284 
The Australasian Book of Poultry. 
twist. The serrations of the comb should taper off to a fine point, and not too thick or fleshy ; the surface 
of the comb should be as smooth as possible, though this is a difficult point to produce in birds bred and 
reared entirely in the open. The head itself should be rather large, being both long, broad, and deep-sided ; 
the eyes large, perfectly free, and open ; the face pure white, of soft, delicate texture, smooth, and as free as 
possible from folds or wrinkles. The white should grow well behind the ear, and rounding with a nice 
curve to the bottom of the lobe, which should be broad and open — not coming to a point — coming up again 
in front of the neck and joining the wattles, which latter should be of the brightest red, and long and thin ; 
the inside of the upper part and the skin between the wattles, white. The neck long and nicely arched, the 
hackle feathers abundant, well covering the shoulders ; the breast well rounded ; the body also nicely 
rounded, large, but not too long or Dorking-shaped, tapering well to the tail, which should be ample and 
carried rather high, the top sickles going well past the true tail feathers. The legs should be long, showing 
plenty of thigh ; the colour of the legs should be a medium leaden blue, not too dark, and showing a pinkish 
tinge on the web of the toe and up the inside and outside of the scales of the legs. The bird should be 
sprightly and active in his movements, this latter being one of the breed's most prominent characteristics. 
The plumage should be of the glossiest black, and the bird should have a most commanding and noble 
carriage. The Spanish hen or pullet should be similar to the cock in beak, eyes, legs, and feet ; but the comb, 
though single and deeply serrated, is rather large, and falls entirely over one side of the face. The face is 
similar to the cock's, though smaller, and the wattles are much smaller and thinner ; but the larger the face 
is the better, providing it is fine and free from ridges or coarseness, there being no apparent division between 
the face and ear-lobe. The shape of the hen is very graceful, and carriage much the same as the cock, 
making allowance for difference in sex. 
" It is possible, by a judicious selection of the brood stock, to produce combs on both sexes nearly 
perfect. To do this, a cockerel should be chosen who is possessed of a moderate-sized comb, Mck at the 
base as possible, but tapering off to a very thin edge^ and with well-pointed serrations. The hens to match 
should also be chosen that are good in those points, but which seem to stand up slightly from the head at 
the base, falling over quickly with a clean arch or sweep, free from folds or irregularities, avoiding large, 
overgrown, weak, flabby combs, which fall flat over. One peculiarity in the comb of the hens while in moult 
is, that they assume a most shrivelled up appearance, often assuming a more or less upright position. They 
will, however, soon go back to their normal condition when the moult is over. It is a rather difficult task to 
keep the faces and ear-lobes of Spanish always in good condition, owing to an inclination the breed seems to 
have to a slight eruption, in the form of a yellowish scab on those parts, and which, if neglected, may lead 
to permanent disfigurement. This is mostly caused by improper food or over-feeding, and should be guarded 
against by reducing the diet, and bathing the affected parts once or twice a day with warm milk and water, 
giving an occasional dose in the shape of a teaspoonful of castor oil once a week, and after bathing the 
affected parts as described in the preparation for the Show pen, applying the zinc powder to the wounds or 
scabs. 
" In judging Spanish, sprightliness and activity should always be taken into account, with proportion, 
carriage, and condition. Thus, a bird good in these points, and with a moderately good face, should always 
take preference over one with abnormal development of face, and deficient in other main characteristics." 
Schedule for Judging Spanish Fowls. 
General Characteristics of Cock. 
Head, general appearance of head aristocratic, large, deep, and full, the skull being well 
developed, the cheeks being very deep ; Beak, rather long and powerful ; Comb, medium in size, single, 
perfectly straight, and upright, forming a nice arch or curve from back to front, and with the serrations evenly 
distributed throughout ; Wattles, very long, thin, and fine in texture ; Face, large, fine in quality, and as bare 
of feathers as possible ; Ear-lobes, very long, and pendulous, but free from folds, creases, or wrinkles, broad 
and rounded on lower edge ; Neck, long, carried high, and well back, the hackle long and flowing ; Body, 
general appearance upright and active, largest at shoulders, and tapering towards the tail ; Back, rather 
