The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1904-12-16
Big Show Is to Be Held on De-
Gambler 26th to 31st.
All Kinds of Birds Will Then
Be on Exhibition.
Finest Display in the History
of the Organization.
From Saturdays Daily.

From Saturdays Daily.
Officers of the Central Minnesota
Poultry association are now busily en-
gagged in making all preparations for the
fifth annual exhibit to be given in this
city, Dec. 1851. The location for the
show has not yet been definitely deter
mined, but the managers contemplate
taking either the old Longini store room
at Front and Hickory street or the
store room a few doors to the south
of this ON Front street, where Kruse
Brothere used to be located. The prem
ium list will soon be ready and will be
sent to prospective exhibitors. 1t is fair
to say that prospects never before were
so bright for an excellent show. There
are now nearly thirty-f five members al
most twice as many as last year, and
it is thought by those in charge that
twice as many birds will be on exhibit
as there were year ago. There will
be poultry of all kinds, pigeons, rabbits,
and many varieties of pet stock. Some
exhibits are promised by prominent rails
ers in the Twin Cities. j. w. HOLMAN
of Mankato, the secretary and superin-
tendent, is the principal manager. The
same Judge as was here last year has
been secured, Thos. F. Riggs of Iowa
Falls, Iowa.
Poultry is indeed fascinating object
of study. Men grow enthusiastic in the
highest degree over the fowls they breed.
1t is quite a science, and one that ad-
mits of limitless development. 1t is in
tensely interesting to observe how one
breed develops out of another. White
Plymouth Rocks have been developed
from the Barred Plymouth Rock breed.
This is lust one instance. There was a
time when there were no White Ply
mouth Rocks. By some accident or
freak of nature, some pure white fowls
sprung from the Barred Plymouth
Rocks. These white fowls were rear
ed together and bred together. Of course
many of their offsprings were barred,
but all that were not white were de-
stroyed By keeping the white ones to-
gether and wedding out all that were
not ''just So" the poultry raisers have
developed breed of fowls from which
it is almost if not altogether impossi-
BILE to obtain any other offspring than
a White Plymouth Rock, answering the
description of the fowl in the Standard
of Perfection, issued by the American
Poultry association. Any fowl that
varies materially from this standard has
its head taken off and is placed in the
stew pan.
So it happens that the world has
Barred, White and Buff Plymouth
Rocks; Silver Laced, Golden and White
Wyandottes; Single Comb Brown, Single
Comb White, Single Comb Buff, Rose
Comb White Leghorns; and various
other breeds, whose cousinship may
plainly be seen not only by their names
but by their appearance, habits and
general characteristics. The poultry
raisers are constantly aiming at the
Standard of Perfection, outlined in the
Guide Book, published periodically by
the American Poultry association. This
book tells just what a perfect fowl
of its kind ought to be, but nature
never actually comes up to the standard.
Every fowl has some little imperfection
of comb, of feet or breast or some other
part, defects that no one but an ex-
perienced poultry judge would or could
notice. There never was perfect or
hundred point fowl. The highest score
that any chicken ever attained is nine
ty-six points. Ducks and turkeys have
gone as high as ninety mine points, or
just one point less than perfection.
1t is easy enough for a poultry raiser
to create new breed of fowls, but to
have that new breed recognized by the
American Poultry association and placed
in the Guide Book is another matter.
There must be good reason for recog-
nizing the breed. A new breed that the
association fails to recognize will be of
no value to the poultry raiser for it will
not sell. 1t is well that this is so. 9th
erwise, money sharks would be continu-
ally crossing old breeds and putting
forth new ones to sell to ignorant buyers
and make them think they were getting
some good blooded fowls.