BREEDING WHITE FACED SPANISH. 



395 



and there should be no apparent line or division 

 between the face and the ear-lobe. The wattles 

 are rather smaller than might be expected, and 

 are preferred small and thin. 



It is probable that the constitution of 

 Spanish might be yet revived by systematic 

 rational treatment, the total abandonment of 

 heat except in actual frost, and 

 Breeding seasonable breeding, which does not 



Spanish. exhaust the stock in cold weather. 



The breed is not one at all adapted 

 for early showing, and Spanish should not be 

 hatched till April or May ; if this be done, and 

 hens chiefly bred from, the chicks will feather 

 better and grow up much stronger. They do 

 well in brooders kept carefully from any excess 

 of heat, and the present delicate stock is often 

 helped a great deal by a little old ale and 

 shredded underdone meat once a day until 

 fledged. Care of the combs has already been 

 treated (pp. 200, 212-13). 



In breeding for the main point of face, much 

 judgment is required. It is better, as a rule, to 

 mate smooth-faced cockerels, even if somewhat 

 smaller in face (as such birds often are) with 

 large and rougher-faced hens, than to employ 

 the contrary plan, the produce of a male at all 

 rough in face being very uncertain. Anything 

 at all like a raw cross, even of good blood, often 

 works apparent havoc in the faces ; but never- 

 theless we would use a good bird in this way, in 

 order to get, if possible, more constitution ; as 

 breeding back to " line" will make matters right 

 in another generation or two. The greatest 

 fault of the faces at present is not beingflatand 

 free from folds: so many are folded, wrinkled, 

 or doubled. Something can be done to avoid 

 this, as already indicated (p. 213), by taking 

 symptoms early, and treating by gentle exten- 

 sion at frequent intervals, but the root of the 

 mischief is in selecting stock too broad in face 

 on both sides. This tends to produce more face 

 than the surface can really carry, and hence it 

 folds or wrinkles up. Too thick or coarse a 

 face is not only ugly in itself, but as the bird 

 gets older very often grows so much as to 

 obstruct the sight. In such cases a little has 

 to be cut away with fine-pointed scissors. This 

 operation, as we have seen it done, did not 

 appear to cause much pain ; but it is very easy 

 to give a few whiffs of chloroform after missing 

 a feed, and it is pleasanter to know that the 

 bird really cannot feel. Fowls as a rule take 

 chloroform exceedingly well. 



It is not easy to determine the ultimate 

 quality of the chickens while young, and we 

 have known great mistakes made even by skilled 

 breeders. The late Mr. Jones will be remem- 



bered by many as one of the most successful : 

 on one occasion he had ordered a cockerel 

 for execution early in autumn. His " man," 

 however, thought differently, and as the bird had 

 a particularly handsome comb, kept him on for a 

 bit to see what he would come to. He began to 

 make up hand over hand, and turned out the 

 champion bird of the year I Faces which show 

 red, or even any blush of it, at an early age may 

 of course be safely discarded. The best birds 

 usually look a curious sort of blue in the face 

 while young, steadily clearing to white as they 

 grow older. The difficulty comes more in judg- 

 ing the ultimate size of face, which sometimes 

 turns out much more and sometimes less than 

 might be expected. 



In regard to treatment when grown, we knew 

 all the Bristol yards well, and from their experi- 

 ence, collated and compared, acquired the 

 decided conviction that Spanish did best of all 

 in rather small grass runs, with a pretty ample 

 shed boarded up two or three feet from the 

 ground, in which they could be confined during 

 windy or severe weather. When thus protected 

 from exposure and kept for most of the day 

 out of direct sun, they do not get very far out of 

 show condition ; but for ten days before a show 

 require to be kept in a rather dark 

 Exhibiting house or pen. Those at Bristol were 

 Spanish. mostly about 7 by 4 feet in floor 



space, boarded up about four feet 

 from the floor, and netted above so as to be 

 well ventilated ; and they had enough of a sort 

 of twilight for the birds to see their food and fly 

 up to their perches. They would be let out for 

 half an hour a day, when it was dull and mild; 

 but not in the cold, or in the sun, whilst being 

 got up for show ; and heat was not used except 

 in the coldest weather. Such a period of con- 

 finement in semi-darkness has great effect upon 

 plumage as well as face, making it bright and 

 glossy. Some of the present exhibitors of 

 Spanish employ more heat and time and dark- 

 ness than here described ; but such was found 

 sufficient by the breeders of the best specimens 

 which the world has ever seen, and is much 

 less tax upon the birds. Moreover, too much 

 darkness bleaches the comb and wattles as well 

 as the faces, giving (^uite a sickly appearance, 

 as can be seen in exhibited Spanish to-day. 

 By allowing more daylight and a little more 

 time this can be avoided. 



Previous to a show, the faces of Spanish 

 need special attention. As already intimated, 

 those of even good birds exposed to wind and 

 sun generally become more or less reddened 

 and harsh in texture ; so much being rectified 

 by confinement in semi-darkness, of from ten 



