RHODE ISLAND REDS 245 



is not red; it is a first cousin to the old "punkin" colored necks of the 

 early days of the breed. 



The male's breast is of more importance than some breeders attach 

 to this section. It should be rich and lustrous and free from shafting 

 or lacing. Good colored females cannot be bred from males that are 

 faulty in breast color. 



White in the wings is a bad fault, but one that may be caused in 

 well bred birds through faulty feeding and cooping when the chickens 

 were growing. 



Slate is a fault, but an otherwise good bird is sometimes bred if it 

 carries a bar of blue color in the under plumage. It will be found that 

 some cockerels and pullets show this slate in their first chick feathers 

 and then come in clear red, down to the skin, when they drop their 

 chick feathers and grow their adult plumage. Such birds should not 

 be mated together or they will produce too much slate, but such a 

 bird may be used to strengthen and reinforce the color, and such an 

 one will produce more good colored chicks than one that retains the 

 slate. 



Rich, sound red undercolor is desired in a show bird and is one 

 of the points which influence the judges. They will overlook slight 

 defects in comb, legs and tail, provided the bird has an oblong type 

 "like a brick set edgewise," has a level sheet of rich red color and has 

 good undercolor. 



It seems as if it is easiest to produce good undercolor in connec- 

 tion with a surface plumage that is stringy and not perfectly webbed 

 together. A hard surfaced plumage is frequently associated with a 

 lighter tone of red undercolor. 



These rough feathered birds are often of the darkest shade of red 

 on the surface. It may be that the color is due partly to feather 

 structure as well as pigment; however, the rough feathered birds are 

 not as pleasing in appearance, and it is our opinion that they are not 

 as good utility poultry as the smooth surfaced birds. Some breeders 

 occasionally breed a rough feathered bird to reinforce the red color in 

 their stock. 



To sum up this problem of breeding red color, we would say: 

 A male to sire exhibition pullets must have a rich, red breast, free 

 from shafting or lacing; free from black ticking on wing-bows; and 

 he should be rich red in fluff. 



A female to dam exhibition cockerels must have a dark, rich red 

 hackle, with little or no black ticking in it; and be red in undercolor 

 of back, although she may be somewhat patchy in surface color of 

 back and body. 



When both male and female of a mating have Standard wings, that 

 is, the lower webs of the wing primaries are marked with black, some 

 of the chicks that they produce may carry smut. 



A female with red flights, that is, free from black on the lower 



