POLVTS OF BALDHEADS. 
173 
are all that could be desired in colour and marking ; but it is the good head, beak, and carriage of 
the true Short-face that are so seldom, if ever, seen with perfection in feather. 
The next property is the number of white flight-feathers, which should be the full ten in each 
wing ; but this, too, is rarely seen in good Short-faced birds. The reader of reports of pigeon-shows, 
if uninitiated, may be mystified by seeing that someone, for instance, “showed a nice bird eight 
and nine,” or perhaps “ nine and nine.” This means that the Bald has so many white flights in 
each wing, and such a number is very good indeed, the usual average being six, seven, or eight on 
each side, and very frequently more on one side than the other. Nine flights is, in fact, quite 
sufficient entirely to hide the tenth as well as the inner flights ; but, of course, the breeder should 
aim at the full standard number, and short of it no bird can be called perfect. This is a property 
no “dodging” can imitate, as, if the coloured flight be pulled out, the deficiency is easily discovered 
by counting. So also if, as sometimes happens, one of the inner flights is white (which should not 
be), and is plucked as being a foul feather, the gap is evident directly the wing is opened out. As 
regards these two faults, however, a bird with one or two of the inner flights foul and all the outer 
flights correct is far to be preferred to one with a “short” number of outer flights, however perfect 
in the inner ; since one fault is only seen when the feathers are spread, while the outer flights show 
at once if more than the tenth, or at most ninth, quill, be faulty. It is also to be noticed that a 
very “ short-flighted ” bird (the term in Balds does not mean short in length of feather, but short or 
small in the number of white flights), having too much colour, is almost always foul-thighed, and 
very often disfigured by a stained beak beside ; whereas, a bird with one or two white feathers in 
the inner flights is very seldom not clean-thighed, or nearly so, and we think we may say has never 
a stained beak. They have, however, another drawback : having too much white in their blood, 
they are generally too “ low cut.” So that to get all three properties, and produce a bird high 
cut, clean-thighed, and “ ten a side,” together with the general properties of the Short-faced 
Tumbler, is a very difficult task, and quite worthy of the most skilled pigeon-fancier. 
The tail-feathers of the Baldhead should be pure white. This is not so difficult to acquire 
as the preceding properties. 
We have, however — though not often — seen all these properties, and even good colour of body 
as well, and still the bird not perfect on account of bad eyes. These should be pearl. Some 
fanciers, if they had all but this, would for it completely discard a bird, counting it of little or no 
value if bull-eyed or broken-eyed ; but in this we cannot coincide. It is undoubtedly a great 
fault, and one which should prevent a bird winning against good birds ; but to pass over a bird for 
it which is fine in all other Bald properties, and give the prize to one which is faulty in flights, or 
foul-thighed, or coarse in beak, or very low or raggedly cut, is what we never will agree to, and 
contrary to the general principle of judging which we carry through every page of this work. 
Either of these other faults is three times more conspicuous, and ten times more difficult to breed 
out of a strain, than bull or broken eyes, though we do grant that a bad eye is more conspicuous in 
a Bald, owing to the colour of the head, than in any other variety of Tumbler. Still, it is less so 
than the others, and should have its fair weight allowed it and no more. 
The colours of Baldheads we have already mentioned ; but Blues are the most numerous, 
owing doubtless to the fact that they are of more vigorous constitution. It is therefore natural 
that in general Blues should be found most perfect in points, as is the case ; but it is a singular 
thing that the hens in Blue Balds, and also in Beards, are scarcely ever found as sound and true in 
colour as the cocks. So generally true is this, that we do not think we have seen over three pairs 
of each variety, fairly good in quality, which were a good match in body-colour. This fault can 
however be remedied by crossing with the Silver ; mating a Silver cock with a Blue hen, which 
