PLYMOUTH ROCK STANDARD AND BREED BOOK 85 



states that one of the parents was the Dominique fowl. Our 

 own strong opinion is that the Dominique and also the Asiatic 

 races being very common in America, many cases of crossing 

 have occurred, and that thus the same fowl half Asiatic and 

 half Dominique probably has been produced in various quar- 

 ters, and not in any one alone; but, however this may be, the 

 facts of Dr. Bennett's birds being extinct, and that the modern 

 fowl was originally a half-bred Dominique, are absolutely cer- 

 tain. 



"Only one or two importations of Plymouth Rocks have yet 

 reached this country ; one of which, sent over by Mr. W. Simp- 

 son, arrived for the Birmingham Show of November, 1872, and 

 took honors in the 'Any Variety' class. The variety, as now 

 brought to something like perfection, almost precisely resembles 

 a Cuckoo Cochin with smooth legs, but has a considerably larger 

 tail and a very full and prominent breast, derived from the Domi- 

 nique ancestry. The head and comb are unmistakably Cochin. 

 As regards the flesh, the Dominique seems to predominate, the 

 fowl being juicy and good for the table. It is a moderate setter, 

 about equal to average Brahmas as regards to frequency of incu- 

 bation; grows fast and is a capital layer. In all its economic 

 qualities, in fact, it very closely resembles the Brahma and even 

 its habits, being an active forager ; but does not generally stay 

 up nearly so late from roost. The color being well adapted for 

 wear, we must pronounce the Plymouth Rock a capital fowl, 

 giving all the good qualities of the Cochin without its principal 

 drawbacks, and likely to suit the many who desire a large, 

 noble-looking bird, but whose taste does not incline to the feath- 

 ered legs and fluffy proportions of the Asiatics, and who dread 

 the delicacy of the Dorking. 



"In breeding this fowl, as in all others of cuckoo color, the 

 chief point is to preserve the pure, bluish-gray and carefully to 

 avoid pure white, black or especially red feathers. Some little 

 uncertainty in this respect will be found at first in all imported 

 birds, but by care in choosing breeding-stock from the progeny, 

 may readily be checked, as no color is easier to breed 'true' than 

 this Dominique marking, with a little judicious selection. The 

 combs will require the same careful breeding and. the same pre- 

 cautions against premature showing, which we have already 

 treated of in Cochins." 



The reader will notice, doubtless, that while Mr. Wright 

 gives equal prominence to the Cochin and Java theories of origin, 

 he frequently indulges in comparison of the Plymouth Rock with 



