THE LEGHORNS 



various times since 1853. The first published account of 

 Black Leghorns appeared as an editorial in this magazine, 

 page 126, October, 1872. Since then they have become 

 widely known. We quote: 



"Mr. Reed Watson, of East Windsor Hill, Conn., has 

 some Leghorn fowls direct from the vessel in which they 

 were imported from Italy. We lately spent a day, and 

 consider the day well spent, in visiting them, for such 

 importations are rare. Mr. Watson's birds show the un- 

 mistakable Leghorn form, even to the details of comb 

 and wattles, and are as thoroughly non-sitters as any of 

 our acclimated strains. They are very vigorous and 

 active. The original fowls, three in number, imported a 

 year ago, are now surrounded by a well-grown and nu- 

 merous family. The old hens have proved themselves 

 remarkably, prolific layers, and the pullets of last April 

 are following the example. A brood of a dozen chicks 

 can be seen, hatched September 1st, from eggs laid by 

 pullets of this stock, hatched after the middle of April 

 last, — that is. the pullets reproduced when less than four 

 months old." 



Two years later Mr. Watson made another importa- 

 tion, which is referred to in the "Poultry World" as fol- 

 lows: 



Although the Standard for this breed was framed in 

 accordance with specimens shown at Buffalo, of Mr. Wat- 

 son's first importation, and although the strain was largely 

 sold and has been bred from in all parts of the country, 

 still it has never thrown as true as is desirable; and it did 

 not satisfy the aspirations of its importer, who therefore 

 resolved to try again, and accordingly commissioned an 

 agent to select by the Standard some fowls in Italy that 

 would breed according to the Standard. The birds ar- 

 rived last July, and Mr. Watson informs us, after raising 

 a large number of chicks the past summer and fall, that 

 they breed remarkably uniformly and true to their type. 



The following original documents placed in our 

 hands, we publish, so that the history of this last importa- 

 tion may be established correctly: 



Genoa, Italy, May 3, 1876. 

 Reed Watson, Esq., East Windsor Hill. 



Dear Sir: — I have delayed answering your favor of 

 January, for the reason that I desired to find the fowls 

 before doing so. I have sent to Leghorn and other places, 

 to my friends, to try to get the real Black Leghorns, and 

 I have also visited the markets in this place daily, look- 

 ing at everything of interest, as regards fowls, and I have, 

 I think, found the nearest points to the description given 

 of Black Leghorns that can be found in Italy, and have 

 purchased one cock and four hens. It is the only cock 

 that came near the description, that I have ever seen. I 

 have also two small young chickens, different from any- 

 thing I ever saw: Color, gray, with soft feathers, or hair, 

 as it may be termed. I have sent to the island of Sardinia 

 for a kind of fowl vyhich they have there, but am afraid it 

 will not arrive in time for me to take home, but I shall 

 have them shipped, when they get here, to New York. I 

 shall leave in a few days for New York, and will drop you 

 a line on arrival there. Yours truly, 



THOS. TAPLEY. 

 Bark Ironsides. 



New York, July 14, 1876. 

 Reed Watson, East Windsor Hill. 



Dear Sir: — In great haste I drop you a few lines, that 

 you may know that the bark "Ironsides" has arrived, and 

 has on board two cocks and three hens. If they suit, take 

 them away, as they can remain on board in care of mate 

 till the vessel is discharged. Vessel is at Pier 54, East 

 River, New York Marble Yard. Yours truly, 



THOS. TAPLEY. 



The American strains of Black Leghorns still exist- 

 ing in this country, no doubt, trace their lineage back to 

 the Watson birds, but most of the exhibition specimens in 

 recent years were imported from England, American and 

 Canadian breeders finding better color of plumage and 

 shanks, as well as whiter ear-lobes, in the English strains. 

