Divine intervention group

[jungold]

ED PINE, FRANK STRYKER AND THE ALBANY COMBINE

By: E.T. Piper
Ed Pine was born and lived all his life at south Cairo, New York in the foothills of the catskill mountains. It was also home of Frank Stryker, another cocker, don’t get Frank Stryker and Jack Stryker mixed up. Jack lived in New Jersey and had fowl of various kinds, including greys. they were not related and it `s doubtful if they were acquainted with one another. Frank Stryker eventually became a member of what some refereed to as the “Albany combine” that is Billy Lawman, John Hoy and others who controlled the Lawman white hackles and muffs : considered by men living today, who saw them in their prime, as the greasiest fowl ever to land on these shores. they came to Billy lawman at Schenectady, new York from his father in the north of England near the Scottish border, hence the name “north brittions” which, I believe, was first applied to them in this country, in the early 1900 `s, frank Stryker was fighting a family of Charley Brown Shawlnecks that were very good fowl.

This was in what cockers have always referred to as “eastern ‘New York State and the vicinity, which included south Cairo. Stryker was very successful with his Shawlnecks and was considered quite a cocker. along about this time, john hoy moved to Albany, N.Y. from Brooklyn/NJ, in short order, he became associated with Billy lawman with his muffs and white hackles. hoy was an outstanding cocker and feeder, and he and lawman soon began going to town with their fowl, one of their early victims was frank Stryker and his shawls. friend `s of frank tried to console him by saying he got some tough breaks, but he was too smart a cocker to swallow that. he said the cocks that beat him were the best he ever saw, that he would not only never try to beat them again, he was going to try to and get in with hoy and lawman and get some. that is exactly what he did, he crossed them over his charley brown shawls and began going to town with the cross. they where outstanding fowl in every way Lawman and Hoy fought some of them and did equally well with them. they { the cross} became known as Stryker whitehackles.

Shawlnecks and white hackles have always been almost identical in appearance and the cross made a family outstanding, typical whitehackles. in referring to these fowl , i say the cross made the stryker whitehackes,but i may be and probaly am, in error there for this reason,after stryker got in with Hoy and Lawman, he could get anything from them he wanted.exactly how he bred from then on no one would know for sure.all that is known for certain is that the stryker white hackle were a combination of blood of Lawman whitehackle and Charley Brown shawl. probaly, if the lawman blood was as outstanding as it was claimed, he leaned in that direction with his breeding and put in more lawman blood,cutting down on the shawl. the combine went to town to beating everyone as Billy lawman said, from new York City to buffalo, NY it has been said they beat Kearney and Duryea five times out of six and Dennis mahoney and many others old-timers. mahoney died in 1907, so many of these mains must have been between 1902 and 1907 when mahoney died. i believe John Hoy fed most of their mains. there were no tournaments or derbies in those days.

somewhere between 1902 and 1915 which is closer to the time Stryker died, Ed Pine, was a tall,gamgly young fellow and helped Stryker work his cocks and also walked them, Stryker had been a butcher and it was said his wife was an Indian, or part Indian, who knew nothing about and cared less about her husband `s chickens. so when Stryker died suddenly, Ed Pine fell heir to all of the Stryker fowl. from then on, they were known as Ed Pine `s strykers.lawman dided somewhere between 1911 and 1920, and Hoy went along with his lawman fowl and pine with his Stryker fowl. both did exceptionally well. hoy died in 1929 but had been inactive several years previous due to old age. Pine, between 1915 and 1935 when for practical purposes quit the game. probably fought more mains and won a larger majority than any cocker who ever lived in this county.

[jungold]

Arkansas Travelers
by F.E. Montgomery

Something like a year ago, I believe, I promised my uncle, Mr. W.M. Smith that I would attempt to write the history of the Arkansas Travelers. This history serves as a link connecting the Montgomery Travelers with the old time Sledge and Hanna strain. My original blood was selected from the very best matings we had. Now, so far as real facts are concerning as to the original blood, I know very little, only that the old Nick Arrington fowl, of North Carolina. served as the foundation on which to build. This North Carolina fowl came into hands of Col. Jim Rogers, of Arkansas, who fought them for years. This same Rogers’ fowl was named and became famous as the “Arkansas Travelers”. Sledge and Hanna, and also Mr. Sam H. Jones met all comers for years with great success.

