353 THE SHORT-FACED TUMBLER. 



possession of Mr. Fulton, who tlien lived in Deptford, a very- 

 fine pair of Short-faced Blue Tumblers ; I have often spoken 

 to him about them since. I believe such good birds as they 

 were are not now in existence. Though probably made-faced, 

 they were broad and lofty in skull, with good colour and 

 fine carriage. 



Baldheads and Beards. 



Short-faced Baldheads of good quality are now extremely 

 scarce. They have always been rare, but formerly there were 

 at least some very fair ones in blacks, blues, and silvers. 

 Blacks are scarcest at the present time, and it is now about 

 twenty years since I saw a good pair of that colour. 

 Dui'ing the past twenty years Short-faced Balds have been 

 represented chiefly by the strain of Mr. Woodhouse, who has 

 shown blues and silvers, with which he has carried off many 

 prizes at the principal shows where classes were given for 

 Balds. Red and yellow Balds have lately been shown of very 

 fair colour and quality, and I understand they were produced 

 from a cross with the Almond and its sub-varieties. They 

 were bred by Mr. Burchett, a London fancier, who sold off 

 some years ago, when they were distributed among the 

 breeders of this very beautiful and interesting variety. The 

 standard of feather for the Short-faced is the same as for the 

 Long-faced Bald; but there are very few, if any, really well- 

 marked ones in existence which combine good Short-faced pro- 

 perties of head, beak, eye, and carriage. Compared to the 

 best Almonds they are far behind, and all I have seen, which 

 I knew to be untampered with about the head, could only 

 be called pleasant faced at the best. I have, however, seen 

 of late several of each colour — excepting the blacks, which 

 seem nowhere at present — manufactured into very passable 

 ones. I say manufactured, because it was plain from their 

 appearance that they had been tampered with, and the young 

 ones they produced showed it clearly. Beards are even of 



2 H 



