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Evening Star, Issue 12883, 4 August 1906, Page 10

[By Mdjobca.} Being desiious to encourage and stimulate the poultry industry, we have arranged with b member of the local Poultry Club to edit this column, and will be glad to receive and publish any items of news or notes which Will-be of service to readers. Contributions and questions for answering should be addressed to "Minorca," Poultry Editor, ' Star' Office, and received not later than Tuesday of each week. "Minorca" will only answer communications through this column.

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. ."Partridge."—The partridge Wyandotte is a hard one to breed true, and cannot very well be done by one pen only. As you aro rather short of room, I should advise you to go in for pullet breeding only at present. The following article by P. Proud, a well-known judge and breeder, will give you some idea how to mate up. You should also go and see other breeders, and take a lesson from them. HOW TO BREED PARTRIDGE WYANDOTTES. In the first place, let me remind yon that to breed partridges of both sexes with any measure of success it is absolutely necessary to have two pens, as both exhibition cockerels and pullets cannot be produced from the same pen, although you might have some fairlv de-cent-looking birds of both, but not up to exhibition standard. We will take the cockerel-breeding pen first. The head of a cock-breeding pen is, or should be, a perfect specimen of an exhibition bird—a bird as near to the standard of perfection as possible should be chosen.

To begin with his head, the comb should be a fairly good size, fitting nice and close to the head, with the leader or spike following the line of the neck, and not straight out the same as we find on Hamburgs. The more work or fine points in the comb the better, for manv combs will be found quite smooth and plain, devoid of any " work" whatever, which is a fault that should certainly count against the bird in the show-peri. The comb face, wattles, and ear lobes should be a bright healthy red. White in ear lobe is a _ very prevailing fault in some cockerel strains of partridges, although we rarely see much of it in the show-pen, simply for the reason that it hns been removed some three or four weeks or more prior to the show. White in lobe I consider a most unsightly fault in partridges, and should be severely guarded aginst when making up yonr breeding pens. Another failing in head points that I very often meet is in the color of the eye. This should be a bright blood-red "color, and not yellow, or daw, which we so often find. I do not hesitate to say that quite 10 to 20 per cent, of the present-day exhibition cockerels fail in this respect. We now come to the neck hackle,' one of the most important points in the partridge Wyandotte, and one so often overlooked by all-round judges. What is required is a rich orange or golden hackle, each feather having a green-black stripe down the centre, hot a brownish black, as is often found. The richer and greener the black the better. This striping should not run quite to the end of the feather, or it will give the hackle a dark or smutty appearance. The saddle hackle— i.e., the portion near the tailshould correspond exactly with the shade of color and black striping as the neck hackle, although in some strains the saddle hackle runs much darker than the neck hackle, but this again is a fault. The richer and brighter the color, providing the striping is also sound as described, the better. His back—i.e., from the base of the neck hackle to where the saddle hackle commences—should be a rich dark red, not a mahogany red, which we find in many, and as solid in color as possible—i.e., not broken in patches intermingled with black. The wing bar should be a rich green black free from any trace of ticking or lacing, and the same may be said of his breast all over, and right through between his thighs and up to and including his tail. The wing flights should also be sound black. It is in the wing flighteand tail that so many otherwise good birds come a cropper—viz., by bein" white-tipped in flights, and white at roots of tail feathers, which is often overlooked in judging, where the judge does not trouble to examine the bird in hand, but judges the bird as seen from a distance in tie show-pen. This is why these flatcatchers—for such they are—are able to win at some shows, yet are left cardless, and rightly so, when properly examined. , A case of this kind came under my notice a few months back. The same exhibitor had shown this same bird under me three or four times, and when he met me at a show some time after he got quite angry about me leaving his bird out. "Well," he said, " I'm going to give him one more trial under you, and then never again." Well, the show in question came off, and after I had finished judging I saw the owner of the bird looking anything but pleasant, so I walked up to him, and as-ked him how the partridge cock had done to-day. His remark was as follows :—" He's done so well that I'll never show him under you again." I replied the same as the historic milkmaid—viz., "Nobody asked you to; but what is your pen number?" He told me, and on referring to my judging book I found these words : " Plucked tail and white in flights." He had not three hard feathers in his tail, and several of his flights were white-tipped, some extending two or three inches white; and yet this flatcatcher had been winning simply because the exhibitor had been able to spin a fairy tale about the bird having cost a big figure. Had I judged the bird without handling him he would undoubtedly havo won, but his extra bright top led me to believe he might very probably be faulty in flight or tail, for such is very often the case of very bright-colored birds, and I found such was the case; consequently, I left him out. In choosing your exhibition cockerel or one for' use in the cock-breeding pen be most particular of white in tail and flights; spread open the wing and look well to the root of the tail, for very often the white is hidden by sida hangers —i.e.,' the hanring feathers that covar «r fall over the side or the root of the tail. As I have said the striping of the hackle of partridge Wyandottes is of great importance.

