Trimmixg Spaxts/t Faces. 349 



he formerly entertained is entirely removed. We have thought it well to state these facts in order 

 to remove any misapprehension which may still prevail, and to make it perfectly clear that no breeder, 

 exhibitor, or judge now considers the faintest semblance of fraud to attach to the practice referred 

 to. It is only necessary to state that a proper fringe of feathers, which is always found naturally 

 in the very best birds, should be left at the top of the face, between it and the comb. To trim 

 this away is to impart a very unnatural appearance, which, as iVIr. Teebay says, is " perfectly 

 ridiculous," and which on this ground, and not on that of fraud, is still occasionally visited with the 

 penalty of disqualification. This point being of some importance, Mr. Hewitt has very kindly given 

 his views on the subject, which may prove of assistance to those who wish to know "where they 

 must draw the line." His remarks will also make clear the curious fact, that in this case the 

 recognition of the custom has been literally forced upon the judges against their own will by the 

 great body of Spanish exhibitors, contrary to the opinion often so freely expressed that the fault 

 rests with them. It is in truth plainly manifest that the origin of the practice was in the improve- 

 ment which it will be seen all agree in stating can thereby be effected; and all that can now be done 

 is to define what is legitimate as far as possible, and keep it within proper limits. Mr. Hewitt's 

 observations on this subject are as follow : — 



"Among the many vexed questions arising out of our poultry exhibitions, none perhaps have 

 equalled the disputes arising from the trimming of the faces of Spanish fowls. I, for one, admit it 

 would be well if this plan was discontinued altogether ; but although discountenanced by the judges 

 generally, the difficulty even now is to find a pen in large classes in which the faces have not been 

 more or less cleverly subjected to this treatment. It should be borne in mind that trimming, how- 

 ever artistically carried out, can never make an indifferent specimen of the Spanish fowl into a 

 really good one, but, on the contrary, often brings to light blemishes that were best hidden ; at the 

 same time it is equally true a really first-class bird is capable of very great improvement to the 

 eye, when submitted to the hands of a careful and practical trimmer. 



" As I have before hinted, it would be far better if trimming, even of Spanish fowls, could be 

 done away with altogether : but as many years' perseverance on the part of judges seems of so 

 little avail, it may be well to point out where by going too far, otherwise excellent fowls have been 

 either simply passed by without remark of any kind, or disqualified altogether. 



" It has often been found that even the whole line of feathers between the eye and the base of 

 the comb has been entirely removed, or, as is still more general, trimmed off to an abrupt line 

 over the eye, leaving perchance some portion of the part thus denuded of feather in a most un- 

 sightly condition, bringing confusion to the prospects of the exhibitor. On the other hand, a good 

 white face may, in many instances, be wonderfully improved by the extraction of the few scattered 

 hairs which naturally exist (more or less) in the faces of the most perfect Spanish fowls. 



" It is one of those questions to which no general rule seems to apply. When officiating with 

 some of the most noted arbitrators of the day, the question has often arisen between two pens, one 

 trimmed, the other not so, whether the naturally shown pen could not in the hands of any one of 

 us ' be made to look quite equal to the other ;' and taking this plain view of the matter, the award 

 has been given in favour of the untrimmed pen ; but what is certainly most discouraging, public 

 opinion, formed on a hasty glance of relative excellence, has usually in such cases been opponent 

 to the decision." 



We may add to the above that the open toleration of the practice of trimming Spanish faces is 

 by no means an unmixed gain, since it has to a great extent obliterated the distinction between 

 naturally good and clean faces and those obstructed by feathers. When birds were shown 

 naturally, fanciers bred them to such perfection that little was required ; and we still see now and 



