see that if one i)ird has a 

 fault tliat its mate is quite free from the l)Iem- 

 isli, as I lia\e fciuud l)y ])airiiig two birds to- 

 getlier lia\iii,u llie sliglitesl tendency to tlie 

 same fault the progeny from them were good for 

 nothing, exce])t tliat the cocks were useful as 

 songsters. I never despise a l)ird with a had 

 fault if tlie pedigree is good atul I have a 

 suitable bird free from that fault to ])air with 

 it. 'the defects 1 dislike most are Mat lieads, 

 sliorl, tliick neeUs. loo |iointed or fi'illed 

 breasts, slack or open hack feathers, too high 

 or long In leg, too loiig in tlights, too strong 

 ill lieak, and cutting otT loo sliort at vent, as 

 this gives a Harder too mueli the appearance of 

 a German. I am most careful if I use any tiirds 

 having any of these faults lo ])air them willi 

 specimens which are particularly good in these 

 ])oinls, ami which liave come from good stock. 

 I also like tyjie and quality in my hens, as in 

 my opinion iniieli more depends on the hen 

 for Ihf production of these |)oinls than the 

 cock. 



" 1 make free use of (jmiainou lildml in niv 

 pairing, and always pair with a view to ])ro- 

 tlucing Hven Marks, as iilenly of I'lievenly 

 Marked are always ohlalned even in aiming for 

 the more perfccl form. In breeding i:\-en 

 Marks I depend more on the hen than on (he 

 cock, especially ft)r good eye-marks. Of c(Hnse, 



there is always the exception, but f ha\c 

 invariably found this the rule. The hen thai I 

 like for Evell-.^^arked breeding is one with good 

 dark marks right round the eyes and well on 

 to the cheek, or else a .Self Green bred from 

 f-lven Marks, pairing these to a Clear or Ticked 

 cock bred from Even-Marked stock. I have 

 also found occasional double-bulling excellcnl 

 to keep the feather close and solid if at any time 

 there happened to be a tendency to looseness. 

 When douhle-buffhig, I always select liirds with 

 good under colour, short feather, nice round 

 heads, and fmely drawn necks — birds that stand 

 at the correct angle." 



]Mr. Thomas McCrcdie, of Dumfries, a 



breeder and exhibitor of note of the Border 



Fanev, savs : 

 Mr. T. McCredie's 



Experiences. 



" During my hfleen years 



breeding of this variety I have tried double 

 yellow breeding, but do not approve of it, as I 

 have never had any really good results from 

 such pairing, not even colfiur. The HI lie I 

 might have gained in this direction was more 

 IIkui lost in c[uality and finisli. which is of 

 greater importance. 1 have always practised 

 a little double-bufTing, as 1 think it is liere we 

 get our fixity of compact, close feather, provided 

 the practice is not abused, f bred some of the 

 best birds I ever exhibited from two Hutf ])arents 

 with a little (annamon blood in them. Cinna- 

 mon blood is good in the stock, and 1 have 

 always bred splendidly feathered liirds from its 

 use, working it in on the one side. 1 prefer, as 

 far as iiossible, to pair Yellow cock to Half hen, 

 or vice versa, getting the best results fnnn such 

 ])airing, having a little dark blood on the cock's 

 side with a Clear piuk-eyeil hen, which, of course, 

 is derlveil from the Cinnamon. By this pairing 

 f have got s|)lendid colour, quality of feather, 

 and good show specimens. In the case of using 

 a marked hen. I p:nr her to a Clear cock." 



It will be ol)scr\-c(l lliat .Mr. .\rnol ])ins 

 liis faith greatly to the hen for tlic |)i'o- 

 (luctit)n of K\'cn IMarUs, wliik' Mr. .^h■Cl•c(lic 

 places more reliance on the cock, and 

 says : 



" 111 the breeding of l-^ven .Marks we often 

 get one in I lie ordinary way when least ex- 

 pected ; but still we must usually breed for a 

 few seasons to get birds suilablc for producing 

 good marking, f like the cocks with good 

 marking on the eyes and wings only, and as 

 free from dark flue as possible, iiairing such 

 birds to tllear or 'ticked hens bled trdiii evenly 

 nuirked stock." 



