248 FANCY PIGEONS. 



degrees of colour, according to the amount of red in the 

 plumage. Cloth {i.e., silver) is one of the prettiest colours, 

 and is of many shades. The neck and wing bars of a 

 Cropper of this colour vary from a light dove-coloured to a 

 hard blackish dun, a beautiful golden chestnut dun being 

 the most pleasing tint. The wing coverts ought to be of a 

 soft creamy dun, only dark enough to show up the rose 

 pinion. This colour pigeon has, of course, a dun tail, barred 

 to match the neck and wings. Cloths are mostly hens, a 

 really good cloth cock being rather a scarce pigeon. Creams 

 (i.e., yellow-mealies) are also usually hens, and very rare. 

 They have, of course, light tails, and their colour is so 

 delicate that a rose pinion is scarcely distinguishable on their 

 wings. Their necks and wing bars ought to be rich yellow. 

 The barred colours are very much interbred, the result being 

 left to chance ; in fact, it is usual to breed two good birds 

 together, no matter what colour they are ; hence, unless 

 when breeding from a pair of the same colour — and not 

 always then — it is impossible to predict what the young ones 

 will be like. To improve blacks, yellows, and cinnamons, 

 they ought, of course, to be kept distinct from the barred 

 colours. As all the solid and primary barred colours are 

 found in Croppers, the intermediate or chequered also exist 

 in a great variety of shades, but are not generally liked 

 or bred for. Pure white birds are occasionally seen, and 

 whites with coloured tails are an old and favourite variety. 

 There are three colours of them — viz., black, blue, and cloth- 

 tailed. To be properly marked they ought to be entirely 

 white, with the exception of the tail and its upper and under 

 coverts. Some coloured feathers on the head are often found in 

 them, as well as a white feather or two in the tail, or among the 

 under tail coverts, which does not look well when the birds are 

 flying. Their tail primaries ought to be sound in colour, but 

 are frequently very much grizzled with white. The Cropper 

 is very often mis-marked in having an excess of white, though 



