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poultrymen of his genertaion. Soon afterwards they became 

 known simply as the Essex strain and by that name they have 

 been known ever since. 



The Essex Strain. This, as stated above, was applied by 

 Mr. Felch. The best of the Pitman stock came into the hands 

 of Mr. H. B. May of the same town. Probably at first Mr. May 

 was simply breeding for cr in accordance with some business 

 arrangements with Mr. Felch. At some subsequent time, just 

 when, the writer cannot say, Mr. May began to breed Plymouth 

 Rocks independently and continued for many years to be one of 

 the closest students and best judges of the original variety. 

 Without doubt the Essex strain was more sought and more 

 extensively bred than any other and especially certain is the fact 

 that the May-Essex family was more sought than any other 

 family of that popular strain. 



The history of this family, or strain, is interesting because of 

 the excellent quality of many of its best representatives, but even 

 more so because of the historic crosses involved. It has been 

 well known that at some time subsequent to their first public 

 appearance, Plymouth Rocks have been crossed with Light 

 Brahma, to clear the colors as it were ; thus, not only attempt- 

 ing to carry out the idea of Mark Pitman, but also attempting 

 to improve on the Pitman method of selection and line-breeding, 

 from which outcrossing certainly differs widely. The results of 

 this cross have been heralded far and wide as wonderfully suc- 

 cessful, yet Mr. May told the writer in so many words, that the 

 cross did not amount to anything ; that all the progeny after a 

 very few generations found their way to market. In short, this 

 attempt resulted as most attempts to cross two bloods of widely 

 different temperaments do, in so complete a disintegration that 

 little of the good in either remains. 



Mr. May, however, was not any better satisfied with his orig- 

 inal Plymouth Rocks than before he made this cross. The 

 reason for his dissatisfaction was based upon the weak constitu- 

 tions of the individuals of this breed in general and their weak 

 disease resisting qualities. Dealers in poultry remedies, accord- 

 ing to Mr. May, were making good livings, if not comfortable 

 fortunes, selling their wares to the breeders of Plymouth Rocks. 

 This state of things Mr. May thought neither creditable nor nec- 

 essary, but the remedy did not at once appear. Later, while 

 traveling in Canada, Mr. May caught sight of a male that pleased 



