mate them merely by their appearance 

 of foundation stock and pay the price. 



Buy birds of good color. Do not pay much attention 

 to the man who talks shape, for the chances are that his 

 birds do not come up to the mark in color and he talks shape 

 in order to get rid of his buff colored Reds. We would say 

 color first, last and all the time, because color comes from 

 good careful breeding and shows "class." Shape, although 

 a good factor, comes many times through luck. The minute 

 you have learned that you have raised a good bird or two, 

 do not begin to advertise that you have the "world's best." 

 Try again the next year and again another season until you 

 know your birds, so that you can advertise and give your 

 customers birds of breeding instead of an accidentally good 

 bird. 



Again we say, look after the color. They must be red. 

 Have your male as large as you can possibly get him in the 

 right shade of red. Be sure he is not chocolate color or a 

 dark dirty red. The color must be rich, bright, clean and 

 lustrous. It must be clean to the skin, showing not a trace 

 of undesirable smut or what is sometimes called slate. No 

 bird can prove a good breeder, in the long run, with this 

 dirty color hid beneath his surface. 



The Standard says, "No smut" and it is cut in the show 

 room. It is a great drawback. Why then do some breeders 

 use it? Because for a time it gives them dark but dirty 

 dark surface color and they are ignorant as to the proper 

 shade. Many judges are also in the dark and give some of 

 these short-lived breeders a share of the ribbons that they 

 do not deserve, thus giving the exhibitor an idea that he is 

 on the right track when in reality he is ruining 

 his chances for a successful future. Steer clear 

 of this dianger of smut breeding. When we say 

 that color is a great factor we do not mean 

 only surface color, because we believe under- 

 color to be as important as outer color and it 

 means a great deal to have it right in the 

 foundation stock. 



Regarding the male, look for shape and 

 size. Get as large a, bird as possible and nat- 

 urally as well shaped a bird as you can that has 

 the so much talked about proper color. A good 

 full-sized comb is desirable — one that sets 

 well on the head, but it should not be too large. 

 It is in regard to the black points that the ex- 

 perience of a breeder is put to the test. The 

 question is how to breed to get the right mark- 

 ings in the right place. Before looking at the 

 wing, select a male with a tail as near solid 

 black as possible, as the tail of the male counts 

 more than the wing. You want a wing that 

 has strength of color and it should be marked 

 to the tips, of the flights. Be sure there is 

 not a single trace of white or gray on any sin- 

 gle feather, for it would be the ruination of the 

 flock. If you can get a male such as we have 

 described, you will have a so-called perfect 

 one and he would be worth at least $2,000, 

 but you need not expect to get such a one. We 

 are only trying to make clear the points breeders 

 should be careful to examine. First count color, 

 then size, then shape, being particular about 

 having a long back. Then consider the black 

 points. Get the color right and then the other 

 qualificatioris as near right as possible. If you 

 are breeding rose combs, try to select birds that 

 are long in leg. A nice comb an& a red eye are 

 both desirable, but not so important as other 

 points. 



R. I. REDS AS EXHIBITON FOWLS 

 Buy the right kind 



43 



When selecting the females consider color again first. 

 They should be dark, rich and of the lasting kind. Those 

 that fade in color should be discarded. A pullet that fades 

 before she is a year old is of no use as a breeder. The females 

 show more shades of red than the males. It would be neces- 

 sary to have a bird before us in order to ej^plain clearly the 

 proper shade. It is impossible to do it in print, though we 

 will say that the color should be darker than a cherry and 

 lighter than chocolate. The quills should be the same as 

 the fluff of the feather and not be either darker or lighter. 

 While the surface must be dark, it must be lustrous and 

 must not be a "dead" appearing red. The hackle should be 

 dark with plenty of stippling, for too much is better than 

 not enough. Size is quite important, in fact we should say 

 very important, more so than in the male. Try to get fe- 

 males with long backs and those that are well set up on 

 their legs; a good full breast and a good keel. The wings 

 should have plenty of black, but they are very hard to get, 

 so if you cannot find them do not worry, but try to get birds 

 having black tails, but if you cannot get black in the tail' 

 then try for black in the females next year. Try to select 

 females with good heads. In rose combs try to get those 

 with raised combs instead of very low, flat ones. It is 

 desirable to have birds with red eyes, but if they have not 

 and have other desirable qualities, use them. 



Last of all, but most important, consider the under- 

 color. It must be clean, free from smut and not real light 

 buff. It should be deep red right to the skin. When you 

 have picked out birds as near right as you can get them, 

 watch the results and try the following year to rectify the 



FIRST ' "" y/' rose: 



MAWSON SQUARE GARDEN I90a-9.&B05TON 1909 



KAUFrAAM/N XcWINbHEiM NUTLE.X N- J 



