44 
THE POULTRY BOOK. 
back and wing bow of a dark rich red, with a wide lustrous greenish black bar 
across the wings. The quills should be rich bay on the outer webs, the secon- 
daries ending in black tips. The tail should be glossy black ; not unfrequently, 
however, some white appears at the base of the feathers ; this is always to be 
regarded as objectionable when found in a show pen, although not a positive dis- 
qualification to prize-taking. Fashion demands imperatively a black breast in 
a Partridge Cochin cock, mottled-breasted birds being disqualified, according to 
the Poultry Club “ Standard of Excellence,” in exhibition birds. The Partridge 
Cochins originally imported had brown breasts, resembling those of brown- 
red game cocks, and the hens much more closely resemble brown-red than 
black-red hens. The judges, however, demanded black breasts in the cocks ; 
consequently, such birds were bred by crossing a partridge-feathered cock with a 
pure black Cochin. Nevertheless, a reversion to the more natural colour occasion- 
ally takes place, and some of the best partridge cocks show the brown feather not 
unfrequently. 
In the Partridge hens the neck hackle feathers should be bright gold, each 
having a broad black stripe down the centre. The remainder of the plumage 
should be light brown, well and distinctly pencilled with dark brown. It is an 
important point that the pencilling should be well marked on the upper part of 
the breast. The shafts of the feathers should be creamy white, contrasting 
pleasingly with the darker colour of the webs of the feathers. 
In the grouse hens the ground colour is darker, and the shafts of the feathers 
do not offer that contrast to the other parts of the feathers. 
Black Cochins were largely exhibited some few years since, but seem almost to 
have disappeared from our poultry shows. They should possess all the character- 
istics of the other varieties as to form and size, and the plumage should be per- 
fectly black throughout ; but most of the birds formerly shown were coppery red or 
“ brassy ” on the hackle and wings ; consequently, this variety did not find any 
great favour with amateurs, especially as they did not generally breed true to 
colour. 
White Cochins are very beautiful birds, and are making steady progress in 
general estimation. For the following admirable description of the characteristics 
of this variety we are indebted to F. W. Zurhorst, Esq., of Donnybrook, one of 
the most successful breeders and exhibitors of these birds : — 
“ Let us look round the yard : there is my favourite hen. Notice her great depth, 
bringing her straight and pointed breastbone apparently close to the ground, sunk 
between two very short and widely- set shanks, covered to the end of the outer and 
middle toes with thickly-placed, laterally- spreading feathers ! My favourite has 
some sign of vulture-hock ; I know well that she ought not, but I also know that 
rare shank-feathering cannot be had without it ; and if I do not see it so accom- 
panied in the show pen I have my own idea as to what has become of it. Look 
at her fine broad back, where, two inches from the fall of the thick and ample 
neck-feathers, the rightly-named cushion begins to rise, softening, thickening, and 
