2S6 



THE BOOK OF POULTRY. 



cock, the shoulders being rather more prominent 

 Bach: Very flat, wide, and short. Cttshion : Ex- 

 ceedingly broad, full, and convex, rising from as far 

 forward as possible and almost burying the tail. 

 Whigs: As in the cock, but smaller in proportion, 

 the points being nearly buried in the abundant body- 

 feathering. Breast: Full, the keel as low as possible. 



Tail. — Very small, carried almost horizontally, 

 and nearly buried in the cushion. 



Legs and Feet.^As in the cock. 



Carriage. — Tending forivard, high at the cushion, 

 and with a very matronly appearance. 



Weight. — From 9 lb. to 11 lb.; pullet, 7 lb. to 

 9 lb. 



COLOUR 



THE BLACK 



Beak : Yellow, horn, or black. Comb, Face, etc. : 

 Ai in the Buff. (The comb in black Cochins has a 

 great tendency to be rough, but this is to be avoided.) 

 Eyes: Bright red, dark red, hazel, or nearly black. 

 Legs : Lizard. 



Plumage.— A rich black, well glossed (dull black 

 very objectionable) and free from golden or red 

 feathers. 



THE LEMON-BUFF, SILVER-BUFF, OR CINNAMON 



Beak : Rich yellow. Comb, Face, Ear-lobes, and 

 Wattles: Bright red. Eyes: To match the plumage 

 as nearly as possible. White or pearl eyes are 

 admired by many, but are very apt to become 

 blind. Red is preferable to any colour, as it denotes 

 greater vigour of constitution ; but red eyes in 

 Buffs are very rare. Legs: Yellow, and fading in 

 old birds, with a shade of red between the scales. 



Plumage of the Cock. — Breast and Under-parts : 

 Any shade of lemon-buff, silver-buff, or cinnamon, 

 provided it be even, and free from mottling. Neck- 

 hackle, Back, Shoulders, Wings, and Saddle: Anv 

 shade of deeper and richer colour which harmonises 

 well — lemon, gold, orange, or cinnamon — the wings 

 to be of perfectly sound colour, and free from meali- 

 ness. Tail: Of a still darker tint, but as free from 

 black as possible; white in the tail is very objection- 

 able in any colour except the White variety. 



Plumage of the Hen. — Body: All over an even 

 shade, free from mottled appearance. Hackle: A 

 deeper colour to harmonise, free from black pencil- 

 ling or cloudiness, cloudy hackles being especially 

 objectionable. Tail: As free from black feathers 

 as possible. Birds must match in the same pen, 

 and in matching different sexe.'i.lhe hen's body colour 

 must match that on the cock's breast and lower 

 parts. 



THE CUCKOO 



Beak : Rich bright yellow, but horn-colour per- 

 missible. Comb, Wattles, etc. : As in the Buff. 

 Eyes: Bright red. Legs: Brilliant yellow. 



Plunicige. — Ground-colour of blue grey, barred or 

 pencilled across with bands of dark blue grey; the 

 cock's hackle to be as free from a golden or red 

 tinge as possible, and his tail free from either black 

 or white feathers. 



THE PARTRIDGE OR GROUSE 



Beak : Yellow or horn colour. Comb, Wattles, 

 etc.: As in the Buff. Eyes: Bright red. Legs: 

 Yellow, of a dusky shade. 



Plumage of the Cock. — Hackle: Rich bright red 

 or orange red, with a dense black stripe in each 

 feather.- Back, Shoulder-coverts, and Wing-bow : 

 Rich red, of a more decided and darker shade than 

 the hackle. Wing-coverts : Metallic green-black, 

 forming a wide and sharply-cut bar across the wing. 

 Secondaries, rich bay on outside web, which is all 

 that appears when the wing is closed ; black on 

 the inside web ; end of every feather black. 

 Primaries, very dark bay on outside, dark on inside 

 web. Saddle: Rich red or orange red, either same 

 colour as (or one shade lighter than) the hackle. 

 Breast, Under-parts, Thighs, and Leg-feathers: 

 Glossy black, as intense as possible. Tail: Black, 

 richly glossed ; white in the tail not a disqualifica- 

 tion, but very objectionable. 



Plumage of the Hen. — Hackle: Bright gold, rich 

 gold, or orange gold, with a broad black stripe in 

 each feather, the marking extending well over the 

 crown of the head. Remainder of Plumage : Brown 

 ground-colour distinctly pencilled in a crescent form 

 with rich dark brown or black, the pencilling being 

 perfect and solid up to the throat, the leg-feather 

 to be pencilled as the body. 



THE WHITE 



Beak : Rich bright yellow. Comb, Face, etc. : As 

 in the Buff. Eyes: Pearl or bright red. Legs: 

 Yellow. 



Plumage Pure white, • free from any straw or 



red shade, or ticking of black or buff. The cock 

 will often show a straw tinge on his upper parts, 

 but this is to be avoided as far as possible. 



SCALE OF POINTS 



Colour, or marking in Partridge or Cuckoo ... 20 



Size ... .'.. ... ... ... ■... 15 



General symmetry ... ... ... ... 10 



Leg feather ... ... ... .. ... 10 



Head ... ... ... ... ... ... 10 



Cushion ... ... ... ... ... ... 8 



Fluff 7 



Tail 5 



Hackle 5 



Ear-lobes .... ... .. ... ... ... 5 



Condition ... ... ... ... ... ••• 5 



Serious defects : Primary wing feathers twisted 

 on their axis — "slipped" wing, the primaries being 

 outside the wing is objectionable, but cannot be 

 considered as a sufficiently serious defect to cause 

 a bird to be entirely thrown out of competition ; 

 utter absence of leg-feathers; legs of any colour than 

 yellow or flesh, except in Blacks, which may be 

 black; white or black feathers in Cuckoos; badly 

 twisted or falling combs; crooked backs, wry tails, 

 or any other actual deformity. 



