138 THE PRACTICAL POULTRY KEEPER. 



of the mischief from any rash experiment which turns 

 out badly. 



We come now, however, to the great principle of 

 breeding, in that course of selection above alluded to. We 

 have to harmonise the necessity for keeping up the con- 

 tinuous attention necessary to any point we want, with the 

 claims of the other several points, which are so seldom found 

 all together in perfection. The first step is to consider the 

 points required in relation to their comparative difficulty 

 and value, the difficulty and the value being usually 

 synonymous. Doing this, the breeder at once sees that 

 some points are obtained much more easily than others, a 

 single mating being often enough sufficient to obtain one 

 property in a good proportion of chickens, whilst generations 

 of selection are needed for others. Where this is not so 

 evident, some points will still be found of more value than 

 others. All this being weighed, the proper procedure will 

 begin to appear. Picking out one or two of the most 

 difficult and valuable points, fasten attention on that one, or 

 at most two, and keep it there. In selecting the very first 

 stock for breeding, and ever afterwards, give such heed as is 

 practically possible to other points also, of less moment, but 

 never lose sight of these. 



Also provide at the outset at least two, and, if possible, 

 more pens, not closely related, but yet somewhat related r 

 in order to avoid the necessity of crossing until the strain 

 is thoroughly established. We thus avoid the danger 

 of dropping unawares some link in the succession. Other- 

 wise we risk that in the following way. We find some 

 defect in our own stock needs remedy by a cross, thoiigh 

 second to another all-important point to which we devote 

 chief attention. We find a cross which gives us what we 

 want, and also appears all we could desire in our most- 

 valued point ; hence we think we are not at all risking the 



