PLYMOUTH ROCK STANDARD AND BREED BOOK 367 



of style should be rejected just as quickly as one that fails in 

 undercolor, and any male that does not possess the attribute 

 of smoothness of feather should not be considered long as 

 a candidate for the head of a breeding yard. So much for 

 condition and heredity. Do not accept the testimony of others, 

 rather make careful observations along these lines if you wish 

 to develop a line of winning specimens. 



Fresh Plumaged Birds Win. Young birds that have just 

 attained maturity are fresh and bright in plumage and fresh 

 and bright birds are certainly attractive and for that reason 

 are the ones that usually win. This necessitates rapid growth 

 and that demands free range and skillful, judicious feeding. 

 This is the problem, then, to solve : how are some birds to be 

 pushed forward and some held back, so that the entire string 

 may be shown in uniformly perfect condition? 



Right here is where the writer will prove disappointing, 

 because he knows no magic that will mature the immature 

 or freshen the fading colors of those that are past prime. 



The Art of Conditioning No Mystery. There are a few 

 who cling to the idea that there are sublime methods for 

 accomplishing anything. There are a few who believe that 

 winning specimens are made so by occult means. Were we 

 to find some agent which would effect such a marvelous trans- 

 formation in our flocks, we should have accomplished no less 

 than the alchemists of old undertook when they sought to find 

 the Philosopher's stone, a reagent that would form a panacea 

 as well as transmute the baser metals into gold. As well 

 dream the dreams of the old alchemists as to expect to make 

 winning show birds by any except the most thorough processes 

 of nature. 



A prominent breeder asked another at one of the New York 

 shows how he managed to bring such a good conditioned string 

 of cock birds to the show year after year. "Would it be asking 

 too much to tell me?" said he. "Certainly not," replied the 

 other, "we just give them ample range, good food and keep the 

 lice from them." The questioner made it very clear that he 

 did not credit the answer. He was evidently a believer in the 

 occult. But as a fact, aside from selecting for breeding year 

 after year very smooth males, that successful exhibitor did 

 nothing more than he suggested to his questioner, who was 

 and still is one of the largest breeders of his variety. 



The Pleasing Bird Wins. The question naturally arises, 

 "Why is a winning bird?" The answer would seem to be one 