When I was a small boy the late W.H. Hackney, of Wesson, Mississippi, and my uncle, W.M. Smith, ordered a pen of pure Sledge and Hanna Arkansas Travelers direct from Mr. Sledge. I was only seven years old, but I remember just as though it were yesterday, going to my grandfather’s to see these Travelers. I can now see the little blue stag, the prettiest thing on earth. I had always loved game chickens and had a few that my uncle had given me, but I offered all I had for a stag from this mating. I was assured first choice of the stags, and just as soon as they were large enough to tell the roosters from the pullets I went up to make my selection. Don’t anyone reach the conclusion that though only a boy in my eighth year, I did not know just what kind of stag to select. My uncle said when I made my selection he knew he had lost his best. I brought my stag home and began daily to give him all the feed he would stand. In a few months I had a real stag ready for a good country walk. This I found with a colored man on our farm. Time passed and the stag became a real cock, most two years old, and ready for the pit. One evening my uncle came to my room, and what do you suppose he wanted? The country boys were hacking with the Wesson boys in two weeks, and they (the country boys) wanted to use “Arkansas”, as I called my cock in one of these fights. I was assured that nothing on earth could whip my rooster and when I was offered 25 cents for the use of him, I gladly let him go. “Arkansas” was the prettiest cock on earth, I thought, a light dove colored blue-red with dark eyes and legs, peacombed, and weighed about 5.10.

I knew nothing of how they cut out all the hackles and saddle feathers in that day. If I had, he never would have gone. “Arkansas” proved as good as he looked, whipping a three time winner in the first buckle. When he came home, trimmed up, I became disgusted with my deal and traded him for a stag. Every year I would exchange for another cock or choise stag and 25 xents, my uncle’s way of keeping a good walk. Until this day my uncle has never denied my obtaining his best cock or stag if I wanted them or needed them.

Time passed and I became 15 years old and knew enough, I thought, to begin breeding for myself. I got a setting of eggs and raised a stag and five pullets. The stag was a brown-red. All had dark eyes and legs. I didn’t want to breed my stag to the five pullets, so I paid my uncle another visit to select a stag from a different yard to breed to these pullets. He was a compact fellow, and you could tell by seeing him move around he was going to make a “storm”, and he matured into the prettiest Pyle I ever saw.

After they had appiled the shears to old “Arkansas”, I had not sent any more to the pit, but just traded them outright. My uncle assured me that the Pyle stag mated to the five pullets would produce the greatest chickens on earth. I secured a good yard on a free range with a tennant on our place and brought every bird he raised. I bred by stag two years, walking my young stags, mating the old cocks with pullets, and my choicest stags over my old hens.

The next fall my uncle came to see me and brought R.B. Shelton and Will Allen with him. Shelton and Allen had a main closed to be fought at Allison Wells, Mississippi, with Mr. John Taylor. They said they just had to have my cock to pit against a certain weight of Mr. Taylor’s that had already whipped “Ole Hitler”. My uncle let them have the cock. The fight came on and the stag defeated the cock in two pittings.

That was my first time to see Mr. Shelton. We remained warm friends from that time until his death. He and my uncle bought all of my stock and fought and shipped them every where. Mr. Shelton once said to my uncle, “Bill, Gene had the best Blues on earth.” The last time he visited me he bought six of my choicest brood stags and had them on his brood yard at the time of his death.

