THE DOMESTIC FOWL. 27 



ingly large, of a vivid and most brilliant scarlet, that of 

 the hen drooping over on one side. Their most singular 

 feature is a large white patch, or ear lobe, on the 

 cheek, of a fleshy substance, similar to the wattles, 

 -which are small in the hens, but large and very con- 

 spicuous in the cocks. This marked contrast of black, 

 bright-red, and" white, makes the head of the Spanish 

 cock as handsome as that of any other variety ; and 

 in the genuine breed, the whole form is equally good ; 

 but the scraggy, long-legged, mis-shapen mongrels 

 are often met with enough to throw discredit on the 

 whole race. Some birds are occasionly produced 

 handsomely streaked with red on the hackles and 

 back. This is no proof of bad breeding, if other points 

 are right. 



Spanish hens are also of large size and good figure, 

 and are celebrated as good layers, producing very large, 

 quite white eggs, of a peculiar shape, being very thick 

 at both ends, and yet tapering off a little at each. 

 They are by no means good mothers of families, even 

 when they do sit, which they will not often condescend 

 to do, proving very careless, and frequently trampling 

 half their brood underfoot. But the inconveniences of 

 this habit are easily obviated by causing the eggs to 

 be hatched by some more motherly hen. 



It has been noticed that this variety of fowl fre- 

 quently loses nearly all the feathers on the body, 

 besides the usual quantity on the neck, wings, and 

 tail ; and if they moult late, and the weather is severe, 

 they feel it much. Nothing else can reasonably be 

 expected to take place with an " everlasting layer." 

 It often happens to the Guinea fowl ; and the reason 

 of it is plain. If the system of a bird is exhausted by 

 the unremitting production of eggs, it cannot contain 

 within itself the wherewithal to supply the growth of 

 feathers. The stream that will fill^hut one channel 

 cannot be made to keep two at high-Water mark ; and 

 therefore, Mr. Leonard Barber, an English author, 

 justly observes : " With regard to an anxiety about 



