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THE AMERICAN POULTERER'S COMPANION. 



serrated, and erect ; in others, large and rose- 

 shaped ; wattles large, and of a brilliant coral. 



The Dorking fowl, more or less crossed, or at 

 least a race nearly allied to them, called the 

 " Sussex breed," the bodies of which are more 

 elongated than in the Dorkings, and many of 

 them having five toes, are represented as very 

 fine. 



In the lithograph figure the reader will rec- 

 ognize a true Dorking a fowl which has re- 

 ceived as jealous a care in its breeding at Surrey 

 as suits the fancier who goes for the purity of 

 blood. So careful are the breeders of these 

 fowls in their own neighborhood, that it has 

 been with extreme difficulty that they could be 

 obtained at any price. 



Dr. Eben Wight, of Boston, who imported 

 some of these fowls as early as 1839, and has 

 paid considerable attention to the rearing of 

 poultry, says, in a letter to the author, " So far 

 as my experience has gone, the Dorkings are 

 decidedly the best breed for laying ; the eggs 

 come abundantly, and are of the largest size, 

 except when they have been bred 'in-and-in' 

 too much. I have already seen the effect, and 

 therefore hope to receive a new lot of Dorkings 

 during the summer." After six months more 

 experience, the same gentleman writes me: 

 "As regards the Dorkings, I am still strongly 

 prepossessed in their favor ; as layers, they are 

 certainly very prolific. As an instance, one of 

 my neighbors had a pullet which was hatched 

 in May : in the same year the pullet began her 

 litter of eggs, and hatched out her chickens be- 

 fore the first of December ensuing. This is 

 only one of the many instances which could be 

 advanced in their favor." 



Another breeder says " the Dorkings sustain 

 a high character in England as layers, but mine 

 have not laid better than our common hen." 



" The Dorking fowls," says another writer, 

 "stand first in the estimation of those who have 

 raised them. Their meat is fine, their bodies 

 are large, and better proportioned than any 

 others, being long, full, and well-fleshed in the 

 breast ; have short legs, and beautiful plumage, 

 with five instead of four toes ; are good layers, 

 good sitters, and good nurses. When capon- 

 ized, they weigh from nine to ten pounds." 



Dr. Wight some time afterward says, " When 

 I received my first lot of Dorking fowls, some 

 ten or twelve years since, through a friend who 

 was making a periodical visit at Dorking, he 

 assured me that it was only after a trial of 

 some two years that he could obtain them, and 

 then only by a resident to go down to the ship 

 and see them safely off for America ; the pro- 

 ducers of the stock being fearful that other sec- 

 tions of England might secure the breed." 



As corroborative of others finding the same 

 difficulty, we quote from the editor of the Amer- 

 ican Agriculturist: "As Dorking fowls are like- 

 ly to be in vogue now, we think it advisable to 

 caution all those who wish to possess good ones, 

 to be very careful what they buy. Choice birds 

 are extremely difficult to be had, as we found 

 to our cost when in England, and it was only 

 by special favor we procured them at last." 



In a late number of the American Agricultu- 

 rist, the editor remarks, " We are glad to meet 

 with the following common-sense article in an 

 English publication, the Derby and Chesterfield 

 Reporter, on the Dorking and Game fowls. It 

 will be seen that it almost exactly coincides 

 with our views as expressed on the same sub- 

 ject. When we first met with the Dorking fowl 

 in England, we made up our minds that it was 

 the best and most scientific-bred bird we had 

 ever seen, its fifth toe only excepted, which is 

 an excrescence that ought to be got rid of in 

 future breeding. A little knowledge in keep- 

 ing them justified us in pronouncing them enti- 

 tled to the same rank among barn-yard fowls 

 that short horns have taken among cattle ; and 

 years of experience in breeding them have con- 

 firmed us in this opinion. The only trouble 

 we have ever met with them is, too close breed- 

 ing, which it is essential to obviate. We, how- 

 ever, greatly esteem the cross with the Game 

 fowls, and yet we desire to see both the Dork- 

 ing and Game perpetuated, and kept up pure 

 and distinct by themselves. 



" The time will come when people will get sick 

 enough of those great coarse ill-shaped Asiatic 

 fowls. We have expressed very plainly our 

 opinion of these fowls ever since we met with 

 the first importations. A more unscientific-bred 

 domestic bird we do not know. For the food 



