242 



THE BOOK OF POULTRY. 



this comparatively greater closeness of plumage 

 over the forward portions of the body, while 

 the hinder parts only were covered with deep 

 fluff, we now know was due the greater laying 

 powers of the Cochins of those days (see p. 174). 

 One or two other details about these early 

 Cochins are very interesting. Mr. Sturgeon 

 wrote (of buffs) even in 1853, that "the eye 

 should be red and full," since it had already been 

 found that " in all cases of contracted pupil and 

 blindness, the pearl or broken-eyed birds have 

 been the sufferers." This weakness of the pearl 



/x^/ /, 



stock as Mr. Sturgeon's buffs, one breeder pre- 

 ferring the light and the other the darker 

 colours. To the same mixture of colours is no 

 doubt due the number of varieties recognised 

 in the early " standards," buff, lemon, silver- 

 buff, silver-cinnamon, and cinnamon being all 

 separately described. 



Ten or twelve years did not make much 

 change in the general characteristics of Cochins, 

 yet a little is observable, as will be seen from 

 the accompanying drawings made in 1865 by 

 M. Jacque, the leading French poultry artist 



Vi«v\<\(.Q^M^_ 



Fig. 87. — Cochins in 1SG5. 



eye, and even of light yellow, still remains. The 

 early birds also bred most amazingly in regard 

 to colour, and the finest of the early blacks were 

 bred from a white cock and buff hen. From 

 one brood of ten chickens of this cross, two 

 pullets were pure black ; two pullets and three 

 cockerels black, with more or less gold in 

 hackles, and marked wings ; the other three 

 darkly pencilled birds. Another breeder put a 

 buff cock with dark partridge hens ; the pullets 

 from this cross were all light fawns. It has 

 already been noted that Mr. Punchard's par- 

 tridges were originally selected from the same 



of that day. Though the head is ill-drawn, the 

 cock here shows more "type" than the 1853 

 drawing, being more like the Cochin as we 

 know it ; and both birds show more softness 

 and looseness of feather over the zvhole of the 

 body than in the original type. It is this latter 

 change which was to proceed so much further 

 in later years, as shown very strongly in our 

 plates of to-day, and reaching its climax, per- 

 haps, in the American Cochin as now bred. 



The last marked change which took place 

 was the admission of vulture-hocks, due to the 

 passion for heavy shank-feather, together with 



