356 



Having afterwards bred from the White cock above mentioned and a pure 

 White game hen, some excellent Whites, and having among them a very trouble- 

 some young White cock that annoyed everyone with his fighting propensities, I 

 placed him at my stables, some little distance away in the village, where I then 

 resided. Close to this stable lived a farmer, who had a fine breed of Dorkings and 

 other common farmyard poultry, of which he kept a number. The first thing 

 that happened : — My young White cock (in spite of everything) killed all the 

 farmer's cocks that would stand up to him (he was the most determined fighter I 

 ever saw), and then possessed himself of all the hens, and as he was a fine bird 

 he was allowed to remain with them, some large table-birds being e.Kpected from 

 the cross. A great many chickens were the result, but all small, and all Blues, 

 showing no white, and being in colour like Blue game, all with single combs and 

 dark legs, and with some of the elegance of the game fowl in their appearance. I 

 afterwards disposed of this White game cockerel, and his progeny, the Blue farm- 

 yard cross, were allowed to breed with each other. In about three seasons all 

 trace of blue colour had disappeared, and they had relapsed into common Red 

 single-combed cocks, more or less barred on the wing, whilst the hens appeared 

 common Brown single-combed birds, scarcely, if at all, distinguishable from the 

 common Barn-door fowl of the country. 



Some years after this, thinking to obtain some more Blues, as their scarcity 

 made them valuable, I again obtained a good Black-red hen, to which I put a pure 

 White game cock of the same strain as the White cock first mentioned, but, alas, 

 " 'Tis not in mortals to command success." The chickens turned out all Cuckoo 

 game of the purest type, both cockerels and pullets, without red, most regularly 

 barred over the entire body and very beautiful. 1 parted with them to a friend of 

 mine who is a game-fancier, and he bred from them. The result was exactly the 

 same as in the Blues, the birds got smaller, the consequence probably of breeding 

 from brother and sister, whilst over them, especially in the cock, red feathers 

 were sprinkled. They were afterwards scjld, and I have never seen any Cuckoo 

 game since, but I have little doubt that if their descendants had been permitted to 

 breed with each other they would have developed ultimately into cocks, more or 

 less red, and hens brown or partridge-coloured ; whilst on the other hand, as in 

 the Blues, the introduction of fresh Cuckoo game blood, and a little care in 

 breeding, would have established a permanent breed of this variety. 



From the above it will be seen that although birds of a marked different 

 variety were bred from, namely, Black-reds and Whites, producing birds of two 

 other very pronounced varieties, namely. Blues and Cuckoos ; yet directly these 

 were allowed to breed inter se (among themselves), or to cross with common poultry, 

 as in the case of the White cock with the farmyard poultry, they all, although 

 retaining their different colours for some length of time, gradually relapsed into 

 Red cocks and Brown hens. In fact there seemed a strong determination, both 

 in the Blues and Cuckoos, to throw back to Red cocks and Dark-lirown hens. I 

 find also that in breeding pure Whites, as well as with pure Black game (a very 

 beautiful variety) constant introduction of fresh blood is needed to keep out the 

 red colour, which without it is almost certain to reappear in each successive brood. 



