236 FANCY PIGEONS. 



flight feathers must be white to the turn of the wing, or a bird 

 will be foul-flighted; and if the outer flight feather alone is foul 

 a common enough fault he will be sword-flighted. Next, if a 

 Pouter be lifted up by the wings, he ought to be entirely white 

 on the lower back, sides, belly, thighs, and legs. The tail, with 

 its coverts, upper and under, must be coloured, being cut sharply 

 off, the same as in the Nun; and the line of demarcation between 

 the belly and breast must be sharply cut, or, as it is called, 

 evenly-belted, as shown in the drawing. 



In treating of the various colours found in Pouters, the 

 yellow comes first, as being the most valuable when all else is 

 equal. Cocks of this colour, really good in properties, are, and 

 always have been, scarce, but good yellow hens are common 

 enough. In reds, on the other hand, good cocks are plentiful, 

 and really fine hens rather scarce. These colours have a great 

 natural affinity, and are to a great extent interbred in all 

 varieties of fancy pigeons. The colour of yellow Pouters is 

 often pleasing enough, but is not, in reality, any nearer perfec- 

 tion than the majority of reds. The latter were formerly some- 

 times to be found of a glossy blood-red, but they became very 

 scarce. Of late years, attention having been directed to them, 

 much has been done in resuscitating the colour : but although 

 I have seen, in my experience, many very good coloured 

 reds, I never saw any that could compare, in general Pouter 

 properties, with such as were only of a second or third degree of 

 colour. There is a beauty and richness in the best degree of 

 the red colour, as seen in many foreign pigeons, which makes 

 it universally admired. The best coloured red Pouter I ever 

 saw was a cock, bred in London, I believe, which was in the 

 possession of Mr. Fulton, about 1870, and from which are 

 descended some of the best coloured reds now in existence. 

 This bird had not a white beak, which many consider essential 

 in a red Pouter ; his beak was of a dark ruddy hue. His tail 

 was heavily stained with red, and his rump, or upper tail coverts, 

 was as red as his wing coverts. I have always considered that 



