WHITE WYANDOTTES 



•323 



solid and rich buff possible, or else a rich gold 

 or bay. The most beautiful Chamois Polish 

 we ever saw were a deep rich gold, of a shade 

 which not only increased the beauty of the 

 lacing, but would probably be easier to breed 

 free from blurred lacing or from " meal." 



Of the White Wyandotte, the last really 

 pure or uncrossed descendant of the original 

 Wyandotte race — for it was undoubtedly a 

 sport from the Silver — the Rev. J. Cromble- 

 holme wrote as follows : — 



" If I desired to keep Wyandottcs for utility 

 purposes only, I should select the White. The 

 White, as a rule, is tiie plumpest Wyandotte 

 grown, for, as there are no mark- 

 White ings to breed for, but purity of 

 Wyandottes. white Only, one need not fear to 

 regularly introduce new blood in 

 the yard. As a consequence, the enervation of 

 constitution that follows too much in-breeding 

 does not exist, and strong progeny is ensured. 

 Another consequence of this freedom of choice 

 is that the Whites are the best layers. Sweep- 

 ing assertions of this nature are, perhaps, open 

 to contradiction ; at all events, my own best- 

 shaped Wyandottes are the Whites ; they are 

 also my best layers, and produce the most 

 fertile eggs. 



" In breeding Whites we must insist on 

 purity of colour. It is no use trying to get 

 good chickens from sappy parents. There is 

 something in a ' sappy ' feather which no one 

 that I know of has been able to diagnose, and 

 which is always perpetuated in young stock. 

 Anyone, then, anxious to breed exhibition 

 chickens must insist on a true white colour in 

 the parents. No matter how big or how fine 

 a cock or hen looks, if they are yellowish or 

 discoloured, keep them out of the breeding pen. 

 When I first began breeding White Wyandottes 

 I wrote to a noted breeder of White Leghorns, 

 and asked him how he managed to show such 

 extremely white birds, hinting that if there was 

 anything in it he might let me know. His 

 answer was, that his was a white strain. I 

 took it then that he did not wish to tell me his 

 secrets, and let the matter drop ; but now, after 

 eight years of breeding, I have come to the 

 conclusion that this White breeder was not 

 joking, but telling a straightforward tale." 



As supplementing these remarks, we quote a 

 description of " Standard Requirements "* in 

 W'hite Wyandottes from the pen of the Club's 

 Hon. Secretary, Mr. J. Stephen Hicks: — 



" I^tilitarians should remember that a per- 

 fect shaped bird, according to the standard, is 



* The Feathered World, No. 1119. 



necessarily a useful type, because good shape 

 indicates good table properties, and, in this 

 particular case, also winter-laying qualities. 



"Taking a cockerel first, and beginning 

 with his head, the beak is bright yellow, the 

 colour of the comb, face, wattles, and lobes 

 bright red, showing no traces of white ; the 

 comb itself is of course rose, or double, having 

 a fairly long and tapering spike or leader, 

 which must follow the curve of the head and 

 neck. What is termed the ' work ' in the comb 

 is really short, fine sprigs or spikes, which 

 should be regular and not coarse. The whole 

 appearance of the comb must be neat and sym- 

 metrical, broadest at the front or base, and 

 gradually narrowing. A plain, neat comb is 

 preferable to an overweening, lop-sided affair 

 full of coarse ' work.' 



"The neck hackles should be flowing and 

 fairly full, without being twisted or bunched ; 

 the shoulders are required broad and level ; 

 the wings straight and carried at a medium 

 height when folded to the body ; the whole 

 back outline should be one graceful, regular 

 curve, resembling the letter U with its sides 

 pulled outwards. The tail itself is very im- 

 portant ; it must be full and well spread, but 

 carried by no means high, and should help to 

 give a cobbiness so desirable to the general 

 impression of a white Wyandotte male. The 

 tail should not protrude much beyond the 

 body, and, indeed, if the true tail feathers 

 and the fluff about the stern almost form the 

 same line, the effect v/ill not be far wrong. The 

 body itself must be deep and broad, and if 

 that extremely difficult point, a full ' front,' or 

 deep, rounded breast be obtained, so much the 

 better. Many otherwise shapely males fall 

 away in the chest, leaving a hollow when 

 viewed sideways. The thighs should be of 

 medium length, and be strong and thick, giv- 

 ing an impression of good size without a trace 

 of lankiness, gawkiness, or the other extreme 

 of dumpiness. 



" Shanks and feet are required to be stout, 

 with well-spread toes, and of as bright a yellow 

 colour as possible, without a red tinge or any 

 signs of feathering. A good cockerel will 

 have them set well apart, as this is a sure sign 

 of vitality. 



" Purity of colour is of course required in 

 both sexes, but there is so much that might be 

 written on the subject that I will content my- 

 self by saying that the whiter a bird is the 

 better, and so much the more valuable for 

 breeding purposes. 



" The texture of the feathers is neither very 

 hard nor very soft — something a good deal 



