tan ACN ARNG + eA +h ert ha ‘ ete na i 1% ba sinh a Cr 1 Vrs . - + “ Palettes iy ant ee : ? + ek iil WA) . PACE ANAC j ry ) i e} i ¥ ae 7 uae iy terre PAT Che ; yi) 7 es f ‘ + ¥ ¥ i 7 I i - y u L ; } 7 Leon ALBERT R. MANN LIBRARY NEw YorRK STATE COLLEGES OF AGRICULTURE AND HoME EcoNomICcs AT CORNELL UNIVERSITY JAMES E. RICE MEMORIAL POULTRY LIBRARY Cornell University Library SF 489.W9R38 Standard-bred Wyandottes, Silver Laced, WALI 31924 003 087 891 — mm | SoLDEN: _ PARTRIDGE, \s7q - SIVER FENCILED)| fF QUINCY-ILLUSA DDj appv sTPPPISEL ED BE WHITE WYANDOTTES TO DATE. xerel and Pu'let in First Prize Pen at the Boston Poultry, Pigeon and Pet Stock Exhibition, January 1898 ed and exhibited by Arthur G. Duston, Marlboro, Mass. ORIGINAL AMERICAN PRODUCTIONS. UY STANDARD-BRED WYANDOTTES, Silver Laced, Golden Laced, White, Buff, Black and Partridge. THEIR PRACTICAL QUALITIES; THE STANDARD REQUIREMENTS; HOW TO JUDGE THEM; HOW TO BREED AND MATE FOR BEST RESULTS . CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE BEST KNOWN AND MOST EXPERT BREEDERS AND JUDGES IN AMERICA. POs Lon S TRATED. PRICE FIFTY CENTS. PUBLISHED BY THE RELIABLE POULTRY JOURNAL PUBLISHING COMPANY, o QUINCY, ILLINOIS. % 4.24 wi As" Bale ar ‘( . £12569 DIRECTORY OF RELIABLE WYANDOTTE BREEDERS. N THE back pages of this book will be found a directory of the best known American breeders of one or more varieties of the Wyandottes. The breeders whose names and business announcements are printed therein are up-to-date and reliable. They are the kind of men readers of this book will find it safe and profitable to patronize when they wish to buy stock or eggs. Every breeder whose name appears in the list is believed by us to be square- dealing. Fraternally, RELIABLE POULTRY JOURNAL PUBLISHING Co. COPYRIGHTED BY RELIABLE POULTRY JOURNAL PUBLISHING CO, SEPTEMBER 16, 1902, SILVER LACED WYANDOTTES. Some General Advice to Beginners—Inbreeding—Standard Requirements Discussed Section by Section— Shape and Correct Marking of Feathers Illustrated by Original Charts—Method of Judging or Scoring—How to Cut for Defects. N taking up the Wyandottes to give them a thorough and complete write up, I realize the importance of the undertaking, and its value to the amateur as an educator and tothe professional breeder as a work ofreference. Myaimisto describe the different vari- eties of this popular fowl, justasI understand themand as I be- lieve the present standard intends all breeders to understand them; also by illustrations and explanations, to make the matter of scoring more clearly understood by all, and to make the selecting of show birds and breeders less a matter of guess work. The standard of 1898 has but few changes from the standard of 1898. To the few changes that have been made I will call special attention when the sections that are affected by the changes are under consideration. The illustrations in this book, so far as feathers are con- cerned, are, with a few exceptions, made from photographs from the varieties under discussion, and are just such feath- ers as are found by the judges at all big shows, and I believe are the best ever shown in book form. There is a sameness, to a certain extent, about some of them, but by paying close attention to the defects you will find they all enter largely into a proper understanding of the breed. Like will produce like, is an old saying, but it does not hold good in poultry breeding every time, nor any great number of times. If we were to mate a male to a female that was in every way his equal in breeding we might with good reason look for like to produce like; but where we mate males and females together with no regard for the breeding back of them we will in nine cases out of ten meet with disappointment. It is seldom if ever that we meet with two birds that are just alike in all sections. They may look’ much alike from outside appearances, but on close inspection you will find one inferior to the other. And so long as outside crosses are continually resorted to we shall always find this varying difference. Why do wild birds look so near alike that it is next to impossible to tell one from another? Look to nature for an answer. It is a case of a survival of the fittest and the very closest kind of inbreeding. We also can, by judicious inbreeding, using nothing in our yards but the very cream of our flocks in shape, health, and color, come to that point in a few years where a majority of our birds will look as much alike as wild birds do, both in shape and color. The loose, careless breeding that is followed by so many cannot possibly lead to permanent good. It is true we will get some good specimens from almost any kind of mating, but the few good ones are just as liable to breed poor birds as good, for there is too much poor blood in their make-up to hold out when bred with mates that have only a shallow foundation with which to start. To be successful in poultry breeding we must at all times have a definite object or ideal in view and must follow it up with careful matings and a close attention to details until we establish something we can look to as a secure BY THEQ. HEWES. foundation. It is not necessary to raise a great quantity of anything to be called a success in any line of fancy stock breeding, but we must produce quality, and quality once produced must have a foundation upon which we may build again and again. How; often we meet an amateur in the show room with a string of birds he has purchased, or has raised from eggs purchased from some old and careful breeder, and hear him tell all the secrets of breeding and the way, the only way, to make it a success! Watch the same breeder the next year, or after he has mated his own flock, and note the results. You will not only find the ribbons on the other coops, but you will see him doing a lot of quiet thinking and not nearly so much talking as the year before. This is how successful breeders are made. Judicious Inbreeding. The question of inbreeding is an important one. It can only be understood by a careful study of nature and of nature’s laws. That we can go too far with it, is absolutely certain, but how many have done so? Few, very few, indeed. Many claim they have when they have not gone half far enough. The facts are that bad results from other causes are many times charged to inbreeding, and for this very reason I say, study nature. Often breeders will use some especially finely marked bird, but undeveloped in size and vigor, and because he breeds a lot of weak chicks, inbreed- ing is blamed as the cause. If left in a wild state no mate would have chosen this undersized weakling until he could hold his own with the best that came along. In other words, the poor little hen with less than twelve months of life has learned more of nature’s laws than men of mature age. To make clear the value of inbreeding so that amateurs may see how far they may go with no bad results, I will point to a case with which I am well acquainted, where a breeder of Barred Plymouth Rocks introduced new blood in his flock only once in twelve years, and came near ruining his flock by doing so! He was winning every year while inbreeding and his birds were making a record for him in the yards of the best breeders in the country at the heads of their flocks. Do not understand that he was mating brothers and sisters together every time, although this was done many times, but he was breeding birds directly related all the time, and I give you my word that ten and eleven- pound cockerels were no uncommon sight in his yards. My honest opinion is that with plenty of room to handle a flock right, a strain of birds can be bred in line for fifty years without bad results. The Future of Poultry Culture. Breeding poultry for fun is one thing; breeding it as a source of profit sufficient to furnish a living for a family is quite another matter. If we are in the business for pleasure alone we can afford to spend money liberally, and to give to our fowls every luxury they may want, and no account need 6 (ory CiUnTED e - : —. dotte to sell all the way from $5 to $100, and large numbers exchange hands at good prices each year. ‘ THE MALE. We next take up the male and shall endeavor to clearly indicate the faults and the good points as they now exist in this variety of beautiful and prolific standard-bred fowl, There is something very attractive about the Golden Wyan- dotte male. In him we have the beautiful, compact form and the strength and sprightliness of a medium-weight fowl, They are not as slow of motion nor as sluggish as the heavy Asiatic. A ten-pound Wyandotte male is active, steps lightly, is very proud of his bearing. His crow is not shril] like that of a Leghorn, nor dull and heavy like that of a Brahma or Cochin, but has a rich, full, mellow tone that is pleasing to the ear, It is a sound good for a man to hear when he awakes at early morn. It speaks to him of health, strength, vig- or, and seems to say, “It is time the work of to-day was under way.” Shape of Male. All breeders of standard poultry rightly consider shape to be one of the most important points, as Serving the utility value of the breed or variety and adding much to the beauty of it. A Wyandotte male perfect in shape is not often seen, and the same is naturally true of all other varieties. Perfection is a very difficult thing to attain. The Golden Wyandotte is rapidly improv- ing in shape, and to-day a person may see a goodly number that approach perfection in shape. There is a diversity of opinion among breeders as to the correct Wy- andotte shape. Notice the cut of “Major 8th,” a Golden Wyandotte. The shape of this male is good, He Stands for a general type that pleases the writer, with some exceptions, The comb is a little low, is too flat upon the head and isa trifle wide, although, as the drawing shows, this comb is really a good one. The head is also good; it is short, with the required broad skull, not long, narrow and “snaky” in appearance. The eye 3s bright. The wattles are of medium length and well rounded. The neck is not long and scantily feathered, but is of medium length, is well arched, showing vigor, and is abundantly feathered. This male bird. as shown in the etching, is good in back shape, a section that is often faulty by being too narrow and too straight from center of back to tail. Notice partic- ularly in the drawing the broad, strong back and the full concave sweep to tail. The breast of this bird shows up full, broad, round and is carried well down—a valuable utility feature of the bird, for the meat is there. Avoid, in your breeding birds, flat- hess and narrowness in breast, both in males and females. The tail is one of the most beautiful sections of a Wyat dotte. It should be only of medium length, V-shaped, with abundant coverts and lesser sickles. The Wyandotte tail Should not be pinched and flat, as frequently seen, but wel! Spread apart and reasonably full. This section has beet hard to produce and control in the Golden Wyandottes, and THE WYANDOTTES. 49 too few of our breeders have given close enough attention ‘to it. It does not matter how good a bird is in other re- spects, if it carries a poor tail. This detracts greatly from his beauty. The body of the Wyandotte male should be of medium length and abundantly feathered. The thighs should be strong and well meated; shanks straight, stout, of medium length and set well apart—the width of your hand. Plumage of Male. We present herewith two half-tone engravings, show- ing photographic reproductions of actual feathers plucked from two exhibition Golden Wyandotte males, prize winners Feather No. 1 on this plate, a hackle feather, shows what I call a laced feather, somewhat like that of the Polish. The inside center follows evenly on either side of the shaft and stops at the right place, that is, does not extend through the black lacing. This gives us a far more beautiful feather than the standard description (see Plate II) and _ every breeder of experience knows that he cannot produce the large, open centers on the females by using males of the style of neck hackle shown on Plate II. Laced Wyandottes, with Golden and Silver, have a tendency toward the laced neck, and to-day some strains produce a neck plumage nearer like Plate I than like Plate II. The Standard of Perfection should be changed in this section so as to allow Plate I—Showing Photographic Reproduction of Feathers Plucked from a 2-Year-Old Golden Wyandotte Cock. at the great New York show. The feathers demonstrate what has been produced in this variety on single specimens. They are not presented as perfect feathers, though some of them are practically so. They were reduced in size about two-fifths by the artist, and while the engravings of feath- ers are the best we have seen to date, they do not do the originals full justice. A lustrous, greenish black and a soft golden bay make a combination that is extremely diffi- cult to photograph, and still harder to represent in plain black and white. In these feather plates the gold centers and lacing do not show up as clear cut and even as in the originals, but they will do very well in illustrating our meaning and in showing the progress that has been made. Plate I shows eleven feathers from a Golden Wyandotte cockerel. These feathers are pretty near our ideal, though not quite standard. Note the perfect striping and perfect lacing of these feathers, also the bright clearness of the out- side lacing of the hackie, back and saddle feathers. Note also the perfect evenness of the under-color of all these feathers, for this center inside of the striping. A number of breeders have bred for this for several years. They know that they can not produce standard-laced females if they use the solid striping in neck and back of the male. Next let it be observed that the bird from which the feathers shown in Plate I were plucked was laced in all sec- tions. Feathers No. 2 were taken from the upper and lower breast. These are nearly perfect. The centers are not quite perfectly carried, with reference to the shape of the feath- ers, but such feathers the breeders call good. No. 3 is a wing covert that forms the wing bar. This feather is full laced. The Golden Wyandotte, ever since its origin, has had a tendency toward breeding these laced wing coverts, and rightly, for this is one of the main sections in controlling lacing. A spangled bar has the tendency to throw (that is, to breed) spangles, or spangling in the females. Note care- fully the laced bar of the male presented on page 52. The more even we can have the feathers that form this bar, the better. Feather No. 4 is from the shoulder, and is practically 50 perfect. Nos. 5, 6, 7 and 8 are back and saddle feathers. These may be pronounced perfect, according to our stand- ard. The camera has not brought out clearly the striping of these feathers. The stripes in Nos. 6, 7, and 8 end at the proper place, with the gold edging extending entirely around the stripe at the points of the feathers, and the inside center —what the standard calls a diamond—runs down in the striping to a needle point, so fine the naked eye can hardly see it, and the same with the black striping. The engrav- ings cannot be expected to bring these fine lines out in their natural distinctness. I ask breeders of this variety to note particularly feather No. 8. This is one of the last feathers of the side, what I call a lower side hanger. Look your cockerels over to see how many feathers you can find like this one, showing equal + FIRST PRILE "T NEW YORK RED Ns omINtD A TRA C KELLER + PROSPECT. GOLDEN WYANDOTTE PULLET ‘'FASHION,” A PRIZE WINNER AT NEW YORK. striping. You will tind large numbers with scarcely any striping on these lower feathers. Many breeders never think of this lower striping. I have called attention to it many times. Even most of our judges overlook it. These feathers, when striped, add great beauty to the bird, and belong to the saddle, which the standard requires to be striped. we No. 9 shows a very pretty feather selected from the fluff. No. 10 is one of the bird’s tail coverts. These tail coverts are usually black, but the reader will observe that this one is laced. Such feathers add beauty to the bird, and a male that carries well-laced tail coverts will transmit, to a degree, this lacing to the coverts of the female, an impor- tant section, while if the male’s tail coverts are solid black you may expect very small centers, or none at all, on the female. As [ said before, Plate I represents my ideal plum- age for a Golden Wyandotte male, both in lacing and as THE WYANDOTTES. showing a breeding bird of the kind that will produce fe- males (either Golden or Silver) with open centers all over; also males with elegant striping and breasts well laced, hav- ing large centers. The standard of 1893 made a wonderful step forward when it called for a lighter colored Wyandotte, that is, a narrower laced one. The “black crows,” as we would now call them, were once considered to be good, but the tendency toward open centers and lighter colored birds has been present ever since I first knew anything about the Goldens, or their Silver cousins. When‘it is the natural tendency of a breed or variety to become more beautiful, certainly the standard should be changed to accord with it. Plate II shows six feathers selected from a cock bird two years old. Note the evenness of the under-color in all sec- tions. Feather No. 1 is from the neck. This feather is very evenly striped, but the striping is carried too far. down through the golden edging, otherwise it is perfect. No. 2 is taken from the saddle or back and is a perfect feather. Observe the striping and the center of this feather. No. 3 is a shoulder covert, clear in color, not of a black or smoky color. No. 5 is taken from the center of the breast. This feather is not as good as it should be. The center is too straight and small, and is not true with respect to the shape of the feather. No. 6 is a wing covert, forming the bar. The lacing of the feather is not true enough and breaks over the shaft. No. 4 is selected from the fluff and is, in our estimation, a perfect feather. It adds much to the beauty of the fowl, and every breeder who knows his busi- ness wants the fluff and legs well laced. The laced Wyandottes still have some faults as to fancy points, but the last five years have witnessed a greater improvement in them than was expected. The best breed- ers of them have made great progress. The old-time smuttiness of neck, hackle and sad- dle feathers is not now seen so often; they are much cleaner, in fact, one may now see many specimens at our shows with almost perfect necks. Golden males are now often seen whose breasts are laced from the throat down past the thighs, in fact, such birds are now com- paratively easy to produce. Very few now come with spangling on the lower breast, unless mated too light. The comb is to-day probably the most faulty section on Wyandottes, although there has been a rapid and marked improvement here. In your matings avoid a too large and too broad comb, and have the combs of males and females as even and shapely as possible. However, the male Wyandotte has been wonderfully im- proved, especially in shape, in gold color and in lacings. We now see far fewer smutty necks, the right depth of gold color has been reached in both sexes, white in ear-lobes has almost entirely disappeared, and stubs on the shanks— which were very common in the variety’s early history— are seldom seen now. It is astonishing what careful, systematic and intelli- gent breeding will accomplish in the course of ten years. Het, those who can recollect the crude specimens of only thirteen years ago, place them, in the mind’s eye, alongside of the best specimens of the breed as they exist to-day, and ponder on and take new courage from the wonderful con- trast. It is indeed a fascinating work, THE WYANDOTTES. Bl GOLDEN WYANDOTTE FEMALES. It is difficult for one to say which is the more beautiful, the male or female Golden Wyandotte, as both possess great beauty. Certainly one can find beauty enough in the female to satisfy the eye of the most ardent fancier. She has a shape differing from that of any other breed of fowl. Her head should be short, deep and medium broad, with bay eyes, red ear-lobes, wattles of medium length and a rose comb that is low, of medium width, curving with the shape of the head and terminating with a neat, small spike. The neck should be broad and full, of medium length and well arched. The back should be short with a gentle rise and cushion. We like to see the breast quite full, broad, deep, well-rounded, and the keel bone carried well down bay centers, laced with a rich greenish-black. The lacing varies greatly, and a person often sees breeders who use birds with the small centers, the feathers on the back only shafted or striped with bay, showing no lacing at all. The breeder who has persevered in breeding for open centers has becn well paid. It is nature, for ever since I have known the laced Wyandotte I have found that its tendency is to breed to larger centers. There was a “dark-bird” fad some years ago, and most people wanted a dark Wyandotte. Asa result a great injury was done to the breed. This affected the Silvers more than it did the Goldens. Some people still want them dark. One of our old judges claims that the dark birds are the best. The trouble lies here: Some six years ago the standard Plate 1I—Showing Seven Excellent Feathers Plucked from a Grand Golden Wyandotte Hen. between the legs. Thighs should be short, stout and well meated. Body and fluff well developed. Tail, short, well spread like the letter V and carried a little upward. Here we have an almost ideal fowl in shape, for utility as well as for beauty. The Golden Wyandotte has been _ known to lay as many as 200 eggs in a year, and this from a breed that carries a weight of from six to eight pounds for the female, and eight to ten pounds for the male, with a quantity of flesh that but few breeds equal, fairly enti- tles them to rank high as a general purpose fowl]. The pul- lets develop quickly and begin to lay at an early age. Plumage of Female. She has a style of plumage that is hard to produce in correct color and markings, like that of several other parti- colored fowls. The standard Golden hen or pullet of to-day is very attractive to the eye, with her large, open, golden first called for a lighter Wyandotte and it has now become a general demand. Some of the breeders were slow to ‘‘catch on” and got left. To change a breed or variety, from dark to light in lacing, can not be done in a year or two. The breeders who have always been breeding for medium cen- ters, and have, of late years, increased or enlarged them, have reaped a rich harvest. Every loving fancier of the Wyandotte prefers the open lacing, as shown on the hen Fashion, presented on page 50 (See also her feathers in Plate III.) This hen had no moss- ing and was full laced all over. Mr. Sewell’s sketch of her is quite good. Her shape was not the best. Her tail should be carried a little higher, her cushion should be more abun- dant, and the breast should be more full. Her comb is straight, where it should curve with shape of head. Other- wise I like her. ‘ The plumage of this grand hen is shown in Plate III. ‘J2IHq WMopued pA Bapjor pasojory aussg & Jo suOT}ag JUAIAPC wos payonjg ssayjeag vay Surmoys—'A] arg THE WYANDOTTES. 