Our  Canaries 
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greater  amount  of  encouragement  in  the  future  than  it  appears  to  have  met  with 
when  the  last  attempts  were  made  to  revive  and  popularise  the  breed.  The  perfect 
bird  only  was  recognised  as  the  ideal  show  specimen  and  when  classes  were 
provided  at  shows  the  spangled  birds  had  to  compete  with  the  ideal  type,  with, 
consequently,  the  flimsiest  chances  of  success  so  long  as  there  were  a  sufficient 
number  of  pure  clear-bodied  birds  to  take  the  honours.  Therefore  the  Spangles 
were  so  severely  handicapped  during  the  short  show  season  that  the  clear-bodied 
type  was  perhaps  far  too  energetically  striven  after  by  breeders.  For  it  must  be 
remembered  that  good  sound  coloured  flue  and  wings  and  tail  were  invariably 
associated  with  the  spangling,  just  as  the  highest  degree  of  perfection  in  spangling 
may  be  looked  for  among  the  broken-capped  or  non-capped  Lizards,  and  the  craze 
for  producing  the  greatest  possible  number  of  clear-bodied  birds  must  inevitably 
cause  a  certain  amount  of  deterioration  of  those  essential  features.  This  is  a  point 
to  which  breeders  must  pay  heed,  and  although  it  may  require  some  sacrifice  at 
the  beginning,  classes  must  be  guaranteed  where  the  breed  is  catered  for  to  enable 
the  spangled  birds  to  compete  on  equal  terms  in  separate  classes  of  their  own. 
VIEWS  OF  A  MODERN  BREEDER. 
We  append  some  interesting  notes  kindly  contributed  by  Mr.  A.  G.  Filby,  of 
Ealing  Common,  one  of  the  best  known  modern  breeders  of  the  London  Fancy. 
"  On  the  occasion  of  the  Jubilee  Show  at  the  Crystal  Palace  in  igog,"  he  writes, 
"  Cage  Birds  published  a  group  of  winners  of  fifty  years  ago  (i85g)  and  to-day  (igog). 
Among  the  group  is  a  London  Fancy  and  there  appears  but  little  difference  in  the 
two  birds.  The  modern  bird  is  perhaps  a  little  stouter,  and  more  upright  on  the 
perch,  and  not  quite  so  clear  in  body.  A  very  general  idea  is  that  the  bird  is  not 
strong.  That  may  have  been  correct  30  years  ago,  but  it  is  far  from  being  true 
to-day.  Another  idea  is  that  unless  a  bird  has  always  black  wings  and  tail,  and  a 
clear  body,  it  is  not  a  pure  London  Fancy ;  yet  a  clear  bird  may  be  just  as  pure  as 
a  show  specimen.  For  instance  :  A  bird  may  be  from  the  same  nest  as  a  perfect 
show  specimen  but  have  a  white  tail,  and  after  its  second  moult  is  a  clear  bird. 
STRANGE  EXPERIENCES. 
But  the  show  specimen  would  also  have  moulted  light ;  again  another  nest- 
mate  may  be  dark  and  spangled,  and  never  moult  light  at  all,  which  some  would 
call  a  half-bred  Lizard,  but  it  is  in  reality  just  as  pure  as  the  winner.  Last  year  I 
bred  a  very  heavily  spangled  hen  in  this  way,  and  no  Lizard  blood  had  been  used 
for  14  or  15  years.  In  i8g2  there  was  a  London  Fancy  club  in  existence,  but 
unfortunately  it  went  the  way  of  predecessors.  I  remembe  •  about  this  time  visiting 
an  enthusiastic  breeder's  room  and  seeing  his  stock — he  had  a  large  one — but  his 
birds  were  much  more  spangled  and  altogether  darker  than  those  of  to-day,  and 
more  compact  in  build. 
"  Referring  to  various  catalogues,  including  the  Crystal  Palace  of  i8g2  up  till 
igoo,  I  find  the  following  exhibitors :    Messrs.  Attridge,  Clarke,  Cross,  Filby, 
