10 



SUCCESS WITH POUIjTRY 



H rule the finest show cockerels are the result of the mating 

 of a standard colored male with medium to medium dark 

 females having deep barring even and straight across. The 

 black bars in cockerels should be avoided, and in standard 

 color the light bars should be clear and free from muddiness. 

 The best pullets come from prime colored hens and a 

 male lighter color than a show bird. 



Ancestral backing musi be considered in mating Plym- 

 outh Eocks. The cockerel used for a pullet mating should 

 be one whose dam was a prime high-scoring hen. Such' a 

 male will get far finer pullets than one equal in individual 

 quality but bred from an ordinary hen. The same is true 

 in a cockerel mating. Only males should be used as breed- 

 ers that are first-class and sired by first-class cockerels, the 

 finer the cockerel the better. 



Chance birds are of little use as breeders, because they 

 will not transmit their good points or repro- 

 duce themselves in their progeny. Some fine 

 chicks, both cockerels and pullets, can be 

 bred from what is called the "single mat- 

 ing" — ^standard or exhibition colored females 

 and a standard colored male. 



The blue tinge to the plumage should be 

 always kept in mind, for this is one of the 

 main attractions of the breed from a fan- 

 cier's standpoint. To preserve even this, 

 however, a regjilar barring of the feathers 

 should not be sacrificed. A cTescent bar is 

 not what is wanted, but straight distinct 

 lines running well to the skin; and if the 

 feathers are rightly placed the ' ' ringlets ' ' 

 or "zebra stripes" will be clearly defined 

 , throughout the whole body. ■ These add to 

 the beauty of a Plymouth Eock, and are 

 much sought after by the breieders of Amer- 

 ican's favorite fowl. It has been stated that 

 some breeders have been sacrificing regular 

 paralell barring — which on feathers evenly 

 placed show the .ringlets — to get light sur- 

 face color in females, which practice, if car- 

 ried to extremes^, is wholly wrong. All the 

 features in color and plumage should, as far '- 



as possible,, be preserved, and no one point '^ 



be- reected to bring out another. The aim 

 should be a harmonious whole to comply yith ^ 



the written rules of the American Standard, i ".' 



A perfect individual feather of the Barred J 



Plymouth is worth the study of an artist, ^^^ 

 and shows the beautiful in nature to a high degree. 



While the plumage of a Barred Plymouth Book, taken 

 as a whole, would not rank as gorgeous, they have an every- 

 day prosperous, well-to-do, business-like dress and appearance, 

 which, with their size, carriage and well-rounded form, 

 make them a handsome fowl and adapted alike to the wants 

 of the marketman and farmer, or poultry fancier, and in 

 breeding fine exhibition specimens the fancier can find in 

 the Barred Plymouth Rock a wide and boundless field in 

 which to display his greatest skill and genius. 



Cleanliness is olie of the first essentials to success with 

 poultry; not only must they have clean quarters, but the 

 fowls must be kept free from vermin. Another essential 

 is dry quarters, with perfect freedom from drafts during 

 cold or wintry nights. Provide these, with enough range 

 so that the fowls will be contented; furnish them with 

 plenty of fresh, pure water; feed a good variety of sound, 

 wholesome food, including green food in summer, cut vege- 

 tables in winter and cut green bone the year 'round — supply 

 these and poultry will pay, and pay well. 



HOW TO BREED EXHIBITION BAEIRBD ROOKS. 



detailed Instruction on Mating in Order to Produce Exf 



hlibtion Males and Females— The Double Mating 



System Advised. 



BY ME. A. C. HAWKINS, JUDGE. 



N 



■0 PEOBI.EM has been more difficult to solve by the 

 American fanciers than that of breeding high-class 

 exhibiton Barred Plymouth Eocks. The material 

 that was used in producing this breed at the begin- 

 ning was such that the different sexes have tended- to follow 

 in line from the first. 



The Dominique male was mated with the Black Java 

 female, and the produce from the union was the original 







standard-bred Barred Plymouth Rocks. 

 Barred Plymouth Eock. The pullets came dark in color, 

 many of them black likei the dam, while the males werd 

 light in color like the sire. The tendency is the same today 

 in many flocks where the owners have tried to breed staiid- 

 ard birds of both sexes from the same mating. 



The leading breeders of tnis variety who have been most 

 successful in producing high-scoring specimens have adopted 

 the double mating system, that of making a special mating 

 to produce exhibition males and another or different line 

 to produce show females. It is of this method of special 

 matings that I shall treat particularly, as I believe the most 

 perfect specimens can be produced in this way. If the 

 judges in different sections of the country did not differ so 

 much in their ideal Barred Plymouth Rock, it would be much 

 easier to understand what I mean by an exhibition speci- 

 men. I shall describe what I believe to be the ideal Barred 

 Plymouth Rock. 



Many of the judges have become so thoroughly carried 