53 These feathers were plucked when she was two years old. The engraver has reduced the size of the feathers about one- third. Feather No. 1 is a hackle, nearly perfect. No. 2 is.taken from the breast and is good enough. Nos. 3 and 4 are from the wing. These are excellent, though at the end of feather No. 4 you will note it does not carry the shape of the center as well as does No. 3, it is a little too pointed. No. 5 is a back feather taken from between the shoulders. This is good. No. 6 is a cushion feather. In lacing, shape of feather and center I call No. 6 perfect. No. 7 is a cushion or lesser tail covert. Note how perfect this center is. It may be seen that this center is perfectly clear. Also note the deep, uniform under-color shown in all these sections. The lacing of this hen is carried well back in the fluff and the greater part of the fluff is laced, a valuable point in a breeder. A hen with so uniformly good plumage is not often seen. Pullets are now often produced with this uni- form and open lacing, but comparatively few of them molt in as clear laced hens. They usually come out of the molt with clear breasts and wings, but seldom with a clear back and cushion. If clear in cushion the breast lacing has prob- ably run out. We next take up Plate IV. Here we have ten feathers selected from a pullet with a very narrow lacing. All these feathers are from the one bird. Of course they are not all perfect. The size of these has also been reduced about one- third or a little more. The reader will notice that the width of these lacings is quite uniform in all sections, and I know you will agree with me that this looks much better than would be the case were the centers only one-half as large. Feather No. 1 is a hackle feather. It is very good, but has the inside center, like that described in the male, page 49. Here is what I like, and I know from experience that this kind of lower hackle feathers are extremely necessary to produce pullets with plumage like that shown in Plate IV. I should like the standard to allow these inside centers. They may be either large or small, just so the outside black stripe is sharp, clean cut and black, and the golden edging is clear as in the plate, where you will note the stripe ends at the proper place. There is no outside gold edging on this pullet. Feather No. 2 is a lower breast feather, and No. 3 an upper breast feather, near the throat. No. 3 is perfect, while in No. 2 the center is a little more on the side of shaft than on the other. Nos. 5, 6 and 7 are from the wings. These are perfect, or what we would call such. The color of the lacing is an intense greenish-black, with no edging, no mossing. No. 7 is from the fore part of the wing, No. 5 is from the center, and No. 6 is from the second row that forms the two bars. With centers of this size or larger, one will find that each center on the bird shows to splendid advantage, and the two rows of bars will be distinctly seen. With this size centers one sees about three-fifths of gold or white, and two- fifths of black. No. 8 is taken .rom the back, between the shoulders, and is a good one, still it is not quite perfect. No. 9 is a real gem. How could it be better? Here is a good feather to carry in one’s eye. It is really a “gold standard.” No. 10 is a tail covert, and very good, still the center at the end should be carried farther down and conform with the shape of the end of the feather. In this female we have the happy medium, each section ‘the same in depth of lacing, which makes the bird look uni- ‘form in all sections. Here we have a Wyandotte of surpass- “ing beauty. Put this plumage on a fairly perfect form and you have a bird that will win in very fast company, one that is worthy of the name, the Beauty Breed. I wish to speak here of lacing more particularly than of the shape. I hope some day to be able to produce these cen- ters with the ends broader, more like our best Sebrights. The centers are now too sharp in both the Golden and Silver Wyandottes. We have these broad centers in the Buff Laced Wyandottes. Note again Feather No. 2 in Plate IV. If the sharp point to this feather were not there and the outside lacing were not so heavy at the end, but were as narrow as the side lacing, would it net be pretty? These large, round-end centers can be produced. We know one Silver Wyandotte breeder who hag accomplished it, and the lacings on the wings does not overlap so much, but looks more like rings. While our best show pulletgs look like perfect birds, indeed they are not yet near perfect. There is still a vast amount of room for improvement. How I wish they bred as true as the Sebrights! Think of the Wyandotte being scored at present as high as the best Sebrights! They are all scored too high. I do not believe there is a Sebright in America that will honestly score over 95 points. The greatest fault of the laced Wyandotte is the mossing of the centers. This is very hard to work oul. -A pullet may be free from mossing her first year, but when she is two years old she may not have a clear center on her. But not many do as poorly as this. They usually molt in with at least a clear breast and clear wings. It is slow work breed- ing this defect out, but time will work wonders. The hens that show the clearest centers should always be kept as breeders. Spangling has disappeared fast, combs have been greatly improved, and so has the shape of the female. The type does not now vary so much. Especially in the Golden this short, blocky shape was seldom seen a few years ago. The Golden formerly was longer in body, had more length of leg, and was a larger and coarser fowl than the Silver, but to-day one sees Goldens with the true Wyandotte shape, and we See a great many more of them each year. : MATING GOLDEN WYANDOTTES. The art of breeding is a great study and an intensely interesting one. While one gains much from experience— which is really the best teacher—still the amateur gets many points from reading that it would take him years to learn from experience, though perhaps ‘the teachings of the latter are less easily forgotten. I may say that what I know about Golden Wyandottes I have learned chiefly from expe- rience; but I realize that could some one have told me ‘twelve years ago exactly how to mate, I should have made a great deal more money. I am in the poultry business, like most others, for what I get out of it, and I find it as profita- ble as many other lines of business. Fancy poultry can be made to pay, and pay well, and I know of no better paying varieties than the Wyandottes. Like other breeds, they must be well mated to produce best results, and no good birds need be expected from poor matings. Stock that has been well mated and bred in line for a number of years, though not of the highest grade, will, if properly mated, pro- duce a good per cent of very fancy birds. Blood will tell, and will show its good qualities as well as bad. On the other hand, an excellent mating of carelessly bred stock can not be depended on to reproduce itself. Too many per- sons in the poultry business think they must introduce new blood from a different strain each year, and so go backward instead of forward, because nearly every breeder’s birds dif- fer some in type and plumage. When these different types are crossed some of the offspring resemble the male, some the female, and some resemble neither. Then such breeders generally get a male from another type to mate with the bd THE WYANDOTTES. pullets of the several types, and the next season they have nothing good, scarcely any two chicks resembling each other. This is my advice: If you get what you want from a reliable breeder who has a well established strain, and who breeds large numbers, buy your new blood of him. He probably understands breeding much better than you and he does not inbreed enough to injure his stock. If he is hon- est he will not furnish you stock that is too closely related. I would not give a cent for a specimen for breeding pur- poses, no matter how fine it is, if it had not been inbred, Color. There are many points in breeding Golden Wyandottes to be considered. First, I will speak of color. I find that most of the Golden Wyandotte breeders do not understand what golden bay means. Some think it is a light shade of gold, others think it a chestnut or red. It is a color hard to describe. If you should take an eighteen karat gold and mix red with it, you would get the color, though of course it would all depend on how much red you added. Golden bay, as I understand it, is a dark rich gold, but not bay. We see ee ae es = ~~ “OHIO BOY 15™ AMERICA FIRST PRIZES AT CHICAGS 1839» FIRST PRIZES AT NEW YORK 1899+ BRED AND OWNED By LACS RUE eT , PROSPECT IONIO. —, PRIZE-WINNING GOLDEN WYANDOTTES, First Cock at Chicago and New York, 1899, First Pullet at New Y. for it will seldom reproduce itself. Inbreeding is a great fac- tor in the success of the fancier of poultry, horses, cattle, hogs or sheep. The height of perfection can not be reached without inbreeding. The type of inbred stock will be easily seen in its get. If you see a nice flock of birds that closely resemble each other, ask the breeder if he inbreeds, and he will tell you that he does. I do not advocate inbreeding Golden Wyandottes closer than, say, first cousins, Some breeds will stand more and closer inbreeding than others, but never, if possible to avoid it, breed a male and female that have the same faults. ork, 1898 and First Hen at Chicago, 1899. bay in its perfection in the horse family. Most of the Golden Wyandottes that judges usually call prime in color are too dark a gold or bay, or too red. And here I might say that it judges paid enough attention to color in this breed they would Rae Score 8o high. I have often noticed them scoring. There will be, for instance, a row of ten cockerels the saddles of which are clear and well striped, but each of a different shade of gold. Seldom will one be cut for color, while usually there is but one in the class that should be pronounced perfect in the color of that section. THE WYANDOTTES. 55 To Produce Proper Color and Markings. If your females are too red or bay, you should use a male that has a light, even, rich gold color. This will lighten the color in the offspring. But never try to produce the desired change of color in one season, for you can not establish a medium color from two extremes in one cross. The deep red or chestnut color of the breed is more deeply seated in the male than in the female. ors are necessary to keep up a good golden bay. Tf the males are too red, select those females that have the light, mellow gold color and a golden bay male, or if you have not such use a male of the red color. This will produce pullets approaching near the golden bay. Mate these pul- lets to a deep, rich, golden bay male and you should get the proper shade of color in a few specimens at least. In breeding for open centers of cushion you will lose the depth of breast lacing of the female. To produce these large centers select your females that have them and Select a male that has a strong, well-laced breast with not too large centers, with the plumage in neck, back, wing and saddle like that shown in cockerel plumage in Plate No. I. Such a mating should produce a fair per cent of pullets with good sized centers all over, and nice, very open-laced cock- erels. In producing a good, strongly laced male use. cock- erels from above mating on fairly heavily laced females. If the females are too open, so as to grow quite weak in breast, use a male that is quite as strongly- marked as plum- age of cock in Plate No. II. Some of the pullets will be quite well laced all over of a rather heavy nature. These, if mated to a male with plumage like that of cockerel in Plate No. I, will produce some pullets up to the standard re- quirements in lacing, and from this mating you will get a good per cent of standard marked cockerels. To produce pullets with clear, open centers all over, a fair per cent of which will not molt into clear-centered hens, use a male with plumage in each section like cockerel plum- age in Plate No. I, and keep it up year after year and you will accomplish it. Remember by breeding Wyandottes heavily laced you do not get clear-centered hens. You must breed open-centered pullets to molt into clear-laced hens. You have many sections to look after and improve in both male and female. If you have a bird that has one or two sections quite perfect and is fairly good in other sections, use it, and you will stamp your stock. It is best to always select the maies for breeding that have the best average plumage, color, shape and comb. Then mate to females of the proper width of lacing. One, to be successful with the breed, should be prepared to make many matings, for if you And these deep col-. have ten females you wish to mate with a male, it is not likely that over two to four will mate with him well. You would better only mate one or two properly. than the whole ten improperly. You will have much better birds at the end of the season. If they are not well mated you can not get very many good chicks. It is hard to get of any fancy breed a dozen females to match a male exactly. Some think small matings are very expensive, but I assure you, if mated right they pay. I should advise breeders to pay more attention to thigh and leg lacing. Have them well laced, as they are one of the most beautiful sections. Breed from them. I like to see the lacing commence at the throat and run past the thighs without a break. We have produced lacing on a male’s legs every center of which was nearly a quarter of an inch wide, and fluff or thigh lacing seven-eighths of an inch wide. On females we have had it half an inch wide. Bear in mind that the richer the gold of the shafts of both male and female, the better and prettier will be the dark slate under-color, which may be mixed with gold or buff. This is another very important point in breeding. Look after the wing bar of the male to see whether it is well laced. It should be, for it plays a very important part in the lacing of the female. If the secondaries of both male and female are well laced, so much the better. Produce all the fluff lacing you can on both sexes, just so the lacing is black. A laced fluff is much prettier than one powdered with gold and biack. We produce many specimens in which nearly every feather of the thighs is laced clear down to the shanks. Look at the tail filling, I call it, the feathers that fill in between the tail behind. If these be laced, so much the better. The more the short tail coverts of the male are laced the better, especially the lower ones, for these play an important part in producing the large open tail coverts of the pullets. Try to produce all the plumage of the breed laced, except the male tail feathers, the sickles, hangers,ard the fluffy portion of the rear part of the fowl. This lacing can be produced as I have said and shown. It is not theory, as we have accomplished it. We have produced lacing of the fluff of both sexes in goodly numbers to almost the size of the breast lacing. I may say here that I have devoted almost my entire time for over thirteen years to this fowl and I have accomplished a great deal in the way of improvements in all sections. Breeding will accomplish wonders. It is my aim to help others to produce better Wyandottes and more of them, to create more breeders and to bring the different types closer together. I wish to say here again that by pro- ducing a bird with lacing in all sections we will have a fowl approached by none in beauty. IRA C. KELLER. THE BEAUTY BREED. The Qualities that Should be Found in Line-bred Stock to Produce Exhibition Specimens. BY FRED G. MASON, SUCCESSOR TO H. D. MASON & SONS. ORTUNATELY, while the breeding of high- class exhibition Golden Wyandottes is a sci- ence that requires thought and study, at the same time it is both pleasant and profitable. As a variety they have been before the public for about twelve years and are fast gaining.in popular- ity. The American fancy has had the extreme dark and also has been threatened with the extreme light or Sebright Golden Wyandottes, but has settled down to a medium col- ored Golden Wyandotte, as now described in the American Standard of Perfection. We have bred the Golden Wyan- dottes as a specialty since their first introduction, and have found them to be-great layers and grand for table use, be- sides being the most handsome fowl in existence. We are strong advocates of line breeding and have prac- ticed the same for many years. We produce both males and females from the same mating and believe it to be the only correct way to establish a reliable strain. In selecting your breeding stock, first consider the qualities that should be found in all Wyandottes, namely, good Wyandotte shape, yellow legs, good size, bay eyes, and a good comb. Form an opinion as to the relative values of the qualities found in your Golden Wyandottes and seek each year to breed out the most serious defect, with as many of the remaining defects as possibie You may think it advisable to sacrifice a little in comb, or size, or perhaps a little in shape in a few specimens, in order to stamp in your stock something fine in feather markings, which the others do not possess. If your stock reaches standard weight at maturity without the aid of surplus fat, be content and do not seek to add to their size, as it will rob them to a great extent of two of the most important qualities that should characterize the Wyandotte, namely, egg production and early maturity. If your stock is undersized and you wish to retain them on account of fine feather markings, do not try to remedy the defect in size in one season by procuring an extra large male, but try to accomplish the desired end in two or three matings. In females choose those that are as near to standard requirements as possible. Aim to have the golden center in each feather from one-half to two-thirds of the width of each feather, and also to conform to the shape of the web of the feather. The widest centered feathers should be found on the breast, and gradually decrease in width as they approach the tail. Strive to have the lacing on the end of each feather no wider than on the side. In selecting your male see that he is not defective in body under-color. Remember the wing bar and have it well laced, as it plays an important part in the production of fine pullets. Have the centers of the feathers that form the wing bar or wing coverts of a deep bay color with a lacing of glossy black. In the saddle feathers have the inside center of each feather of a deep golden bay, laced with black, the whole to be fringed with golden bay. In the hackle we prefer a golden shaft dividing the black center in equal parts, the same to be fringed with golden bay. The center of each feather in a 56 male’s breast should not be over two-thirds of its width, and even a little less than one-half of the width of the feather if you are troubled to confine the golden centers in the female’s breast. Strive to have each feather from throat to thighs with a golden bay center, the same to be laced with lustrous black and sharply defined. We prefer tail-coverts with rich golden bay centers of about one-half their width, also gol- den shafts to the sickle feathers and a golden bay center in thigh feathers of not more than one-half their width. If you wish to deepen the color of the centers in the females, use a male that has deeper color, as he has greater power to transmit color than the female. It has been our experience that the deeper the color of the centers the easier it is to hold the lacing. Do not use a bird with white in the tail, as that is a defect that should have long ago disap- peared. And if a bird shows white in wings, do not use him unless he be excellent in most sections, and poor in none. Learn to discriminate between natural white and white caused by accident or injury. A large percentage of the white found in wings is caused by an injury to the feathers in their early growth, and especially is this so of the white occasionally found on the wing’ tips. He who thinks of breeding fancy fowls, either for pleas- ure or profit, or both, will make no mistake in selecting the Golden Wyandottes. Try to obtain stock from a breeder who has a good reputation, one whose birds have many gen- erations of ancestors of the same blood line to hold and transmit the qualities that they possess. Remember that the degree of excellence that the line bred Golden Wyandotte may attain is largely due to feed and care. If you do not feel able to start with fowls, you can buy eggs and soon have a flock of fowls that will be greatly admired by your friends and neighbors, and cause you to be a. life-long friend and champion of the “Beauty Breed.” [Note—Mr. Mason is a strong believer in medium cen- ters on both males and females, and his stock shows that he preduces this type of bird in both sexes to a marked degree. He has had the best training along these lines from his father, the late Mr. H. D. Mason, who, during his life, was one of the best posted Golden Wyandotte breeders in Amer- ica. Mr. Mason advocates safe ground for an amateur to follow, and even the old heads, who speculate too far oD extremes in color, are only too glad to get this conservative blood to put them back in line. Golden Wyandotte breeders have some advantages over breeders of the Silver variety, as the golden color is not so much affected by the sun. The Soren Wyandotte breeder has advantage also in that he can ag ‘uce good males and females from the same yard. Mr. - D. Mason showed the writer cockerels and pullets that were full brothers and sisters and they all possessed the cor- a ee and color markings to qualify them for show enka : i strong points of the parents were equally repre- ee 2 oth males and females. The same mingling of mad e Silver variety would show cockerels not so well oe as the Goldens, while the pullets would be stronger. call the reader’s attention to this, as each breed or Va- riety has its own peculiarities in i is much to be learned.