THE POULTRY BOOK. 
217 
we conceive that it is necessary to make very considerable allowance for the patriotic 
enthusiasm of M. Dubose. Doubtless the fowls so carefully fattened are ad- 
mirable specimens of table poultry; but thus treated, almost any small-boned 
white-skinned variety would be equally good. The birds themselves are much 
smaller than either the Houdans, Crevecoeurs, or La Flecbe, and offer no more 
evidence of being a pure breed than the ordinary mongrels of a farmyard, where 
purity of race is not at all regarded. If any enterprising Bressian agriculturist 
were to import a few good Dorkings to cross with the native stock, he would achieve 
a success that would place him far in advance of all his competitors. 
For determining the relative value of the different breeds of French fowls on 
this side of the Channel, we have much pleasure in availing ourselves of the 
knowledge of Mr. F. W. Zurhorst, the Honorary Secretary of the Poultry Club, a 
breeder of great practical experience, who has reared most of the French varieties. 
Mr. Zurhorst writes as follows : — 
In giving my experience and opinion on the characteristics and merits of the 
French breeds, it must he borne in mind that I do not pretend to a lengthened 
acquaintance with them, hut during the two or three seasons I have kept them, 
I have bestowed much careful attention on their comparative merits, and if my 
opinions differ from those of persons who have had longer to do with them, they 
must simply he taken for their worth. 
will begin with the breed I have been longest acquainted with, viz. Creve- 
coeurs. Mr. Harrison Weir has so happily caught the characteristics, and what 
I may call the expression, of these birds, that little need be said on that subject. 
They certainly are very handsome ; I cannot wonder at our judges giving a pre- 
ference to the perfect, intense glossy black, only to be met with in rare specimens, 
over the red or straw-coloured mixed hackle and saddle, which invariably distin- 
guish the larger birds ; hut at the same time, on economical grounds, I would 
deprecate their being so judged, as they are large, compact birds, delicate in their 
flesh, and if the leading points denoting purity of race he present, viz. crest, 
comb, and shape, size should be the test of merit, and colour ignored. 
Crevecoeurs are lively in their temperament, but in this climate by no means 
prolific, and I find it is almost useless to set their eggs before April. 
They are delicate in constitution, and as a pure breed these characteristics 
must place them in the second rank of French fowls in economical value. They 
will unquestionably deteriorate if bred for colour, but at the same time will 
always he cultivated for their handsome and original appearance. 
“ My next experience is with Houdans, and I do not hesitate to commence with 
the broad assertion that they are by far the most valuable breed that has been 
added to our collection for many years. 
Unusual fertility (I never knew an egg fairly set to miss), very early maturity, 
extreme hardiness, both as adults and chickens, together with a large, compact 
Dorking body, with little offal, white flesh, and legs only slightly shaded, are the 
leading characteristics of the breed. 
u 
