CLASSIFICATION OF BREEDS 29 



and Silkies come under this head, and are raised chiefly for 

 some peculiarity of form or feather without regard to use- 

 ful qualities. This class will be eliminated from further 

 discussion. 



This classification, however, is an arbitrary one. Some 

 breeders may object to the place given some of the breeds. 

 It may, for instance, be claimed that the Langshan is as 

 much a general purpose breed as the Orpington, and it may 

 be that the Orpington is a better meat breed than the 

 Langshan. The Orpington has a slightly greater weight than 

 the Langshan, and if weight alone were to be considered 

 these two breeds might exchange places. In making the 

 classification, account is taken of the fact that the Lang- 

 shan is largely, if not wholly, of Asiatic origin, while in 

 the making of the Orpington several egg breeds were used. 

 Again, placing the Orpington in the general purpose class 

 does not mean that its meat qualities are not equal or 

 superior to some of those in the meat class. The Dorking 

 also, might fairly be placed among the table breeds because 

 its table qualities have probably been more highly de- 

 veloped than its laying qualities, but on account of its 

 medium size and its wide reputation as a general-purpose 

 fowl it has been placed in the general-purpose class. 



The classification includes only those breeds and varieties 

 that have been admitted to the "American Standard of 

 Perfection." There are many European breeds that are 

 not illustrated in or recognized by the "American Stan- 

 dard.' Some of them are of considerable economic value. 