—Editor.] eae nn ww 4 3 REUABLE “PouLTRY-JouRNAL —~ O-9 COPYRIGHT =< WHITE WYANDOTTES—By SEWELL. Characteristics, shape and standard requirements are substantially the same as those given for the Silvers except that the color of this variety is pure white, See color-plate frontispiece. O BREED of fowls of recent origin stands higher in the commercial world than does the White Wyandotte. Its reputation is not re- stricted to America, but wherever this fowl has been bred to any extent, it is recognized as the middle weight fowl par excellence for To this quality is added their remarkable egg- producing ability. Under special circumstances a pen of this breed has yielded 210 eggs per bird in one year. Aside from their commercial value they are the fancy fowl which has a greater number of admirers than any other solid color variety in the American standard. Their handsome white plumage, fine symmetrical outlines, well- developed breasts and thighs, low rose combs and blocky build develop the amateur who breeds them into a fancier. hey attract a great many from the outside world to our ever-growing army of poultry enthusiasts. This breed of fowls will in time be recognized as the Plymouth Rock’s greatest rival in every section of the country. The Ameri- can fancier may well feel proud that its origin is strictly American. table use. White Wyandotte Shape. The shape of this variety is the same as that outlined in charts 1 and 2. As you will remember, the female used as a model for chart No. 2 was in reality a White Wyandotte, a winner in the Boston show of 1898. By referring to the chart and the description of the same in the discussion of the silver variety, you will get all the information that is necessary along this line, and I am sure any one who reads understandingly will be able to make a better selection of his breeding stock. In many parts of the country there will be found birds of this variety that look shorter on their legs than’ the standard requires and they are often cut by the judges for this apparent defect. If you have a specimen of this kind in your yard, make a careful measurement of this section. You will find, as a rule, that your eye has misled you. I have found that White Wyandottes, especially the females, have longer plumage around the thighs and fluff than the other varieties of Wyandottes have and for this reason the birds look a trifle squatty or short on their legs. These ap- parently short-legged birds have, as a rule, short backs and deep breasts, and are, in fact, the very birds you want to breed. Do not understand me as favoring a duck leg ona Wyandotte. I want the shank long enough to meet the requirements of the standard as illustrated in the chart, but 57 58 THE WYANDOTTES. I caution you to look carefully for the long plumage and sec if the bird is in reality as short-legged as it appears. In this variety as well as the other varieties of the Wy- andotte, look well to the shape of the back, for without a good back you can absolutely make no progress toward per- fecting a strain. If the back is good you invariably get other good points which go a long way toward making an ideal fowl. Color of White Wyandottes. The new standard is very severe on the color question and breeders of this variety will have to be very careful in the selection of breeding stock if they expect to pass muster in the show room. Any flecking on a feather will be con- sidered a serious defect, and if shown on more than one feather it disqualifies the specimen. Breeders are spending lots of thought trying to discover how to breed “stay white” birds. Some are trying different kinds of food, others keep the birds in the shade and still others advocate sunshine. The fact of the matter is, if you have the color in the blood it is going to crop out some time, and the only way I know to get rid of it is to breed it out. A breeder with a lot of work and patience can get any bird in show color—so can any woman change the color of her hair, but it is only an artificial color and it will fade. What we want in a white fowl is absolutely white plumage, not yellow or cream, but pure white. It is true that we have only started on color breeding and the faker who has learned the art of changing colors has a big advantage over the honest man who has only nature to help him, but the latter will win in the long run and he will be honored as the trickster can never hope to be. To successfully breed any of the white varieties and place them on exhibition free from sunburn or yellowish cast, is a big undertaking. We find just such specimens every winter at our western shows and they are bred that way and have not been artificially bleached into show con- dition. ‘The per cent of these pure white birds is small, we admit; but there are enough of them to show what can be done and to furnish material with which to work. Breeders should feel encouraged and should strive still harder. In the west we do not know when to get a bird’s record or when to keep it out of the show room. There is more or less yellow in the new feathers of our very whitest birds. This yellow will show for a time, or in fact, as long as the quill is used to fvinish the matter to make the feather. This is what we term the immature life of the feather and the specimen is not in shape to show when its plumage is in this coudition, If a specimen is white before molting, it will be white after the molt. All you have to do is to give them time to “color down,” as we put it. Sunburn or copper color is a serious defect in a White Wyandotte and in my judg- ment should be discounted as severely as the black flecking. To have a few feathers come with a Slight tracing of black or dead color in the back, neck and wings, is a great disappointment. Still if we will stop to think a minute, we could not expect anything else. The White Wyandotte came from the Silver cross and they certainly have a certain amount of black blood in them which must come to the sur- face once in a while, but the yellow cast is not inherited from their ancestors and we can surely get rid of it by judi- cious mating. This sunburn appears more prominently in the male and is found on the neck, back and shoulders prin- cipally. It is easy to understand why it should appear on the neck and back. but why it should crop out on the wings is something of a puzzle. The hackle and saddle being com- posed of long feathers, it is hard for nature to supply oil enough to protect the outside from the severe heat of the sun, but the shoulders are composed of short feathers and nature should be able to keep them white. In scoring for this defect, the cuts run from one-half to one and one-half in all sections. Should there be a trace of flecking, the cut will be from one half to one point more in each’ section. Should the neck be good on the surface but show a yellow tint underneath, the cut would be one-half point. If the wings are good on the surface, but show yellow quills in the secondaries and flight feathers, the cut is one-half to one according to the degree. If a bird shows off-color in any section, such as grease or paint or any foreign substance, the cut is one point, and the cut should be made in the con- dition column and the sections affected should be designated with a check mark on the card. Feeding for Color. Feeding to produce a pure white color has been a serious study with some fanciers, and some have proved that it has an effect in particular cases. Considering my Own exper- ience, I say look to nature for your remedy and study nature for the cause and effect. It is reasonable to suppose that a part of the diet of a fowl goes to form the coloring matter of its plumage and we have learned that it is a fact that some foods contain much more of this coloring matter than others. After a feather is grown you can do nothing to change it, that is, it is a finished production and feeding any particular diet cannot change it. -But there was a time in the history of the feather when you could have helped na- ture to add a different shade to it. That was the time when the feather was growing and its quill was full of sap. If at that time we had fed for color, being careful not to allow our fowls anything but the whitest kinds of food, we could undoubtedly have helped to make the plumage white, but after the feathers are matured it is too late to remedy the favlt, unless we want to pluck the fowl and try it over. If you wish to help the color of your fowls it must be in the molting season, as that is the time and the only time when food can affect the plumage. White Wyandotte Females. What has already been said in regard to the defects in the shape of the Silver and Golden Wyandotte females may properly be applied to the White, Buff and Black varieties. This is also true of the color of the eyes.and ear-lobes, so I will not tire you by repeating it. In discussing the white variety, I shall mention a few of the defects found in the plumage, and shall warn the amateur not to believe his best specimen is pure whiie until he has carefully examined every section on her for off-colored feathers. I was ina yard of White Wyandotees a few months ago and was told by the owner that he had a fiock that he could guarantee were pure white in every section. I asked him if he meant that they were absolutely white without any coloring of any kind. He said they were and that he would give me every bird that I could find with any sign of black or brown in it. “My friend,” [ said, “you may just as well ship all of them to me, for you have not a bird on your place that is abso- lutely free from ticking in all sections.” He became indig- nant and asked me if I thought he was a fraud. “No,” I said, “you are not a fraud, but you do not know as much about White Wyandottes as you think you do.” He began to catch the birds and run them over carelessly, claiming: that they were pure white, but when I began to show him where to look for the off-feathers, he soon learned that he did not have a single bird that was absolutely white. The White Wyandottes came from sports of the Silver and there is black blood in them, so that it is just as natural for them ‘to throw a few feathers ticked with black as it is for them to grow. It is not an impurity, it is the natural outcrop- ping of that black blood and it will be years before it en- tirely disappears. _ 1 think the present standard is entirely too severe oD this variety, and a close application of it will lead to faking and feather pulling on the part of exhibitors. I am sure the judges do the breed an injustice by disqualifying for the trace of flecking so often found in their plumage. If the specimen shows unmistakable signs of foreign color, then debar the bird, but where faint traces of flecking appear, discount them from one-half to one and one-half, according to the degree. The plumage throughout, including the quills, should be pure white and when yellow or straw color appears, the cut is from one-half to one and one-half. This cut refers to every section of the bird, but the discoloration most often appears in the neck, back, wings and tail. cco legs and toes are the same as the Silvers and the ae n Aes the same, but there is a defect in the color of legs : : often met in the Silvers. I refer to the pale or white ss s. The shanks should be yellow and when they are pale or light colored the cut is from one-half to two, accord- ing to the degree, THEO, HEWES. STANDARD-BRED WHITE WYANDOTTES. The “Best Breed for Broilers,” and a Keen Rival for Highest Honors as the Best General Purpose Fowl—Points om Breeding this Beautiful and Useful Variety to Standard Requirements. BY ARTHUR G. DUSTON, ERMIT me to set forth in a plain way some thoughts in regard to the mating and breeding of the noble White Wyandotte that may be of value to the readers of this book. The White Wyandottes are true sports or albinos of the Silvers, and were brought out by a number of breeders at about the same time. They were admitted to the standard in 1888 and for some years enjoyed considerable popularity, but later they hardly held their own. I know when I first began to breed them they were a very small class in our shows. Often the entry of one breeder formed the whole exhibit. It must have been much easier to win then! In 1894, after trying several of the more popular breeds, I at length decided to handle but one variety of one breed, and do my best with that one. Finding that the White Wyandotte made the best broiler and roaster; that it is of quick growth, standing heavy feed and forcing; that it is an early and prolific layer, docile and exceedingly beautiful withal; in fact, that in my hands it proved to be the best all-round bird of the five kinds I tried, I discard- ed the others and became a specialist. I have faith- fully advertised them and when occasion »ffered have written about them (as have others) until to-day the White Wyandotte is one one of the most popular varieties of standard-bred fowls. Now it is often the largest instead of the smallest class in our shows. They have only to be tried to make frineds. In writing of mating it will not be out of place to give a short description of the two birds shown in the frontispiece as being somewhat ideal. The cock is a “stay white” bird and so is the hen. Both have fine heads, rather stout, with a low comb of nice shape which, when chicks, were well- pebbled. Their backs are short, rising to the tail, which should always be short and fairly well spread. The body is deep with a full breast and considerable fluff, and it is set on a pair of stout, yellow legs. Such birds are active and will reproduce themselves in a good percentage of the chicks. ‘Now a few words in regard to the breeding pen. If we could start with a pen of ideal birds it would be quite a sim- ple matter to breed winners, provided, of course, that their parentage was up to standard and the blood of the males and of the females was not antagonistic, but “nicked,” as we say. But we have two, three or ten females with Wyandotte shape and only a difference in the carrying of the tail or head, or one’s comb is a trifle hollow, or some one of a hun- dred minor differences is apparent in each bird. Hence we must watch carefully what males we put with these females, It would he difficult for anyone to tell exactly how he puts up two birds, and he cannot always tell why. I think one of the first considerations in the breast. Try to get a male standing “wide apart” with a generous fullness in breast. Never put a hollow-chested male (which is a bad fault) with females having the same defect. We want the best combs we can get, but never discard a choice breeder on account of the comb unless the defect amounts to a disquali- fication. The eye should be bay and the plumage white. While we are commenting on the plumage, it might be well to state that as the white variety is yet so near to the Silver Wyandotte, it is no wonder that we get some gray in the plumage. I have seen breeders who claim that their stock never has any. If that be so, their birds must get it by in- The kind of White Wyandottes Bred by Mr. A, G. Duston. fection very soon after leaving their owners’ yards. We all get it and there is no use in saying we do not. We are all trying to get away from it. So if you get a bird with some gray in him, do not call the breeder a fraud. If the female is inclined to carry her tail too high, try to overcome it in the progeny by using a male carrying a low tail, which has as much width or fullness as possible. Never use a male with greenish legs or with green flecks under the scales, because from such a breeder come the green-legged birds. I always soup them. We are all trying for greater weight and IJ fear we shall overreach ourselves. Calls come for nine-pound cockerels. Don’t do it! Try to add a little to your weights each year. If you put such large males with undersized females you will lose the shape and compactness so essentially Wyandotte. The best birds I ever raised or saw as regards shape, were those that were nearest standard weight. They are the neat, catehy fellows and they will cover all the claims we make for the Wyandottes. If we keep trying as the demand seems to be to add a pound or two over standard weight, will we not lose the early maturing qualities in a great measure? We want a rich yellow leg, and it is almost entirely due to the run the birds have. If free range on a gr2en grass is 59 60 given them, not one per cent will fail to have as richly col- ored legs as you want. ones I have tried to mention a few of the first principles of ing, telling something about what we want. Bear in nd to seek to weaken any defect in the female breeders as “Yar as possible by having the same section especially strong in the male, and vice versa. This rule and a close study of y birds have given me what success I have attained in Prveuns White Wyandottes. After you have your pen carefully selected and put to- gether, you will be filled with manifold doubts and misgiv- ings, but if you have given to the work the thought and time necessary, you should have faith enough to wait and see the chicks matured before you are discouraged. It is seldom I would advise making any change in a pen during the breed- ing season, especially on the recommendation of an outsider against what has been your best judgment. If the birds “nick” you win; if they do not, you lose. We have staked a season’s get that we shall win choice specimens from our mating. But it is true that two of a family of children hardly ever look alike. Why, then should we expect all the get of a pen of beautiful birds to be as good as the parent stock? I firmly believe that it is possible for ninety per cent to come so if we are only judicious in our breeding and make careful records of all matings. I am a convert to this plan, and I[ propose to test it thoroughly. Your chicks should be culled as closely as possible by the time they are eight weeks old, so as to give the others all the room you have, even if you have a hundred acres. Your coop room is growing rapidly less as they mature. THE WYANDOTTES. You must expect to get culls. Some hatches will be bet- ter ihan others from the same pen. Is this to be wondered at when one considers the indifference with which this vari- ety has been bred for some years past? A prominent breeder told me that he got a much greater per cent of culls from his White Wyandottes than from his Barred Plymouth Rocks. We are going to overcome this in a few years by selection and methodical breeding. Regarding the importance of keeping a record of mat- ings, I will give an illustration. You may believe that I wish I had kept mine a little closer. I know from what pens the birds reproduced by Mr. Sewell in the colored plate came, that is, I know the father. But in breaking up the pens in the summer I lost track of most of the females that were in that pen. If they were mated to that male again the eggs from those hens would be of almost untold value to me. Fellow-breeders of White Wyandottes, let us take up this matter of keeping accurate records of matings with the determination to carry it through, and then the splendid teaching of Mr. McGrew in the Reliable Poultry Journal wiil not be in vain and we shall have lifted our prized White Wyandottes to such a stage of perfection that breeders of other varieties will think we have discovered a lost art. As we can truthfully do so, we should always write and speak, as occasions offer themselves, in favor of the White Wyan- dottes. Anyone who takes to breeding this variety of Wyan- dottes will find we are justified in what we say, for our favorites stand ready to verify any statement we may make regarding them. BREED TO AN IDEAL. The Selection ot a Breed and Then ofa Variety—For the Beginner—Defects Increased by Injudicious Breeding—Ticking ot Feathers—Feather Pulling—Stay-White White Wyandottes can be Produced. BY CHARLES G. ARNOLD. OW often are we asked by persons who are about to start in the poultry business, ‘““What breed z would you select if you were I?” This is a ques- d he oat } tion all beginners should settle for themselves. UTA You know best what are your likes and dislikes. We have eleven standard varieties in the American class, all of which are worthy of your attention. The Wyandottes are becoming more popular every year, and I wish to say tu those who are about to start that you will make no mis- take in selecting one of the Wyandotte varieties. No beginner should handle or try to breed more than one variety. There is more to learn than you imagine. By the use of the modern incubator and brooder for hatching and caring for the chicks one is enabled to commence al- most any season of the year. The first step a beginner should take in the poultry business is to subscribe for some good poultry paper, such as the Reliable Poultry Journal. The knowledge I have gained from reading that Journal is the cause of my birds being what they are to-day. Each issue is equal to a year’s experience, I have always had a great love for poultry. In 1872 my uncle, while importing other live stock from England, brought over a trio of Dark Brahmas and presented them to my mother, and it was my lot to care for them. Not know- ing at that time that there were poultry papers to read, our Brahmas soon suffered for the want of new blood, and in the course of about seven years our imported birds were no more. In 1888 I read my first poultry paper and at that time having a home of my own, I began raising White Wyan- dottes. I was quite contented with the birds I then owned for a few years. Soon I purchased the American Standard of Perfection and found my Wyandottes were very defec- tive. I then purchased a choice trio of a noted breeder and commenced anew. In 1895 I made my first exhibit, not for the sole purpose of winning, but for what I could learn. I have bred the White Wyandottes eight years, and each year I get new and better ideas in regard to mating, feeding, housing, etc., I find if I mate birds having the same defects that their pregeny will show them to an alarming extent. Where the female is defective, select a male that is exceptionally strong in her defective sections, and continue to breed against such defects year after year. Keep constantly in your memory in what particulars your birds have been deficient and mate them so as to correct the defects in the progeny. Every breeder should have in his mind's eye an ideal fowl of the variety he is breeding. It should be better than anything he has ever seen—a perfect specimen in every section. You may never be able to produce such a bird, but your flock in general will be greatly improved. Choice specimens cannot be produced by a haphazard method of mating, An ideal must be formed and we must breed toward it, The person who is satisfied with what he has produced and is willing to accept it as good enough for him is not a true fancier. A true fancier is one that is always striving to produce better THE WYANDOTTES. 