218 The Canary Book. 



highly esteemed, although good birds are often produced when 

 the reverse of this recommendation is carried out, but in that 

 case, much, I imagine, depends upon the constitution of the 

 hen ; nevertheless, I prefer to adhere to the plan I have already 

 named. Few people succeed in obtaining good birds from 

 moderate parents, even when they are known to be highly bred ; 

 but with one good bird judiciously matched with a moderate 

 bird known to be of a good strain the best results are often 

 realised. 



If you possess, say a large strong male bird, with great length 

 of body, good legs, fine sweeping tail, and long slender neck, but 

 deficient in shoulder and coarse in feather, you must match him 

 with a hen possessing large shoulders, and close and compact in 

 feather, regardless of all other properties ; that is to say, never 

 mind if she is rather small, and somewhat short in the legs and 

 neck ; the chief features that you require are those specified to 

 create a suitable match for the cock I have described. If the 

 hen, in addition to the qualities named, possesses other good 

 properties, so much the better, and so much more likely will she 

 be to produce a greater number of good specimens, but if you 

 succeed in breeding one first-class bird of a single pair of birds 

 in a season, you may consider you have done remarkably well. 



I do not recommend putting nothing but show birds together, 

 as when birds are too highly bred their progeny are correspond- 

 ingly tender. Another thing which I wish you clearly to under- 

 stand is this : never put two birds together posaessing the same 

 points of merit, unless they both possess in an equal or approxi- 

 mate degree all the good qualities desired what I mean, is, 

 never put two moderate birds together; say, for instance, two 

 birds both being deficient in some essential qualities such as 

 two birds of a diminutive kind, or two birds wanting in develop- 

 ment of shoulders, chest, neck, legs, &c. ; but always contrive to 

 pair your birds in such a manner that the one bird predominates 

 in the opposite features to the others, as by adopting this 

 method you are pretty certain to get one or two birds at least 

 which will inherit the peculiarities of both parents so blended 

 that the result will, in all probability, prove highly satisfactory 

 to you. It is usual to pair a yellow cock and a buff hen together, 



