The Lizard. 333 



or variegated in form. I admire a bird with a profusion of 

 close, fine spangling about the neck, giving it the appearance 

 of having a superbly and delicately worked lace collar, or a 

 collar of superfine network, and as the spangling descends 

 it should become more open and enlarged, and form a series 

 of distinctive half-moons round the edges of the larger 

 feathers. It should appear in long uniform stripes down 

 the back of the bird, and perfectly regular in order. 

 Always select large birds when obtainable, birds with wide 

 skulls, broad backs, and full prominent breasts, but on no 

 account must size supersede quality. The advantage gained by 

 a good big bird is, that it shows the spangling and cap to 

 much greater advantage than a smaller specimen. 1ST ever breed 

 from bald-faced birds, that is, birds that show clear-coloured 

 feathers below the eye and at the root of the beak, nor from 

 birds that have white feathers on the wings or tail, as these 

 faults would be propagated in the offspring. A good broad 

 well-formed cap is an essential point in a Lizard, but it 

 frequently happens that the best capped birds are deficient in 

 spangling, and vice versa ; therefore, I recommend a bird with 

 a well-formed full cap, and not too profuse in spangles, to be 

 mated with a bird of the opposite sex that is rich and full of 

 " work," as spangling is termed, and whose cap may be small 

 and even " broken ; " but I do not advocate breeding from 

 "broken" capped birds, unless they are highly meritorious in 

 all other respects. It is equally objectionable to mate two 

 over-capped birds, but to put an over-capped bird that is, 

 when the cap runs partly down the neck with a bird that is 

 slightly under-capped, short, and barely reaching to the base 

 of the skull, is frequently attended with excellent results. 

 Never put two birds to breed that are both " under-capped," 

 as it has a tendency to circumscribe this valuable appendage. 

 I once bred a magnificently spangled Lizard in this way, but 

 it was entirely destitute of a cap. I put it with an over- 

 capped bird the following year, and from this pair I reared 

 some wonderful youngsters. It is customary to mate a Gold 

 and Silver bird together, but to increase the size and stamina 