From the time I was fifteen years old until 1918, I bred a few chickens of the purest and best of the old Arkansas Travelers. In March, 1918, I let my uncle look after my chickens while I was away in the world war. I was gone eleven months and four days when I received my discharge. I resolved to purchase a farm and to raise the best travelers possible. My uncle was to buy all that I could spare at a standard price. In the course of three years the demand for the Arkansas Travelers and the Newell Roundheads continued to increase.
The Arkansas Travelers is one of the oldest strains. You can watch all the game journals of today and wherever pitted he wins a greater percentage of battles than any other strain you can find. When pitted the Traveler is eager to go, and will give you the very best that is in him at once. This often in the first pitting. The Travelers come dark blues, light blues, red-blues, pyles, duck-winged reds, brown or black-reds, and occesionally a gray. Legs are generally dark with now and then a yellow or white, eyes from a firey red to black. Weight 4.08 to 7 pounds. They are quick to score and all do not fight alike any more than they are colored alike. Some are smart and careful, while others rush in and bill, shuffle and roll. However, the smart ones do this in close corners.

I have not fought many large mains or tournaments, but my cocks have, in my customer’s hands and in the hands of my uncle and Mr. Shelton, meeting all comers for years, and with much success. In Juarez, in 1926, the greatest cock shown was a little duck-wing red cock, 5.02 bred by me, and when my uncle won the great Memphis Tournament in 1924, my cocks won 100%. Mr. E.J. Deacy, of Flint, Michigan, won second money in a tournament last season, using three of my stags, all winning. I could produce hundreds of letters where they have defeated the best in America, but space and time will not permit.

I now have fifteen well mated yards, every one bred on free country range, and will say that the demand for them is satisfactory. This in itself is sufficient proof that the Montgomery Travelers of today equals the old time blood of Sledge and Hanna and Sam H. Jones. I line bred from the very beginning, and have kept them that way, having two families to select brood stock form. My uncle and myself have exchanged brood cocks with each other until there is no question, in our minds, as to their ability, gameness, etc.

In selecting my brood yards I am very particular in selecting the hen. The hens must have attention if the breeder succeeds in making his strain meet the demands of the cockers in the pit

[jungold]

BLACK AND BROWNRED

Log Cabin Sid Taylors
by : Fulldrop

The original strain of the chickens from which the Sid Taylor’s of today were made goes back many years before the civil war of 1861. these chickens were bred by Jim shy of lexington,ky..shy lived near the racetrack at Lexington and bred his chickens on the farm of Jim price, who lived near pinegrove,ky.. their farm join the land owned by mr.gay on which he lived and bred his chickens. price was interested in all kinds of sports events and he backed shy `s cocks heavily shy fought his cocks in Lexington and other places very successfully no one seems to know what these chickens were. the cocks came red, brown red ,pyle and blue red. with many of them having white feathers in there wings and tails. mr.gay had an uncle who lived near pinegrove who remember walking cocks for prive and shy in the fifties. soon after the war of the sixties Sid Taylor got chickens from shy. he told mr.gay that they were the first real good , dependable winning cocks he has ever had . although he had been breeding and fighting cocks before that time. mr.taylor was closely associated with shy until his death in 1892.shy was said to be nighty years old when he died. he became blind eight or ten years before his death. when his eye sight became very bad he gave mr.taylor all of his gaffs and all his chickens. the fist cross mr.taylor made on the shy chickens was in the early sevenies. in 1869, George cadwallader gave Taylor 6 black importer Irish hens. of the 6 black Irish hens Taylor put a blue cock that came from shy.. Mr. Taylor was supplying cocks to tom o`neal and wadle,he crosses the wadle Irish [ black cock with black eyes know as the blackberry eyes] into his chickens . the wadle Irish came dark or mulbery color faces the hens were black cocks being dark red. this was about 1880 he also made a cross with o`neal doms and established a yard of doms. since that time mr.taylor had one yard of his chickens that showed dom color, and mr.gay had done the same thing since. the dom blood has never been bred into the other families and they never showed dom markings..the other families were bred into the dom family from time to time,. the dom color had been kept up, but they do not always bred for color. mr.taylor`s cocks were dom,and with a brown red some of them showed white feathers in the tail and wings. the brown red family mr.gay developed himself. in 1912 mr.gay fought brow red stag from the red family.that he liked so much that he bred to him and contented to breed to him until 1920 when he died. this cock was kept at a log cabin on the farm and he came to be know as log cabin and the children from him called log cabin. today the log cabin family are largely the blood of this first cock. log cabin had 21 full brothers nineteen of them won their first fights. many won more. log cabin was a 6 time winner. the progeny of log cabin have been largely responsible for the Sid taylor winning the national tournament at Orlando in 1922 and again in 1924 tourament. there was one log cabin `s sons that won the 6ths fight in 1922 and the shake battle in 1924 tourament. mr.gay has used this cock for two seasons as a brood cock. the sid taylors are purely a KY product the foundation stock being old shy chickens into the chickens mr.taylor put import Irish blood from hudderson in the early seventies. in the early eighties Taylor again crossed import Irish blood from wadle. these two infusions of imported Irish blood into shy chickens made all the families of the Sid taylors except the doom family which has the addition of o`neal dom blood about 1870. there has been no other blood put into the Sid taylors since these crosses where made by Taylor a period of over forty years. they have only been in the hands of two men Taylor and gay.

