Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 19.djvu/669

Rh POULTRY 645 accomplished by careful selection in breeding and not by crossing with any other breed. Malayan Fowls. The Malayan type has been long recog nized as of Eastern origin. The birds are of large size, close and scant in plumage, with very long legs and necks. The Gallus giganteus of Temminck, which he regarded erroneously as a distinct species, belonged to this group, as did the Kulm fowl and the Grey Chittagong of the United States. The Malays are of savage disposition. Several smaller breeds of a somewhat similar type are known as Indian Game ; some of these, as the Aseels, are of indomitable courage. Until the arrival of the so-called Cochin breeds from the north of China, Malays were the largest fowls known in Europe and were employed to impart size to other varieties by crossing. Cochins. This type, which must be regarded as in cluding not only the birds generally so called but also the Brahmas and Langshans, is of very large size, some of the males reaching the great weight of 16 or 17 H&amp;gt;. They are distinguished by a profusion of downy plumage, with small wings and tails ; they are incapable of long flight, and the pectoral muscles are consequently but feebly developed. The Cochins originally imported from Shanghai were of several colours ; some of the grey birds in America were crossed with the grey Chittagong, the Brahmas being the result of the cross, and they have been long since estab lished as a pure breed, faithfully reproducing their own type. The Langshans are a more recent importation ; since their introduction they have been bred by careful selection for eating, and have fuller breasts and less abun dant plumage than the older-known Cochins and Brahmas. Kecently a sub- variety of Cochin has been raised in America by crossing with a cuckoo-coloured breed long known as Dominiques. These have become fashionable under the name of Plymouth Rocks. They are cuckoo-coloured, viz., each feather is marked with transverse grey stripes on a lighter ground, and, as in all cuckoo-coloured breeds, the cocks are of the same colour as the hens ; their legs are not feathered, and the plumage is not so loose as that of the more typical Cochins. They are admirable layers, but the intense yellow of the skin lessens their value for the table. Spanish. The Spanish or Mediterranean type is well marked. The birds are of moderate size, with large single erect combs and white ear-lobes. In the black Spanish the whiteness of the ear-lobe extends over the face, and its size has been so greatly developed by cultivation that in some specimens it is 6 or 7 inches in length and several in breadth. Closely related to the Spanish, differing only in colour of plumage and extent of white face and ear- lobe, are the white and brown Leghorns, the slaty- blue Andalusians, the black Minorcas, &c. All are non-incu bators, the desire to sit having been lost in the tendency to the increased production of eggs, which has been de veloped by the persistent and long-continued selection of the most fertile layers. Hamburyhs. The Hamburghs, erroneously so called from a name given them in the classification adopted at the early Birmingham shows, are chiefly breeds of English origin. They have double combs and small white ear- lobes. There are various sub- varieties. Those with a dark crescent-like mark on the end of each feather of the hen are termed Spangled Hamburghs. Others are of uniform black plumage. A somewhat similar breed of smaller size, with each feather of the hens marked with trans verse bands of black on a white or bay ground, is termed Pencilled Hamburghs ; they were formerly knoAvn as Dutch everyday Layers. These breeds are all non-sitters and lay a remarkably large number of eggs. Crested Fowls. The crested breeds have long been culti vated on the Continent and are admirably delineated in the pictures by Hondekoeter and other early Dutch artists. In Great Britain they are erroneously termed Polish. The development of the feathered crest is accompanied by a great diminution in the size of the comb, which is some times entirely wanting. The wattles also are absent in some breeds, their place being occupied by a large tuft of feathers, forming what is termed the &quot;beard.&quot; In all the crested breeds there is a remarkable alteration of the cranium, the anterior part of the skull forming a prominent hollow tuberosity which contains a very large part of the brain. This portion of the brain-case is rarely entirely ossified. There are numerous sub- varieties of crested fowls. The best-known breeds in England are the spangled, with a dark mark at the end of each feather. This mark often assumes a crescent shape, the horns of the crescent sometimes running up each margin of the feather so as to form a black border ; feathers so marked are termed &quot; laced &quot; by poultry-fanciers. There are also white Polish and a buff variety. A very distinct sub -variety is the black breed with a white crest on the head and large pen dent wattles. A variety with the arrangement of these colours reversed was formerly known, but it has now be come extinct. Some of the larger breeds of the west of Europe are closely related to the Polish. The Creve-coeur is a crested breed of uniform black colour ; it is of large size and of great value for the table and for egg-produc tion. The Houdan is a black and white breed of very similar character. In some breeds the form of the body and structure of bones of the face closely resemble those of the Polish, but there is an absence of the feathered crest, the crescent -shaped comb becoming more largely deve loped ; such are those known as Guelders, Bredas, and La Fleche, the latter being the best French fowl for eating. A small white-crested variety, profusely feathered on the legs, was received some twenty years since (1864) from Turkey ; they are now known as Sultans. The crested breeds are all non-incubating. Dorkings. The Dorking type includes fowls that have for many generations been bred for the supply of the London markets. They are all fleshy on the breast and of fine quality. The Dorkings have an extra toe, a mon strosity which leads to disease of the feet. The Surrey and Sussex fowls are four-toed. The coloured Dorkings were greatly increased in size some few years since by crossing with an Indian breed of the Malay type. The birds of the Dorking type are fair layers and good sitters. They are rather delicate in constitution and are chiefly bred in the south of England. Crossed with the Game breed they furnish a hardy fowl, plumper than the Dorking and larger than the Game, which is of unsurpassed excellence for the table. Mating a Dorking cock with large Game hens is found to be the most advantageous. Silk Folds. These constitute a singular variety, in which the barbs of the feathers are not connected by barbules and the entire plumage has a loose fibrous appearance ; similar variations are found amongst other species of birds, but are soon lost in a wild state. The silk fowl best known is that in which the plumage is perfectly white, whilst the skin, cellular tissue between the muscles, and the periosteum covering the bones are a deep blue -black, the comb and wattles being a dark leaden blue. The birds are admir able sitters and mothers, and are much valued for rear ing pheasants, being of somewhat small size. Though of remarkable appearance when cooked, they are of good quality. In crosses with other breeds the silky character of the plumage is generally lost, but the dark skin and intermuscular cellular tissue remain and greatly lessen the value of the birds in the market. Frizzled fowls are birds in which each feather curls out-