CHAPTER V 

 ORIGIN AND DESCRIPTION OF BREEDS 



IMPORTANT EGG BREEDS 



The Leghorn. The poultry industry owes a great deal 

 to the Leghorn fowl. It is not a made breed, as breeds 

 are made to-day ; it was ' ' ready-made. ' ' "Where the breed 

 originated nobody knows. It is not the product of scien- 

 tific breeding, but rather its type and characteristics have 

 been developed through the centuries by the slow process 

 of natural or unconscious selection. Nature early decreed 

 that the high producer, whether the product be eggs or 

 milk or speed, must be small in body, spare in flesh, and 

 full of nervous energy. Nature did the work in the case 

 of the Leghorn. "While the Leghorn is a ready-made breed, 

 our modern breeders have by careful selection given it 

 greater uniformity, especially in color of plumage, ear lobe, 

 etc. The development of different varieties has been the 

 work of modern fanciers. Later and more productive 

 strains have been developed, but the Leghorn of to-day is 

 largely the Leghorn in type and characteristics of a century 

 or two ago. Of all breeds of fowls, few have the apparent 

 lasting qualities of the Leghorn. While the Leghorn is a 

 large class at all poultry shows, and has therefore been 

 bred along fancy lines, it has also been bred for special 

 egg-laying qualities. The White Leghorn has the distinc- 

 tion of being found on special poultry farms more than 

 any other breed. 



ORIGIN.- The Leghorn is sometimes spoken of! as an 

 American breed. It received its name in the United States, 



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