61 birds. It makes no difference how good the parent stock is, he is always looking for something better and when mating has this object in view—to produce better birds. When two choice specimens are mated, should you pro- duce two or three that show a marked improvement over the parent stock you have done well. Do not think for a moment that all the progeny is going to be equal to the parents. You will undoubtedly raise several disqualified birds, for which no one is to blame. The best breeder’s stock is subject to throwing a disqualified specimen occasionally. I have noticed that when I mate birds with combs smaller than medium in size I get a great many single combs, and when I mate them larger than medium I have combs so large they lop to one side, causing another disqualification. There is also that ticking in the plumage of the White Wyandotte which most breeders have been very slow to rec- ognize as a serious defect. It is about twenty-seven years since they were originated, and judging by all indications there is about as much of it now as then. This pulling feathers to make a disqualified specimen a star bird is prac- ticed too much for the good of the breed. In the eight years I have been breeding White Wyandottes my foremost object has been to get rid of this ticking. Last season fully seven- ty-five per cent of all I raised were entirely free from it, and for the last four years I have not bred a bird of my own raising that has shown the least particle of it. It is not so { a hard to breed out as a great many think. ‘To be sure it takes time, but one’s time is well spent when such a defect is eliminated from one’s strain. The white in the ear-lobes. is diminishing very fast; so would this ticking in plumage if the feathers could not be pulled out and the bird improved © for the time being. Some breeders advise pulling these col- ored feathers before they mature, and claim that they will come in perfectly white. This may be true, but it will not be of any benefit to the bird as a breeder. With time and careful breeding we will overcome these defects to quite an extent, and I do hope there will be more attention paid to perfecting this breed or any other where such work has been practiced. It is as necessary to have a clear white and a stay-white color on our White Wyandottes as it is for them to have a nice, clear, yellow leg. It is the purity of the cotor that makes them handsome. Weight is also another important point. A great many breeders are using heavy weight male birds to increase the size of the offspring. It should be done on the female side and done very gradually. There is also a tendency to get them two or three_pounds heavier than the standard de- mands. Their respective standard weights are heavy enough. The Wyandottes are considered to be one of the best general purpose fowls and when we increase their size we prolong their maturity, and when we lengthen their ma- turity we are losing in their useful qualities. THE BREEDING OF WHITE WYANDOTTES. With Special Attention to Size, Color and Number se True Breeder Must Combine Utility and Beauty. BY JOHN H. JACKSON. LTHOUGH numerous articles have been written on White Wyandottes, I do not think too much can be said in favor of this popular variety of fowls. As bred to-day, they are not perfect, but no other fowl, in my judgment, comes as near being an all-purpose fowl. I have bred poultry for nearly twenty years, always under my own care and management, beginning when a boy, and have found the thoroughbreds the most profitable for practical purposes. I have bred the Leghorns, Minorcas and Plymouth Rocks with good success. They always yielded me a profit, but I was looking for some- thing better, and believe I have found it in the White Wyan- dottes. In laying qualities the White Wyandottes in my hands have equaled the Leghorns and Minorcas, and they excel them greatly for market or table purposes, while as broilers they are ready for use at any age, of any size required and at seasons when most other breeds would not be in condition. They are at all times free from dark pin feathers, which is the main drawback to the black and parti-color varieties. For roasters weighing from four to five pounds nothing excels the White Wyandottes, and I do not think any other breed equals them. There are cross-bred fowls that give good results for broilers. and roasters (as I have found by - experience), but it is necessary to go to the trouble to keep full-blood stock on both sides with which to make the first cross each season. The White Wyandottes fill the bill just as well as any cross-bred fowl, and save all this extra work and expense. All varieties of Wyandottes have the full, broad: breast, the bulky build and firm flesh which dress well and com- mand the best prices on the market. When I began to breed White Wyandoties they did not lay very large eggs, and the color of the: -eggsevaried greatly from a light colored to a dark brown. shel At the present time, however, the best strains lay large, richly colored brown eggs, and they lay a good many more of them than they used to. They are to- day one of our very best layers, especially in winter time, owing to their rose combs, which do not freeze. The White Wyandotte is a hardy fowl and the chicks are easy to raise. Of course, there are poor strains in this as well as in other varieties. The best strains are produced by the careful breeders, by those who appreciate what is really valuable in a standard-bred fowl and work for it through a term of years. We have every reason to believe that the White Wyandottes, by intelligent selection and mating, can be brought to a very high state of perfection and still hold their utility qualities to an unexcelled degree. A number of years ago, when breeding Minorcas, I had a pullet that scored, under three different judges, 95 to 96 points. She began to lay early and laid throughout the win- ter. I could not learn what the laying qualities of her direct ancesters were, but thought this bird a good one with which to start a strain, so I raised all the chicks I could hatch from her eggs and succeeded in getting quite a flock of fine, standard birds having extra laying qualities. It is in this same manner, as a result of my first exper- iment with Minorcas, that I have prosecuted the breeding of White Wyandottes. From the first I have given special attention to the size, color and number of eggs laid by my White Wyandottes, and I find that this breed, the same as others under intelligent management, responds quickly and surely to proper selection and mating. I do not claim that culls will not sometimes turn out to be good layers, as well 62 as the best specimens, but the point is this: Is it not better to breed from birds having good laying qualities and meet- ing standard requirements than to breed from fowls with equally good laying qualities but not meeting standard re- quirements, meaning those of size, shape and shade of color, including other lesser points of beauty, like comb, color of eye, etc.? As a matter of fact there are few breeders of fowls who do not prefer fine-looking birds, even though they insist on having good layers and fine table fowl. Many times I have received letters from persons wanting to buy birds, stating that they did not want “show birds,” but nevertheless they would proceed to give a description of a bird, or birds, that would be well calculated to win in any show room, which goes to prove that the standard-bred fowl is the most at- tractive, even to the mind of the unprofessional. It is true that in breeding for good laying qualities,com- bined, with stardard requirements, you will have to sacrifice some fine looking specimens, those that are below par as First Prize pen of White Wyandottes. Average score, 9514 points Bred and owned by J, H. Jackson. ae : layers. My best success has been gained in raising only as many each year as I could take good care of and in select- ing the best specimens for breedinz, selling a!l culls on the market. If one has plenty of house and yard rcom it often pays to keep the culls for fall and winter layers, disposing of them the next spring when they become broody, or a lit- tle later when they start to molt. They always sell well at that season of the year in our local markets when the people get tired of the frozen stuff that is marketed at that time of the year. In breeding a comparatively small number, or as many as you can take proper care of, your chances of greatly improving your flocks both in standard and utility points are increased. In mating White Wyandottes I do not use the large, rangy males to get size. If you do this you are sure to get long, lanky cockerels. It is from the females that we get the most even size and best formed males, the blocky built birds, those not above standard weight preferred, For fe- males, I use good layers—specimens from six to seven pounds. I do not want them larger or heavier than this, THE WYANDOTTES. for big Wyandottes do not lay as well as standard weight fowls. I want my Wyandotte females to be “full of business,” and they do not need to be an ounce above standard weights for best results. These standard weight birds are the ones that mature the quickest. Still, you are compelled to breed a percentage of large birds to meet the demand for breeding ‘stock made by persons who do not appreciate the true value of Wyandottes. I hope they will learn to do so later on. Breeding for good combs is a strong point in White Wyandottes. Ifa bird is good in every other way, but hag a bad comb, it is spoiled to sell for breeding purposes or for exhibition. I believe in breeding persistently for small, evenly pebbled combs. Even if you breed from a good comb that is too large, you will get many poor combs. A small comb that is uneven will not iook so bad as a big comb that is even. By breeding for medium combs I have had by far the best results in sales, in profits and in satisfied customers, The amateur, I am free to say, will always look for a good comb whether he knows anything about a fowl or not. The best advice I can give the amateur is to learn all he possibly can about the breed or variety in which he is interested. This is his protection. The eyes and lobes are of great’ im- portance, with reference to the beauty of White Wyandcttes. Arich bay, or red ey:, is what is wanted. A pale or white eye gives the bird an unratural, out-of-con- dition look ard is despised by the true fancier. A male with a weak lobe, that is, one that is inclined to show white at | times. is a poor bird to breed. It will show more or less in females according to their condition as layers, but a male should have a strong red lobe at all times. The surface color and the shape cf White Wyandottes are of prime impcr- tance. My ideal bird in shape is of blocky build. Pure white color is what is caus- ing much discussion. I much prefer a white bird, but do not believe in sacri- ficing rich yellow legs, beak and skin for chalk-white feathers. The latter will have a light yellow or lemon colored leg, which will turn almost white before the fowl is two years old. I will not breed from a male that does not have rich yel- low legs'and beak. I do not believe in birds that show brassiness in plumage or yellow in the quills, but there is danger of our breeding them to a point of whiteness where they will have light colored legs, beak and skin. We must compromise somewhere between the two extremes. Some of the best White Wyandottes at the late Boston show were very white, with good colored legs, excepting one pullet. She was standard in weight and a grand bird in every way, with chalk-white plumage, but she was light in color of legs. With proper care and attention birds with fine yellow legs, beak and skin can be placed on exhibition with their plumage snow-white, but even the best of them are very apt to show more or less of the objectionable yel- low cast in surface plumage as the birds grow older and are exposed to all kinds of weather. In my opinion it is better to sacrifice color to this extent rather than breed out the good market qualities, viz.: yellow legs and skin, In writing this article I have based ‘the statements oD facts obtained from my own experience. Although not so large a breeder as many others, I give them my constant THE WYANDOTTES. 63 study and have been successful with my matings. I think I have produced as many high-class specimens proportion- ately to the number raised as any other breeder of White Wyandottes who has still held to and improved the utility qualities of the variety. Birds of my breeding have scored to 96 points and a fraction, and won honors in strong com- petition, which is proof enough to my mind that utility and beauty can be combined in the White Wyandotte. I, there- fore, take the ground that it is the true fancier’s duty to combine the two, sacrificing in the long run neither the one nor the other. I hold that both are essential to true success in producing this or any other popular American variety that has a commercial value, A PRACTICAL FANCY FOWL, White Wyandottes the Fowls for Amateurs—Their Origin—Pre-eminently the Breed for Broilers—Unexcelled Market Fowl— Comparison with Other Breeds—Early Maturity—Good Layers, Sitters and Mothers—Selection of Breeders, BY RALPH I. DUNLAP. O MUCH has been written about the White Wy- andotte that it seems an almost useless task to endeavor to tell anything new. But if we consider for a moment that old saying, “When you get a good thing push it along,” a few remarks will perhaps not be out of place. The theory of the origin of the White Wyandotte which is generally ac- cepted, is that they are sports of the Silvers. And this no doubt accounts for the little gray ticking and the splashes of gray which are found in the plumage of so many specimens. The shape which the standard demands for the Wyan- dotte is one that I consider almost ideal. I hardly think that it could be improved. It is a shape that catches the eye of all, whether it is seen in the show room or on the farm; by the fancier or the utility man. While the standard does not call for Wyandotte shape in Plymouth Rocks, yet I have noticed that a Rock with Wyandotte shape presents a very pleasing appearance and is very much admired by a great many peopie. Why? Because it gives to the bird that full- ness and compactness of form that is possessed by no other breed. It is rather a difficult task to find words with which to- describe the Wyandotte shape, although the term “blocky” expresses it about as well as anything. This distinct blocky shape is very striking even when the chick is first hatched and it grows more striking as the bird becomes older. I once heard a person remark, “I do not like some of the fastest race horses because they are so ugly.” Now, if the swiftest racer were also the handsomest animal, he would be greatly admired by all. How is it with the Wyandotte? In my humble opinion they come nearer having an ideal shape than any other breed, and they are not only a handsome fowl], but they are business birds from the word “go.” This applies to the whole Wyandotte family, for what is standard shape for one variety is standard shape for all. When it comes to the question of size I will select the American class every time, for the Wyandottes and Ply- mouth Rocks are not so large and clumsy as the fowls of the Asiatic class nor so small and nervous as those of the Med- iterranean, but they are just right—a happy medium. The comb is another splendid feature of the Wyandotte. They have a comb that is low with no high points to freeze; one that has a neat and healthy look, and one that gives to the bird the same pleasing appearance that a nice hat does to a well-dressed man. Any one who keeps fowls during a cold winter can realize the value of such a comb from a utility standpoint and it is not devoid of beauty, either. An- other good feature of the Wyandotte is its clean, yellow, featherless legs. What an advantage it gives them for mar- ket purposes, besides they can run about in all: kinds of weather, without carrying a large tract of real estate around on each foot, soiling and breaking their feathers. After noting the excellent characteristics of the Ameri- can class in general and of the Wyandotte family in par- ticular, then comes the task of selecting a variety of this noble breed. There are the Blacks, Buffs, Goldens, Silvers and Whites, named in the order of their popularity, begin- ning with the least popular. I had never seen a White Wy- andotte before I decided to breed them and sent for eggs. Yet I did not merely stumble on a good variety as some people do, for I had read a great deal about their fine quali- ties, both as exhibition specimens and business birds. I also had seen some Silvers and in this ‘way. was pleased with the Wyandotte shape. I would probably have bought: Sil- vers, but the males were, in my opinion, very ugly in color, and besides I always had admired a fowl with-snow white plumage. It makes such a nice combination with a red comb, bay eyes and clean yellow legs. But some people pre- fer one variety, some another. It is purely a matter of taste and the choice must be made by the person himself. I chose the White Wyandotte, first, because I always admired a white fowl and because I wanted one that was a good layer, a good sitter and mother, and a good market bird, and I believed the White Wyandotte to be unsurpassed as an all-around, general purpose fowl. Nor have I ever regretted my choice, for I have found the White Wyandottes to be all that a reasonable person could wish. I do not mean that they will lay two eggs per day or are ready for fries at the age of three weeks, nor do they possess any other extraordinary features such as I have seen claimed for some breeds, but if you want a fowl that presents a fine appear- ance in the show room and one that is a business bird from the time it is hatched, get the White Wyandotte. With the exception of about four years I have raised chickens since I was a lad of five and I have bred common chickens, Black, Buff and Partridge Cochins, Light Brah- mas, Black Langshans, Brown Leghorns and Barred Ply- mouth Rocks. I do not say that I have not been successful with these breeds, but I only wish to state that I discarded them because I have been more successful with the White Wyandotte. While the Cochins and Brahmas made good layers and good eating, they could also do their part when it came to the eating question. They were too clumsy and lazy to suit me, and they are always standing around in 64 THE WYANDOTTES. the way, breaking eggs when sitting, and tramping upon the young chicks. Still my great-grandmother, now in her eighty-ninth year, and my grandmother have both been raising Buff Cochins for a long, long time. The Black Lang- shans I found to be splendid winter layers, good sitters and mothers, but their feathered legs and black plumage were against them for market purposes. The Leghorns were #0 scary and had such nice, large combs for Jack Frost te nip! I will not say anything against the Barred Rocks, for they belong to the American class, but the Wyandotte shape and the Wyandotte comb were what made me give the prefer- ence to the Wyandottes. I have had White Wyandotte pullets lay at the age of one hundred and thirty-two days, but I never try to push them for very early laying, for the little gained does not equal what is lost in size. They will begin to lay, however, along in the fall, and a pullet or hen either, for that matter, that will do this, will lay through the winter when eggs bring such good prices. The energetic Wyandotte will not only lay during the fall and winter, but will keep right on shelling out the eggs during the spring and summer months as well. The Leghorns may be egg-machines, but give me the White ‘Wyandotte for all-around laying. No artificial heat is needed to keep their combs from freezing and to en- courage egg-production, : The White Wyandotte is not only a good layer, but she is a good sitter and mother as well. When it comes to the market question, the White