ORIENTAL FRILL PIGEONS. 



were to make up his mind to select any one 

 breed, and make that particular breed his study, 

 we should, I think, soon see a greater improve- 

 ment all round. 



THE BLUE-LACED FORTY YEARS AGO, 



The blue-laced Blondinette of thirty-five to 

 forty years ago was much richer in colour than 

 those of the present day . The body colour was 

 of a much deeper blue, and the lacing was more 

 coloury— a sort of mixture of purple and brown. 

 They were not so good in head properties as 

 birds of more recent years, but they were very 

 handsome and striking. Improvements, how- 

 ever, came as the years passed on. The blue of 

 the body became brighter, and of a paler shade, 

 and the lacing got sharper and better defined. 

 And, if I might point to a time when, I think, the 

 blue-laced was about at its best, it would be 

 twenty-five to thirty years ago . I well remember 

 the studs of Mr. Peter Verdon, Captain Dobson, 

 Mr. Duckworth, T. W. H. Ashton, and other 

 well known breeders of that period, and coming 

 down to later times, say, twenty years ago, 

 H. E. King, of Leicester, and Harry Kitchen, of 

 Leeds . 



All these fanciers possessed really grand 

 specimens of the breed, but there has been 

 a gradual decline both in quality and quantity. 

 That beautiful feature, a pure blue-breast colour, 

 is hard to find, and nearly every specimen one 



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