64 
THE POULTRY BOOK. 
appears in every cross ; witness the early days of Cochins : the legs would often he 
robbed of their feathers. I have bred above a hundred Brahmas, and never had 
one without feathered legs, nor did I ever have one without orange legs ; no green, 
as in white Cochins, nor white as in Buffs. 
“ Nor is it a less mistake to say the American birds are crossed with the Malay. 
No mixture is so easy to detect as this ; there is a character in Malay fowls which 
belongs to no other, and the slightest cross of it is immediately visible to a 
practised eye. The feather, carriage, tail, and head of Malays are different from 
any others ; and so different, that the veriest tyro will recognize them when grafted 
on any other stock. 
“I do not want to become too lengthy, and will therefore conclude. If they 
were Cochins, they would not have pea-combs nor deep breasts. If they were 
crossed with Malays, they would have drooping tails, small bodies, hard plumage, 
and cruel faces. If they were crossed with Dorkings, they would have ample tails, 
five claws, and clean legs. 
These are the accusations, and the birds in question have no points to bear 
them out. 
“ What are they, then ? They are Brahmapootras ; large, heavy birds, 
symmetrical, prolific, and hardy ; living where Cochins would starve ; growing in 
frost and snow, when hatched in the winter months ; and, without seeking to 
christen a mania, they are standing on their own merits, with the conviction they 
will deserve well of the public.” 
As much misapprehension prevails on the subject of the origin of new varieties, we 
reproduce from the Field the following article from the pen of the present editor : — 
“ A considerable amount of uncertainty finds its way into type respecting what 
may be termed pure breeds of domestic animals. Such questions as the following 
are constantly asked, ‘ Are Brahmas a pure breed ? ’ * Are Black Hamburgs a pure 
breed ? ’ &c. &c. These queries obviously owe their origin to a confusion of the 
distinction that exists between different animals, and between different varieties 
of the same animal. Let us illustrate our meaning by an example or two. 
‘‘A hare is a pure-bred animal, because it is totally distinct from all other 
animals, or, as naturalists say, it constitutes a distinct species. It does not breed 
with other animals, for the so-called leporines are only large rabbits ; and if it did, 
the offspring would be a hybrid or mule, and almost certainly sterile or incapable 
of breeding. In the same manner the common wild rabbit is a pure breed. This 
animal possesses the capability of being domesticated, and, under the new circum- 
stances in which it is placed, it varies in size, form, and colour, from the original 
stock. By careful selection of these variations, and by breeding from those indivi- 
duals which show most strongly the points or qualities desired, certain varieties, 
or, as they are termed, ‘ breeds ’ of rabbits, are produced and perpetuated. 
Thus we have the the lop-eared breed, the Angora breed, the Chinchilla breed, &c., 
&c., characterized by alterations in the length of the ears, in the colour of the 
fur, in the size of the animals, and so on. It is obvious that, by care, more new 
