330 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



and a pure White game hen, some excellent Whites, and having 

 among them a very troublesome young White cock that annoyed 

 everyone with his fighting propensities, I placed him at my stables, 

 some little distance away in the village, where I then resided. 

 Close to this stable lived a farmer, who had a fine breed of 

 Dorkings and other common farm-yard poultry, of which he kept 

 a number The first thing that happened was my young White 

 cock (in spite of everything) killed all the farmer's cocks that 

 would stand up to him (he was the most determined fighter I ever 

 saw), and he then possessed himself of all the hens, and as he 

 was a fine bird he was allowed to remain with them, some large 

 table-birds being expected from the cross. A great many chickens 

 were the result, but all small, and all Blues, showing no white, 

 and being in colour like Blue game, all with single combs and 

 dark legs, and with some of the elegance of the game fowl in 

 their appearance. I afterwards disposed of this White game 

 cockerel, and his progeny the Blue farmyard cross were allowed 

 to breed with each other. In about three seasons all trace of blue 

 colour had disappeared, and they had relapsed into common Eed 

 single-combed cocks, more or less barred on the wing, whilst the 

 hens appeared common Brown single-combed birds, scarcely, if 

 at all, distinguishable from the common Barn-door fowl of the 

 country. 



Some years after this, thinking to obtain some more Blues, as 

 their scarcity made them valuable, I again obtained a good 

 Black-red hen, to which I put a i)ure White game cock of the same 

 strain as the White cock first mentioned, but, alas, " 'Tis not in 

 mortals to command success." The chickens turned out all 

 Cuckoo game of the purest type, both cockerels and pullets, 

 without red, most regularly barred over the entire body and very 

 beautiful. I parted with them to a friend of mine, who is a game 

 fancier, and he bred from them. The result was exactly the 

 same as in the Blues, the birds got smaller, the consequence pro- 

 bably of breeding from brother and sister, whilst over them, 

 especially in the cock, red feathers were sprinkled. They were 

 afterwards sold, and I have never seen any Cuckoo game since, 

 but 1 have little doubt that if their descendants had been per- 

 mitted to breed with each other they would have developed 

 ultimately into cocks, more or less red, and hens brown or 

 partridge-coloured ; whilst on the other hand, as in the Blues, 



