3 6 ° The Illustrated Book of Poultry. 
“ There is also a Pile Andalusian, in which the ground-colour is silver, thinly covered with 
light blue, which forms the pile. These are very beautiful birds, but are rarely seen.“ 
\\ e have had much personal experience of Andalusian fowls, a friend in whose poultry-yard 
we took considerable interest having kept a large stock for some years. She possessed the 
advantages of a good country run, and from first to last gave a most favourable account of their 
good qualities in everyway. They were very moderate eaters, perfectly hardy, and their eggs 
never failed. One peculiarity, however, always struck us, and that was their extreme precocity. 
Mr. Leworthy has remarked upon this feature himself; but his general statement conveys little 
idea of the extreme “fastness” of the chickens. It was really absurd to see (as we often have 
seen) little beggars of no more than six or seven weeks old stand up and crow with all the 
impudence that could be imagined. They were also pugnacious, more so than any other of the 
Spanish breeds, but not enough to give much real trouble. 
The lady whose stock we refer to found the hens occasionally, though rarely, desire to sit ; and 
when they did so they made very good mothers. The same uncertainty as to colour of the 
chickens was found with this stock, many coming black, and with upright combs, so that much 
care was required to keep the yard at all true to feather ; but as a safe, useful, and profitable fowl 
to keep, they could hardly be surpassed. We may add that we obtained from this yard a draft to 
stock a confined run constructed for a children’s hospital, in order to supply the little inmates with 
the much-needed luxury of really new-laid eggs ; and in these altered circumstances, also, the birds 
maintained their character as good and reliable layers. 
Some little latitude is allowed in the colour of Andalusians for exhibition. It may vary from 
a pale dove-colour to a deep slaty blue, and the lacing may be black, or dark blue, or purple. 
The cock’s hackle and upper plumage should, however, always be very dark in colour to look well, 
the rich contrast of colour being required. We have seen this portion of his plumage nearly if 
not quite black, which looks handsome ; but the best colour for beauty, and certainly that which 
harmonises best with the general type of plumage altogether, is a very deep and lustrous purple. 
A fine bird thus coloured always graces a pen, and if worthily mated, rarely fails to obtain 
honourable notice. In breeding, hens well laced must be selected if that quality is to be 
perpetuated. A medium colour is at present most popular. 
With respect to the origin of Andalusians, we confess to being puzzled. There can be no 
doubt that the original birds of this colour were imported from Spain, but the exceeding difficulty, 
after more than twenty years’ breeding, of even now obtaining a stock true to points, makes it very 
doubtful if these birds had any claim to the title of a distinct variety, but were not rather the 
produce of some recent cross. It has come within our knowledge that in several instances the 
crossing of white and black fowls, and even of black with black of different races, or white with 
white, has produced stray birds very similar in colour to the slaty blue of the Andalusian ; and 
hence it has struck us as most probable that the latter may have originated by a cross between 
Black and White Spanish, or rather Minorca, since nearly all the birds found in Spain have red 
faces with white ears. The hardiness, the quick feathering, and the prolificacy, would all be in 
favour of such a view ; and we may add that we have seen many chickens produced which were of 
such a very pale dove-colour as to appear more a dirty white than anything else. 
However this may be, there is no doubt that the Andalusian has often been quite bred out, 
and re-bred or re-formed again. As now exhibited, it closely resembles the Minorca in all but. 
colour, but is generally more hardy. It is such a very useful fowl that we regret exceedingly to 
state, what however a wider experience has quite convinced us of, that the present race is, in con- 
finement, especially prone to the vice of feather-eating. 