 Silver Duckwing Leghorns First Exhibited in England 



Silver Duckwing Leghorns were admitted to the 

 .American Standard of Perfection in 1898, the same year 



the Buff Leghorns were recognized as a Standard va- 

 riety. As their origin is English, we must look to Eng- 

 land's authorities on poultry history for the facts relat- 

 ing to the formation of this new and handsome variety of 

 the Leghorn family. Mr. Hesford devotes a long chapter 

 to the origin and history of the Duckwing Leghorn in his 

 book, from which we glean the following: 



The Duckwing takes its name from the similarity of 

 the steel blue wing-bar to that of the Mallard or Wild 

 Duck, and this name was first given to a sub-variety of 

 Game fowls. In this latter fact lies the raison d'etre, 

 probably, of the Duckwing Leghorn. There were Black 

 Red Game, White Game, and Pyle Game — colors which 

 can be found in Leghorns. Why not a further imitation 

 — -Duckwing Leghorns? This, at least by one of the claim- 

 ants to the distinction of having created "Duckwings," is 

 given as the reason for his experiments. Looking to the 

 fact that this gentleman's energy was, however, ad- 

 mittedly being devoted to the production of Pyle Leg- 

 horns, and that in the same year in which Pyles were first 

 shown, a Duckwing cockerel was shown by another 

 breeder, it may be safely said that the creation of Pyles 

 had nothing to do with the first idea of Duckwings. 



This brings us at one and the same time to the his- 

 tory of the Duckwing and the respective claims of its 

 "originators." Mr. R. Terrot, upon whose authority we 

 speak, showed at the Crystal Palace Show in 1886, a Duck- 

 wing Leghorn cockerel in the variety Leghorn class, 

 winning second prize. This was the first Duckwing Leg- 

 horn ever shown in the world. Mr. Terrot afterwards 

 showed two at Derby Show, winning second and "highly 

 commended;" and not till the end of 1887 did anyone else 

 show a Duckwing Leghorn. This forms the ground for 

 Mr. Terrot's claim, and it cannot be denied that it is sub- 

 stantial. 



To Mr. Terrot, then, in our opinion, must be given 

 whatever credit is due for the idea. To its successful car- 

 rying out in extenso, Mr. G. Payne can just as rightly lay 

 claim, for whether the latter had his thoughts turned in 

 the direction of "Duckwings" by sight of the 1886 bird or 

 not, he certainly showed Duckwing pullets, as well as 

 cockerels, at one show before anyone else. 



Just as we have given the facts above, so did they ap- 

 pear in two letters which appeared in a poultry journal in 

 May, 1889; though, curiously enough, Mr. Terrot's claim 

 and statement brought forth no reply, apparently, from 

 Mr. Payne; but the second letter, signed "Anti-Duck- 

 wing." showed such a knowledge of the subject that it 

 has been thought that it was inspired, if not written, by 

 Mr. Payne. Be that as it may, we have the conclusive 

 fact that to Mr. Terrot's actual claim, Mr. Payne, the only 

 person who could have an interest in the matter, made 

 no public demur. 



What, then, can we conclude? Only that Mr. Terrot 

 had manufactured Duckwing cockerels from such mater- 

 ials that it was well-nigh impossible to breed good pul- 

 lets from the same; and that Mr. Payne had in his pos- 

 session something (perhaps sports from his "Pyle") which 

 supplied the missing link. But what, comes t^e question, did 

 Mr. Payne do to breed cockerels, since it was only pullets 

 he evidently had the material for? Thereby hangs a tale 

 • — if an attempt at a joke might be excused, we might say 

 "a. long tail"^a tail which, found in Belgium, reached 

 eventually to England, and "bits" of which may yet be 

 discovered "still growing." 



Mr. Terrot's own description of the material used by 

 him will, to the student, at once show the reason for his 

 failure to produce good Duckwing pullets. In the first 

 place, a Duckwing Game cock was mated to Silver Grey 

 Dorking hens, and the progeny of these, crossed with 

 pure Brown Leghorns. Few, very few, would be four- 

 toed cockerels from such parentage, but a surgical opera- 

 tion would be necessary to produce pullets. Now we 

 come to absolutely safe ground, and we state, for the very 

 best reasons, that Mr. Payne's Duckwing pullets were not 

 in any way Dorking bred. We said "for the best of rea- 

 sons," and what that reason is we will state. Within two 

 or three years of the origin of Duckwings we purchased 

 the entire stock — "lock, stock and barrel" — in Mr. Payne's 

 yard, and from that date to the present moment, although 

 we bred from almost every bird purchased, and have 

 hatched upwards of one thousand chicks, we have never 