[jungold]

Sid Taylors
by P.P. Johnston
This is straight out of the Gamecock (1946)

The original strain of chickens from which the Sid Taylors of today were made goes back many years before the Civil War of 1861. These chickens were bred by Jim Shy of Lexington, Ky. Mr. Shy’s names has been spelled in several ways- Shigh and Shei, Shy seems to be correct, as it is spelled Shy in the Turf Guide and in accounts of races, in which his horses ran, in old copies of “The Spirit of the Times.” He is remembered today by some of the oldtimers round Lexington, who speak of him as a sporting man of the highest honor. Shy lived near the racetrack at Lexington and bred his chickens on the farm of Jim Price, who lived near Pinegrove, Ky. Their farm joins the land owned by Mr. Gay on which he lives and breeds his chickens. Price was interested in all kinds of sporting events and he backed Shy’s cocks heavily. Shy fought his cocks in Lexington and other places very sucessfully. The cocks came red, brown-red,pyle and bluereds, many of them having white feathers in their tails and wings. Mr. Gay had an uncle who lived near Pinegrove who remembered walking cocks for Price and Shy in the fifties.

Soon after the war of the sixties, Sid Taylor got the chickens from Shy. Mr Taylor was closely associated with Shy until his death in 1892. When his eyesight began to fail he gave Mr. Taylor his gaffs and all his chickens.

First Cross

The first cross that Mr. Taylor made on the Shy chickens was in the early seventies. In 1869 George Cadwallader, who had been a jockey and was at that time a race horse trainer, sold a horse named Pompey Payne to W.R. Babcock, and Easter turf man, for $15,000, and as a further consideration he was to get six black imported Irish hens that Mr. Babcock was to procure from a man named Hudderson, of Rhode Island. Cadwallader then gave his chickens to Mr. Taylor.
I have seen a letter written a few years ago to Mr. Gay by George Cadwallader verifying these statements.

On these six Irish hens, Mr. Taylor put a blue cock that came from Shy. Noone knows the proportion of this blood Mr. Taylor put into his chickens, but with them hw suceeded in winning the respect of Tom O’Neal, the great Dom breeder and cocker of Louisville, Ky. Tom O’Neal was associated with Waddle, who controlled most of the gambling houses in Louisville at the time. Mr. Taylor furnished a great many cocks to O’Neal and Wadle. Mr. W. Pragnoff, of Louisville, Ky and Wadle imported from Vinegar Hill, Ireland, some game chickens.

These chickens were called Waddle Irish. They had black eyes and dark or mulberry colored faces. The hens are black, the cocks very dark red, and dark brown red. Mr Pragnoff has talked of the importance of these chickens with Mr. Gay many times.

During the time that Mr. Taylor was furnishing cocks to Tom O’Neal and Wadle, he crossed the Wadle Irish into his chickens. This was about 1880. He also made a cross with the O’Neal Doms and established a yard of Doms. Since that time Mr. Taylor had one yard that showed the Dom color and Mr. Gay has done the same since. The Dom blood has never been bred into the other families and they never show Dom markings. The other families were bred into the Dom family from time to time and the Dom color has been kept up but they do not always breed to color. Mr. Taylors cocks were Doms, Blues, Brown Blacks, Reds and Gray Reds, with a few Brown Reds. Some of them showed white feathers in the tail and wings.

