110 Game. 



of both should be very hard, firm, and close, very strong 

 in the quills, and seem so united that it should be almost 

 impossible to ruffle them, each feather if lifted up falling 

 readily into its original place. Size is not a point of merit, 

 from four to six pounds being considered sufficient, and 

 better than heavier weights. Among the list of imperfec- 

 tions in Game cocks, Sketchley enumerates "flat sides, 

 short legs, thin thighs, crooked or indented breast, short 

 thin neck, imperfect eye, and duck or short feet." 



"It is the custom," says Miss Watts, "consequently 

 imperative, that all birds which are exhibited should have 

 been dubbed, and this should not be done until the comb 

 is so much developed that it will not spring again after the 

 dubbing. This will be safe if the chicken is nearly six 

 months old, but some are more set than others at a certain 

 age. A keen pair of scissors is the best instrument with 

 which to operate. Hold the fowl with a firm hand, cut 

 away the deaf ears and wattles, then cut the comb, cutting 

 a certain distance from the back, and then from the front 

 to join this cut, taking especial care not to go too near the 

 skull. Some operators put a finger inside the mouth to 

 get a firm purchase. We should like to see dubbing done 

 away with, leaving these beautiful fowls as nature makes 

 them ; but since amateurs and shows will not agree to 

 this, it is best to give directions for dubbing, as an opera- 

 tion bunglingly performed is sure to give unnecessary 

 pain." To save the bird from excessive loss of blood his 

 wattles are usually cut off a week later. Every super- 

 fluous piece of flesh and skin should be removed. 



The " Hen wife " well says : " Why these poor birds are 

 condemned to submit to this cruel operation is a mystery, 

 unfathomable, I suspect, even by the judges themselves. 

 Cock-fighting being forbidden by law, the cocks should, on 

 principle, be left undubbed, as a protest against this brutal 

 amusement. The comb of the Game male bird is as beau- 

 tifully formed as that of the Dorking ; why then rob it of 

 this great ornament ? It is asserted that it is necessary to 

 remove the comb to prevent the cocks injuring each other 

 fatally in fighting ; but this is not true ; a Dorking will 