The leg color should be a rich orange yellow, and free from any feathering down the shanks. We very often come across birds that have small feathers on shanks, or holes where the feathers once grew, but which have been hand-moulted a week or two prior to the show. These feathers are a decided fault, and should count heavily against the bird in the •how-pea.

I remember a year or two ago, at one fi! °" j"™ 01 ? 1 * 1 summer shows, drawing the judges attention to a partridge cockerel with feathered shanks, shown by an amateur, and which he had placed first in a strong class. He was quite indignant about it, and said these were not feathers, but sim-' down. "Yes," l repbed, "it i s down; all down both shanks It transpired that he had bred and sold the bird, and this was why he won. Well, a fortnight after I saw this very same bird at a much smaller snow, and he was cardless, and rightly so, being judged by one who had no interest m the bird whatever; consequently he was judged on his merits. • - ' I will now go on to describe the pullets to mate for cockerel breeding. In the farst place, they should be large and shapely—the larger the better. They shouldV also possess the same quality of neck hackle as you wish to produce in the progeny, as I have already described, the hackle should be light,' yet bright vi t! and """""S down each feather a solid beetle-green striping- -the more distinct the striping the better—but on no account have birds with pencilled or muddy hackles, as these are worthless as cock-breeders. As the name implies, pencilled hackles aro broken in color, and have a second inner gold lacing as well ns the outside edge, whereas an ideal hackle feather should bo solid black, edged with gold. In bodv color these cockerel-breedinc pullets are a much darker shade altogether, and almost devoid of the nencilling so much admired in the millet-breeding millets or exhibition pullets. I like the cock-breeding hens dark in body color, but I must have the light golden bright hackles, distinctly strined with a rich green black; then, if the cockerel is the color I have described, you can confidently look forward to a good percentage of exhibition cockerels in the produce. A cock-breeding pen can be bought much cheaper than a pullet-breeding pen, for the simple reason that in the cock pen the head of the harem is the only bird that need aspire to what is required in a first-class exhibition bird, whereas in the oullet-breeding pen the whole of the pullets or hens used in the nen must, or should, come up to as near the exhibition standard of coloring and pencilling as possible if you would have the very best results. This should be borne' in mind when buying your breeding pens. Do not expect to get a reallv good pulletbreeding nen for a "fiver," for you will onlv be disappointed at the result of your season's breeding, to sav nothing of the loss of time and trouble. —The Pullet-breeding Pen.— The head of the pullet-breeding pen in point of color is very different to the cock-breeder. He will, as a general rule, bo_ a darker shade of color, more of a brick-red color, and is not so bricht in hacklos as the cock-breeder. I like to see striping in the cockerel's hackles, as T much prefer striping to the peneillincthat is very often found in otherwise good-colcred pullets. Moreover, it works out as follows :—The less, striping in neck hackle the less there will be in the saddle hackle; consequently the less pencilling you will have on the cushion of the pullets produced, and it is this fine and clearly-defined pencilling that is so much admired in the exhibition pullets. The cockerel's breast and fluff will no doubt _be laced or ticked with red or gold. This is not a drawback, quite the reverse, and he may even be laced in sickles or side hangers. All the better if he is, as there will then be a greater tendency to pencilled fluff and cushion in the pullets he breeds, and it is in the pencilling on the cushion and fluff that quite 50 per cent, of "the. .present-day exhibition pullets fail. ■-..*...