The Origin of the Log Cabins

The Brown Red family Mr. Gay has developed himself. In 1912 Mr Gay fought a Brown Red stag from the red family that he like so much that he bred to him and continued to breed him until 1920, when he died. This cock was kept at a log cabin on the farm and he came to be known as Log Cabin and the chickens from him were called Log Cabins. Today the Log Cabin families are largely the blood of theis one cock. Log Cabin had 21 full brothers.

The Sid Taylors are purely a Ky. product, the foundation stock being the old Shy chickens. Into the Shy chickens, Mr. Taylor put the imported Irish blood from Hudderson in the early seventies. In the early eighties, Mr. Taylor again crossed in Irish blood, named the Wadle Irish. These two infusions of imported Irish blood into the Shy chickens made all the families of the Sid Taylors, except the Dom family, which has the addition of O’Neal Dom blood about 1870. There has been no other blood put into the Sid Taylor since these crosses were made by Mr. Taylor-a period of over 40 years. The Sid Taylors have the right to be classed as a pure and distinct strain and for over 40 years they had been in the hands of only two men, their originators, Mr. Sid Taylor and Mr. J.D. Gay.

[jungold]

Black Mcraes
By Bluff Creek

William McRae

The black mcraes were bred from jack wactor of nigger trotter and calvin hux kelso..they come several; different collors from black reds to black,to light reds to dark light reds with red or black eyes…..william has known the wactor family for almost 1/2 a century.,and got 100 baby stags every other year..william started buyin them from Sam and later JACK and sold them soley to fight in the Philipines,after the vietnam controversy he started sellin to the hawaiian islands and all acrosss the us because of the popularity of the long knife…….William McRae also had put some griffen clarret in his blacks at one time along with some democrat from blondy……..the black macraes are strongly infused of nigger round head and hux kelso…as up to the year 2000……they can fight and born to boogie ..William macrae was on one of the 1st long knife men to ship from the states to the philipines and was around about the korean war to my knowledge… AND started sending the blacks after the vietnam contoversy….he has been a supplier well over 3 0r 4 decades….. A very nice gentlemen indeed-he also stated that the lk birds had to be deep game to compete in compitition,not like you hear today that they dont……..i agree with william,game chickens that can fight like hell ,and fly in a fight can deliver and get out of the way is best for this type of fighting….he was one
of the first legends to supply and dominate the long knife in the 60s , 70s and early 80s…then he became a supplier…but he had an eye for chickens if that makes any sense…

William was a breeder and produced fowl that he had acquired… to my understanding he had got some clarrets from griffen along with some round heads from blondy roland along time back…they were pretty decent fowl and macrae fought them and i cant say how he bred them..but i do know its true about his black fowl that made him a reputable breeder for long k fanciers..an to be honest -i believe the yellow legged p comb democrats from the paytons to be bred similar to the red macres that they inherited-or recieved from blondy while he was in the hospital of the last round head infusion- blondy liked the green legged st comb ones best…. mcraes reds were very reputable fowl…and looked like the democrats of the paytons…..mcrae got em from blondy and griffen long before bobby and buddy payton had em…. hope ya can find more about them red mcraes……

[jungold]

HAMMOND GORDON: Originator, J. H. Hammond, S. C. Bloodlines: Bacon Warhorse, Aldrick Mugwump, infused Rood Warhorse.

