The Newer Variety, the White Runner 



CHAPTER XVI 



The future of the Indian Runners must, of course, include 

 the variety recently come into such amazing popularity in this 

 .country, the beautiful White Runner. Though not long adver- 

 tised here, the White Runners already interest the public at 

 large so greatly that they deserve accented notice. In California, 

 in the middle-west, in the middle states, — the three great first 

 centers of the variety, — ^they are now strongly advertised, often 

 displacing the Fawn types ; while the South is "wild" over them. 



There cannot be much doubt that very many White Run- 

 ners — so-called — have arisen through crosses. The most likely 

 crosses, perhaps, are those of the Pekin, or the Call Duck, with 

 the colored Runners ; with later selection. This last probably ex- 

 plains why we have "white Runners," even in the most prominent 

 shows, showing short, badly-dished bills, and small size; while 

 very coarse heads and a tendency to dishing in the bill and logy, 

 heavy bodies point back to the Pekin cross. I saw Pekins in a 

 very large show that were as upright in carriage as almost any 

 of the American Standard Runners there. One specimen, in es- 

 pecial, was as upright in carriage as any Runner I had then seen ; 

 though colored Runners are better now, especially since the Pen- 

 ciled birds have been given place in the shows again. 



A 1913 letter from the South says of local "white Runners" : 

 ^'I am afraid of them, as all have the Pekin type very much pro- 

 .nounced." Texas breeders say this is true of most of the so- 

 -called White Runners which appear in their shows, also. A Run- 

 ner built on a Pekin foundation would be too broad and thick- 

 :set, for many generations, no doubt. 



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