GOLDEN LACED WYANDOTTES 



191 



points in the Silver, double mating becomes inevitable. But with 

 slate under-color and sound wings, a practicability in the Golden, the 

 question is simplified to one of producing lacing. 



To hold the rich bay ground color, a weak under-color should 

 not be tolerated. The quill of a hen's back feathers should be of the 

 same shade of color as the web; otherwise, shaftiness appears. With 

 these faults in mind let us select the males and females to be mated 

 together. 



Get females with as much bay in the center of the neck stripe as 

 possible; at least the quill should be bay. If solid black stripes are 

 bred, the cockerel progeny will have dark neck hackles that appear 

 almost black on the lower surface of the hackle. This shawl effect 

 is always undesirable in good males. 



Now select a male that has a saddle striped with black, and be 

 sure that in the center of each black stripe there is a big, open, 

 diamond shaped bay center. Have the bird laced well in wing bow, 

 and, if possible, up on the wing bows, on the little feathers under 

 the wing, under the shoulder, and on the thighs. These are all indi- 

 cations of a bird that has been bred well for lacing. 



If the lacing on the breast of the hens runs out, be sure that the 

 male has sound breast lacing and is as free as possible of a marginal 

 edging of red around the outer side of the feathers. 



.Golden Wyandottes as Pictured About 1900. 



