268 



THE BOOK OF POULTRY. 



The hen is the same general colour, the head 

 being white, and the hackle lower down broadly 

 and densely and sharply striped with black. 

 Her tail is black, or may be laced with white, 

 and primaries and secondaries of the wings, and 

 shank-feathers, are as in the cock. The rest of 

 the body pure white all over in surface-colour, 

 except the rearmost tail coverts, which are black 

 edged with white, and the cape between 

 shoulders, which is often more or less black. 

 The under-fluff may be either white or grey as 

 in the cock. 



We have now to consider how su.ch birds are 

 to be bred : a task which is not easy according 

 to the high standard of the present day. To 

 have any chance of success, a cock 

 Breeding qj- cockerel vmst be selected with 



Brahinas. Vi&^y head and comb : the male bird 

 is all-important in these points, and 

 the day is gone by when a coarse head and a 

 bloated mass of red can win at good shows. 

 The bird must, of course, also be typical in 

 shape and size ; but on the other hand, if he 

 is really good in other points, there is no need 

 that he should be large. Size is the one point 

 in which, if necessary, expenditure may be 

 saved. 



The next most important point to look 

 after is the quality of his colour ; by which we 

 mean, not the amount of black he may have, 

 but that his white is clear skim-milk white, and 

 the black a dense black. The same remarks 

 about what is called "sap in feathers" while 

 growing, made in the case of Cochins, apply here 

 also. If such a bird can possibly be got, one 

 that has been white as a cockerel, and moulted 

 white, and grown his feathers white whilst in the 

 quill, will save a lot of trouble in breeding out 

 yellow tinge later. The point is not quite so 

 vital in hens, but in their case also this pure real 

 white, not cream, is the point of greatest value. 

 Brown or indistinct striping in the hackles, will 

 also entail tedious work later on to breed them 

 good. 



The amount of colour in the birds mated 

 is the final thing to be considered, so far as 

 colour is in question. If a cockerel as first 

 described can be secured of the exhibition type, 

 and also pullets or hens of the ideal exhibition 

 type, that is, with hackles really sharply and 

 densely striped like Fig. gi, and nicely edged 

 tail coverts, and both sexes are really free from 

 all surface splashes or ticks in undesirable places, 

 this mating will usually produce good chickens of 

 both sexes, unless too " raw " a cross (as ex- 

 plained in Chapter XL). But such mates are very 

 hard to get. The standing difficulty remains 

 where it was years ago, in getting sufficient 



marking in the hackles and about the tail, 

 without ticks or splashes of black where not 

 wanted. Of late birds have been shown with 

 darker hackles and saddles than formerly, and 

 pullets with their hackles almost black ; and as 

 a result there have been too many in the pens 

 showing black specks all about the body, or at 

 the ends of the wings, or splashes on the hocks 

 or amongst the fluff. This may occur from 

 mating either dark hackles together, or when 

 both of the pair have grey under-fluff, which is 

 undesirable with the present stock of to-day. 

 Both sexes being of exhibition standard in 

 colour, therefore, if one sex has dark under-fluff, 



Fig. 91.— Show Hackle. Fig. 92.— Dark Hackle. 



the other should have white ; and if the cock 

 has a striped saddle and somewhat dark hackle, 

 both may often have white under-colour with 

 advantage. The result will then depend chiefly 

 upon the density and sharpness of the hackle- 

 striping, particularly in the hens. If the cock 

 is not particularly dark, but what may be called 

 a nice average, it is as well to have one or two 

 of his mates with rather too dark hackles, the 

 produce of which may often be amongst the best 

 of the bunch. 



The above may be termed exhibition matmg 

 or single mating, and this is a breed in which 

 with care that may at least be bred up to, if not 

 always possible at first. But there are other 

 ways of mating which are quite successful, 

 balancing too much colour on one side by less 



