14 THE PEOPLE'S PRACTICAL POULTRY BOOK. 



class. I placed a dark hen of this variety in a coop by itself on exhibition at 

 our poultry show merely to give those interested in the matter those points 

 in perfection which I claim we must reach before we can say we have finished 

 pur labors in this respect. 



THE GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS. 



"In all the original Brahmas the deaf -ears fell below the wattles; and 

 this point was mentioned by Dr. BENNET as a characteristic of the breed ; 

 and the perpetuation of this should be carefully looked after. The neck- 

 hackle should start well out just below the head, making a full sweep, and 

 marking the point of juncture between the head and neck very distinctly by 

 an apparent hollow or depression. The hackles can hardly be too full, and 

 should descend low enough to flow over the back and shoulders. The more 

 perfect you can get this, the nobler the carriage and appearance of the bird. 

 A short or scanty hackle is a very great blemish. The hocks should be well 

 covered with soft curling feathers. A cock with hocks a little out should not 

 be deprecated, and as sometimes is, by the inexperienced, discarded. This 

 class of hock, when properly mated with fine built hens, scantily feathered on 

 the legs and toes, throw very fine full-booted birds. While I should con- 

 demn all vulture-hocked fowls to the gridiron, there are exceptions where I 

 have bred from a very large, finely-formed hen, with handsomely and dis- 

 tinctly marked pencilings, with great success, by mating them with a clean 

 shanked cock with the proper marking; and have thrown four good birds to 

 one hocked. No bird of this species should, when full grown, be considered 

 fit for exhibition, unless the cock weighs twelve pounds, and hens from eight 

 to nine pounds ; and if a cockerel does not weigh eight pounds at six or eight 

 months, he will rarely prove a show bird. 



BREEDING AND MATING FOR SIZE, ETC. 



" Iii breeding for size, select a short, compact, deep-bodied cockerel, which 

 need not be large, and mate him with long backed hens, even if their legs 

 are longer than usual. Although length of back is a decided fault, such a 

 cross will generally breed well ; the hen supplying the form, while the cock 

 fills out to the proper proportion. Long, dangy, large-boned cocks may be 

 mated with compact, short-legged hens, with the same result ; but the first 

 mentioned cross will produce better results. Fine chickens may be reared 

 from the eggs of pullets ; but the best chickens, as a rule, are got by mating 

 either a two-year-old cock or a cockerel, with hens in their second season ; 

 their chickens fledge more quickly, and attain maturity sooner. Hens mated 

 with cockerels turn out more male birds, while cocks mated with pullets, will 

 produce a goodly proportion of pullets. I should not hesitate mating cock- 

 erels with pullets, if they be fine, strong-boned birds, hatched in March or the 

 early part of April. A great many birds are spoiled by breeding from a 

 cock of one strain and hens of different strains, and different styles of pen- 

 cilings. If my presumption may be excused, I should advise the different 



