THE PEOPLE'S PRACTICAL POULTKY BOOK. 15 



breeders of this country to make up their minds respectively, as to the style 

 and markings of the birds they deem most desirable to breed, and breed them 

 uniformly and closely t9 the standard they have adopted. The popular taste 

 will soon settle the question. You can always have fresh blood, if you keep 

 two or three pens, and you can go on for years without crossing your breeds, 

 and running the risk of bad blood or a motley brood, with no uniformity of 

 shape or markings. 



BKEEDING IN-AND-IN. 



" Do not feel too much anxiety about breeding in-and-in. Parent and 

 offspring, and even brother and sister, may be bred from with safety and suc- 

 cess for several years with this class of fowls. No breed has such stamina aa 

 the Brahma, and if any mishap does occur, it will not be so aggravated as 

 it would be by the concentration of bad blood ; therefore, it stands you in 

 hand to be very careful what strain you purchase, and to know if the party 

 has bred from distinct strains or indiscriminately. It is a work of time to 

 breed fine strains, and considerable patience is requisite. It is in this respect 

 that parties make a great mistake in going about from yard to yard, selecting 

 here and there a bird from one, and cock, &c., from another, to gratify their 

 vanity, with the hope of winning a few prizes, to the great detriment of the 

 stock and disappointment of purchasers of the same, if they should breed 

 from them. In the Light Brahma it is very necessary to secure a sufficient 

 amount of color in the cock. The tendency of all poultry is to get lighter if 

 indiscriminately bred ; therefore, you should select cocks of the proper dark- 

 ness for breeding stock. The saddle should only be lightly striped, for if it 

 contains too much black or the neck-hackle too dark, you will produce spotted 

 backs. I will set down two rules, either of which can be applied to suit the 

 wants of the breeder : 1 . Very heavy penciled cocks must be used to get 

 heavy penciled (chicks) cocks. 2. Very dark hackled hens and light pen- 

 ciled hackled cocks will get nice hackled pullets." 



VULTURE HOCKED FOWLS. 



Vulture hocked birds are a disqualification to any brood of fowls, with 

 few exceptions, and should be eschewed in all 

 breeding stock. The vulture hock is the projec- 

 tion of feathers behind the knee, and inclining 

 towards the ground, as shown in the accompany- 

 ing illustration. The feathers of a fowl's leg 

 usually should be close round the knee, and the 

 leg clean below it. The breeds in which the 

 vulture hock is necessary are Serai -ta-ooks, 

 Booted Bantams, and Ptarmigan fowls. Where 

 the vulture hock makes its appearance, unwished 

 for, and where its presence is considered a grave fault, is among Cochins and 

 Brahmas- The fault will sometimes appear in the progeny, but in fowls, as 



