974 



THE BOOK OF POULTRY. 



Writing now, in 191 1, Mrs. Campbell sees 

 no reason to alter the foregoing remarks, but 

 considers Dark hens have been shown recently 

 much finer in size and shape. Dark cockerels 

 seem to have slipped back in numbers, for in 

 1909 and 1910 the Dairy classes were cancelled. 



Our experience was that it was perfectly 

 possible, with the richer colour, to produce both 

 sexes of the same strain for exhibition. The 

 simple necessities were that while the breast 

 might be perfectly black, and if so must be up 

 to the very throat, the fluff behind the thighs 

 had to be a little laced round the edges. The 

 rest depended upon the strain, and upon a proper 

 balance of striping in the cockerels, as between 

 neck-hackle in front, and saddle-hackle and 

 tail-coverts at the other end. We too could 

 heartily wish that the grander and darker birds 

 of former years could be revived. 



One expedient has sometimes occurred to 

 us, which might perhaps meet the views of both 

 parties, more especially in days when the making 

 of extra varieties seems fashionable. It would 

 consist in recognising the newer colour, and 

 dividing the Dark Brahma into two varieties. 

 If the lighter shades in pullets and hens were 

 called say " silver-pencilled " Brahmas, and their 

 laced-breasted cockerels (which are sometimes 

 very beautiful) shown as their mates, breeders 

 of this type would have a scope for their cockerels 

 which they have not now, and breeding for 

 marking only might be expected to reach yet 

 greater perfection. On the other hand the 

 " Dark " Brahma could then be restricted to the 

 really dark birds, which also could be bred and 

 shown as in the olden days. Even in these, 

 speckled-breasted cockerels often occurred, and 

 were invaluable for pullet-breeding ; but these 

 often produced black-breasted offspring in turn, 

 and had a sort of deep colour about their black 

 which is very different from such as would be 

 shown in the suggested laced or speckled 

 " silver " class. Generally speaking, whatever 

 system of breeding be pursued, it is better 

 to use a cockerel bred from hens or pullets a 

 shade darker than the colour desired, or those 

 he is mated with, as in the pale-grounded strains 

 especially, the depth of colour tends to run out 



Weeding out wasters is in one point rather 

 a ticklish process in Brahmas. By the time 

 they are four or five months old, many of the 

 cockerels are so dreadfully " gawky " that no 

 one could believe they could ever come to any 

 good, whereas these ugly birds often turn out 

 best. But we learnt in our own yard that at 

 ten or twelve weeks old, very often much of the 

 real carriage and gait would be seen, to be lost 

 for several months and then recovered aeain 



in the grown bird. An eye should always be 

 kept upon the cockerels at this age, therefore ; 

 and if a chicken has fine body and proportion 

 then, never mind if he gets leggy and ugly later 

 on ; let him make his frame, and by-and-bye he 

 will settle down again. Light chickens often 

 show all sorts of black splashes, which moult out 

 by autumn. Dark cockerels usually have more 

 or less brown in their chicken feathers, which 

 moult out clear; but these are certainly less 

 common than they were, and it is possible that 

 some day we may have a race that never shows 

 other than pure white and black. 



The type of Brahma in America, as we have 

 gathered from attentive comparison of many 

 articles and illustrations, and correspondence 



with the veteran Mr. I. K. Felch 

 Brahmas (of Natick) and Messrs. Sharp (of 



in Taunton, Mass.), differs very con- 



America, siderably from the British in both 



varieties. In regard to shape, 

 American breeders have mainly kept to the 

 older model, with less fluff and foot feather, as 

 it was known in England about 1870-4. Es- 

 pecially have they retained the longer body of 

 the more Indian component in the fowl, and 

 consistently disqualified for stiff projecting hocks. 

 From these causes the Brahma in America has 

 retained much of its popularity and reputation 

 as a " utility " fowl, some of the very best layers 

 recorded — far above 200 eggs per annum — 

 being Light Brahmas, and some of these suc- 

 cessful exhibition specimens. Mr. I. K. Felch 

 writes us, that from the average of many obser- 

 vations, so far as he has been able to compare 

 specimens (derived from English stock) of the 

 more Chinese or short-bodied type, the " long- 

 bodied Brahma will lay at least 40 per cent, 

 more eggs than the shorter-bodied birds." If 

 there is anything in " egg-type " at all, this is 

 probably correct. 



Some prominent breeders have during late 

 years endeavoured to produce profuse shank- 

 feather in combination with soft curling hocks, 

 and have succeeded in great measure, as 

 in the case of Cochins. The illustrations we 

 have seen of this class of birds appear to 

 indicate a rather shorter body than the older 

 type, but still with more length and sprightli- 

 ness of form than shown by most of the 

 present English exhibition Brahmas. The 

 accompanying illustration by ]\Ir. Franklane 

 Sewell, facile princeps as the poultry artist of 

 America (for which we are again indebted to 

 the Reliable Poultry Journal), exhibits this 

 more modern type of American Brahma. The 

 length of body in the cock will be noticed, and 



