i)0 



THE LEGHORNS 



ing rapidly to maturity, will have wing feathers in one 

 week and start to lay in about five mouths, a nice size 

 egg with white shell and good flavor. 



"They have red combs, face and wattles, pure white 

 almond shape lobes, rich glossy black feathers and bright 

 yellow legs, a sight which is pleasing to the eye, so you 

 make no mistake when you start to breed Black Leghorns." 



Black Leghorns in England 



Rev. T. \V. Sturges, is one of the leading authorities 

 on poultry culture in England, furthermore, he is a great 

 admirer of the Black Leghorn fowl and in "The Poul- 

 try Manual" the newest and one of the most complete 

 books on poultry culture befo.e the public today, Mr. Stur- 

 ges, the author, devotes considerable space to Black Leg- 

 horns from which we take the liberty of reprinting the 

 following pertinent and interesting paragraph: 



"This is one of my prime favorites, and after twelve 

 years' persistent breeding it still holds first place. I know 

 of no other variety which combines so many good quali- 

 ties. It is still a popular fowl, and though it has suflfered 

 like many others from the fierce competition of the newer 

 breeds, it still holds its own. 



"Apart from its beauty as a study in broadcloth and 

 gold like a gentleman in evening attire, it has an elegance 

 of its own, and is as typical in its form and as noble in its 

 , carriage and outline as any of its numerous relatives. 



"The foundation of its success, however, is its super- 

 excellent character as the premier egg-producer of today. 

 It would not be difficult to raise birds which would average 

 200 eggs apiece in the year, and I have often had individual 

 birds to exceed this figure, and, next to the Black Minorcas, 

 I know of no other breed which lays eggs of such a size, 



BLACK LEGHORN HEN 

 Reproduced from a photograph by L. P. Graham. A beauti- 

 ful hen in head points, with good length of body, well set tail. 

 Plumage a lustrous greenish black. 



except the exhibition White Leghorn. The average 

 weight is seven eggs a pound, and often six will weigh as 

 much. It is true they are white and have to overcome 

 the English prejudice for tinted eggs, but their size and 

 quality easily accomplishes this, and as the birds are as 

 hard as nails, and will lay well in the winter, and do 

 well in confined quarters, they lay when 'eggs are eggs' 

 and in great demand. 



"That they can hold their own in competition with 

 all other breeds is shown by the fact that, at our great 

 International Show, they have more than once carried off 

 the trophy for the best fowl of any breed in the compe- 

 tition against 4,000 others of all breeds and colors. 



Purity of Descent 



P "The Black Leghorn is of pure Italian blood, and has 

 y long been known and bred in Italy, as well as in Ger- 

 ymany, Switzerland and Belgium. Some of the best are 

 found today in Belgium, while the rank and file are a 

 common sight throughout the Continent. They were 

 known in America at the same time as the White and 

 Brown varieties, but were neither 'made' nor introduced 

 to us from there. In 1881 I saw tfiem by the thousand 

 dotted here and there over the whole of Switzerland, and 

 again in 1886, in Germany and Belgium as well. Shortly 

 after this period they were known and exhibited in Eng- 

 land, and some of the best were imported from Belgium. 

 In their original home fanciers are few and far between, 

 and the birds run wild, and, for the most part, uncared for. 

 They are small biids, naturally, under such conditions and 

 as wild as sparrows, but prodigious layers. I found them 

 { in all altitudes, from the borders of the Italian lakes in 

 \ perpetual summer to the highest mountain passes amid 

 ' 1 the eternal snows, and they seemed to thrive alike in all. 

 Their Improvement 

 "With the additional care and feeding bestowed upon 

 them by expert fanciers, and care in selection, they soon 

 began to put on extra size and to improve in color. But 

 many of them, even in the exhibition pen, had dusky legs 

 and stained ear-lobes, with very indifferent head points, 

 while neatly all the males showed white in the tail sickles. 

 As classes began to fill better, and the Blacks began 

 to assume gentlemanly attire, general attention was 

 attracted to them, and fanciers of the older and better- 

 known breeds began about 1900 to take them up and set 

 about to improve them. ****** 



"Character and type were lost in a great degree, and 

 this has been most noticeable during the past two or 

 tliree years, while the angularity of the Minorca has dis- 

 placed the rotundity of the Leghorn. As the birds gained 

 ui size they lost much of their alert and sprightly car- 

 riage, and in^some measure their hardiness. Some Blacks 

 shown last year almost rivalled the White Leghorns in 

 size. This is a pity, and if continued will spell decline, if 

 not decay, in a vigorous and useful race. 



"So far as I know the infusions are all of Mediter- 



yi-anean blood, although traces of feather on the shank 



S occasionally point to a touch of the Langshan, which 



'^may have crept in, mingled with the Minorca blood. These 



^changes are only confined to a few breeders, and Blacks 



of the true Leghorn type are still found in hundreds of 



fanciers' yards. The Black Leghorn has so much good 



in its foundation qualities that all that was necessary 



could have been evolved without this 'haste-to-be-rich' 



admixture and care will have to be taken lest the essential 



features die. 



