238 CANARIES 



black as possible, except her tail and wings, which must 

 be regular and true. 



" Secondly. — For a strong mealy cock choose a healthy 

 jonque hen, with fine soft feather and regularly marked 

 tail and wings ; never match birds of the same nest, 

 as this will reduce and weaken your birds. 



" Thirdly. — Among amateurs strength of feather means 

 a considerable quantity of black spangles on the back, 

 and too much black colour in general when you blow 

 up the belly feathers ; and they are without silkiness 

 or softness of feather apparent in finer, richer-coloured 

 birds, which, when you blow up their belly feathers, are 

 fine, soft, and white ; when so, match them opposite. 



" Fourthly. — Mealy hens are deemed the best to breed 

 with, because a spangle-marked cock with a mealy hen 

 will produce a more regular-spangled back, and finer than 

 if both were spangled marked. This rule you will find 

 good in all matching and pairing ; wherever one is too 

 strong, match it to an opposite. And so you will find it 

 with crown top Canaries ; whichever has a fine crown, 

 let the other have none, and you will produce a fine 

 crown-top. If a male grey is put to a female white, or 

 a male white to a female grey, the brood will be more 

 beautiful than the parents. In the feathered tribe you 

 produce the finest harmony from opposition. 



" Fifthly. — To breed a fine, full-coloured yellow, 

 without a spot or splash, you should get a large mealy 

 hen, bred from a clear yeUow cock, and match her with 

 a clear-bred jonque cock. If possible, know that your 

 birds come from a clear breed, otherwise you may have a 

 spot or splash ; and to breed fine clear mealies, vice 

 versa. 



" Sixthly. — To breed fine-coloured pied birds, take a 

 clear jonque cock, match him with a rich-coloured 

 greenish or dark grey hen, and you will have some more 

 or less pied birds, strong and good songsters. 



" Seventhly. — There is a class of Canaries called 

 Lizards. They are obtained by matching a pair of 

 strongly marked fancy birds together, which, being 

 too strong in colour, produce that strong black mixture 

 resembling the lizard ; or match a common strongly 

 marked grey Canary with a splash-marked hen, and you 

 will get fine dark birds. A fine, strong, splashed common 