Wyandotte stays in the front ranks. What fowl presents a nicer appearance on the mar- ket? The Barred Rocks are claimed to be the best market fowl in existence, but one of the prominent broiler men in the east says that he kept these two breeds side by side, but finally discarded the Rocks because the Wyandottes were ready for market at an earlier age. This is what he says when it comes to the forcing question: “If you try to raise Rocks and Wyandottes in the same pen, the experiment will prove to you this fact: Your Rocks will go ‘off their legs’ while the deep-breasted, plump-bodied, smooth- skinned, active little Wyandottes take their medicine five times a day and stand straight as matches.” My own experience has been that they grow faster. Then they do- not grow by jerks, as some breeds do, that is, they do not grow awhile, stop and take on a coat of feathers and then fill out, but they keep right on growing all the time and are always plump and compact, instead of slim and loose-jointed. I have found that they stand confinement well in small pens, although if given range they make fine foragers. I will not go into detail in regard to their care and feed- ing, but I should like to mention a few points. Crushed oyster shell, sharp, hard grit, plenty of clean, fresh water, a dust bath (or some means of keeping vermin away), clean, roomy quarters, good feed and common sense in feeding are necessary to successfully produce good, healthy, vigorous stock. If you have fine stock and eggs for sale, judicious advertising and exhibiting, and plenty of perseverance are further requirements for success with poultry, A great many péople rush pell-mell into the poultry business with great theories about raising poultry on a large scale, who have almost no practical knowledge of the busi- Beaks They Pend to keep a great many kinds and to do things just right. They read everything about poultry that they can get and think by this means to be able to cope with any difficulty that may arise, not knowing that many things can only be learned by experience. They see no way for failure to over take them and (on paper) they count their profits. But do they succeed? Perhaps a small per cent of them do, but it is only when a little common sense has been knocked into their heads (probably at the cost of a great many dollars), in the hard school of experience. And even then it requires nerve and perseverance to stick to it. How much better it would have been if they had started in a small way, learning the details of the business which can only be mastered by experience, and then gradually in- creased as success and practical knowledge warranted. I hardly feel competent to give an outline for breeding the White Wyandotte, but I advise the reading of that splen- did article on “Standard Bred White Wyandottes,” by Mr. Arthur G. Duston, on page 59, reproduced from the Relia- ble Poultry Journal. Also the many other excellent arti- cles which have been published in the Reliable about this noble variety. My advice, however, is to throw out all spec- imens with single combs and feathered legs even if there is only a stub. Also discard those with very much white in the ear-lobe. Pick birds with bay eyes, as pearl or gray ones give the bird an unnatural look. Market all those that have green or dark colored legs. Some birds that are closely con- fined have pale colored legs, but if given a good range with plenty of grass, nearly all will have nice, yellow legs. a Breed for good combs. A large, ill-shaped one gives a bird a bad appearance. Low, even, nicely pebbled combs fitting closely to the head, are what we want. Remember the Wyandotte shape when mating your birds, for, as Mr. T. F. McGrew says, in one of his fine arti- cles on “Science in Breeding,” ‘Shape should come before color; it is shape that makes the breed, color the variety.” Breed for that-blocky build. Do this and you can soon tell what good Wyandotte shape is. High, pinched tails, long backs, slim necks, flat breasts, narrowness between the legs, badly shaped heads, large combs, or slim bodies on tall, stilty legs, do not make a blocky compact bird. And right here let me say, do not use big, rangy males, as such birds never have a nice, compact form and the cockerels from this kind of a mating are generally slim and lanky. Intro- duce or build up the size with the females and keep the shape. Now comes the color question. I do not feel firmly enough settled to give my opinions on this subject, yet, but I will say breed for pure white plumage, stay-white plum- age, but do not sacrifice shape for color. The White Wyan- dotte still shows its close relationship to the Silvers by the sittle gray ticking and gray splashes which appear in the plumage. This is not a disqualification, only a defect and is still a common fault, so do not think the person from whom you bought is dishonest if you receive birds with a little gray in them. Above all, be sure to have good, healthy, vigorous stock with which to start. The best is none too good. I have endeavored to present a few plain facts that I have learned from experience. If I have made any rash or untrue statements no one will be happier to have them cor- rected than I. I have also endeavored to give the breeds with which I have compared the White Wyandotte, their just dues, for I always dislike to read an article lauding one variety to the skies and running down all others, even if that article be on White Wyandottes. Vee aaa CO: 9g ee sa ys. WHE y% Wiese “ns Wag ~ Me > : Xe la | RELIABLE POULTRY JOVRNA by GOPVRIGHT. -_—— BUFF WYANDOTTES—By SEWELL. Characteristics, shape and standard requirements are substantially the same as those given for the Silver Laced variety, page 34. The. color of the plumage is the only marked difference, this variety showing a beautiful buff color in all sections. OW we have to consider one variety of the Wy- andotte breed that is in an experimental stage so far as the production of show specimens is concerned. In my opinion they are one of the best of this family and during my six years’ experience with them they have proven to be excellent layers, sitters and mothers, but we cannot expect them to breed true in color and other fancy points in so short a time. We find exceptionally fine stock here and there over the country. We even have seen solid buff wings and tails on both males and females, but these are not average birds, they are way above the average. The best breeders of the Buffs who are looking for their advancement along the lines of honest improvement, will admit that as yet they have not perfected this variety. We have many obstacles to overcome, perhaps more than are encountered in the breeding of any other buff va- riety. First, we must overcome about forty per cent of black; then there is more red than yellow in the make-up of the foundation stock of most strains, and white has been introduced to soften the color. About all the buff we have been able to get was from the Cochin cross and in most cases this was from Cochin males with a lot of black in wings and tails. There has also been a direct cross of Gol- den Wyandottes which has helped some sections, but in- iured others. Some breeders used a cross of Rhode Island Reds instead of Golden Wyandottes, which in a measure was better as it did not cause so many black or laced necks. Intelligent breeders in every state are taking up the buff variety and already they have enough good ones to help one another. During the next two years there will be more im- provement in Buff Wyandottes than has been made in the past five years, and it will be accomplished by mating Wy- andottes and not by resorting to outside crosses, which has been the rule in the past. The standard is very plain on the question of color in this, as it is in all buff varieties. The color is the same in all —a “rich, golden buff, free from shafting or mealy appear- ance.” It is easy to understand, but hard to produce. In the first place, buff is a made color and not a primary color. When it is produced it is hard to hold unless the breeder is an expert and knows to a certainty the strength of his breeding stock, both male and female. This is where in- breeding, described in another part of this book, holds despotic sway. Without inbreeding one cannot produce good Buffs year after year. One must know the sires and dams of his stock to make sure of success. The man who wins this year, fails next and wins the 65 66 THE WYANDOTTES. next is not much encouragement to a Buff amateur. But the man whose advice is worth much to you is the breeder who wins year after year and who can show stock three and four years old that still retains the same elegant buff color that his cockerels and pullets show. There are Messrs. Sharp Brothers, O. L. McCord and W. W. Browning, men who win year after year. When such men talk of color breeding, the laymen can learn. I do not claim much for myself, but I do assert that I converse with more of the leading fanciers of this country than any other man who makes a business of judging fowls. provement and I believe our teachers should be qualified. Seeing a few birds in a number of shows does not teach me so much, but when I go to a leading breeder’s yards and note his matings and he points out his stock in pen after pen, which looks as much alike as the average family of children, then I know I am getting at the heart of the business of breeding fancy stock, and I get informaticn of great value to others. in shape the Buffs should be a fac-simile of the Silvers, and defects in shape must be cut in the same proportion. Remember that in cclor they must be absolutely buff. Black and white are alike objectionable and will be cut when the birds are shown‘in the winter exhibitions. Remember, too, that red is not buff, and when your birds are scored by an expert who is not color blind, the red birds will fail to win. Let the motto of every Buff Wyandotte breeder be, “solid buff from comb to tail.” The future of the Buff Wyandottes depends upon their admirers, who cannot afford to miss an opportunity of perfecting them in any particular. Let me utter one warning, however. The utility side, which is so prominent at the present day, must not be allowed to retro- grade in the slightest. : The Female. The Golden Wyandotte breeders claim that the Goldens are the “beauty breed,” but any one who sees a Buff Wyan- dotte females that is truly buff must feel that the Buffs are strong rivals for the honor of being called “the beauty breed.” As an all-round fowl for meat and eggs the Buff Wyandotte has no superior in the middle weight class. As a winter layer she equals the best and as an every-day fowl for the farmer, she cannot be excelled. The fancier will find I believe in im- that it is well worth his time to give them the attention that is required to make this variety a perfect fancy fowl. Asa fancy fowl, they are not yet perfected, as they have only been bred a few years, but the per cent of really first-class specimens that have been exhibited the past year makes one marvel at what has been accomplished, and it is only a mat- ter of a few years when they will be the equal of the oldest buff varieties in America. In color they should be a rich golden buff throughout, free from shaftiug or a mealy appearance, and they should show the same shade of buff in all sections. The descrip- tion of shape, comb, eyes, legs and feet is the same that I have given for the other varieties. In mating for color, the main trouble has been to get an even surface with clear wings and tail. The flights of the wings are usually better than the secondaries. The black blood that came through the Golden Wyandotte cross will make itself felt for several seasons. If the wing shows black in the secondaries with clear flights, the cut is from one-half to one point, according to degree. If black shows in both flights and secondaries, the cut is from one to two points. If there is a red bow on the wings showing a sort of bay color, cut it one. If any black appears in hackle, the cut is from one-half to one and one-half, according to de- gree. If the surface color is uneven, that is, if two or more shades of buff appear in the same specimen, the cut is from one-half to one in all such sections. If the main tail feath- ers are edged with black at the.top and the rest of the feathers are sound, the cut is one-half. If the tail is half black the cut is two, and if the entire tail is black the cut is four. Remember always that you can only cut for defects according to the number of points set aside for each sec- tion, and in order to cut all the points that are allowed one section, the entire section must be wrong. As buff color is the same in all breeds and as the meth- ods of producing a good buff color on Cochins will just as successfully produce it on Wyandottes, I give here an able article from the pen of W. W. Browning, written expressly for this book. I am sure it will be read with interest by the admirers of all buff varieties, After handling Mr. Browning’s birds in the show room for several years and personally in- specting his breeding stock on the farm, we feel safe in say- ing that breeders of new buff varieties will make no mistake if they follow his instructions, THEO, HEWES. BUFF COLOR. BY W. W. BROWNING. FTER years of study and experimenting I think * I have discovered the causes of a majority of \ failures to produce prime buff color. I have ", - seen breeders handle this color successfully were = for years and then gO wrong at a time when they thought their matings were just right. In disgust they quit the business when they should have studied harder to discover the cause of their trouble, Every article that I have read on mating buff colored chickens is wrong and mis- leading. The writers either advocate fostering red males, or those that have some black in wings and tails. They argue that the black feeds the buff color and adds luster to the plumage and that it is needed because the tendency of all fowls is to lose color. After studying wild fowls for years I am ready io say that I do not believe it. If it were true all wild fowls would be white, while the fact is, white in wild birds of all kinds is the exception instead of the rule, Buff color is composed principally of the primary color yellow, having added just a little red and white. If yellow, red anu white make buff then why should we add black? It is because we have not learned to mix the three colors first named and we let the buff we have fade to such an ex- tent that we add black to check the fading. If you will mix the three colors named in the right proportion, you will have that soft, rich, pleasing color that has made the buff fowl popular all over the world. I say emphatically that there is no black used in mixing buff color. Black does not feed buff color, nor does it add any luster to it. It is, in fact, @ great curse in breeding for buff. It gives you laced necks, black tails, black in the wings, smoky under-color and 2 muddy surface color. It will not even counteract white, still in spite of all this we hear breeders who are handling buffs advocate using black. A few years ago judges cut Severely for white and lightly for black in buff fowls. At that time I took a bold stand against this outrage, and I am Pleased to say that now judges punish both defects alike. The color to breed for is yellow and you want to get a THE WYANDOTTES. pure color from the surface down to the skin, quills and all. You will get plenty of red and white without breeding for it, but if you get too much red or white you can breed it out by selection much easier than you can breed out the black, for the reason given, that red and white are used in buff mix- tures and the yellow will mix with and control these colors to a. far greater extent than it will black. Look to the under-color for breeding strength, If you get sound surface color, but white under-color, then you have more white than yellow in your mixture, and the result will be that your specimen is not half buff. Select your choicest breeders while the chicks are two to three months old. They will show defects then that may disappear almost if not entirely, later on. Smoky under- color in back and neck will show plainly at this time. It may disappear altogether later on, but it is in the blood and you do not want to breed such specimens. If you purchase matured fowls and they do not breed properly, examine them closely during their molting season and when the new feathers are quite young you will no doubt discover the cause. You cannot depend on your buff matings unless you handle the chicks from the time they are a month old until they are matured, yes, even after they are matured. If white appears in your flock, do not use black to counteract it, as white will appear in any solid black variety nearly as often as it does in some of the buff varieties. You will not find perfect buff color in every section of uuy of the new varieties of buffs. Use common sense in your matings, and overcome black, red and white by the use of yellow 67 only. These theory writers have gotten black so firmly fixed in the older buff varieties that the sins of the parents are fastened onto the chickens even unto the “steenth” gen- eration. : Some of these theorists who are supposed to be breed- ers say that black is the proper thing if you keep it in the wing feathers and the tail so that it does not show from the surface when tne fowl is viewed in a natural position. Nurs- ing black where the amateur does not see it is a ten-fold evil, because the black is there and it will crop out in the chicks and very likely cause the amateur to quit in disgust. Be sure that the flight feathers are perfectly clear buff, that there is no black in the neck and that there is as little dark as possible in the flight coverts and tail. See that the under- color is sound in as many sections as possible, and you will find your fowls gradually improving until they will reach perfection in color in all sections. Had I to choose between the two I should rather have a breeder with no black and take the one that had considerable white, until I got the black well bred out of the blood of my strain, unless I was breeding Buff Leghorns. This Buff variety has too much white in it on account of its White Leghorn ancestors. _ Remember, yellow and black will not mix and produce a pleasing color, while yellow, red and white will mix and give you that beautiful shade called buff. As to the effect of food on color, I have no knowledge. I am not trying to produce my buffs in this way. I believe the proper way is to breed them right and that the food will then have but little, if any, effect. W. W. BROWNING. BREEDING BUFF WYANDOTTES. A Comparatively New Breed—How to Start—Introducing Foreign Blood—Selling and Exhibiting Stock. . BY MRS. J. ANY things have to be considered when we breed Buff Wyandoites, First, we must remember that they are comparatively a new breed and there- fore more study is required in mating them than in mating the Silvers or other varieties of Wy- andottes. However, we have been making rapid strides and are in a fair way to overtake them. We claim for the Buffs a place at “the top of the ladder,” and we will not be satis- fied until it is assured. That they have qualities most desir- able in an all-purpose fowl must be acknowledged by all, and the only question now is how to perfect them. Our greatest trouble arises in the desire to do too much in too short a time. The increased demand for stock and eggs leads us to overlook faults in our breeding stock, and we admit to our yards birds which have good score cards, but which should not be used as breeders if we wish the best results. -Therefore, let me say to the beginner, do not con- sider how many birds, but how good ones you can produce. To this end put your money in a trio if you can not afford a pen. To make a start I should much rather put twenty-five dollars ($25) in a trio properly mated than into any other number. Mark the eggs and set those from each hen separately, marking the chickens when hatched so you can tell which hen produces the best stock, both pullets and cockerels. If you find that one hen throws better cockerels than the other, select the best and mate him to pullets from the other hen. Use your old male with pullets, selecting those that are strong in points where he is weak; and mate M. DENISON. the hens with a cockerel strong in the sections in which the females are weak. Now you have a good start and unless there is some point in which both are weak you need not introduce new blood and new faults until you have become thoroughly acquainted with the good and bad features of your own strain. You can undo the work of years if not judicious in the introduction of new blood. Having a good foundation the success that follows de- pends greatly upon your love for the work and proper man- agement. The details of the business must be closely watched. Do not trust too much to hired help, for generally their interest is confined to their pay. Know your chickens and let them know you. Care for them as you like to be cared for and they will return your kindness tenfold. Hav- ing good stock and understanding your business, advertise it, selecting for your medium journals that will stand by the right and expose fraud regardless of the cost. Now the bat- tle is half won. The rest depends on your stick-to-it-ive- ness and honorable dealings with your customers. Let them feel that you have their interest in mind as well as your own, and then while you can not satisfy all, you can please the majority, thus making friends as well as customers. Another thing to be remembered is this. If you have been fortunate enough to produce exhibition birds, show them. Do not say you have some at home as good or better than some one else has; prove it. Say so’s do not go far and prove nothing. Suppose you do not take first prizes, 68 you have learned how your birds compare with others and wherein they are faulty, thus you are better prepared for the shows another year. Then, too, the association with people interested in poultry helps. I have been successful to quite an extent, I am very THE WYANDOTTES. proud to say, but it has not been luck, as some suggest. It has come by following the lines that I have advised here. There is still work to do, and we welcome the earnest worker to our ranks. 