THE YORKSHIRE 157 



birds that want just a little more finishing about the 

 body. 



This is a fairly long catalogue of faults, but I have named 

 them so that breeders may know what they must avoid 

 in selecting stock for breeding. 



What is required in Breeding. 



So far as colour is concerned, it is usual to mate yellow 

 to buff. In a general way it does not matter which is 

 the yellow, the cock or the hen. The colours are usually 

 pretty evenly distributed in the sexes, and naturally 

 must be used. Never would I advise the practice of 

 double-bufiing in Yorkshires, as it gives you two things 

 you want to avoid, that is stoutness of body and increased 

 feather, which generally speaking is coarse in texture. 

 As my old friend, the late H. W. Battye said ; double- 

 yellowing and double-buffing he did not agree with, 

 although there may possibly be some instances when 

 it may be necessary. Double-buffing will frequently 

 produce a superabundance of long, broad feather, and 

 this, if not of a superfine quaHty, will be the cause of 

 endless trouble in the way of eyelash, frilled breasts, and 

 feathery thighs, while double-yellowing has a tendency to 

 produce scanty-feathered birds with thin pointed breasts 

 and streaky-looking feather, especially in the region of the 

 wing butts. 



Sometimes one or two exceptionally good birds are 

 bred this way, as, for instance, if a buff bird should happen 

 to come from double yellows, a circumstance I have known 

 to occur ; this bird becomes valuable as a stock bird if 

 paired again with a yellow. Birds bred this way fre- 

 quently produce birds of very superior quality, but as a 

 general practice I cannot recommend either double- 

 yellowing or double-buffing, and would strongly advise 

 the young fancier to stick to the orthodox system of 

 yellow to buff and buff to yellow. 



Balancing Weak and Strong Points. 



In mating up your stock to breed the ordinary clear 

 or ticked birds always make a point of noting any weak 



