454 



JOURNAL OF HORTIOULTUEE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



( Juao 4, 1374. 



female parent, but this ia not very remarkable, as I find in the 

 crosses in my poultry-yard that the progeny resembles the males 

 more than the females — for instance, in the cross between the 

 Black Spanish cock and the Golden Hamburgh hen the chickens 

 are almost invariably black. I send you these few particulars, 

 because such a union as that between the wild Wood Pigeon 

 and the tame bird from the dovecote, is what has never come 

 under my observation previously, nor has such a fact ever been 

 recorded to my knowledge. There is not the slightest doubt of 

 •the facts. — T. G., Clitheroe. 



Sale of Eggs by Weight. — The Legislature of Masaaohusetts 

 has lately passed a law fixing IJ lb. as the minimum weight of a 

 dozen eggs. This is a move in the right direction, and we hope 

 other States will follow it up. An egg from a well-fed fowl is 

 heavier and richer than an egg from a common fowl that is only 

 half-fed, and it ia time that this old style of buying and seUing 

 eggs by number instead of weight should be discontinued. It 

 discourages the breeder of blooded and fine fowls to find that 

 their large eggs fetch no more than the small and poor produce 

 of inferior poultry. — (Flint [Michigati) Globe.) 





THE 



POULTKY-KEEPEE.— No. 



THE HOUDAN COCK. 



5. 



GENEBil. PROPORTIONS AND CHARACTERISTICS. 



Body a little rounded, compact, of ordinary proportions, of 

 low stature, solidly set on strong feet. Breast, thighs, legs, and 

 ■vringa well developed. Head strong, half-created ; whiskers. 



Fig. 11.— Houclan Cock's Head. 



^^»v.^<kM\^~ 





Fig. 10.— Houdan Cook. 



cravat, triple comb, spread out sideways but plates transverse. 

 'Five toes on each foot. Plumage variegated or spangled, black, 

 TThite, and Btraw-coloured. 



SIZE AND CHABACTEKISTICS. 



Body. — Circumference in the largest part, with the wings 

 closed behind the thighs at the part where they are jointed, but 

 without taking them in, from 18} to 21} inches; length to the 

 end of the rump about 10 inches ; size of shoulders, nearly 

 8 inches. 



Weight. — At full age 6 Iba. 10 oza. to 7J lbs. Flesh very abun- 

 dant. Bones small, about an eighth of the weight. 



Weight of Chicken. — The chicken fattens till four months 

 old ; it is killed at four months and a half. It weighs, the crop 

 and the intestines taken out, 4 lbs. 13J oza. 



Intestines empty 3 J oza. 



Gravel contained in the gizzard and feathers . . Ij „ 



Bonea 8J „ 



Flesh comprising the liver and gizzard 3 lbs. 15* „ 



Taking from the weight of the flesh, the liver, the gizzard, 

 the flesh of the head, the neck, and the feet, in other words the 

 giblets, there is 3J lbs. of solid meat. It will be aeeu that the 



bones of this variety should at least be reckoned an eighth, or 

 the bones are about a quarter of the useful meat. 



Si::e. — From the upper part of the head to under the feet, in 

 a resting position, I'J^ inches, in a moving position, 23} inches; 

 from the back under the feet 15 inches. 

 Head. — Length, 2jf inches. Comb triple, the plates in the 



direction of the beak com- 

 poaed of two flattened plates 

 of a prolonged and rectan- 

 gular form, opening to the 

 right and left like two leaves 

 of a book, denticulated at the 

 edgea, thick and fleshy. A 

 third caruncle cornea out of 

 the centre of the two pre- 

 ceding onea, of the form of 

 an uneven atrawberry and 

 the lengthened husk of a fil- 

 bert. 



Size of the Comh. — The two 

 carunclea or plates together, 

 from top to bottom, as well as 

 round, are about 2^ inches. 

 These sizea are not indispen- 

 sable, but they should not be 

 less. A small caruncle, sepa- 

 rate from the others and aa 

 large aa a tare seed, appears on the beak between the two 

 nostrils. 



Gills. — From 1^,-, inch to 2i! inches ; they grow out of the comb 

 close to the fleshy part which forms the cheeks, surround the 

 corners of the beak with distinct protuberances, and the eye 

 with a thick bare eyelid. 

 Ears. — Short and hidden by the whiskers. 

 Half-crest. — Falling towards the back and sides, some feathers 

 at the end pointed and drooping and pointing upwards. Length 

 of feathers, 2| inches. Size of the crest from 4J inches to 

 5} inches. 



Cheeks. — Bare, surrounded by whiskers formed of short, 

 turned-up, and pointed feathers. 



Cravat. — It begins between the gills under the beak, descends 

 the length of the neck, and stops at 21 or 2} inches, larger at the 

 bottom than at the top. 

 Eye. — Iris, golden yellow. Pupil, black. 



Beak. — Strong and a little hooked, black at the beginning and 

 yellow towards the tip, bending towarda the cravat. Comers of 

 the beak very much turned-in. 



Physioynoniy of the Head. — Different to that of any other 

 variety by many remarkable traits. The head forma with the 

 neck an angle only a little open, ao that the beak lowered, and 

 seen above is like a nose. The comb, square and 

 flattened, seems to be a fleshy forehead. The cheeks 

 are surrounded by feathers turned up, which are like 

 whiskers. The corners of the beak turned-in have the 

 appearance of a mouth and a cravat of feathers joined to 

 the gills are like a beard. The creat hke a mass of hair, 

 and the whole face immediately suggests that of a 

 man. 



Foot and Sole of the Foot. — Has five toes, three fore 

 ones resting on the ground, and two hind ones, one or 

 both resting or not resting, varying on different birds. 

 The two hind toes are rather detached or drawn together, 

 and nearly always one above the other. Length of sole, 

 4J inches; circumference, 2? inches. Length of toes, 

 middle ones, 3 J inches; inside ones, 23 inches; outside 

 ones, 2% inches; hind ones from 2^ to 3i inches. 

 Colour of the Foot. — Of the full-grown a leaden grey; of the 

 pullet a bluiah grey and white, with pink blotchea. 



THE PLUMAGE. 



The plumage should invariably be black, with white and atraw 

 colour ; those which have any red in the plumage ahould be dia- 

 carded at once. The plumage of the Houdan is called spangled 

 or speckled. It is irregularly composed of feathers some black, 

 some white, some black tipped with white, and others white 

 tipped with black. In the most-esteemed birds the feathers of 

 the hackle are black, white, and straw colour ; feathers of the 

 breast black tipped with white ; feathers of the loins velvety 

 black with a greenish hue, speckled with white and yellow at 

 the tips ; feathers of the sides and abdomen mixed white, black, 

 and grey ; feathers of the thighs black and white, speckled with 

 white at the ends ; the outside and inside feathers of the leg 

 black, strongly apeckled with white at the enda ; the feathers 

 covering the tail, or the large, middle, and little aickles, black 

 tinted with very brilliant green, sometimes intermingled with 

 spots of white ; feathers of the tail, or great tail feathers, white, 

 black, black mixed with white, and vice versa ; ahoulder feathers 

 straw-coloured, tipped with white ; large feathers of the pinion 

 white, or black and white, irregularly spotted ; large flying 

 feathers white, mixed with large black irregular spots ; the 

 whole of the flight feathers being white is preferable ; feathers 