As I said before, a pullet pen is a most expensive item, as the pullets to be really any good should be fit to win at most shows. These pullets should have striped hackles; indeed, this is a standard qualification. With regard to the ground color opinions differ; some contend that the body feathers should be one even shade of brown, quite free from a light golden edge to each feather; others prefer the light brown ground color, with the edges of the feather just a shade lighter. The former, I contend, is the correct shade. My ideal ground col'r is one even soft light brown shade all through, the feather to have only the two colors—viz., brown and the rich green-black lacing or pencilling. This lacing or pencilling should extend as depicted. Frrm throat to-stern or fluff, and from head to tail, should these clear and defined "eneilled feathers be in evidence, although there are hundreds of pullets with beautiful breast a.nd wing lacing which fair badlv on cushion arid fluff behind the thighs, and such millets should not be used in the pulletbreeding pen with a view to producing exhibition pullets, for it cannot be done, no matter how good the c-ck may be. Always select stock birds for the pullet pen, then, with cushions as clear in lacing or oencillihg as possible, although always bear in mind that the clearer the pencilling the stiffer the price to be paid for them. Better far only have a couple such as I have described than half a dozen or even a dozen second-rate ones. I need only now conclude these notes on breeding by emphasising the importance of having the stock birds either cockerel or pullet bred, as the case may require. It has been a favorite trick by some breeders to send out crossed strains as breeding pens, thus a pullet-breeding cockerel, with a sound breast, mated to moderately pencilled pullets. Frequently a decent cockerel comes from the pulletbreeding pen, and after the judicious extraction of a few ticked breast feathers the bird is sent out to a customer mated with some of the "waster" cock-breeding pullets—i.e., pullets red or foxy on wing, with hackles almost devoid of any black striping. It is most unfair to take such advantage of the uninitiated. I was more than pleased to hear of a rather smart trick that had been played on a breeder who had attempted to take such an advantage. This would-be novice bought a cock-breeding pen. with which he was judiciously hugely delighted. So great was his delight thnt he sent to tho same breeder for a pullet-breeding pen, •which came along in due course. Our "novice" then straightway changed the cockerels from <~ne oeu to the other, thus frustrating the breeder's intentions. What was the result? Whv. the first two broods when old enough to be disposed of were quickly sold for over £3O. whereas, had thev remained as mated by the breeder. 30s have been about what they would have realised. In conclusion, I must apologise for my lengthy epistle on the partridge Wvandotte, but what I have penned here are stubborn facts, which I can vouchsafe to be absolutely true in every detail. Not onlv so, but I could go on enumerating similar cases by the dozen. S-'ufncient has, however, been said as a warning to those who have it in their power to assist the progress and welfare of this most handsome and useful variety of the Wyandotte, or to kill the breed, as others have been killed in the past. My earnest desire and wish is thnt the breed may go on and prosper, as it deserves to do, if for nothing else than as a thoroughly hardv, useful, all-round utility and exhibition bird combined. —Exchange.

Mr Jones, who used to live in Albany street, has now removed to Opoho, but I am afraid he has not made a change for the better. His present place docs not receive much sun during the winter, and in consequence the yard' are very wet. The birds, Wyandottes and White Leghorns, look very "well considering the state of the ground, and Mr Jones informs me they have.put up soma splendid records as egg prodnceia.

All breeding pens should now be mated up. While the cold weather lasta'sbc to oighi birds are sufficient convpinv ior a cockerel; a cock bird should have rather less. Several people ha< e rh cks out already, but being so early they are apt to moult. Some breeders prefer early chicks for show, as they become larger, being moved to different pens to prevent them laying, and, no warm food being given, they naturally keep growing, and attain a very large size. But with breeder.-- who require eggs this does not do. The beet time to hutch pullets of the heavier breeds i& early in September. They can then be left growing, and will lay in March or April, just when eggs axe bringing the beat prices. The

light breeds—such as Minorcas and Leghorns—are best hatched in October and November. Mr Rogau reckoned the middle of October the best time to breed chow Minorcas, but other breeders prefer to get them out early in September if for show. When breeding.for egg production, it is necessary to breed from the best Invrs only. The use of trap nests are of great assistance in proving the layers. Full listers will often show a great difference as layers, one being particularly good and v the other a waster. Don't think because you have birds bred from Howell or Warren egsrs that they will all be wonders. Some will be much better than others, and if you wish to continue to improve it is necessary for you to use the trap nests to find out the good ones.' Don't set'any eggs which are very large or very small, or of uneven surface. Set all cgs as much alike as possible, and afi near as possible of the same age. Don't breed from very young pullets or cockerels; the chicks 'may hatch all right, but they do not feather* or grow as well as chicks from mere mature birds.