Our  Canaries 
329 
be  done  by  having  the  perches  set  right  and  made  to  suit  the  size  of  the  bird's 
foot.  The  bird  should  be  trained  to  remain  on  the  perches,  and  not  on  the  bottom 
of  the  cage  or  clinging  to  the  wires.  I  always  run  my  birds  from  one  cage  ta 
another  once  or  twice  a  week,  and  take  care  not  to  frighten  them  when  letting  down 
the  door  ;  I  keep  the  fingers  and  thumb  on  the  wood-work  below  the  wires,  turn- 
ing the  cage  gently  round  and  keeping  it  about  the  height  of  the  chest.  They 
very  soon  get  to  understand  what  is  wanted  of  them.  A  well-trained  bird  com- 
peting against  one  as  good  in  type  and  quality  but  not  so  well-trained  will  always 
win." 
THE    STANDARD    OF  PERFECTION. 
Below  we  give  the  standard  of  perfection  adopted  by  the  Border  Fancy  Club, 
with  a  table  of  points  drawn  up  by  Mr.  J.  B.  Evans,  a  recognised  authority  on  the 
breed. 
Head  and  iV^cy^.— Small,  round  and  neat  looking ;  bill,  fine ;  eyes,  dark  and 
bright ;  neck  rather  line,  and  proportionate  to  head  and  body  10 
Body.- BsiCk,  well  filled  and  nicely  rounded,  running  in  almost  a  straight  line 
from  the  gentle  rise  over  the  shoulders  to  the  point  of  tail  ;  chest 
also  nicely  rounded,  but  neither  heavy  nor  prominent,  the  line 
gradually  tapering  away  to  vent    10 
Wings.— CompdiCt  and  carried  close  to  the  body,  just  meeting  at  the  tips  ....  10 
Legs.—Oi  medium  length,  showing  little  or  no  thigh,  fine,  and  in  harmony 
with  the  other  points ;  feet  corresponding    ....  5 
7^^7,_Close  packed  and  narrow,  being  nicely  rounded  and  filled  in  at  the  root  10 
Colour.— Rich,  soft  and  pure,  as  level  in  tint  as  possible  throughout,  but 
extreme  depth  or  hardness,  such  as  colour  feeding  gives,  are  objec- 
tionable in  this  breed  and  are  debarred.  Red  fed  birds  distinctly  barred  10 
Plumage.— Close,  firm  and  fine  in  quality,  presenting  a  smooth,  glossy,  silky 
appearance,  and  free  from  frill  or  roughness    15 
Position. — Semi-erect,  standing  at  about  an  angle  of  45  deg   10 
Carriage.— Ga^y  and  jaunty,  with  a  fine  free  poise  of  the  head   la 
7^^^/^/^ —Condition  and  cleanliness  shall  have  due  weight    10 
Size  not  to  exceed  5^  inches  in  length,  measured  in  the  usual  way. 
Total   ICQ 
Birds  marked  on  both  eyes  or  both  wings  to  be  allowed  to  compete  in  foul  or 
ticked  classes.  In  judging  marked  birds  "  type  and  quality  "  should  form  the  first 
consideration  in  these  as  in  other  classes,  and  no  prize  should  be  awarded  for  good 
marking  alone  when  the  type  does  not  conform  to  the  Club  standard. 
The  grand  essentials  of  a  Border  Fancy  are  type  and  quality.  The  general 
appearance  is  that  of  a  clean-cut,  lightly-made,  compact,  proportionable,  sprightly, 
close-feathered,  smallish-sized  Canary,  showing  no  tendency  to  heaviness,  rough- 
ness, or  dulness,  but  giving  the  impression  of  fine  quality  and  symmetry  throughout. 