5 MRS. J. M. DENISON. BUFF WYANDOTTES FOR AMATEURS. BY THEODORE HEWES. HERE is always more or less boom talk arid writing about a new variety, and we are often led astray by fairy tales of the great egg pro- duction and elegant table qualities of these new fangled varieties. A few years ago I was severely criticised for writing an article regarding the Buff 4 Oe Gees “ele Ob TS ty, “Yigtjy,),, BE Z _ lige Lge ne (4, Spe Se Lat osm Ore ie “4 NN ret ES COP” ae . af Hy oe Figst PRIE. ees ly, Ae “4B cas Son 8 all 2) VEO CHicage. 190° eZ Bhi 2 eS ay J oe BUN cMNtD s hy ANE TARBOX: 4 Me YORKVILLE LAE “Sure, tg Sa = a yr eee esis “ihe one e First prize Buff Wyandotte pullet, Chicago, Jan. 21-26, 1901. Bred owned and exhibited by A, & E, Tarbox, Wyandottes. At that time I warned the amateur to let them alone until the fanciers had made a standard breed of them, for at that time they were in their early experimental stage and not entitled to the name standard-bred. I have since been complimented by some who at that time censured me. The Buff Wyandottes have now passed the experimental stage, as a utility fowl, and are to-day one of the very best of the middle weight birds. I have given them considerable attention in the past six years, and I have never handled a variety that I liked better nor one that has given better results. They have actually been a surprise to me as winter lay- ers, and I doubt very much if we have’a breed in the stan- dard that can beat them. The past winter I had built sev- eral small houses, 4x6, for winter breeding houses. These houses were enclosed in pens 16 feet square, and five females and one male placed in each for the winter. Among the lot of birds so mated were three hens and two pullets of the Buff Wyandottes. These birds were all fed alike, that is the same amount of food was given to each variety in its own pen, and all were fed twice a day. A mash made of bran and oatmeal was fed in the morning, and good wheat was thrown in the litter for the evening meal. During the cold- est weather ever known in this part of the United States, and with snow on the ground almost all the time, those five females laid an average of 77 eggs per month, or a little bet- ter than one egg every two days for each hen. These birds were not forced for eggs, in fact very little care was given them, as we are breeding only for the fancy and made no effort to secure eggs for the market. This rec- ord put me to thinking that there must be some reason for this pen of Buff Wyandottes laying more than my other varieties, so I began to look for the cause. In the first place I found that they were better contented and that they made no effort to leave the pens, even though the gate were left open, while other varieties were constantly trying to find a place to get out, and if a gate were left open a minute they would make a break for it. They seemed to be larger than the Silver Wyandottes, but on weighing them I found that they were a few ounces lighter. Why should they look larger, was the question that next came up, and J found on close inspection that they are dressed warmer. Their plum- age is longer, which gives them the appearance of being larger than either the Whites or Silvers. Here, then, is the whole thing in a nutshell: They have the Cochin cross in them, and it has not only given them a ‘better coat of feathers to protect them from the cold, but has given them a docile, contented disposition, which means much to the breeder who is trying to get every dollar he can out of his fowls from a commercial standpoint. I have no desire to boom this breed to the detriment of others, but I can surely give them a strong endorsement. After six years’ breeding them I am free to say that I do not know of a sin- gle variety that would be a better investment for the ama- teur just starting in, one who wants to handle one variety, and who does not feel like taking up some of the oder breeds where there is so much competition, than the Buff Wyandotte. Neither do I know of a variety that would make a hetter cross on common fowls to increase the e88 yield, SECRET OF SUCCESSFUL BREEDING. Danger of Crossing Strains—Selection of Dams Very Important—Careful Attention Necessary from Shell to Maturity. NTENSELY interesting is the study of the art of breeding. While we learn much from experi- ence (really our best teacher), still we can learn nh many things from reading that it would take us pee years to learn from experience. There are still many secrets concerning the breeding of thoroughbred poultry and one of the chief of these is how shall we mate to produce Buff Wyandottes that shall be of extra merit in A PRIZE-WINNING BUFF WYANDOTTE COCKEREL, BREDJAND OWNED By M. F. NORRIS. 69 NORRIS. symmetry and color. The male bird at the head of the breeding pen should be symmetrical in shape, strong and vigorous—and he should be the offspring of a sire excelling in these points. Do not forget that the male bird has the greater influence on the color of the off spring, especially of the cockerels.. If fine colored males be desired it is necessary that the sire be of fine color. By mating a good sire to his own progeny the good breeding qualities of the parent bird will be retained in the resulting offspring. Color and other desirable qualities may be in- tensified by judicious inbreeding. It is equally true that if a mistake is made in the selection of the breeding stock undesirable qualities may be repro- duced in an exaggerated form. Many persons en- gaged in raising poultry think that they must in- troduce new blood from a different strain each year, and so they go backward instead of forward. Nearly every breeder’s birds differ in style and plumage. When these types are crossed some of the offspring resemble the male and some resemble neither parent. The second season such breeders usually get a male of a still different type and mate him to the pullets of different types. The result is that they have no good birds among the offspring, hardly any two chicks resembling each other. If you once get what you want from a reliable breeder buy your new blood of him. The dam should possess a strong constitution, prolific laying qualities and large size. We look to the dam to impart size to the progeny. She must be good in color of plumage, legs and beak. The ear-lobes and comb must also receive careful atten- tion. Above all she should be symmetrical in shape. Many times the breeding qualities of the dam are overlooked or underrated, which is a great mistake. After carefully selecting your Buff Wyandotte pens it is essential that your birds receive proper care and that the progeny be closely watched and carefully tended from the time they leave the shell until they reach full maturity. This is another se- cret in successful breeding that apparently is known to but few breeders. BUFF WYANDOTTES. The Color Problem and How It Is Being Solved—Evenness of Plumage More Important Than Shade— Making Up Breeding Pens According to Double Mating System. BY C. S. MATTISON,. O MUCH has been written on the subject of Buff Wyandottes that what I might say on the sub- ject may be stale to readers. The origin of this variety is well known. My understanding is that some were made by crossing White Wyan- dottes and Buff Cochins, others by preeding out the foreign color of Rhode Island Reds, and another by breeding out the black in Golden Wyandottes. Iam inclined to think the better strains of the present day each contains some of tne blood of these three, but the present condition of the variety is, I presume, the most interesting, hence I shall devote myself largely to their present condition. In reviewing last season’s largest and best exhibitions, we find that this variety outclassed all other Wyandotte varieties, except the Whites. In quality they have been improved more rapidly than any variety of poultry, so far as my knowledge goes, due without doubt to their combining the practical and fancy elements to a great extent. Their prac- tical qualities are considered to be the equal, and by some the superior, of all other Wyandotte varieties. Personally I have found them very satisfactory in every way. They are very good layers of brown eggs as arule. They mature ear- ly and dress off nicely, without showing the undesirable pin-feathers. So much has been written regarding the shade of color most desired that there is very little to add. Several weeks ago the National Wyandotte Club sent out some forty pieces of silk ribbon with a buff feather attached, requesting crit~- icism of this color from as many prominent Buff Wyandotte breeders. From the replies received one can see that we all are very much nearer the same shade of color than was supposed, that the majority desires about the shade that is now being given preference here in the east. I am inclined to think that as a rule our western breeders are breeding a darker, or more on the red shade, yet their ideal color is about the same. Our club had these replies printed in cata- logue form, with a piece of the ribbon attached, making prac- tically the best thing of the kind yet prought out, as it en- ables all to see what the others’ views are, and the piece of silk ribbon furnishes the color from which the criticisms are based, as well as something by which we can compare our fowls. It seems to me that the time is now opportune for us all to give less attention to shade of color, and more attention to the evenness throughout the entire plumage. Many of the past season’s winners were good in shade of color, but were more or less uneveu, the hackle and saddle perhaps varying in shade, the top of the wing being darker, and the breast being edged with white, or something of the kind. I rather think we should give preference to those who are most even- ly colored rather than such as are nearest the desired shade of color, even should such be quite a little darker. The ex- treme of this should be avoided, of course. Another point we should well consider at this time is shape. Asa rule, we have size and can maintain it while improving the shape. Heretofore many ill-shaped birds have been awarded the prizes, preference being given to color. It seems to be a fact that no breeder has as yet a fixed type. There is too 70 much similarity between the Buff Plymouth Rocks and Wy- andottes. Very often we see much better Wyandottes in the Plymouth Rock class, and vice versa. It has been aptly stated that “Wyandottes travel on their shape,” and this is as it should be. The time is not far distant when shape will be given preference, as we find from year to year that the demand comes for first one thing and then another, as the fad changes. We have passed through the size fad and are now passing through the color fad, with its solid buff wing and tail, and soon the breeder who has mastered the shape problem and has well shaped birds to spare will find a ready market for them. With shape we could improve the combs, which really is a part of shape. The query is often made as to what may be termed solid buff tails and wings. I am frank to say I have never yet seen a perfectly clear tail, yet I have seen them so repre- sented. Clear buff wings are a reality, although not plenti- fully so. It is not necessary and I am not anxious for clear puff tails. We do not find it in the Cochins, and it is a ques- tion with me if we ever will find it in our Wyandottes. To be sure we can accomplish it, yet it is my idea we should work for other points in preference, such as before men- tioned, for instance. We should have the outside or sickles and coverts the same color as the surface, and the main tail feathers largely buff of some color, but why sacrifice some otber part of the surface to perfect that which is un- derneath? In outlining my. system of mating or breeding, I realize that there are many little things necessarily left out, things that we have been so accustomed to that we do not realize their importance, the breeder must necessarily work with our system to secure the same results and to have equal success. However, there is nothing secret about it and scarcely anything original, it having been handed down to me from my brother, F. L. Mattison, who for many years has made a success in breeding the Silver variety. It can be termed double mating, which I understand means one way of mating to produce cockerels and another way to produce pullets. Good exhibition cockerels are not expected from pullet matings, and vice versa. In our cockerei matings we select for the male side the very best exhibition bird possible (irrespective of his breed- ing if necessary). Care should be taken’ that such a bird is really meritorious. All prize winners are not, I am sorry to say. On the female side would advise not more than four birds to a mating. First of all we select those that were sired by a meritorious bird, his strong qualities being those you wish to impress if possible in your present mating. An occasional cross of sire and daughter to fasten certain points is advisable. This of course also fastens undesirable quali- es, which later may be eradicated in another mating equal- ly inbred, their inbred qualities being stronger than their defects. Bear in mind that the female side of these matings will, to a large degree, govern size and shape. One can use such females as show black in hackle in order to derive such benefit as they may possess in other qualities. Black in the hackle of males very seldom occurs, and I hardly think ever THE WYANDOTTES. from the female side of the mating. Small under-sized fe- males are not used, to which we attribute our present large size and vigor of flock generally. In our pullet mating we select a male whose dam we know to be a first-class specimen, selecting such as are best in size and shape, with other points as good as possible, but size and shape given preference. In selecting females we use our exhibition or choicest birds, offsetting as far as possible the defects most prominent in the dam of the male. It is, of course, very advisable that all breeding birds should have a good under-color, their under-color being as near as possible the color of the surface and free from foreign color. Our experience has been that a lighter under-color shows a weakness of color. Black, while objectionable, is simply a foreign color rather than a lack of color, and the same can be said regauding these two colors in surface plumage. Of the two evils, the white is much the greater. In conclusion I desire, for the “good of the order,” to draw breeders’ attention to the advisability of securing a judge or judges whom we may recommend as capable and honest, and in some way employ him or have him employed to judge the principal shows throughout the country, that the awards in one place may be along the same line as at another. These judges should be capable of furnishing a score card if desired and to be at the disposal of the exhib- 71 itors, as far as is reasonabie and just for the eniploye, so that those who pay the bills need feel no hesitation in asking questions. We, as Buff Wyandotte breeders, are “quite some people,” and can well afford to take the ‘bull by the horns” in such a manner to the end that our Buff Wyandottes be judged as Buff Wyandottes, and that our choice of color be the judge’s color, rather than have sev- eral different judges with as many different opinions rela- tive to color and Wyandotte characteristics. Now, in order to win at Chicago, for instance, we must know such and such a judge’s preference, and at New York we must again be familiar with the judge’s interpretation of the standard, and I am inclined to think that at the present time, every thing else being equal, the color question under the eastern and western judges would place a Chicago winner at least fifth at New York, and vice versa—simply because two dif- ferent men interpret. the standard in two different ways. It seems to me we should have one or more judges whom we can instruct as the majority of the breeders may desire. If we decide upon a certain shade, that shade should be the shade by which all awards are made east and west, and now that we have practically decided upon a shade of color, we should in some way see that this color be considered by our judges the correct shade by which to place their awards. Cc. S. Mattison. THE BLACK WYANDOTTES. A Variety That Has Not Been Extensively Bred, But Which Possesses Most of the Attributes of the Other Varieties. . BY THEO. HEWES. HE Black Wyandottes are the least popular of the Wyandotte family. The color has something to do with their unpopularity, but that is not all. The main trouble is that the breeders of the Blacks have never pushed them as they should. You can not hide a variety of birds and make it popu- lar. You must let the people know that you have it and let them know something of the good qualities of the birds. So far as utility is concerned, there is no variety in the Wyandotte family that Jeads the Blacks, and they will throw more show specimens than any of the other varieties. In some localities they are shown in sufficient numbers to warrant us in counting them in the varieties of Wyandottes, but in other sections of the country they are practically unknown and the few specimens that are shown are of poor quality and not calculated to attract any one who is looking for some variety to breed. I have discussed plans for bringing this variety more prominently to the front with several leading fanciers, but when the breeders of Black Wyandottes do not bestir them- selves it is hard for us to help them. If they will but make the effort they will find plenty of help in pushing this vari- ety to the front. We need some up-to-date cuts of this breed, either photographs or sketches, also true statements of their good qualities, both as egg and flesh producers. In shape the Black Wyandotte should be the same as Charts 1 and 2. They should be black in color, and must be free from any foreign color. The main trouble found in the color of the Black Wyandotte is the purple barring in neck, back, wings and tail. This is not a disqualification, but it is a serious defect, and the new standard cuts one point in every section in which it appears. There is another defect which is quite often overlooked, and that is the color of the feet. The standard says they shall be disqualified if the bottom of the feet is any color other than yellow. This sec- tion is often missed by the judges, and for that reason exhi- bitors get careless about it. It is well to take care of this in time and get just as much yellow in the shanks as possible. The time will come when the standard will call for solid yel- low legs, and the breeder who is careful along these lines now will receive a rich reward then. For defects of shape, comb and other sections, see description of the Silvers, as what is said of them, except in regard to the color, applies to the black varieties as well, and the defects would be discounted in the same proportion. Black Wyandotte Female. This variety being so little known, one seldom sees really good specimens, though the best that have been shown for years were on exhibition at the Chicago show of 1898, and they seemed to awaken quite an interest. In color the females should be a rich greenish black in all sections. The shanks should be black, or black shading to willow or yellow; the bottoms of the feet must be yellow. The cut of one point in each section where purple barring appears applies to this breed the same as to any other black fowls, put I have found the Black Wyandottes very free from this defect. Where the purple barring does appear it is usually in the neck, back and wings, and the discount in each sec- tion must be one point. For defects of shape of any section or color of eye, the cuts are the same as in any other variety of Wyandottes. Theo. Hewes. 