

INDIAN GAME. 1 



black is in the Black-red hackle. Generally a very little 

 black or coloured ticking runs through the white, and is not 

 objected to. Yellow legs are the colour for Piles ; and light 

 willow are also shown, but not liked so well. Once white legs 

 were fashionable, but are now most unpopular of all, which is 

 rather a pity, as the white-legged strains (also known in Black- 

 reds) were the finest in flesh of all the Game varieties. 



Piles have to be occasionally crossed from the Black-red to 

 keep up the colour ; but all the Black-red chickens from such 

 a cross should be destroyed, as they are of little value, and 

 corrupt the Black-red blood, which it is so important to nearly 

 all other varieties should be kept pure. 



There are many other varieties seen occasionally, but not 

 often, and chiefly kept alive by clandestine cock-fighters. A 

 breed called Henny Game is peculiar for the cock being 

 feathered like the hen in tail and hackles. It is large, and 

 rather solidly built Whites, blacks, blacks with brassy (or 

 yellow-marked) wings, and Silver Birchens (the cock like the 

 Silver Duckwing, the hen a dark dirty grey) are still occa- 

 sionally shown, but very rarely. 



INDIAN GAME have very recently become rather popular. 

 They are often called Aseels, and are perhaps the most stub- 

 born fighters of any poultry now known, so that it is very 

 difficult to keep even two hens together. In many general 

 points these birds somewhat resemble the Malay, but have 

 regular pea-combs. They are also much shorter on the leg, 

 have more rounded and less sharp shoulders, and are altogether 

 more symmetrical, the whole formation evidently packing the 

 greatest possible amount of hard muscle, which stands out in 

 masses or knots, into the smallest space. The apparent weight 

 of these birds for their size is enormous. The plumage is 

 particularly dense and glossy. 



Game cocks are generally "dubbed," or have the comb 

 and wattles cut off close to the head with shears, at about six 



