46 COMMON SENSE 
the purest Brown Teghorn males that I could: find, I kept gradu- 
ally getting nearer and nearer to pure Brown Leghorn hens, with 
this disadvantage, that I could not sell their eggs for hatching. 
It is true that they were slightly larger, and more hardy, than any 
thoroughbred fowls of their kind that I could. get, but, on the other 
hand, they were not as large as a first cross between ‘Leghorns and 
Brahmas, or Leghorns and Plymouth Rocks. After the fifth sea-. 
son I discarded them entirely, and sold them to a farmer who 
wanted Brown Leghorns, but did not care to give the price of 
thoroughbreds. How they will turn out in his hands remains to 
be seen. IT understand that he is taking. great pains with them, 
having set off four pens which he. keeps entirely separate, and-uses 
cockerels from one, and pullets from another, for breeding, so as to 
avoid, as much as possible, all very close breeding, and thus keep 
the strain pure and in all its vigor. 
For myself, for reasons which I have fully explained, I have 
abandoned this cross, as well all crosses from pure bred females. 
I get better results from females of mixed blood, than from those 
that are pure, but in all cases the males must be thoroughbred. 
The potency of the male in transmitting the qualities of his breed 
is in exact proportion to his pedigree; if mated with a hen of 
equal potency it is. difficult to tell what the result will be; some- 
times the hen, and sometimes the cock will govern the character of 
the progeny. Use hens of less potency—that is, less purity of 
breed; in other words, use cross bred hens, and the character of 
the male will be more fully developed. 