72 De ae Ne LT] Y BeAr Ag OB DMF OSS Well we remember the surprise exhibited by the editor of the London (England) ‘‘Poultry” when we first showed ‘him a number of feathers plucked from Golden Penciled Wyandottes, ‘You Yankee fanciers are always inventing something new,” he said. The above illustration presents the perfect plumage which has already been “bred into” the Silver Penciled variety. F. L. SEWELL. GOLDEN AND SILVER PENCILED WYANDOTTES. Origin and History of the Coérnell-Brackenbury Strain-—-The Two Varieties Described in Color and Markings—What of Their Future? BY EZRA CORNELL. HE great agricultural growth of America is rarely appreciated. Few people have any conception of the vast amount of virgin soil which the last quarter of a century has brought under cultiva- tion, or of the gigantic agricultural growth during that period. I[t is estimated that in the past decade alone there has been an increase of over 1,150,- 000 farms and during the same time the farm wealth has expanded not less than $6,500,000,000. Congress has en- dowéd agricultural colleges in every state; farming in all its branches is now being conducted according to more sci- entific principles, the result being that the annual yield of farm products is almost inconceivably large. Agriculture is composed of many branches any one of which may be considered an industry in itself. Of these many branches, that of poultry culture has been the most progressive and now yields the largest annual income. Twenty-five years ago a farm devoted exclusively to poultry was hardly known; artificial hatching and brooding had not yet come into general use and the poultry press was insig- nificant. To-day there are thousands of poultry farms; the manufacture of incubators and brooders is a large and in- creasing business and the poultry press shows a tremendous growth. This rapid and far-reaching development of the poultry interests is not without cause. There is an innate love of nature a fondness for animate things in the hearts of all good Americans showing itself in the great amount of at- tention paid to domestic fowls. The people who have thus interested themselves are commonly classed as “fanciers” and to them the poultry industry owes its rapid growth. To the fancier we are indebted for ‘Better poultry and more of it,” for better poultry exhibits and more of them; for a bet- ter and larger poultry press; for better poultry appliances and for better methods in general. The fanciers are constantly’ bringing out new and better varieties of poultry. A few years ago Wyandottes were en- tirely unknown, whereas, to-day they are most popular and are being bred in a number of different colors and with var- ious markings, Penciled Wyandottes, the subject of this sketch, being the last to appear. Penciled Wyandottes, though of recent origin, are al- ready well known throughout the civilized world, many ex- portations in both varieties having been made, especially to Eagland, where they seem to have been more keenly appre- ciated than here in their home country. American breeders areloath tosee the real value of a striking new breed and are often unwilling to give fair prices for good birds. You may spend a vast deal of time and money to bring something and then be expected to supply would-be customers with your choicest specimens at a few dollars each. This is why many of our best Penciled Wyandottes are going to Eng- land. ’ The Penciled Wyandotte Type. Penciled Wyandottes are in all respects true Wyan- dottes, having the compact, blocky body, with short, clean yellow shanks and a head with its red lobes and close fitting rose comb. The Wyandotte size and shape should receive more careful attention. Twelve pound Wyandotte males are alto- gether too common. ‘These extremely large birds are never of good shape, are deficient in breasts, are slow to mature, are less active, less rugged, make poorer broilers, and the females are less prolific. The fault has come from the rul- ing of the American Poultry Association in their ‘‘Instruc- tions to Judges.” When birds are otherwise equal they give the preference to the heavier birds, whereas the preference should be given to the bird which is nearer to standard weight. If this is not true, why not put the weight as heavy as possible? It has been agreed that eight and one-half pounds is the correct weight for a matured Wyandotte male and it is rarely that we gee as small a bird as that.in any of our leading exhibits. Golden Penciled Wyandotte Markings. The two varieties of Penciled Wyandottes are identical in all respects excepting color. The Goldens have a ‘beau- tiful ‘‘black-red’”’ combination, while the Silvers are a com- bination of black and white. The females of both varieties have triple penciled markings, the pattern of which con- forms to the outline of the feather, while the males of both varieties have a selid black bottom color and tail. The top color of the Golden male is red and the Silver is white, the hackle and saddle feathers of both being striped with black. The males have a solid color extending over the entire lower part of the body, with a striped saddle and hackle. The wing bows are red; the flight feathers are black with an outer bay edging; the secondaries have a black inner and a bay outer web; the wing coverts are a greenish-black, which form a bar across the the folded wing. The Golden Penciled female is a rich mahogany bay with a triple penciled marking running parallel or nearly so with the outlines of the feathers. The nearer you come to getting every feather well penciled, the finer bird you will have. The penciling is, however, less distinct on the fluff and thighs, due to the looseness of the feathers in these sections. The hackle feathers may be and frequently are striped like the hackle feathers of the males. The primary wing feathers are a grayish-brown, with light brown pen- ciling on the outer web. The tail feathers are black except- ing the first two, which should be penciled. Silver Penciled Wyandotte Markings. The Silver Penciled male is like the Golden in markings, having the black tail, breast, fluff and thighs. The head and back are white with a white hackle and saddle, the hackle and saddle feathers being striped with black. The wing bows are white; the coverts are a greeuish-black, forming ° 73 74 a bar across the wing when folded; the primary wing feath- ers are black, edged with white on outer web. The Silver Penciled female has a white or a very light gray ground, distinctly penciled with a triple marking of black running parallel or nearly so with the outlines of the feathers. The great beauty of these birds depends on get- THE {WYANDOTTES. shanks and skin, if we may call it a sacrifice. The yellow shank and skin is considered a Wyandotte characteristic, It is a useless fad which sprung up in the Boston market and is a fad which the French and English do not recog- nize. Personally I am neither for it nor against it. It is all right where it can be had naturally, but a yellow shank a Plate No. I[—Feathers Plucked from a Partridge (Golden Penciled in Mr. Cornell’s Article) Wyandotte Female and Male. FEATHER No. 11S FROM HacCKLE OF MALE ILLUSTRATED IN COLOR PLATE; UPPER SADDLE; No. 4 No. 2 1s FROM THE CAPE; No. 3 FROM REAR OF BACK OR FROM SADDLE; Nos. 5, 6 AND 7 FROM HACKLE OF SISTER TO THE MALE. = [It will be noticed that in placing the numbers upon this plate the artist assumed that the feathers would be presented to our readers with the web downwards. ting a strong contrast of color. The tendency is to a light gray ground with darker penciling. This is less attractive and every effort should be made to get clearness of color, a clean black and white, like that of the Hamburg. To bring this color to its greatest state of perfection, it will probably be necessary to sacrifice the yellow color of the We crave his pardon in differing with him.—Ep. ]. and skin are entirely out of place with a plumage of the Silver Penciled Wyandotte nature. The yellow pigment will not confine itself to the skin, but will extend to the feathers and destroy the absolute white which is so desira- ble. The hackle may be either striped or penciled. The wing primaries and secondaries are black edged with white oD PARTRIDGE WYANDOTTES Cock and Hen, First prize winners at Boston and N ew York. The property of Ezra Cornell, Ithaca, N. Y, Copyrighted 18. By the Reliable Poultry Journal Publishing Co.. Quincy, Ill. THE WYANDOTTES. 75 the outer weh. The tail feathers are black, excepting the were chosen as the foundation stock, their blood was min- two main feathers, which are penciled on the upper web. gled, selecting and rejecting in the offspring such traits as The Origin of the Penciled Wyandottes. were desired or undesired until the wished for result was obtained. A breed of fowls thus made cannot be considered “thoroughbred” until it has been bred for a sufficient length of time to thoroughly fix its characteristics, until the type The Penciled Wyandottes, like all other varieties, are the result of cross breeding. Certain old standard varieties Plate No. I—Feathers Plucked From a Partridge (‘Golden Penciled” in Mr. Cornell’s Article) Wyandotte Female. FEATHERS Nos. 1, 2 AND 3 ARE FROM THE HacKLE; Nos. 4, 5 AND 6 FROM Back; Nos. 7, 8, 9, 10 anp 11 FROM SHOULDER DOWN UNDER BREAST TO THIGH. [It will be noticed that in placing the numbers on this plate the artist assumed that the feathers would be presented to our readers with the web downwards. We crave his pardon in differing with him.--Ep.] 16 THE WYANDOTTES. is well established and the breeding tendency is all in one direction, and there is no longer an inclination to revert to one or another of the types used in the original process. The influence of some remote ancestor is forever asserting itself and will produce unlooked for results unless you have breeding birds of the same make-up for a number of genera- tions and there are no unlike traits for them to revert to. Birds are, however, never exactly alike; each has indi- viduality; there is a difference in their habits, in their in- telligence and in their disposition as well as in their color and markings, in their types, in their egg-producing ten- dency, and there is a vast difference in their abilities to transmit such traits to their offspring. It is surprising how strong the blood of some birds is, and how it will, after lying dormant for a number of generations, again assert itself. An observing breeder will detect traits of birds used years before, cropping out in his young stock. This shows the great necessity of knowing the ancestry of your breeders and of never breeding from chance specimens. It is true that “like will produce like;” a bird wil not inherit traits which never existed—he may inherit all his traits from his immediate ancestors, but he will inherit all his traits from ancestors and if these ancestors had all been of the same make-up you could tell almost to a certainty what to ex- pect. History of the Golden Penciled Wyandottes. . Mr. George H. Brackenbury, of Auburn, N. Y., was, I be- lieve, the first to conceive the idea of the Penciled Wyan- dottes and the first to begin the work of producing them. Mr. Brackenbury made his first cross in the spring of 1889. His first mating was a Golden Laced Wyandotte male and a Partridge Cochin female. This mating, as I have it from Mr. Brackenbury, produced some females with double laced markings. In 1890 he mated one of these pullets back to her Golden Laced Wyandotte sire. The following year Golden Penciled Hamburg blood was introduced, also more Part- ridge Cochin blood. Mr. Byron D. Sarr, a Cochin breeder, became interested with Mr. Brackenbury and worked with him for two or three years. My first interest in the Pen- ciled Wyandottes dated back to the winter of ’93 and ’94. Mr. BR. O. Theim was interested in them prior to that date, but I believe that he took his cue from Mr. Brackenbury. In the early days Mr. Theim certainly bought some of Mr. Brackenbury’s surplus stock, some of which, as he wrote Mr. Brackenbury, he turned over to Mr. McKeen. One thing certain is that there has not been a strain of Golden Pen- ciled Wyandottes started in America that has not gone ‘to George H. Brackenbury for help, whereas there it not a drop of blood from any other strain in the Brackenbury, or as it is now known, the Cornell-Brackenbury strain. In the spring of 94 work on the Penciled Wyandottes was begun at the Valleyview Farm (Ithaca, N. Y.). The foundation matings were made for a strain of Goldens and also for a strain of Silvers. A year later the birds of Mr. Sarr were purchased and the writer then became associated with Mr. Brackenbury. At this time, or soon afterwards, I was also offered, through Mr. Brackenbury, the entire stock of Mr. Thiem, but the sample feathers sent were not attractive. They were considered ‘by us to be inferior to what we already had. History of the Silver Penciled Wyandottes, Given the Golden Penciled Wyandottes,a Silver Penciled variety was bound to follow sooner or later. This variety may have been contemplated for some time, though nothing was done until fate, that invisible actor which so strongly influences every act of men’s lives, brought about a combi- nation of circumstances which started the ball rolling, Mr, Brackenbury sent some Buff Laced feathers to the well known poultry artisi, Franklane L. Sewell, who, in his turn, took the feathers to the Madison Square Garden show in the winter of '93 and ’94 and there showed them to the writer. These were the circumstances which resulted in starting work on the Silver Penciled Wyandottes. I had never met, had in fact never heard of Mr. Brackenbury up to that time, but the novelty of the Buff Laced feathers led me to visit Mr. Brackenbury, which I did immediately after the New York show. The Buff Laced Wyandottes proved unattrac- tive, but the beautiful Golden Penciled Wyandottes which Mr. Brackenbury was then at work upon paid me for the journey. During this visit Penciled Wyandottes were the leading topic of conversation and the plans were then laid for be- ginning work on Silver Penciled Wyandottes. Mr. Brack- enbury first mated a Dark Brahma hen to a Golden Penciled Wyandotte male, producing Silver females and Silver males with red wings. The first mating at the Valleyview Farm was a Dark Brahma and a Silver Penciled Hamburg female to a Silver Laced Wyandotte male. The following year the Showing Wing of Silver Penciled Wyandotte Pullet Illustrated on Page 7]. Wyandotte-Hamburgs were mated with the Wyandotte- Brahmas, producing chicks which were in blood one-half Wyandottes, one-fourth Dark Brahma and one-fourth Ham- burg. During this time Mr. Brackenbury had produced some very good females from his Dark Brahma and Golden Pen- ciled Wyandotte crosses, but the males all showed a great deal of red, and the females, though equal both in color and markings to many of the Dark Brahmas seen in the show rooms, were not what we desired. In ’97 we had better pen- ciling on Silver Penciled Wyandotte females than I had eve? Seen up to that time on any Golden Penciled Wyandotte. Since then we have worked hard for a better color and have made good progress in that direction. We shall not, how- ever, be perfectly satisfied until we have clearly defined markings of black and white. A Silver Penciled Wyandotte with this strong contrast of color will be an ideal American fowl. - The Law of Production. Studies in nature always offer the most interesting field investigation, The ways of nature are curious and intri- cate and will never be completely fathomed by the human for THE WYANDOTTES. mind. Whether our work is with animal, bird, insect or plant life, it is alike interesting. To me the study of bird life as we have it domesticated is a constant source of pleasure. No man knows what there is in the organism of birds which fixes the color and markings. Take for example the Silver Penciled Wyandottes. Why should the males and females be so strikingly different in markings? It is prob- ably due to the fact that the color of the females of all ground birds—birds which nest and run on the gfound—has been subdued by nature to a marked degree of inconspicu- ousness to protect them against their enemies. The Silver Penciled Wyandotte is a most modest com- bination of ‘black and white. Her colors are always laid on in alternate stripes, conforming in shape to that of the feather. Why should not her colors form themselves as on a laced, barred or spangled feather? Nobody knows. We know nothing about how these things are governed and it is not necessary that we should. All we know is that the law of nature is reproduction, and with this in mind we go ahead. To produce what we desire we choose specimens for breeding which are as nearly as possible what we wish. We must know to a certainty the plumage of the male which corresponds to that of the female. If our birds are not ex- actly what is desired we can gradually approach nearer to it by careful selection, a slight variation always belug pos- sible, but if any radical change is desired it can be best ob- tained by the introduction of entirely different blood, some- thing that will destroy the tendency to fix characeristics. We herewith present photographic reproductions show- ing the difference in markings of a pair of Silver Penciled Wyandottes, brother and sister, prize winners at the Pan- American Exposition. The photograph of the cockerel is fine and shows his black breast, tail and lower body color, striped saddle and hackle, white wing bow, black wing bar and white triangular wing bay. tirely different marking. His sister shows an en- A Pan-American Winner—Silver Pénciled Wyandotte Cockerel. Bred and Owned by Ezra Cornell. 17 By close inspection you can see the distinct triple pen- ciled markings, whichareso distinct that nearly all who have seen the original photograph thought it was taken from a drawing rather than from a living bird. It is the same pul- let in the hand with wing spread, showing the neat penciled edging of the wing flights. The breeze disturbed the feath- A Pan-American Winner—Silver Penciled Wyandotte Pullet. Bred and Owned by Ezra Cornell. ers on the shoulders and back, somewhat blurring the mark- ings, but to the right of the head, where the wind did not strike, you will notice the sharp, clean-cut markings, which should delight the eye of every true fancier. A number of prominent poultry experts have expressed themselves as believing that the Silver Penciled Wyandottes possess the combination of qualities which will eventually make them the most popular variety in America. If this belief is to be realized the standard must be made to fit the variety instead of the variety being made to fit some unnat- ural and arbitrary standard, as is unfortunately the case with some of the older varieties. Do not demand a clean black fiuff on the male or a well penciled fluff on the female, or rich yellow legs. Develop the plumage to its greatest perfection from single matings and let the shanks come whatever color they will. Then make the standard to fit the birds and we will have a variety to bank on. [Since the above article was written both varieties of Wyandottes under discussion have been admitted ‘to the American Standard of Perfection, one under the name of Partridge Wyandottes, the other being named Silver Pen- ciled Wyandottes.—Ed.] Ezra Cornell. PENCILED WYANDOTTES. One Variety Admitted to the Standard, the Other Knocking at the Door—Origin, Characteristics and Merits—They are Destined to Become General Favorites. BY THEODORE HEWES. [NorE.--Since this article was written the Silver variety has been admitted to the Standard under the name of Silver Penciled Wyandottes.—Ep.] E know almost nothing of the origin of more than half the varieties of poultry which we to-day class as standard-bred. We know but little of the origin of even our American, fav- orites. From almost the beginning it has been claimed that the Barred Rock had its origin in a cross..of. the Black Java and the ; American Domi- nique. Up to within a few years this was accepted almost as a fact, but now some of the foremost poultrymen are claiming that neith- er of these breeds is entitfed to credit as a part of the basis of our foremost va- riety, a few even as- serting that the Barred Rocks were bred and exhibited before either the Javas or Dominiques were known. This.. shows ‘how little’ positive knowledge we have of the ori- gin of breeds and varieties. The same uncer- tainty prevails concerning the ori- gin of the Wyan- dotte. While it is held that a cross of the Dark Brahma and Silver Spangled _Hamburg produced the Silver Laced Wyandotte, there is no evidence to sub- “eLMWoup KiNG” ti ‘hi OWNED BY wees stantiate this. At Trreqrew. *# the time of their in- troduction the ap- pearance of the va- riety led one to be- lieve that the cross in question made the new-comer. The speculation in regard to this was such that to test this claim, a cross of the two breeds was made, This cross, while producing nothing which could be called a Wy- andotte, proved one point to my satisfaction, namely, that there is Dark Brahma blood in the Silvers. If Hamburg blood was used it had been modified previously by some cross. What the cross was I am not prepared to say, but it was undoubtedly some fowl with a short back, deep breast ana compact body, inasmuch as the pure Hamburg when 78 experimental crosses. We were then just bidd tended trip among English fanciers: It is now nearly ten years since the originat i t s or $ Penciled Wyandottes” and sent me a number ol feuliee oe ing good-bye to Now t rari : types we look to see it become widely Wane eee . eee taken its place among standard illustrates the perfect shape already attained by this variety mated to even the Silver Laced Wyandotte took away all the Wyandotte shape. In my own experience in breeding Silver Laced Wyan- doites, covering the period from 1881 to the present time, there has not been a year when some specimen has not given positive evidence of the presence of Brahma blood. The Sil- ver Laced Wyan- dotte, no matter how well bred, if al- lowed to mate at will for two genera- tions, will, to some extent, revert to the Dark Brahma char- acteristics, The Brahma _ penciling will come to the sur- face on the females, while the lacing on the breasts of the males will begin to darken. . This shows how strong in any breed is the tenden- cy toward reversion. This tendency is due to the fact that in- stead of allowing na- ture to make a stan- dard for poultry, we lose patience and at- tempt to improve upon her. The Silver Laced Wyandottes, though the oldest of the family, are, however, the most difficult to breed. The addition of out- side blood, to pro- duce the Golden Laced variety, at once overcame the preponderance of Asiatic blood. The result of this was that we soon had the Goldens well in advance of the Sil- vers in markings and'fixedness of type. closed to me his secret of “Golde : : n some of the first production of his our friends on this side for an ex. imen owned by Mr. T. F. M PHB. Es SEWELL. ee The Golden Penciled or Partridge Wyandottes. Recently breeders of the Goldens added the Penciled or Partridge variety. Already the females of this late creation of the fanciers’ art have a fine mahogany color to a degree better than that found on any other of our standard: varie- ties. The per cent of strictly well marked fowls in this va- tiety is in excess of that from the best mated strains of Sil- vers. This shows conclusively that the latter crosses have taken away the greater part of the Brahma blood, and left THE WYANDOTTES. 