Our  Canaries 
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venture  to  predict  a  great  reward  for  the  fancier  who  produces  again  an  up-to-date 
Yorkshire  of  6f  inches,  with  eyes  marked  an  eighth  of  an  inch  all  round  and  the 
marks  shot  out  straight  at  back  with  tapering  points  half  an  inch  long,  both  wings 
marked  with  about  six  secondary  flight  feathers  nearest  the  body  and  a  few  of  the 
coverts,  forming  a  nice  V-shape  on  the  back,  and  with  one  or  two  dark  feathers  on 
each  side  of  the  tail. 
"  To  form  a  strain  to  breed  green  even-marks  start  with  six  birds — two  trios — 
having  good  Yorkshire  properties.  For  No.  i  trio  have  a  dark-eyed  yellow  cock, 
green  marked  eyes  and  wings  if  possible,  of  full  standard  length,  stylish,  and  well 
up  on  legs,  and  two  clear  or  slightly  ticked  pink-eyed  buff  hens  of  good  quality, 
and  as  long  as  possible,  bred  from  a  good  cinnamon-marked  strain.  If  you  can- 
not get  the  cocks  with  marks  described  try  to  make  up  every  mark  he  lacks 
in  the  hens,  so  that  four  marks- -two  eye  and  two  wing — exist  between  each  pair. 
For  No.  2  trio  get  a  dark-eyed  buff  cock  either  clear  or  eye-marked,  and  two 
yellow  cinnamon-marked  hens.  Both  cocks  must  come  from  a  dark-eyed  strain. 
Many  green-marked  cocks  contain  a  large  amount  of  pink-eyed  blood,  and  if  you 
use  one  of  these  you  will  get  cinnamon-marked  young,  but  if  the  cock  contains  no 
cinnamon  blood  you  will  get  nothing  but  clear  and  green-marked  birds. 
MARKINGS  TO  AVOID. 
"  In  selecting  breeding  stock  keep  good  Yorkshire  properties  to  the  front. 
Keep  the  markings  on  the  light  side,  and  do  not  be  tempted  to  buy  a  bird  with  a 
mark  on  top  of  head,  even  if  it  possesses  all  the  other  good  points.  Once  you  get 
that  mark  it  never  fails  to  be  reproduced.  Good  eye-marked  birds  may  be  paired 
to  wing-marked  birds,  and  a  full-marked  bird  to  a  clear  ;  but  two  perfect  wing- 
marked  paired  together  will  produce  heavily  marked  or  variegated  birds.  If  you 
wish  to  produce  tail  marks  you  will  have  to  use  a  bird  with  dark  feathers  in  tail, 
but  you  will  lose  more  by  the  dark  thighs,  rumps  and  vents  (which  are  common 
in  the  six-pointed  bird)  than  you  will  gain  by  the  marks.  You  will  have  to  do  a 
fair  amount  of  in-breeding.  The  first  season  pair  the  young  of  each  trio  together 
among  themselves  but  from  the  different  hens,  and  work  the  two  sets  tegether  in 
the  following  year." 
Mr.  Hirst's  experience  is  largely  corroborated  by  that  of  Mr.  R.  Sutcliffe,  of 
Shipley,  who  writes:  "  In  breeding  cinnamon  and  green  marked  Yorkshires  I  pre- 
fer to  use  marked  birds,  and  am  careful  to  select  as  breeding  stock  birds  of  the 
best  shape,  good  in  feather,  with  extra  nice  style.  I  am  also  careful  not  to  lose 
in  length.  An  ideal  pair  for  breeding  cinnamon-marked  is  a  yellow  marked  cock — 
marked  eyes  and  wings — and  a  buff  cinnamon  ticked  hen — ticked  either  on  eye  or 
wing.  I  try  to  keep  away  from  the  head  mark  as  much  as  possible,  and  breed 
them  more  clear  than  heavy  marked.  I  have  bred  clear  birds  in  this  way  that 
have  won  special  for  best  bird  in  show  with  500  entries.  They  excel  other  varie- 
ties in  colour  and  feather," 
