150 AMERICAN POULTRY ASSOCIATION 



"bars of dark blue that stop short of positive black." This was 

 misleading, as there was no "blue" to be seen and all that ever 

 existed was the product of imagination and not breeding. Blue- 

 black was another term used, but the only reason given by any 

 one for the use of the term blue was that it excluded any brown 

 shades. This the present Standard does by explicitly stating 

 that the dark and light bars as well shall be ''free from shafting, 

 brownish tinge or metallic sheen." Brown is not a desirable 

 shade in Barred Plymouth Rocks ; in fact, any suggestion of it 

 is harmful because it mars the appearance which the overlapping 

 feathers give the plumage when viewed in certain light reflec- 

 tions. Metallic sheen is not sought, as obviously that affects 

 the bluish appearance as well as the brownish shades. Of the 

 two, however, the sheen is many, many times to be preferred, as 

 it denotes strength of the dark bar and as a breeding quality is 

 often a desirable attribute, as explained in articles on mating. 



Shafting. The shaft of the feather is often light where it 

 should be dark, for the dark bar should run through the shaft. 

 That is, the shaft should be the same color and shade as the bar 

 at right angles with it ; where the bar is light the shaft should 

 be the same shade ; where the bar is dark the shaft should match. 

 Sometimes the shafts are noticeable because they are lighter than 

 the corresponding bar. Often the shaft in the light bar is still 

 lighter than the bar. This gives the effect of three colors, 

 whereas only two are called for and only two desired. 



Width of Bars. "The light and dark bars to be of equal 

 width." This statement is clear, but it does not designate the 

 width. We find the bar further defined by the word "narrow," 

 occuring in the clause, "each feather crossed by regular, narrow, 

 parallel, sharply defined dark bars," etc. This descriptive ad- 

 jective is well used, for ihe tendency for a number of years has 

 been to narrow the bars. In fact, that has been one of the lead- 

 ing aims of all progressive Barred Plymouth Rock breeders for 

 years past. By requiring narrow bars and bars of equal width at 

 the same time, both light and dark bars must be narrow. Twenty 

 years ago and previously, the light bars were much the wider of 

 the two, but the ideal of straight across, narrow barring became 

 more and more sought and the width of the light bar was grad- 

 ually reduced until the dark bar actually on many of the winning 

 specimens became the stronger or wider, and this is actually the 

 condition today on many winning specimens. This fact need 

 not be allowed to lead any one into the belief that wider dark 



