190 THE DORKING FOWL. 



taken as the exception, and no^ the rule ; of course it must, 

 otherwise the whole race would have long since been extinct. 

 Moreover, a degree of robustness and fecundity, which would 

 be pronounced considerable in Curassows or Pheasants, may 

 justly be called feeble in Cocks and Hens. The same word 

 will have a different measure of force when applied to different 

 objects. He says, that having been careful to introduce a 

 fresh, well-selected Cock-bird or two into the walk, every second 

 or third year at farthest, he has found the race uniformly hardy, 

 healthy, and prolific. The remedy is one of the best that can 

 be devised ; but the necessity for adopting it confirms, instead 

 of disproving our opinion, that the Cocks of this breed are 

 deficient in vigour. However, Mr. Baily, of Mount Street, 

 observes, as the result of his long experience, "A general re- 

 mark I would make on Fowl-breeding is, that -no one judges 

 fairly of a breed, or sufficiently tries his opinion, if he has for 

 two years been breeding in and in ; and it is not enough to 

 say in defence of the sweeping condemnation of a race, that he 

 has only bred two years from the birds, and consequently not 

 long enough for the evil to show itself; he must first inquire 

 whether there was relationship in the stock he began with ; 

 perhaps he had a Cock and Pullet brother and sister from a 

 friend or dealer, the progeny of similar relations, and from a 

 yard where a change of stock was absolutely necessary when 

 these were disposed of : he would thus unwittingly be carrying 

 on the unfortunate process, and honestly, though mistakenly, 

 consider that a defect in the constitution of the Fowl, which 

 is, in truth, a mal-practice of the owner of it." There is cer- 

 tainly great force in the caution ' the Poultry-shows, with 

 compulsory sales, now coming into fashion, offer one means 

 of remedying the evil. 



We are inclined to think that, for persons who live in grassy 

 and thick-wooded situations, long-legged Fowls are preferable 

 to short-legged breeds like the Dorking, they being carried 



