Our  Canaries 
245 
ITS  OWN  STRONGHOLD. 
"  Nothing  looks  better,"  he  writes,  "than  a  show  with  a  few  classes  for  Lan- 
cashires,  such  as  are  provided  by  the  two  Rochdale  Societies,  and  at  Manchester. 
It  is  a  pity  that  other  Societies  do  not  cater  for  them  more,  but  some  allowance 
must  be  made  from  the  fact  that  the  large  breeders  are  principally  in  a  radius  of 
twenty  miles  of  Rochdale,  which  is  not  altogether  in  our  interests.  But  during 
the  last  season  enquiries  have  come  from  other  parts  for  our  birds,  and  we  hope  to 
hear  of  some  Southern  bred  birds  that  can  compete  with  us.  In  breeding  I 
generally  pair  yellow  to  buff — clear  buff  Plainhead  and  ticked  yellow  Coppy,  or 
vice  versa,  right  through  my  stock.  Sometimes  the  experiment  of  double-Coppying 
is  resorted  to,  but  great  care  must  be  used  in  the  selection  of  the  birds  to  avoid 
split  coppies,  thin  necks,  horns  behind,  holes  in  neck,  or  nothing  but  wasters  will 
be  bred.  But  if  paired  right,  a  good  result  is  often  obtained,  and  if  a  Plainhead 
is  bred  from  them  it  is  generally  a  very  good  specimen  either  for  show  or  stock. 
I  have  seen  a  very  fine  clear  yellow  Coppy  bred  from  a  yellow  Coppy  hen  and  a 
buff  Coppy  cock,  which  is  one  of  the  finest  birds,  and  nothing  could  beat  it  had 
the  owner  been  an  exhibitor ;  but  he  rarely  exhibits. 
"  We  generally  use  German 
hens  to  sit  the  Lancashire  eggs, 
but  some  allow  the  Lancashire  to 
sit  up  to  the  night  before  hatch- 
ing, then  change  the  eggs.  But 
as  a  rule,  I  let  them  rear  their 
own  young  if  they  will,  and  with 
success,  but  I  let  the  common 
ones  rear  their  own  also,  so  that 
if  the  Lancashire  hen  fails  in  her 
ROUGH  AT  BACK. 
SPLIT  COPPY. 
Two  Objectionable  Features  in  the  Lancashire  Coppy. 
duty,  the  German  takes  over  the  young.  The  position  of  the  Lancashire  is  that 
it  should  be  well  clear  of  the  perch,  plenty  of  thigh  in  view,  and  should  be  of  good 
length,  stout  and  bold  looking." 
THE  GIANT  IN  THE  WEST. 
To  Mr.  T.  R.  Ind,  of  Bristol,  our  thanks  are  due  for  the  following  interesting 
recollections  and  experiences  in  breeding  the  Lancashire  in  the  West  country. 
To  give  his  own  words  :  "  It  takes  a  little  doing  to  rake  up  all  the  ins  and  outs  of 
a  quarter  of  a  century's  experience  with  any  one  thing,  and  in  breeding  Canaries 
you  are  apt  to  forget  to  take  notes  from  time  to  time  respecting  the  results  of  the 
season's  breeding.  But  when  you  breed  a  good  specimen  the  fact  so  impresses 
you  that  you  cannot  easily  forget,  and  to  breed  a  good  Lancashire,  either  Coppy 
or  Plainhead,  down  West  is  something  to  be  proud  of. 
"  I  commenced  with  this  noble  variety  in  the  year  1884  or  1885,  and  bred  a 
