FANCIERS’ JOURNAL AND POULTRY EXCHANGE. 
653 
point out to us Light Brahmas, and your attention is called 
to the thickness of the leg bones in these fowls as a merit. 
Now I will venture to say that there is at least more flesh 
on an ordinary Houdan cock than on the largest Light 
Brahma you can produce. The French breeders, with more 
sense, call your attention to the small bones of their best 
breeds. Large bone and size of framework does not give 
you the most flesh. Large houses require heavy timbers. 
Giant Brahmas require large hones to support their frame- 
work. No cattle breeder would tolerate a thick leg in a 
short horn, however large its frame. The best and most 
economical fowl is that which has the least bone and the 
most flesh, and such fowls require less food than your lean, 
bony animals. 
I differ from our English friends who are in favor of the 
spangles or splashes being small, as their size should corres- 
pond with the size of the bird. When you breed them so 
dark they naturally appear small. The white spots should 
be pure snow white and the black should be of a rich olive 
tint and not dead black; the tail, and especially the sickle 
feathers, should show a slight tinge of green. 
I know many of these points I have enumerated are not 
mentioned in the various standards, but a perfect bird pos- 
sesses them, as they contribute very much to its beauty and 
should be considered among its fancy points. It is too much 
the case when people are not able to breed all these points 
to deride them. It is not to be expected that you can bring 
every bird up to its highest standard, but our aim should be 
to get as near to it as possible. I have bred a few such birds 
as I have described, but only a few. I am trying every year 
to do better. I can see great progress within the last eight 
or nine years in the size and beauty of this variety. So in 
other varieties. 
Houdans are good feeders and corn should be given to 
them sparingly, and mixed with barley or wheat. In very 
cold weather I would add a little more corn and give it more 
frequently. They should not be allowed to run in cold, wet, 
or snow, as their feet are very tender and are more liable to 
colds and rheumatism than most other varieties of fowl. 
They have not been a very popular fowl in this country, for 
the sole reason that most of our people do not understand 
keeping any of the French breeds, as they are all somewhat 
tender ; but the Houdan is the most hardy of the three varie- 
ties and will stand any degree of dry cold weather. There 
need be no trouble with them if properly cared for. 
(For Fanciers’ Journal.) 
NORTHERN OHIO FAIR. 
At the recent great Northern Ohio Fair held at Cleveland, 
September 14 to 19, the poultry department was represented 
by some fifty varieties of land and water fowl of as good 
quality as is often seen at a regular poultry show, drawing 
large crowds of admiring and interested visitors. Below we 
give the list of awards on Asiatics : Light Brahma, 1st and 
2d, W. H. Todd; Dark Brahma, 1st and 2d, W. H. Todd; 
Buff Cochin, 1st and 2d, W. H. Todd ; Partridge Cochin, 
1st, R. H. Peek, 2d, W. H. Todd; White Cochin, 1st and 
2d, W. II. Todd ; Black Cochin, 1st and 2d, W. H. Todd. 
(For Fanciers’ Journal.) 
PECULIARITIES OF THE WILD GOOSE. 
This splendid bird is no Mormon, because the gander will 
never have but one mate at a time, and never forsakes his 
first love unless separated by some cause which he cannot 
prevent. But, with all his devotion, he evidently is of 
Turkish or other Oriental proclivities, and has never heard 
of “ woman’s rights,” because he will not allow his mate to 
take grain from the same dish with him, unless he has 
finished his meal, and then he will allow her to eat hers. 
If there is not one of his own tribe left for some matrimonial- 
seeking gander, he will mate with one of foreign birth and 
other colors, rather than remain single. Their noise is quite 
musical, and especially just before a storm. Though wild in 
their nature, they are easily domesticated, and quite fond of 
being caressed. The female lays about ten eggs, is a good 
sitter, and very careful of her young. Her mate does con- 
stant sentinel duty, and fears nothing while protecting its 
young. Though not as large as the African and other 
foreign birds, they are a great ornament to the poultry- 
yard, besides producing a good yield of feathers once in six 
weeks. 
PiqEOfJ DEf^JjVIEflj. 
HIGH FLYING TUMBLERS. 
Among the numerous fancies peculiar to pigeon-keeping 
in America there is a very interesting and amusing one 
that has been sadly neglected ; it is that of flying Tumbler 
pigeons. By that I mean training them to fly high, and 
stay up for hours. Several years ago quite a number of 
breeders in this city kept a flight of such birds, but I believe 
the fancy has entirely departed, until to-day there is not a 
good flock of true high-flyers to be found. I am told by an 
old fancier from across the seas, that in the city of Vienna, 
Austria, some years ago twenty thousand birds were kept 
for this especial purpose, and in the early morning hours of 
a clear day the sky would be filled with these circling flights 
of pigeons. On the house-tops would be seen the different 
owners watching the evolutions of their respective flocks, 
marking here and there a defective bird as one not entitled 
to good company, but only lit for boys or the spit, and again 
praising the performance of some extraordinary member of 
the flock. The variety known as Balds is the favorite of 
fanciers of this sport, and it does not matter as to color so 
the bird is short or pleasant-faced, clean cut, and of good 
staying qualities. In the matter of tumbling authorities 
differ, some favoring birds that tumble as they rise and fall, 
others claiming that they must not tumble or they will bring 
down the flight. In raising a flight of Tumblers one wants 
to be particular if it is the bald-headed variety, and mate 
only well-marked and good-colored birds, as this is one of 
their attractions; if their flying qualities are known, good 
flyers should also be mated together, for if one is an indiffer- 
ent flyer and the other a good one, the weaker of the two 
will have a tendency to injure the flying qualities of the 
other by inducing it to settle or fly low. This raising of a 
good flight of liigh-flyers is not the work of a day or month, 
but it is only attained after many months of patient watch- 
ing and experimenting. 
