Malays. 
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slightly towards the tail ; tail, drooping, and held closely together, not fanned ; thighs, long and 
inuscular, standing prominently forward ; shanks, stout and straight ; toes, long and strong ; carriage, upright 
and fearless. The same description applies to the hen, excepting that she does not droop so much behind 
as the cock, the tail being carried somewhat higher. Cocks should weigh from lo to ii lbs, and 
hens 8 to 9 lbs. ; cockerels and pullets, about i lb. less. 
" In colour, there are Black-Red, Brown-Red, Blue-Red, Duckwing, Pile, White, and Black. We do 
not get the same distinctness in marking as in the corresponding colours in British Game, and Judges, as a 
rule, recognise that a breed not kept specially for its beauty, but mainly for its useful qualities, should have 
some latitude allowed in respect to slight defects in colour. 
" The following is the Schedule of Points for Judging which I have drawn up for my own guidance 
when officiating in that capacity : — 
Schedule kor Judging Malay Fowls. 
Head and Comb ... ... lo 
Glossiness and Hardness of Plumage ... ... ... ... ••. ... 14 
Shoulders ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 10 
Tail 8 
Colour ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 10 
Legs 5 
Size 16 
Style and Symmetry ... ... 15 
Condition ... ... ... 12 
100 
" The Malay is my favourite breed of all the different varieties I have kept since I took to ' feathers ' 
about twenty years ago. Their upright, bold carriage, and fearless disposition, and the ' individuaUty ' (if 
such an expression is allowed in regard to Fowls) of the different members of the flock have always given 
me more interest in Malays than in other breeds, which are merely pretty or useful Fowls. But they have 
other and more important features to recommend them. As a table Fowl, 1 think they are equal to many of 
the breeds more sought after for that purpose, and, if the matter could be thoroughly sifted, I believe, from 
the comparative scarcity of Malays, that many of those who assist in ' booming ' other breeds for table 
purposes have never tasted a Malay cockerel or pullet of eight or nine months old, otherwise I fancy they 
would alter their opinion. There is no other Fowl, to my knowledge, which possesses such a power to 
improve almost every breed with which it is crossed in edible qualities, size, and constitution, and in this 
statement (at the risk of running against a ' snag ') I do not except the widely-advertised Indian Game. The 
quality of each as a table Fowl I consider about on a par ; but the size and stamina, with power to transmit 
its own characteristics, are certainly on the side of the Malay. A few moments' consideration must convince 
any unbiassed mind of the truth of the latter remark, from the fact that the Malay is one of the oldest 
known breeds, whilst the Indian Game has been ' made ' at a comparatively recent date. A Malay cock 
running with the undersized mongrels usually found in the ordinary farm-yard will speedily be found to have 
improved the size and quality of the stock. I had positive proof of this some years back. I put some of 
my cockerels to ' walk ' in the farm-yard of a friend three or four years in succession ; and, on a recent visit, 
although no new blood had been introduced for several seasons, I could still see the result in the superiority 
of type as compared with the ordinary barn-door Fowls. With reference to the breeding, feeding, and 
general management of Malays, it is hardly necessary for me to offer any remarks, as the same care and 
attention are needed in these matters as with any other breed. Still, it may be as well to mention that, as a 
rule, they have remarkably good appetites, and the growing chicks thrive all the better if their food is 
changed occasionally. You cannot expect to have cockerels to weigh (as many of our best strains do) one 
pound in weight for every month of their age up to nine or ten months unless they are fed well, and often. 
R 
