Modern Type of Crest. 103 



excess, and a natural consequence is a wide departure from the ancient form. In the city of 

 Norwich itself, however, the breeders still work closely up to their standard, making great sacrifices 

 in the direction of size of crest in their determination to maintain the character of the bird ; and if 

 their crests are wanting in size, nowhere are such close and compact heads to be met with. If 

 anything, they have gone too far, having bred in-and-in from perfection till retrogression has set in 

 and necessitated the importation of new crested blood. There is a medium in all things, and it 

 may be that in our exacting demands for colour we have induced breeders to move on in that 

 direction at a pace incompatible with safe progress, and in insisting upon " Norwich " properties 

 accompanying the name when affixed to the word "Crested," we may have been spoiling a 

 beautiful family instead of improving it, because, from the very character of the feathering of 

 the Norwich Canary, there is a bound beyond which it cannot pass in crest-development. A 

 recognition of this fact has made it an open question whether the Norwich is the best parent stem 

 on which to work the crest, or whether it would not be well to permit some departure from that 

 severe type which demands a quality of feathering at variance with the requisites for a full crest. 

 There is a tendency in this direction, but unfortunately it has gone to the opposite extreme and 

 placed on the show-bench a style of bird so opposite to anything that crest-breeders have been 

 accustomed to, that the innovation cannot be regarded as the most desirable type — certainly not 

 in its present immature form. Crest without any quality of feather is quite as objectionable as 

 fine feather and poor crest : what is required is a blending of the two in a bird which could still 

 bear the honoured name, as it would still carry the impress of the family features. We shall 

 be able to refer to this again when we come to speak of breeding crests. Our object now 

 is to describe the bird which the breeder has hitherto tried to produce, viz., a highly- developed 

 Norwich with a crest ; and i.i referring to it as representing the bird whose name heads this 

 chapter, we have only to say that all the properties which become the Norwich Canaiy should 

 be found in the Crested variety of the same family in as great a degree as possible, always 

 remembering there must be good crest, which is a top-knot of feathers radiating from a common 

 centre on the crown, and falling evenly over the head in every direction. In shape it should 

 approach, as nearly as possible, a circular form, though such are comparatively rare, the more 

 general shape being an approximation to an ellipse. In size it should extend in front over 

 the greater portion of the beak, the circumference passing round to the back of the head in the 

 plane of the eyes, which should be almost, if not entirely, hidden, giving the bird an arch 

 expression. Assuming reasonable compactness — by which we mean the absence of coarseness 

 and irregularity — the most important features in a crest are its size and shape : colour is a 

 second consideration. Size is mainly dependent upon the length of the feather ; shape 

 upon its distribution. The width and general contour of the skull have also something 

 to do with it. A small crest will make any head look mean and spare, but a small 

 head can carry a large crest, and show it to perfection, too, if the feather and form be 

 there. It does not require an extra area of skull to hold the foundation of a well-feathered 

 crest ; but if the feathers be individually not much larger than the petals of a daisy, as is 

 the case in many of the Norwich crests, the case is different. The most beautiful forms 

 which have appeared during the last ten years have all been of the long, wide, flat, silky-feather 

 type, a description of feather entirely different from that we have indicated as characteristic of 

 a Norwich head, in which extreme shortness prevails. The shape is dependent on two things 

 — a small centre, and the position of that centre, which should be sufficiently remote from the 

 base of the beak to ensure a good frontage of regularly-radiating, long feathers, known technically 

 as a good "entrance." It will be plain that, in the case of a crest at all elliptical in form, the 



