General A ppearance of the Turbit. 
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thighs, the removals must have been so very few that the bird may be fairly entitled to rank as a 
clean-thighed one. Perhaps some judges have rather caused this kind of manipulation by laying 
too much stress on clean thighs. For ourselves, we do not think the fault should be ranked as high 
as imperfections in beak, gullet, peak, or colour, unless the thighs were so very foul that there was 
little hope of getting rid of it even in the produce. In that case the fault should discard the bird, 
unless when thus foul it was competing against other birds very inferior in other points ; for as the 
Turbit is both a Toy Pigeon and undoubtedly a bird of colour and marking, points in these should 
be allowed great weight. 
The colour of the Turbit is rich and good, the Reds and Yellows particularly being much better 
than most other varieties. Faults in this particular we would view much in the same light as we 
would view conspicuous foul thighs, the proper place of a badly-coloured bird, if good enough in other 
points, being in the breeding loft. It is hard enough to get what we want from even good-coloured 
birds; for a well-marked Turbit should show up the coloured portion as sharply and distinctly as 
if it were cut out of a piece of paper and stuck upon the wing. All the rest should appear when 
the wings are lifted as if a white pigeon. This is what a Turbit should be to be called quite free 
from foulness, and few indeed can be seen of such, which we confess we have often wondered at, 
since it is an undoubted fact that all pigeons having so much white about them as the Turbit, can 
be much more easily bred clean-thighed than others, such as the Pouter, which carry much more 
colour over the body. We fear the cause of non-success in such a comparatively easy task is the 
want of patience of English fanciers. If they would only copy the example of foreigners, and 
breed patiently for one point at a time, we believe all that was desired could speedily be obtained ; 
but so many aim at getting all they want at once — or even perhaps in one nest — that there is 
little wonder that they have to wait long for a perfectly-marked Turbit. 
The plumage of the Turbit is remarkable for the extra lustre on the neck. All pigeons appear 
lustrous, with a kind of metallic sheen (if coloured) on this part. White pigeons show it to some 
extent ; but what we mean is that the Turbit exhibits it far more than any other white-necked 
pigeon, its neck being like a piece of fine white satin, and sparkling in the sunshine in a most 
remarkable and beautiful manner. 
The flights and tail are short, the whole bird, indeed, being rather short, tight, and compact, 
with a broad chest compared with other proportions. In this it resembles the Owl. It stands well 
upon its legs until age comes upon it, when it begins to droop its wings like the Short-faced 
Tumbler. Some of the larger specimens show more length of flights and tail, when aged, than we 
like, and the constitution of this variety is so good, that we have met with many twelve and fifteen 
years of age. Exhibition specimens, like all Toys, should undoubtedly be small , and as small as 
can be got without actual dwarfing, and the sacrifice of other qualities, but no one should discard a 
large bird, if good in points. As a rule it is these larger specimens which possess in most perfection 
the points desired for exhibition, and are, therefore, most valuable stock birds. Not that we would 
prefer large birds even for breeding, if the fancier already possesses smaller, of good, sound 
constitutions, which exhibit all the points he desires ; but in the absence of such, or should his 
small stock have become delicate and difficult to rear, one or two fine and large young hens, good 
in properties, will often work wonders in a strain. 
The legs and feet of the Turbit are clean, and in average proportion to other pigeons of the 
same size. 
In dealing with the breeding of this pigeon, we naturally take as our standard the Black, 
both because the contrast of its colours is greater and more pleasing, and because good birds 