Gordons
By: Terry Roberts

The Gordon’s was made from 2 well know strains of fowl. The first line was Warhorses. In Augusta GA, a man by the name Barney Dunbar was the wealthiest man in that part of the south. He loved game fowl very much an in bout 1850 he sent John Stone a trail of a few seasons. These gilders proved to be very game. In the meantime Col. Thos. G. Bacon of Edgefield S.C. found some wonderful fighting cocks in Baltimore, MD. Col. Bacon brought of Marblehead, Massach. an purchased a trio of stones Irish Gilders. This trio was placed on the yard of Mr. Tom Wilson of beech S.C. Where they was to be breed by Mr. Dunbar. After some of these was to be cocks they were the best cocks up until that time. They was wonderful fighting a cutting cocks. Col. Bacon decided to try to cross some with some fowl called Baltimore fowl of the Irish Gilders. Because some of the Warhorses would run they hoped that the Gilders would make them better fighters. So he took a cock called BURNT EYES a breed them a there by produce a great strain of fowl. So the old burnt-eye cock was put over hens of the Irish-Gilderhens that came from Mass. A number of stags was raised. Now remember the Gilder hens was put on the yard of Mr.Tom Wilson so he raised the stags from branny cock to gilder hens. It so happen that Tom was wanting a saddle so one day one policeman of Augusta GA his name was Peter Sherron had one he didn’t need so he made a A trade with Tom Wilson. The saddle for one of the stag cross of burnt-gilder. In 1856 in Aug. GA Bacon & Bohler fought a main against Franklin of Columbia S.C. Bacon an Bohler used a number of these stags along with the stag that was a cock by now of sherron. This cock made top weight at 6-04. This cock meet his opponent in the air both came down to ground a both shuffling a fell apart in dying condt. The policeman cockvomited a mouthful of blood staggered over the Columbia cock a made a hard shuffled the sherron cock killed the other cock. Peter Sherron the proud owner jump into the pit a grabbed the cock up a yelled be faither-rs but aint he a war-horse. This cock of sherron was typical burnt eye in appear. Black body, dark legs, black eye, lemon neck. So this is the make up of the old warhorses. Col. Bacon like the brownred fowl. Old Col. John Fair also faced this type of fowl. Hopkinson like the dark colors of these hens was all black the cocks the type of the original warhorse type found. The Baltimore burnt eye cock. As to the fighting qualities of this fowl Bacon & Bohler fought 42 mains a won 40 of them. 41 of these wins was fouth by Bacon an won 40 of the 1 main was fought by Bacon handler an the handler lost by the odd fight. the other side of the gordons is col. Alferd Aldrichs Mugwumps. Will tell later what the mugwumps made from. thanks hope u all read an like this as much as i have.

[jungold]

Black and Tans
by J.C. Miller (1969)

Since I frequently get requests for the breeding of my Black and Tans, I will try to comply to the best of my ability.

The Back and Tan strain was originated by George S. Smith in Washington, D.C. just about 100 years ago. He was a friend of the Eslin Brothers and a few other men that combined to fight many mains along the est coast. At that time mains were very popular and most cocks were fought that way.

Smith did most of the walking of the cocks and was interested in the mains. In that way, he had the use of any of the fowl belonging to the Eslins. In making the Black and Tans he bred a Redhorse cock over Redquill hens and also a Requill cock over redhorse hens. Both crosses proved to be extra good so he continued to hold the blood at about 50/50.

The Redhorse blood came form what was supposed to be a strain of cocks from Lord Derby in England. These were black-red and brown-red with dark legs and large, dark eyes and long, tough plumage. They were powerful built cocks and wicked cutters. The Redquills were a cross of Redhorse and a strain of light red cocks with dark eyes and mostly green legs and bred very true to color. In build they were very similar to the Redhorse. A saloon man in Washington, Harry Midleton made the same cross and fought them very successfully and advertised them for many years as Middleton Rusty Reds. In reality the Black and tans resulting from this cross was actually 3/4 Redhorse and 1/4 Redquill which left them showing plainly both sides of the cross.

In color they came very few black-red, mostly brown-red with few gingers and a very few that came true Quill color. An interesting feature, if two quill colored fowl were bred together their get would nearly all look like pure quills. The hens are a solid rusty black, some with straw neck, some whipoorwill ginger and quill color.

The cocks are well built, broad backs, long thighs and low set spurs. They have long, tough feathers and a very proud carriage. They are rather nervous, high strung cocks and I never liked to sell them to a beginner as they could be made bad man-fighters. For me they seldom went to the drag as they always tried for a quick kill. They could cut well in most any length or style of heel except the extremely curved blades.

Most cockers will look at their color and quickly reach the conclusion that they are “speed” cocks but in checking their breeding it is easy to see that they are pure “power” cocks.

