Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-06-14
The Rhode Island Red.

The Rhode Island red. a good mother
and a good layer. is distinctly American.
The breed originated in Rhode Island,
where 1t got its name. but the blood of
the strain came from the far east
The history of the breed goes back
some sixty years. few years before
the beginning of the last half of the last
century several specimens of the Cochin
| China were imported to this country from
Cochin. China. The breed had before this
been imported into England, where they
were known as the Royal Cochin China
because they We're fancied and bred by
the Queen of England.
The cockerels of this breed were usu-
ally red in color. Their legs Were OF a
reddish yellow. One OF the first to get
some of these specimens was a man in
Little Compton, X. l., a little later the
Malays were brought here from Asa
Some of the Malay birds We're redder
| than others. These reds and the red
Cochin China cocks We're crossed with 3
mock OF Little Compton, and by continu.
ally breeding the reddest of the Cochin
and the Malay cocks the breed was start
| ed. In some instances the Brown Leg
horn blood was infused into the red
The Rhode Islands continued because
they produced a fairly pretty bird that
was an excellent egg layer and Il 4ood
table fowl. That they were producing
new breed did not concern them unit i
late in the nineties, when a few pro-
ducefs OF the birds met In FAN River
and organized the Rhode Island Red
. Cup In December, 1898. "a meeting was
held of many who We're interested IN the
BIRDS, and a standard for Rhode Island
reds was formulated. More detail was
added to the points a few Years later
when the membership had Increased to
ABOUT loo. many of whom Were then
breeding in several states.
W hen the breeders attempted to have
inc redS is Ken into the standard of
perfection. there big rumpus
The opposition was indeed great They
We're called mongrels, with no beauty
and no good blood. But the beauty.
the feather coloring. came i'm time. The
night was kept up and the birds finally
entered as standard birds-the single
comb in 1904 and year later the rose
comb We're brought in american
reds
Today the breeders of the Rhode
Island reds are known far and wide.
Many would have no Others.
The standard weight of the Rhode
Island red is: Cock. eight and one-half
pounds; hen. six and one-half pounds:
cocliereis. seven and one-half pounds;
pulfets. five pounds.
-,s most people know. the red lays
Il
number TOO. Besides the two stand
arc breeds mentioned, there are also
the pea comb and, strangely enough,
the white Rhode Island red. The pea
comb Rhode Island red was at one
time admitted to the standard Of per-
fection but later it was thrown out.
Tne total number. of eggs laid during
the tWenty-fourth week OF the inter-
national contest was LOO, Il gain of
tycenty-eiGht over the previous week.
The leading pens We're White Wyan-
dottes owned by Mrs. Fl. Francis
Haynes of Shoupe, Idaho, and the sim
gle comb White Leghorns, owned by
". L. Sleegu OF York. Pa. Each Of
these pens. five birds. laid thirty eggs.
Two pens We're tied with twentynine,
and six with twentHeight. The larg-
est egg Tor the week was laid by a
White plymouth Rock belonging to
Lewis G. Tyreman of East Strouds-
burg, Pa. Tom Baron OF catforth, Eng
land is still in the lead with his single
comb White Leghorns, which have laid
SAG eggs. One Of this pen has laid 1872
eggs i'll five and one-half months.