136 AMERICAN POULTRY ASSOCIATION 



base, of sufficient width vertically to avoid a pinched appearance, 

 and should be furnished with an abundance of tail coverts of the 

 same general character as the feathers of the back, though both 

 broader and longer. 



Slow-Feathering. Of late years some lines are slow in feath- 

 ering. The reason for the development of this phenomena is 

 not known, but some breeders have observed that slow feathering 

 has made its appearance coincident with the fine barring. It has 

 been observed, too, that fine barring and narrow feathers are 

 intimately associated. The two facts have led to the idea that 

 when breeding for fine barring, narrow feathers are also bred, 

 and by so doing, unwittingly, feather producing tendencies are 

 reduced. 



The effect of slow feathering and of feathers that do not 

 grow normally or are of irregular formation upon the shape of 

 the fowls and especially upon the shape and appearance of such 

 sections as wings and tail is considerable. 



Type vs. Shape. Usually about the same ideas occur to us 

 whether we hear the word "type" or the word "shape." How- 

 ever, they may or may not convey the same meaning. Shape 

 may be more specific, as when used with reference to a part of 

 the bird ; that is, to one section or perhaps to more than one ; 

 while type, as generally used, refers to the bird as a whole. 

 We have distinctions here, also, as breed types and commercial 

 types ; that is, types designated according to adaptability for cer- 

 tain uses ; as egg-types, meat-types, general- or dual-purpose 

 types, ornamental types, etc. 



Faulty Types. We speak of a bird as having faulty shape 

 when one or more sections are defective ; of having faulty type 

 when one or more sections are defective in such a way as to 

 change the typical appearance of the bird from one breed-type 

 to another. A Plymouth Rock female by a combination of faulty 

 back and leg shape might become more of a Wyandotte than a 

 Rock ; that is, if too short in both sections ; by faulty back and 

 body shape, more the character of the Rhode Island Red, if too 

 long and flat in back and too shallow in body ; a Plymouth Rock 

 that was too broad and deep in body and short in legs might 

 assume somewhat of the Cochin type. But enough has been 

 related to show the importance of correct type in the bird as a 

 whole, and what is necessary to secure it good shape in every 

 section. 



