cocker's manual. 73 



feeding. Cocks were then matched by the length and girth, by the 

 eye and gaip, and not by weight as at present. But he was chiefly 

 noted for breeding a strain of cocks that eclipsed the royal Pyles, and 

 his old Sourface strains were unquestionably the best birds at that 

 time. In color they were known to old cockers as Smittenwing Reds, 

 being either streaky or spotted-breasted reds with dull yellow wings 

 and sometimes saddle also, and white legs. These in turn succumbed 

 to the old Vannihall yellow or orange-breasted gra)'s, on which the 

 popular ditty was written, with the refrain of 



"Fly up, fly up, fly up, 



My bonny gray cook 



And crow when it Is day; 



Your breast is of the burnished gold. 



And your wings a silvery gray." 



These got whipped by the renowned in-and-in-bred Mealy Grays of 

 Hugo Maynell's and Sir Charles Sedley's, which beat everything that 

 could be pitted against them until crossed after the decease of their 

 masters ; even the killing Smocks and light Pyles of the Warburtons, 

 Raylences, Molyneaxs and Egertons, whose heels were wont to bring 

 down death as suddenly as an electric shock, could not live a battle 

 through with them ; and only when those black-legged warriors of 

 Maynell & Sedley were opposed to each other did either find their 

 equal, and amateurs witnessed the hardest, cleverest fighting to be 

 seen in England, and by this same system of in-and-in breeding May- 

 sail produced the most perfect pack of fox hounds the world had ever 

 seen, and a keener sportsman all around, never existed. When Sed- 

 ley's cocks were opposed to his, vast sums of money were invariably 

 staked on the result, as both their cocks and feeders were on a par. 



The Earl of Mexborough's beautiful and true feathered grays, with 

 pearl eyes, yellow legs and beaks, looked as handsome and ornamental 

 on their walks when leading forth the half dozen spotless clear white 

 hapkle, gray-bodied hens that formed their harem, as they proved 

 dangerous in the pit. There is an old painting of a favorite cock and 

 two hens lying before me as I write this, and look so like life as fairly 

 to threaten to fly out of the canvas — a straw-colored hackle, rich, deep 

 red saddle, up and spread game-like black tail, bright yellow legs and 

 beak, and elegant carriage form a grand contrast to the heavy, dull, 

 inactive, droop-tail, spiritless, so-called game Duckwings we now see 

 in the show-pen at poultry exhibitions. In chickenhood, full feath- 



6 



