il^ACIi WYAHDOTTES. 



An Old Variety But Never Bred in Great Numbers — Good Specimens Scarce. 



HIS variety of the Wyandotte family was 

 admitted to the Standard in 1903, but 

 was never so popular with the fanciers 

 as the promoters had hoped for. Whether 

 this was due to the prejudice against 

 the color, or the lacli of push on the 

 part of the originators it is hard to say, 

 but one thing we do know — there is not 

 one American show in ten that has a 

 single entry in this variety, and where 

 a show does have an exhibit the class is seldom filled — in 

 fact, we cannot recall a show where there have been to 

 exceed twenty Black Wyandottes on exhibition. 



During the past few years, or since the Black Orping- 



and winter of 1907, we found several strictly Al birds of 

 this variety — birds of both sexes that were good in shape, 

 size and color. That they will ever be as popular as other 

 varieties of the Wyandotte family we very much doubt, 

 unless there should be some wideawake American fancier 

 fall in love with them, take them up, exhibit and advertise 

 them and make them as prominent as they should be. 



One thing that can be said in favor of the Blacks — 

 there is no better middleweight breed in existence from 

 a commercial standpoint. They are quick to mature, good 

 winter layers, and, regardless of their black plumage, they 

 dress .a yellow carcass when prepared for the table. They 

 have one decided advantage over the parti-colored varieties 

 in the number of good specimens that can be bred from one 



STANDAKD BLACK WYANDOTTE MALE. 



ton has become so justly popular, there has been a slight 

 increase in the demand for Black Wyandottes, and the 

 quality that has been shown since 1905 has been decidedly 

 better than prior to that time. In some shows in the fall 



mating or from one yard — the percentage of exhibition 

 stock almost invariably surpassing even the whites when 

 properly mated — in fact, an eighty-five per cent, average 

 from a well mated pen is no exaggeration. 



