English Baff Leghorns 



Color Improvement and Increased Size Chiefly Noticeable Since The! 

 From Denmark iu 1888. 



THE foundation slock of the American Buflf Leghorn 

 was imported from England twenty years ago. The 

 progress made by breeders of Bufif Leghorns in the 

 United States and Canada in the improvement of both 

 color and shape of beautiful BufTs has been so great, 

 that in type the latter equal the White and Brown varie- 

 ties, while in evenness and soundness of color, the Amer- 



#' 



The above illustration is reproduced from "The Feath- 

 ered World." England. The subject illustrated is Colonel 

 Allatt's Buft Leghorn Cock, winner ot first and challenge 

 cup at the Crystal Palace Show. 1910; first silver challenge 

 bowl and gold medal. Buff Leghorn Club Show, Ingleton. 

 1910. This English Buff Leghorn male approaches the 

 American type closer than any other we have ever seen 

 illustrated in recent years. The comb like on all English 

 Leghorns is rather large and too thick over the beak; neck, 

 back and tail are well outlined, but more length of fehank 

 and thigh would improve the type from the American point 



ican Bufif Leghorn surpasses most of the other bufif varie- 

 ties of poultry. 



It will be interesting to American breeders to learn 

 how Buflf Leghorns have fared in the hands of English 

 breeders, so we reprint below an article written by a 

 member of the English Bufif Leghorn Club which ap- 

 peared in "The Feathered World," England, July 21, 1911. 

 We also reproduce the ilhvstrations of the Crystal Palace 

 96 



winner of 1910, published in tlie same issue of an English 

 contemporary, as the t\'pe portrayed is an unusually good 

 one from the American point of view. We quote: 



As is well k-nown to persons interested in what is 

 generally known as the Mediterranean breed, all Leghorns 

 originally came from Italy, although the breed was first 

 sent into England from America in 1870, in which year 

 Mr. Tegetmeier imported a pen of Whites. Two years 

 later the Browns (or as they were then called Red Leg- 

 horns) followed, also from America. Mr. L. C. Verrey, 

 who has had over thirty years' experience with Leghorns 

 of all colors, except Blues, was the first Englishman to 

 own a Buflf Leghorn. 



He purchased a hen that was exhibited at the Crystal 

 Palace Show of 1888 by Mr. J. Pedersen Bjergaard, of Den- 

 mark, and afterwards obtained other birds of the same 

 variety from Denmark. This little hen, though unnoticed 

 by the Palace, took 2nd at Derby Show about a month 

 afterwards, in a class for A. O. C. Leghorns. She was 

 bred for utility purposes alone; but, as Mr. Verrey ex- 

 presses it in his well-known book "The Leghorn Fowl," 

 she was also even colored, "good in points and full of 

 Leghorn characteristics." 



At that time the hens were a uniform chamois or 

 li.uht bufif, the cocks being of a darker color on breast 

 and back, with white in the centre of the tail feathers. The 

 birds did not, however, always breed true to color, and 

 the quality of the ear-lobes and brilliancy of leg color left 

 ample room for improvement. 



The prevailing caprice of the English fancier of today 

 is to breed everything to an excessive and unnatural size, 

 an excellent development for table requirements, but in the 

 case of the lighter breeds undoubtedly detrimental to lay- 

 ing capacity. 



There are two Buff Leghorn clubs whose members 

 are quite in accord on this point, and who are striving to 

 retain the original characteristics of the breed, and to 

 maintain the old reputation of the variety as a prolific 

 layer of large white eggs. They favor a lively, active 

 bird, the widest of foragers, the smallest of feeders. .-\ 

 heavy, sluggish bird with beefy comb finds no favor with 

 them. They aim at the maintenance in the variety of the 

 record combination of fancy and utility, which was estab- 

 lished by the fineness of quality of the first Bufif Leghorn 

 imported into England. 



These two clubs are the American Buflf Leghorn 

 Club, of which Mr. F. A. Tecktonius, of Racine, Wiscon- 

 sin, is president, and the English BufI Leghorn Club, of 

 which Colonel Sandbach is president. 



The Americans have been more conservative with 

 regard to size than have English fanciers. In Bermuda 

 two Buflf Leghorn cocks, one from America and the 

 other from England, can be seen running side by side, 

 and there is a visible diflference in their weights. The 

 show bird of the island, to be seen strutting about the 

 grounds of Government House, is the English Buff Leg- 

 horn cock, and he has taken a prize in the show pen at 

 home. This bird was selected for exportation to Sir 

 Walter Kitchener, on account of his very hardy constitu- 

 tion and as being possessed of the essential attributes of 

 his breed. His weight is a little over 4^ lbs., but he looks 

 big by the side of his American comrade. Although dif- 

 fering in size they are both of the same active and vigor- 

 ous type that obtains in the best of layers of the Leghorn 

 family. This, in the opinion of the Buflf Leghorn clubs, is 

 a first essential. 



In the laying competitions that have taken place re- 

 cently in England at diflferent places, the average weight 

 of the Danish and American Leghorns (irrespective of 

 color) has been about 3 lbs. 10 oz., and this approximates 

 closely to the weight of the exhibition BufT Leghorn pul- 

 let. 



.^n increase over this average weight is, however. 



