POULTRY CULTURE 



In the dark-red 

 types, with black in 

 the wings and tail, the 

 undercolor is usually 

 red with more or less 

 slate, the slate, when 

 present, appearing as a 

 bar next the surface. 

 If black points are re- 

 quired or allowed, a 

 moderate amount of 

 slate in undercolor is 

 not objectionable, but 

 care must be taken to 

 avoid repeated matings 

 of birds with much 

 slate, for the tendency 

 of such matings is to 

 bring out black specks, 

 and sometimes indis- 

 tinct pencilings, on the 

 surface. 



In buff birds, and 

 in red birds in which 



it is desired to reduce the black as much as possible, slate in undercolor should 



be scrupulously avoided, and 



selection made for under- 

 color as near the surface color 



as possible. The strongest 



buff and red undercolor , is 



always a little lighter than 



the surface color, but strong 



surface color is often found 



with weak undercolor. In 



these colors, if surface and 



undercolor are very nearly 



the same shade and the 



former somewhat faded and 



mottled by exposure, a bird 



may appear to have good 



undercolor and poor surface, 



and in such cases the under- 

 color may afford a better 



index of the breeding char- FlG . s68 . Old Rouen duck5 owned by Howard B. 



acter of the bird than the Robinson, Reading, Massachusetts 



FIG. 567. Young Rouen drake, owned by Howard B. 

 Robinson, Reading, Massachusetts 



