Leghorns. 
319 
to bleach the lobes, but in the pure-bred birds there will still be a tint of cream. Although several well 
known Breeders still maintain that they can breed birds with pure white lobes, they do not say how large a 
percentage of creamy-tinted ones they get. It is a well-known fact that the lobes of the female are easier to 
get pure white than those of the male. Where the pure white lobe has been procured for some years, the 
result has been loss of brilliancy in colour in legs and beak. The bright yellow and pure white will never go 
together. The Neck should be long, and nicely arched, and well furnished with hackles. The Back of 
moderate length, slightly round, and sloping towards the tail. The TFz//^^.— Large, but carried tightly up to 
the sides of the body. The Breast— YmW, and carried well forward. The General Appearance of the body 
should be very sprightly, being large or broad in front, and narrowing towards the tail. The Legs.—\<^i\\Qr 
long and slender, of brilliant yellow, free from sjiots. The To^^'.— Long and thin, spread well out ; colour, 
bright yellow. The 7az7.— Large, carried well up (not squirrel). It should be full, with fine flowing sickles. 
One of the beauties of a Leghorn cock is his tail. The General Shape should be light and sprightly. 
THE HEN. 
She is, of course, smaller than the cock, the average weight being from 4 lbs. to 5 lbs. 
The Head should be slightly flat at the top. The Co;;z,6.— Large, of fine texture, and evenly serrated, 
rising straight up for a short distance, and then bending gracefully over to one side. It is a great mistake to 
think that this beautiful appendage should come flat down from the skull, and fall down over the face, so as 
to obscure the sight of one eye. It never was so in the original Leghorn, and such large, flabby combs point 
very strongly to the influence of the Minorca blood, and has spoiled the beauty of the bird. A hen with a 
comb that falls half to the right side, and then folds over, and the other half falls to the left (though not a 
disqualification), should not be bred from, or the larger percentage of the pullets from such a hen will have 
the same fault, and the cockerels' combs will be bulgy and thumb-marked. The Beak should be yellow, 
although horn colour is not objectionable in the coloured varieties. The Lobes.— It is easier to get the lobes 
a purer white than those of the cock. It is essential that the lobes should be large and smooth, free from 
wrinkles^ fitting closer to the head than in the case of the cock. The Eves. — Very full, and sparkling. The 
F^7c<".— Red, and free from small feathers or hairs as possible. The AW'k. — Well arched. The Breast. — 
Full, and carried well forward. The Wings. —Carried closely and firmly to the sides of the body. The 
7}r//.— Full, and carried well up. A drooping tail ought to be as much a disqualification as a squirrel tail. 
The Legs. — Of medium length, bright yellow, free from dark spots. The Toes. — Slender, and long. These, 
as well as the feet, of a bright yellow, or even orange colour. The General Appearance. — Light and 
active ; the carriage, sprightly. 
Brown Leghoi^ns. 
THE COCK. 
The Couib should be large, well and evenly serrated, of fine texture, and carried well over the back of 
the head. If it be broad at the base, and firmly fixed to the head, there will be little fear of it going over. 
The Lobes. — Large, almond-shaped, rather pendulous; in texture, as much like a piece of kid as possible. 
The Wattles. — Large, and hanging well down. The Neck should be well furnished with hackle feathers. 
The colour, golden bay, each feather having a tolerably broad stripe of black running down the centre. The 
feathers which are near the top, that is, near and round the throat, are without the black stripe. The whole 
hackle, faUing gracefully on the back and round the neck, should be what is known as the dark hackle, and 
not the light yellow, or lemon-coloured hackle, which hackle is to be avoided. The Back feathers are very 
deep red, almost crimson, of which colour are the shoulder coverts and wing-bows. The Bask, if not 
perfectly straight, will cause the tail to lean either to one side or the other. The Wing Coverts are beautiful 
bluish violet, forming a broad and even band across the wing, called the " Wing-bar." The Primary wing 
feathers are brown. The Secondaries are very deep bay on the outer web, and jet black on the inner web. 
When the wing is closed, the deep bay is the only colour seen. The Saddle feathers are a very deep, or 
orange-red, some few of them having a black stripe similar to the hackle, the black stripe being very broad 