The Black and Tans had the enviable reputation in the east of winning many mains and losing very few. Smith and the Elsins took their cocks thru the south and won practically every main. Then to Mexico with about the same results in both gaffs and slashers.
When I was a boy I lived near a man that ran a saloon and was a very enthusiastic cocker. He was not in a position to breed any cocks but bought all that he used. He always fought mains, hacked only the ones left over from the mains.

He bought most of his cocks from George Smith and did well with them. In each shipment he got several brown-red cocks that seemed to be extra good and asked what they were and was informed that they were Black and Tans.

About that time he found that I was crazy about game cocks and I became welcome to his cock house at any time. He asked how I would like to raise some Black and Tans and when I agreed he sent to Smith and got two hens. He mated them with a 6.0 cock that had won several times for him and gave them to me. For several years I raised them and let him fight the stags. Several years past and this saloon man contracted TB and sold out and moved to Arizona where he did not live too long. When he left, he gave me the few Black and Tans that he had left.

About that time I became aware of the advantages of single mating and from then until I retired single mated my fowl. For the big breeder that makes a business of selling fowl this practice is too slow to produce many fowl so they flock mate and depend on artificial incubating and brooding. I bought a farm with timber, grain fields, running water and kept many cattle and horses which made an ideal range for game fowl. This farm was also over half a mile from any other farm buildings.

Around here there are many canning factories and they use many migrant workers of mostly Mexican birth and they are great on cock fighting. Some of them came to me to buy cocks and I found that they were fighting in slashers. After they went home they still sent for cocks. That was my introduction to slasher fighting and that was several years before shipping slasher cocks became a big business here in the U.S.

I think it was in 1955 that I sent Maynard Mann and the late Jim Gooch several Black and Tan cocks and hens. I did not hear from them for several years, when a letter came from Mann saying that he was winning with what cocks he could match but that they were coming so big that he could not get them matched. He said that he had over 40 stags that were already shakes and too young to pen. He wanted to know if I could use them. It happened that at that time I had customers to take every cock or stags that I could raise and would take light weights. I showed Mr. Mann where to place his cocks and stags and I think he has still never caught up with his orders. Don’t take this as a free plug for Mr. Mann as he has an ad every month in Grit and Steel.

In the spring of 1945, a group of local cockers came to me and asked me to build a pit knowing that I had an ideal location for a pit less than a mile off a state road and a quarter mile from the road in the edge of a woods. The pit was ready for the 1946-1946 season and for 20 years it was operated with no trouble or interference. I don’t think a man ever came that failed to get a cock matched or his money covered.

After listing the good qualities of the Black and Tans the reader may wonder why they are not so popular as some other strains. One is as I mentioned before is their disposition. The cocks are hard to handle and are easily made manfighters. The hens are exceptionally mean when brooding chix. and are apt to kill several while trying to protect them. Also the hens even while on a walk will start fighting and one or both will be dead if not found in time. Chix with the hen will start fighting and practically eat each others head off. The light reds and greys that are so popular now are easier to condition, stand confinement better and the hens and chix are easier to handle. Many of my customers were experienced cockers and fought for high stakes. When they got good cocks they hesitated to tell where they got them. They simply fight them as Brown-Reds. I also feel that several well known cockers have incorporated more or less Black and Tan blood into their strains.

Smith Black and Tans should not be confused with another strain originated quite a few years after the Smith strain gained their well deserved popularity. This strain started by an eccentric cocker in Maryland, faded after a few years.

In giving the history of a strain quite often after it is published one or more persons will appear with a very much different version. To this I will say that what I have written is what George Smith personally wrote me.

