Breeding Dark Brahmas. 
265 
In breeding for the dense, very dark pencillings, a cock should be selected with the stripes at 
base of the hackle a particularly dense black, and the saddle also well striped, as in the feathers 
shown at Fig. 67, which are plucked from a bird of our own that hardly ever bred a bad chicken. 
Particular attention should be given to the shafts of the feathers, both in hackle and saddle, and 
if they be very white the bird should be rejected. Indeed, this precaution is necessary in breeding 
for any colour ; but most of all in this, because the dark colour of the pullets will make any 
streakiness more conspicuous. We do not think we ever saw a cock quite free from white streak 
somewhere in the shafts of the saddle or hackle, but there should not be much, or we have 
generally found the bird bred streaky chickens. As the saddle merges into the tail-coverts, the 
black stripes ought to become very broad, and beautifully sharp at the edges, with glossy reflec- 
tions ; such a bird will rarely disappoint. The fluff is best of the same brilliant black in the 
centre of the feathers, with a slight lacing of white ; and the breast may be either black or very 
slightly mottled. The best colour for pullet-breeding, according to our experience, is small round 
white spots about the size of pepper-corns, evenly distributed over glossy black ; but a black 
Fig. 67. 
Ilackle 
Feather. 
Saddle 
Feather. 
breast, with the fluff described above, will also breed good pullets, and for producing cockerels is 
much to be preferred. Particular attention should also be given to the front part of the back, 
where it is covered by the hackle. If there be plenty of black, dark pullets may be confidently 
anticipated, the other points mentioned above being correct ; but they will often be too dark, 
merging into almost solid black on the back, with dark blotches about the breast ; though this 
is not always the case, especially if the hens be of a lighter strain, when such dark cocks are 
the best. But if the hens also arc dark, a cock should, if possible, be selected in which these 
black feathers of the back are laced with white on the edges ; and he will in most cases, fluff and 
saddle being right, breed beautifully-pencilled birds. The wing may or may not have a very 
small amount of colour in it, but not so much brown, as a metallic, glossy, copper bronze. This 
should be situated towards the top of the wing-bar, and at the ends of the secondaries or quills 
of the wing, but not in so great a degree as to be very readily seen. The reflections of the tail 
and wing should be either green of a bluish cast, or of a purplish shade ; we have found both breed 
beautiful pullets, but there is always some difference between the tails of the dark cocks and of 
the preceding strains. The breast of the cock should in all cases be as dark, or rather darker, 
than the fluff ; and for breeding cockerels, perfectly black-breasted birds should, if possible, be 
chosen, that colour being much more valued in a show-pen. For breeding pullets, however, we 
repeat that all our experience (and it has been great) teaches that a slightly mottled breast is 
best, provided it be darker than the fluff, and the black be intense enough. 
