66 



The Poultry Exhibition at Madrid. 



admitted that this branch of live stock occupies a small place 

 in the agriculture of that country. 



At one time throughout Spain a type of fowl was largely 

 kept called the Castilian breed, and this seems to be the pro- 

 genitor of our Spanish races, Medium in size of body and 

 length of leg, tight in feather, entirely black or very dark in 

 plumage, and having a large single comb, it was favoured by 

 reason of the large eggs which it produced. From this brief 

 description it will be seen that such a type may reasonably be 

 regarded as the progenitor of the Black Spanish, the Minorca 

 and the Andalusian, whose variations are secondary. 

 Throughout Castile and Northern Spain, and in the Malaga 

 district this class of fowl is still most evident. Where a 

 different class of poultry is seen they follow largely the Game, 

 due to frequent importations of fighting fowls from the 

 United Kingdom for the purposes of the cockpit, a sport 

 which it has been suggested was introduced during the 

 Peninsula Wars, but this we should very much doubt. These 

 remarks do not apply to the Cadiz and Barcelona districts. 

 In the former, several decades ago, there was a large 

 importation of Cochins, which have considerably modified 

 the fowls of that province, and around Barcelona the French 

 and cognate races have been introduced. But taking the 

 country as a whole the poultry commonly met with have a 

 distinct uniformity of type, and the great majority are black 

 or very dark in plumage. Such variations as appear are not 

 greater than might be looked for where so little has been 

 attempted in selection or care in breeding. 



Within late years more, however, has been done in this 

 direction, and efforts are now being put forth to improve the 

 fowls of the country, both on the part of the agricultural 

 authorities and the Spanish Society of Poultry Breeders, to 

 whose efforts the excellent Exhibition of Poultry held at 

 Madrid in May was due. We must also note the fact that a 

 few of the great landowners and others have introduced stock 

 into the country, though the influence of these, however great 

 in. their own immediate districts, has not yet modified to any 

 large extent the general fowls of the country. Probably it is 

 too early to expect this result. The best flock of fowls of the 



