38 THE PEOPLE'S PRACTICAL POULTRY BOOK. 



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-ochre colored ; in the hen a little darker than those of the cock ; and, 

 strange to say, these characteristics denote a sound constitution. A clear, 

 dark-winged cock throws the best chickens. Vulture hocks in Cochins are 

 clearly inadmissible, and should never be tolerated at any exhibition ; they 

 show mixed blood, and, if bred out, will revert back again. Hocked birds 

 are frequently awarded the highest premium at shows in this country in 

 England they are disqualified. 



THE SHANGHAES. 



The Shanghae fowl was highly estimated on its first introduction in this 

 country in 1847, and for a long time thereafter considered the best of the 

 Asiatic breed, but of late years we hear very little mention made of them. 

 They are entirely ignored even from our poultry shows. As we have said 

 elsewhere, the Cochins have superseded the Shanghae breed entirely. A well- 

 bred cock, when full-grown, stands twenty-eight inches high ; the hen from 

 twenty to twenty-three inches. The hen has a slightly curved beak, the 

 forehead well arched ; comb low, single, erect, slightly and evenly toothed ; 

 wattles small and curved inward, the eyes are bright and prominent, the neck 

 about eight inches long and gently arched when held upright ; the body long 

 nd greatly arched ; the girth of the body of a good specimen, when meas- 

 ured over the wings, is about twenty inches ; the legs are rather long, of a 

 pale yellow color, with a tinge of flesh-color, and generally thickly covered 

 with feathers from the outside down to the toe. The plumage is remarkably 

 soft and silky, and, beneath the tail, densely fluffy and rounded. The comb 

 of the cock is high, deeply indented, and his. wattles double and large. 

 Though the comb and wattles are not to be regarded as the chief character- 

 istics of this breed of fowls, nor are its reddish-yellow feathered legs ; but 

 the abundant, soft and downy covering of the thighs, hips, and region of the 

 vent, together with the remarkably short tail, are characteristics not found in 

 any other bird. The wings are small and short in proportion to the size of 

 the fowl, being carried very high up the body, thus exposing the whole of 

 the thighs, and a large portion of the side. The arrangement of the feathers 

 gives the bird a greater depth of quarter, in proportion to the brisket, than 

 any fowl with which we are conversant. There are Shanghae fowls of Black, 

 Gray, Buff, Cinnamon and Partridge-color. These are termed sub-varieties. 

 White is said to have been the color of the original imported birds, the other 

 colors having been bred in this country. Mr. BOWMAN, an eminent English 

 breeder of the Shanghae, says of the fecundity of this breed, that he had 

 " a pullet that laid one hundred and twenty eggs in a hundred and twenty- 

 five days, then stopped six days, then laid sixteen eggs more, stopped four 

 days, and again continued her laying." The eggs are not so rich and nutri- 

 tious as those of the Dorking ; neither are they remarkably large compared 

 to the size of the fowl ; they are of a pale yellow or nankeen color, and gen- 

 erally blunt at the ends. The flesh of the Shanghae is quite inferior to that 

 of the smaller breeds, being coarse-grained, neither tender nor juicy, and 



