200 THE POULTRY-BOOK. 



anything resembling it. For instance, the Dorking fowl was 

 originally produced by crossing the Great Malay with the Eng- 

 lish Game fowl, as an accident ; but it by no means follows, 

 that Dorkings are the uniform, or even the common result of 

 such a cross, for hundreds of such experiments have proved 

 unsuccessful. In order, then, to produce pure Dorkings, the 

 breeding must continue from the original stock, carefully avoid- 

 ing "close" and "in and in" breeding. The same maybe 

 said of the Plymouth Rock fowl, for I have repeatedly tried, 

 and as often failed, to produce this excellent breed from a sim- 

 ilar parentage. The breeding, therefore, to be pure-blooded, 

 must continue from the stock originally obtained by accident ; 

 and as such breeding produces the leading characteristics of the 

 race, with great uniformity, the genuineness of the breed cannot 

 be doubted. In order to produce a good cross, the parentage 

 should be healthy, and from healthy races, not materially dis- 

 similar in their general characteristics. The material points 

 are : Are the fowls large, fine-fleshed, gentle and domestic in 

 their habits, good layers of rich and well-flavored eggs ? (for 

 the eggs of some breeds are twice as valuable as those of others, 

 on this account for instance, one egg of the pure Cochin China 

 fowl, of the Baylies' importation, contains nearly as much 

 nutritious matter as two eggs of the Black Poland or Golden 

 Pheasant fowl, and is, consequently, much richer, better flavored 

 and more valuable,) close sitters, careful nurses, tractable, 

 etc., etc. ? and symmetrical conformation and gaudy plumage are 

 general accompaniments to the foregoing essential prerequisites. 

 The size of the leg should always be looked to, to judge accu- 

 rately as to purity of blood. If the leg is large for the breed 

 that is, if larger than the generality of the same breed 

 you can rely upon the purity of the blood, the fineness of the 

 flesh, and most of the other valuable qualities ; but if the legs 

 are smaller than most others of the same breed, rely upon it, 



