326 The Canary Book. 



that in time a model bird, possessing the much admired 

 substance of body, and with a crest that nothing could excel, 

 might be produced in a bird limited to a length of 6^in. ; 

 and to obtain a bird up to this standard, it would have to 

 possess at least one-half of Coppy blood, for this is the 

 medium of length between the original Crested-Norwich and 

 the Lancashire bird. 



Size is certainly a fundamental property, but with it you 

 require refined shape, and either a clear body or evenly- 

 marked wings, rich colour, sound soft silky feather, a nice 

 carriage, a lively gait, and a general healthy appearance. 

 Then the crest should be round or oval, the centre should 

 be well set, close, and well filled in all round; the frontal 

 crest should be broad and semi-circular, and come well over 

 the beak ; the side crest should be full and descend below 

 the eyes ; the back crest should be profuse and come well 

 over the hind part of the head, and be neatly rounded off 

 at the extreme base of the skull, or it may extend a short 

 way down the neck, but should lie close and flat all over. 

 There should be no upstanding wayward feathers in a perfect 

 show bird, every feather should be smooth, close fitting, and 

 firm, and with as much density as possible, so that it cannot 

 easily be disarranged; and in addition to these qualifications 

 you want a short beak, a thing difficult to obtain. A large 

 bill is a great detriment to an otherwise good bird, and 

 makes the frontal crest appear shorter than it actually is. 



A bird possessing all these qualities would indeed be a rara 

 avis, and few birds, even among the chief prize takers, can 

 boast of three-fourths of them; but some excel in one feature 

 and some in another, and hence the art, and science, and 

 pleasure lies in the successful endeavour to create by skilful 

 and judicious crossing, a bird as near the standard of perfec- 

 tion as it is possible to obtain. I have noticed that some 

 large-crested prize-winners have been wide in the back crest, 

 and narrow at the front, and others in the opposite direction, 

 not well balanced, even, and regular; and in the same class 

 might be observed a bird with a beautiful round or oval crest. 



