The Van Buren press., 1894-12-15

mated that they have become cone'
posite of the two families, and the ex-
eeptions to the regular shape ere
those which have bred back to remote
ancestry. / have bred Plymouth Rocks
fof some years xnd my preference
Ii for the Blush tint, for / think
il easier to breed males and fe'
males to uniform color II this tint =
s6iiSht. Birds Of this color will grad..
ualiv Sbffie VI have lemon-colored
shanks. and no Color ioo1ie better than
this. Darker birds will almost alwaTs
have orange-Sol6fed sharks, with .
tendency to show distinctly red IN the
sides and black scales here aid therei
though now good many can be found
with pure orange shanlzs. A Plymouth
Rock hen with pure yellow beak is
about the rarcst bird that can be
sought for, but Rt the Ohio state fair |
saw one or two specimens Of this kind.
This is what breeders have been after
for some time, and 1t Is to be Hoped
they will succeed in getting them, fof
when that is done the breeding OF
Plymouth Rocks will have reached per
fection.
Black Langshans. Although Black
Langshans are among the most recent
acquisitions in the Asiatic class, they
have become quite popular In this
Goufitry, aHd tiitieh more 30 In England,
where they are bred To the greatest
perfection. The high prices which
they brought when first introduced led
a good many tricky American breeders
to cross them with the Black Cochins
in order to multiply them rapidly and
get the advantage of the good price
the great demand made possible, and
this has led to an incorrect ideal being
formed in the minds of q good many
who have not all the facts to draw from.
The Cochin shape is entirely distinct
from the true Langshan shape, and the
two will never be mistaken for each
other when one has seen and studied
the true Langshan as he IL bred in En-
gland by those who were among the
first to import the breed from the hills
Of northern China. The true Langsha1i
has IN exceedingly short back and high
head and drawing q straight line to
the center OF the feet and from there
to the highest point Of the tail and
qack to the head and an almost perfect
triangle will inclose the bird. Some
one has called Lanshans the "three
cornered breed" on account Of this
trianglar boundary line. The line
down the back of the neck across the
back and up along the tail is very
nearly the shape Of the letter U,
AS a fowl for profit the Lang
shan has proven itself the best
Of all the Asiatics. They are
OF a brilliant greenish black, and theil
feathers have metallic reflection that
shows the colors Of the rainbow wher
the sun is reflected from them. Theii
flesh is white and juicy, and they arr
the very best of the class for table use
The bottom of their feet are pink, ant
this is the final test of purity, for any
infusion of Black Cochin blood can b,
told by the yellow bottoms of the fee
of cross bred birds. Farmer
The Brown Leghorn Fowl In shapt
the Leghorn is characterized by trim
ness and sprightliness that few fowl
possess. The carriage is very upright
and the large and gaily-carriet
tail of the cock increases his ap
parent size and adds greatly t,
his beauty. The red, darkly-stripet
hackles OF the male and his solid blacl
breast make very attractive combi
nation in colors, and the warm browl
of the females possesses a quiet beaut.
scarcely less attractive in its way thai
the richest colors of the male.
Brown Leghorns mature very early
pullets having been known to lay whel
four to five months old. This earl.
maturity makes the Leghorns a yer,
profitable fowl for the farm. Long be
fore the heavier fowls think Of layinI
the Leghorn pullets have begun and
Matched early will frequently pay II
eggs for their raising before winte
, sets in. Broiler raisers frequently us
q cross Of a Leghorn male on som
heavier breed to increase the growtl
Of the chickens in the first tw
months Of their lives. Brown Leg
horns are reasonably hardy, bu
do best when they can have libert
They are excellent foragers, and will
, on farm during the summer month
! pick up a good share of their living
, In winter they need good, warn
} house, to prevent the freezing Of thei
combs, and If provided with such
house will lay quite well even in YER
cold weather. But 1t is during tn
warm days OF spring and the hot day
of summer that they produce tn
, greatest number Of eggs. The eggs O
} the Leghorn are pearl white, all, o
nearly all, Of the same shade, givin
| them q very uniform appearance. Ono
, in great while there will be a Leg
horn hen that will lay an egg with
slight buff tint, but SO rarely does thi
happen that one is almost safe in de
claring that their eggs are always pur
white. They are of good marketabl
size, and, being white, really look t
l A