79 with the fancier a variety that is pliable, so to speak; one that responds quickly to intelligent mating. When the new Wyandotte had met the requirements for admission to the standard a controversy arose over the name of the new candidate for popular favor. Numerous ar- dent discussions appeared in the poultry press, and _ the claims of breeders for priority as the ‘originator’ were in- teresting to the fancy at large. The breeders of the west favored the name of “Partridge’’ Wyandotte, laying stress on the similarity of the penciling to that of the Partridge Cochin. The eastern breeders favor the name of ‘“Penciled,” basing their claim on the ground that the birds have not the true partridge markings of our wild birds, but have pen- ciled feathers. At the Chicago meeting of the American Poultry Asso- ciation, January, 1901, this variety was admitted to the \ \ SS 3 ie eer ELMWy0OD QUEENS 7 WER PENCILLED WYARDOTTE BRED AND OWNED BY vy F MCGREW yar eee __ The Partridge Penciled Wyandottes have enjoyed a growing popularity in England; the first silver penciled birds we have heard of being exhib- ited this year. It is er period that the. Silver Penciled variety, which is fully as old as the Goldens, will be admitted to the standard when the American Poultry Association convenes at Charleston this winter. The above specimen is a grand Silver pullet owned by Mr. T. F. McGrew.—F. L. WELL, standard under the name of “Partridge Wyandottes.” The admission of the variety under this name did not satisfy the eastern breeders, and even now they refuse to exhibit their stock as “Pariridge’ Wyandottes. Several of the foremost fanciers to-day advertise them as “Penciled,” and declare that they always will despite the action of the American Poultry Association. THE ORIGIN OF SILVER PENCILED WYAN- DOTTES. Mr. Cornell, not being satisfied with the Golden Pen- ciled, or Partridge Wyandotte, and seeing the tendency of the Silver Laced variety to revert to the original cross, con- ceived the idea of establishing a new variety with silver penciling similar to that of the Dark Brahma. To accom- Plish this he had to rely not upon good luck in experiment- ing, but upon careful, intelligent mating. Three distinct varieties were used and judiciously crossed. One was among the oldest in the American standard, another has been rec- ognized and bred for twenty years. The result of such a cross was a fowl whose origin none could question, a fowl whose inherfted merits none could disregard. We do not know what success attended the first two crosses of these established varieties, but we do know that success was dependent upon care and forethought. With carelessness and guess work the result would have been dif- ferent. Mr. Cornell’s method was to select from each cross the fowls showing most strongly the characteristics of the desired variety, and then mate these for another season. For three years he pursued this course, with the result that he now has a Silver Penciled Wyandotte which far out- ranks the Dark Brahma in color and is almost equal to any of the standard Wyandottes in shape. The females of no other variety of Wyandottes approach even closely in beauty those of the Silver Penciled. Especially is this true of other Wyandottes when compared with Mr. Cornell’s birds. The neat, steel gray penciling, the compact, clean cut, symmetrical form, the rose comb and yellow legs, com- bine to make the new hen a marvel of beauty. The male, too, must not be passed by, as he equals in appearance any other Wyandotte. Mr. Cornell prepared a standard for it, and asked the American Poultry Association to accept this handsome fowl as the Silver Penciled Wyandotte. We are confident the Association will pass favorably on this application, for of all the varieties admitted to the standard within the last fifteen years we know of none which has a better _ foundation, nor of one which can point with more pride to its origin. Theo. Hewes. ra Note.—Mr. Hewes, in the course of the preceding article, states that “Mr.’ Cornell, not being satisfied with the Golden Penciled Wyandotte, * * * and seeing the ten- dency of the Silver Laced variety to revert to the original cross, conceived the idea of establishing a variety with silver penciling.”. Mr. Hewes has been somewhat misled in this. From the first I have been well satisfied with the Goldens, and I have not had any experience with the Silver Laced Wyandottes, therefore am not informed as to a tendency on their part to revert to the foundation stock. I was induced to take up the work of making a Silver Penciled Wyandotte because I liked the Goldens. The first cross made between a Silver Laced Wyandotte male, having a plumage approach- ing that of the Dark Brahma, and a Dark Brahma hen as strong in penciling as could be had, failed to produce pullets 2 with even a fairly good penciling. The Silver Laced Wyan- dotte undoubtedly has a tendency to degenerate from the clean-centered laced feather, but it is doubtful if the ten- dency is to revert to a penciled feather. Certainly the tendency is not strong. It is also a question whether or not Mr. Hewes is correct in thinking that the Golden Laced Wyandiottes were ad- vanced to a greater state of perfection than the Silver Laced on account of their having less of the Asiatic blood (penciled blood). It will be found that it is easier to get a clean-cut penciling on a Partridge Cochin or a Golden Penciled Wyandotte than on a Dark Brahma or Silver Laced Wyandotte. There seems to be a much stronger tendency for black and white to run together than for brown and black. The writer is not prepared to give any reason for this, but experience has clearly demonstrated it to be a fact that clearly defined markings, no matter what the pattern, can be more easily gotten in the brown and black than in the white and black. Ezra Cornell. THE PARTRIDGE WYANDOTTE. So Called From the Resemblance of Their Plumage to That of the Partridge Cochins—They are Wyandotte in Shape with the Plumage of the Partridge Cochin--Origin--Description. ————|_————— BY W. A. DOOLITTLE. HE latest addition to the Wyandotte family is the Partridge Wyandottes. The western strain was originated, as were the Goldens, by that true and honest fancier, Joseph McKeen, of Omro, Wiscon- sin, and his co-worker was E. O. Thiem, of Deni- son, Iowan. They were first introduced by an article and illustration in the October, 1894, number of the Poultry Monthly, in which Mr. McKeen stated that he had been breeding with this object in view for a number of years, they making the first cross with this point in view in 1888. I had for some years bred the Golden and Buff varieties, getting eggs and stock from Mr. Mc- Keen from time to time, as I believed his to be the best and the original strain of the Gold- en. He did not orig- inate any strain of Buffs, but as an hon- est fancier he en- ‘deavored to breed the best, and with his strain I man- aged to win a lion’s share of prizes at the leading western shows. Soon after Mr. Mc- Keen’s death, in 1896, I bought from his widow some of his choicest Goldens and Buffs, including the cock, Major McKeen, which won first for me at the great Mid-Continental and twice at Kan- sas and Nebraska state shows. I also took up the breeding of his strain of Partridge Wyandottes, obtaining them from Mrs. McKeen, and I now have in my yards a male and female of this variety that came direct from his yards. The female was one of his own raising. Partridge Wyandotte Cock, ‘‘Kansas Boy.” First at Chicago and St. Louis, 1900, Owned and bred by W. A. Doolittle. In my opinion this beautiful variety has a great future, as the Partridge Wyandottes now breed as true as any of their sister varieties, and in fact are better in symmetry, have larger and better bone, are free from feathers on shanks and toes, and all of them have the true Wyandotte comb, bright red ear-lobes and yellow legs. I speak of the McKeen strain. In selecting breeding stock, either male or female, you should first see that they have the true Wyandotte shape, clean yellow legs and bright bay eyes. The ear-lobes and wattles should be bright red, free from white, and above all do not permit in your breeding yards of any variety of Wy- andottes, excepting the white, a bird having white in tts plumage, for it will be more abundant in the offspring and me, BO once it is introduced it is almost impossible to breéd it out. As so much depends on the male bird, great care should be taken in his selection. After satisfying yourself that he has the proper symmetry and that he has a good, full saddle rising with a con- cave sweep to the tail, which should not be too large or carried too high— then see that he has a broad, deep, well- rounded breast, in color _ greenish- black, free from brown or red, with a slate under-color. If there is red or brown in the breast of the male bird he will throw pullets in color and markings similar to a Brown Leghorn pullet and brown will predomi- nate in the breast color .of his male birds. If possible choose a bird which as a chick had a well-penciled breast like that of the females and which had richly laced coverts. Such a male will produce well-laced females, and if his breast as a matured bird is glossy black free from red or brown, his males will also be properly marked. In this way good males and females are obtained from a single mating. . First Prize Partridge Wyandotte Cockerel at Kansas City Mo., January, 1901, Bred, owned and exhibited by W. A.. Doolittle. . oe en frst as ao rhleege. 1901, an8 rst as hen at the same show in _ whe by W. A. Doolittle, i. THE WYANDOTTES. 81 His neck should be short and well-arched with a large flowing hackle, in color red or orange red, with a distinct black stripe extending down each feather and tapering to a point near its extremity. His back should be short, broad and flat at the shou/ders—in color dark red. . The saddle This half tone illustration is of the first prize Partridge Wyandotte pullet at Chicago last season and shows by the feathers taken trom her, the most excellent markings of plumage, She was bred and is owned by W. A. Doolittle. should be red or orange red with a black stripe down the center of each feather. The fiuff should be slightly black; the primaries black on the inner web with a bay edge on the outer web; the secondaries black on the inner web and rich bay on the outer web, terminating with a black end on each feather. The wing coverts should be greenish black with a well-defined bar across the wing when folded. The tail should be black, the sickles being of medium length and glossy black, the tail coverts being a glossy, greenish black and they may be tinged with red. The comb should be of good Wyandotte shape, and I should not sacrifice other good points merely for the sake of the comb so long as it is rose. The best Golden Wyandotte cock as a breeder that I ever saw had a very bad comb. It was large and laid over to one side, but this defect was never transmitted to his off- spring. The females should be as well laced as possible, with a bright red or an orange red hackle having a broad black stripe extending down each feather and tapering to a point near the extremity. The black stripe in the lower neck feathers should be penciled with reddish brown. The plum- age of the back should be abundant, under-color slate and the web of the feathers reddish brown, distinctly penciled with reddish black, the lines of penciling in all parts of the body conforming as nearly as possible to the shape of the feathers. The breast and body feathers should be marked the same as those of the back except they should be penciled wiih black, the lacing to come. well up to the, throat. The fluff should be reddish brown in color, irregularly penciled with dark brown. The wings should be of the same color as those of the male, excepting the coverts, which should be the same color and have the same markings as the feathers of the breast. The tail should be well spread at the base _and black in color, except two or more of the highest main tail feathers, which should be penciled. The tail coverts should be wel! penciled, similarly to those of the breast. The standard weights are the same for all Wyandotte varieties: Cockerel, seven and one-half pounds; cock, eight and one-half pounds; pullet, five and one-half pounds; hen, six and one-half pounds. I exhibited the Partridge Wyan- dottes at Washington, D. C.; Chicago, IIl.; Davenport, Iowa; Kansas and Nebraska state and other shows. As early as 1898 they were a new variety of Wyandottes and I wished to give fanciers an opportunity to see them,-and it was my pleasure to be one to assist in getting them: admitted to the standard at the Chicago meeting of the A. P. A. in 1901 as Partridge Wyandottes. e present herewith an illustration of a group of Partridge Wyandotte feathers from birds of this REESE variety bred by W, 4. Doolittle and F. O, Thiem, DIRECTORY OF — = RELIABLE WYANDOTTE BREEDERS ARTHUR F. HARTMAN, Nappanee, Ind. White Wyandotte Npecialist. Always write to a specialist in the breed you want. I breed the “Business Hen’ strain of prize-winning stock; practical and fancy. Stock and eggs for sale. T. E. ORR, Beaver, Pa. Proprietor of Beaver Hill Farm, the home of Orr's Silver Wyandottes, line bred since 1881. Greatest egg machines and prize winners. Pioneer breeder of Partridge Wyan- dottes; also of White Wyandottes. ROSS C. H. HALLOCK, St. Louis, Mo. “Quality” White Wyandottes. Winners at the Great Chi- eago Show, January 1902, 1st and 4th pullets, 2nd cock and 2nd pen. Also specials for best shaped female, best colored male, best White Wyandotte pullet, and silver cup for largest and best display of White Wyandottes. This in competition with 243 White Wyandottes in single entries and 17 pens. Stock is all farm raised, strong and vigorous, JULIUS BACHMAN, Kansas City, Mo. Silver Wyandottes, up-to-date. Fine stock for sale. Eggs in season, $3 per 15. ARTHUR G. DUSTON, Box 29, Marlboro, Mass. Rose Lawn Poultry Farm. Ifor years recognized as the fountain from which the best flocks of White Wyandottes in the country are built up. Show birds a specialty. Breed- ers for sale the year round. Eggs fore hatching. RELIABLE INCUBATOR & BROODER CO., Box A 104, Quincy, Ill. Reliable Strain of Silver Laced and White Wyaundottes. Ten pens of each variety; lowest score Silver Laced Wyan- dottes, mated, 90 points; White Wyandottes, 93 points. Stock aud eggs for sale. EDGAR BRIGGS, Poughkeepsie, N. Y. Proprietor Hudson River Poultry Farm. Specially brecd- crs of White Wyandottes exclusively. Originators apd breeders of the Yankee strain. None better. Largest breeders of high class stock in New York. Megs a spe- cialty. Stock for sale at all times. Catulggue free, OTTO O. WILD, Benton Harbor, Mich. Breeds White Wyandottes of exceptional ineril, and guar- antees them to please purchasers. FRED E. PILE POULTRY FARM Co., Cleveland, Ohio. White Wyandottes. We have 12 acres devoted to White Wyandottes. We breed for the show room, but never, lose sight of their practical qualities. Our birds are noted for corvect size and shape, whiteness of plumage and fine yellow legs. Pile’s White Wyandottes are among the rich- est prize-winner producing lines in the country. Corre- spondence a pleasure. I. K. FELCH & SON, Natick, Mass. Their White Wyandottes are above standard weight. Lay dark shelled eggs and win prizes for their patrons, liggs, 4 $4 for 15, $8 for 45, $15 per 105. owls or eggs are.cx- celled by no other strain. ORIOLE SPRINGS FARM, Twin Lakes, Kenosha Co., Wis, 2 The leading Partridge Wyandotte farm of the world. We lead; others follow. Make no mistake in placing your orders for stock and eggs. Write for free illustrated circular. JOHN COOLIDGE, Galesburg, Ill. White Wyandottes. “The best in the west,” proven by our records at the leading shows. Single birds, $2 up; pairs, :: $3.50 up; trios, $5 up. Satisfaction or money back less c express. ‘ . C. HAWKINS, Lancaster, Mass. Breeds the winners at America’s greatest shows. Barred, White and Buff P. Rocks. Silver, White and Buff Wyan- dottes. For 25 years we have been breeding the very best. A. & E. TARBOX, Box 1, Yorkville, Ill. North Side Poultry Yards. Silver, Buf€ and White Wyan- dotics. Choice stock for gale. No eggs for hatching. Agents for Spratt’s patent poultry food and meat, Send for circular giving winnings and prices. L. R. HODGES, Pittsfield, Mass. Paddock Farm. Partridge Wyandottes exclusively. Won- 9 blue ribbons and 23 other prizes, 1901-1902, New York, Boston, and Pan-American exhibitions, on only 37 entries. Judges Atherton, Drevenstedt and MdGrew. All line-bred from prize winners, and pedigree of cach bird recorded. Show and breeding birds for sale singly or in pairs or trios;’, ROWLAND G. BUFFINTON, Fall River, Mass. A. FAMARISS, Beverly, N. J. Breeder of Wyandottes of highest type. White Wyan? dottes that are snow white. Silver Laced ~splendidly pen- ciled. True to standard, vigorous fowls. Prize winners. Eggs and stock for sale, THAYER & HIGGINS, Barnstable, Mass. White Wyandottes that are winners, and have pedigrees to back their breeding. Second best hen and three specials, « Boston, 1902, White, blocky, strong in eye and comb, Stock and eggs for sale. Breeder of Buff and Partridge Wyandottes. Stock sale. Tggs in season. Send for circular. MAHASKI POULTRY COMPANY, St. Louis, Mo. Breeders of Viking strain of White Wyandottes. Eggs $2. Farm at Bourbon, Mo. We solicit correspondence. SUCCESS WITH POULTRY Is a book of 112 pages.9 x12 inches in size, that contains; we . = believe MORE and BETTER practical, reliable information on the subject of *’ Poultr, for Profit”’ than any other book published. Gives the cream of estab- lished facts. Written and compiled ‘by the editor of the RELIABLE POULTRY. JOURNAL, who has given many years of careful study to the poultry. business. © Pri ce $1 00 * ‘ : or e : Ss ‘= t d ; : Is most up-to-date and most practie: ARTIFICIAL INCUBATING AND BROODING '%0%t rp-to-dete and most practi: It.is contributed. to by the leading authorities of this conntry.- It has88 pages, each 12x9 inches, with- many illustrations, including a number of designs of modern brooder houses, Jaying houses, and incubator céllars. Complete instructions on the use ‘and abuse of, incubators: ; How to start right and go right in raising chickens by artificial means, « Price 506 ~ : -_ a BARRED, WHITE and BUFF PLYMOUTH ROCKS Thsbook consists of t1¢pazes, elegant color par of Batred, White and Buff Plymouth Rocks, shown-in their natural colors, repros duced {rom oil ‘paintings made by the world’s greatest poultry artist. Franklane 1. Sewell, Among _ the contributors are the following:" A.C. Hawkins, E. B. Thompson, Bradley Bros. A.C. Smith, 3. K. felch, D.J, Lambert, U. R. Fishel, Robt: H. Essex,C. H. Latham, F. W, Richardson, Theo, Hewes, E,W. Hitchcock, W.S- Russell, C/A. Emry, S,S..Noble and others, 0 9 Pri ce 50 Ps THE WYANDOTTES Silver. Golden, White, Buf? and Partridge. A new publication ¥ treating extensively upon this breed. ‘The frontispiece is a handsome =¥eproduction from Mr. Seweil’s oil painting of “* White Wyandottes to date,” representitig. the win- bing:cockerel and pullet-at Boston..im January, 1898. We have hid made especially for this book full-page drawings of Silver, “Golden, White and Buff ‘Wyandottes. Eighty pages fully-itlustrated. © 2c eos ee Se es ee eps Price S0c THE LEGHORNS All Varletios.. This publication will delight fanciers of that widely bred oes aud favorite fowl—the Lechorns. No breeder can afford to be-withcut the information written by such judges as IK, Felch, T. J- Marshall, H-S. Babcock, #. H.-Shellabarger; Theo. Hewes, D. T. Heimlich, C. A, Emry, Chas. McClave, Ezra Cornell, W.S. Russell, P. B. Zimmer, Wim, Ellery Brightand others. Twelve full-page illustrations and many others. Perice § Ce i -EGGS AND EGG FARMS- Is made up of contributions from “experienced and successful eee - Dreeders, It gives their methods of housing, breeding, rearing “-and feeding fowls with aview to increasing ¢; reduction. - The lengthy chapters: on Pedigree ia Breeding wilt be found jnvaluable to breeders of ex ibition or utility fowls, An 80-page book, fully illustrated: (6 = ee ee Se eee ~. Prise 50s. wa Gin Ni Aan Sie ee See Tells how the most successful breeders of the day manage their enor. DUCKS AND GEESE. mious flocks and derive handsomé profits; gives detailed instructians for breeding, rearing and feeding. and presents the-best and most reliable information relating to details of management and profts'ion Ducks and Geese. ‘Jt-is fully illustrated P fi 50 with up-to-date cuts of the big farms.and theirstock..¢ = ° « 26 2 >= EF ce eG TURKEYS Their:-Care and Management. The most fete book written upon turkey culture. | It EVARE Se treats ofevery branch of the subject.” Among the prominent breeders who have spent time and ¢ffart-in preparing articles for this book are. Mrs, Mackey, Mrs. Jones, Mrs, Hargrave, Mrs. Singleton,’ $, Bi Johuston, J. F. Crangle, W; J. Beil, 3. F, Ulrey, BF. Hislop, W. A. Moon, Ed Isley, J. A: Leland and S, T> Jones. The colored reproduction of an oil painting by Sewell aided by numerous. Pp i te} 6 ie rtones makes this the very best turkey book published, =. c=. = = © roe ; 5 ; = Gonsists-of 32 faches, and contat POULTRY HOUSES AND FIXTURES frites ti tGhMetcat padi veitincstortes “ity fot, the: vill and the. f: + also complete and convenient houses for the “faneler and plantior building extensive poultry farms, See Sat cree ae Pee 25¢ “TRE BANTAM FOWL 7 most compiete and fully illustrated Bantam book published in this coun- Sees ae ap Bs Ras TRE A WE try. Mr. T: F. McGrew, judge and breeder, 5 t many months collecting = mi anil writing the matter and over sixty.copyrighted illustrations were made expressly for this book, Kyery Price 5Cc 2 person interested.in’ Bantams as pets or for profit will waut.acopy, =< eos Ss Res mn ; UL TRY : , ts of es, cach 5x6 inches, points out the causes, describes the symp- RELIABLE PG : ¥ REMEDIES romney Reed remedies for eeoide: cholera, canker, indigestion, con: | - (¢stipation, dysentery, congestion of liver, gapes, chicken pox, black rot, crop-bound, scaly legs, bumble-foot, P elce 2 5 c: ‘and other diseases of fowls. Contains full instructions on care of poultry to prevent diseases. = © =. = " : » These books até sold ON APPROVAL, If not. satisfactory, they ean be Imimediately returned in good order and the purchase money. Swill be promptly retumed.* ‘The. above prices include payment of postage to any address in Unite - RELIABLE POULTRY JOURNAL PUB. 6O., QUINGY, ILLINOIS, d States*or Canada, Address all-orders to a reas Be ib S aL i oe pa Ae. ee i Die ‘y WEY dh aa eho fel nif mat eA NUE NALS pig