[jungold]

Aldrich Mugwumps
by Col. Alfred Aldrich (1919)

Referring to the orgin of the Mugwump strain of game fowl, I will say that back in the distant past there was a turfman and cock fighter of this state by the name of Col. Thomas G. Bacon who bred and pitted the most successful cocks of that age. His original stock came from John Stone, of Massachusetts. About the same time Major Burnett Rhett, of Charleston, S.C. bred and fought a strain B.B. Reds woh cocks’ had the reputation, deservedly, of being the gamest cocks of their age.
I got a pair of Bacon fowl and a trio of Rhett’s and crossed them and by selection produced a strain which I maned Mugwump. Mugwump is an Indian name and in the Algonquin language it means Big Chief.
About the year 1890 I crossed into my strain a B.B. red cock with yellow legs that I got from Baltimore. I do not know who bred this cock or what strain he came from. This cock was a spangle in his third year, a white at the fourht molting and remained white until his death. Before I bred any of his sons to a yard of my mugwump hens, I satisfied myself that he was a game cock.
The first and only one of his sons that I used as a brood cock was a black with yellow legs and beak, had a few white feathers in his tail and wings. I fount him in a main at Hibernia Park, Charleston, S.C., where a number of fine cocks fought in the two days of a main and the concensus of opinion was that he outclassed any cock shown on either side. He was a high flying cock and never tried to bill as long as his adversary could stand on his feet. In several of his fights, he killed opponents without ever touching hom with his mouth.
It was invariably my practice to breed from the best fighter of his year and never to breed from any cock until he had fought several battles, in order that I might determine his quality. I bred this black cock to a yard of my choicest pure Mugwumps hens and he sired several black stags and occasionally a white stag or pullet. From him I got my white and Black Mugwumps.Always the White and Black Mugwumps were bred exactly alike.
Note the staement that I ama bout to make, namely: that no Mugwump of the present day, no matter where he or she may be found, has any blood in its composition save what came from that black cock. He was the only son of the Baltimore cock that I bred from and I never used any of the daughters of the Baltimore cock for breeding purposes. If I used a son of the black cock he was invariably mated to pure Mugwump hens.
I once shipped a coop of five cocks to Sr. Bustamente, three reds, 1 black and 1 white, all brothers, and all acted alike in the pit.
In the foregoing I have given the orgin of the Mugwumps, as many of the cock fighters in the South know it be.
In conclusion I will say my main reason in giving you the foregoing information is that I have replied to many letters asking to find the purest Mugwump, to the effect that, in my judgment, your yards will come nearest filling the bill.
I also found an article adding a little more information to the one above.

Aldrich Mugwumps
Gus Frithiof, Sr.
Breeders of the “Old School” know that the Mugwumps were originated by Col. Alfred Aldrich about 90 or more years ago. They also knew that from time to time some whites would appear in the strain after Aldrich bred from s ason of the Baltimore cock. Andrew P. O’Connor of Baltimre, Maryland gave Aldrich this cock. The Baltimore cocks contained white bloodlines in his pedigree and eventually it shows up in the strain. Aldrich had his own reason for denying he knew where the cock came from (the breeder) or had forgotten when he wrote about their bloodlines in 1919.
I hope that this helps clear up the pedigree of the Mugwumps and why some of them can throw – back to the white color in them.
Gus Frithiof, Sr. Austin, Texas

[jungold]

Dehner Racey Mugs

Dehner Racey of Mo., got Mugs from Earl Bigger of York, S.C. in 1935, All came dark. In 1939 he bought a pure O.C. Wilson White Mug cock and crossed him over the black Bigger Mugs. From this cross came several dark blue pullets and several spangle stags, but no whites. He bred one of the spangle stags over the black hens and got about 50 per cent dark blues with lemon hackles, dark eyes and legs but still no pure Whites. These mugs are high breaking, fast shuffling cocks and Racey has won several large derbies with them.

Dehner Racey Mugs
From the Gamecock, July 1998
By: Walter Hall, James River Farm.

This came from the July 1998 gamecock. History of the Racey Mugwumps, The Racey fowl started when Otto Morris, 83-years old of Springfield, Mo.He purchased from Earl Bigger of South Carolina in 1935, some of his dark type mugs and with these fowl Racey and Morris won a good majority. In 1939 a pure white Mugwump cock was purchased from O.K. Wilson of Allendale, SC and mated to the six black hens, full sisters, from the original Earl Bigger stock. The offspring of this mating produced blues, black reds, brown red and one spangle stag, This new blood produced exceptional cutting fowl and a great improvement was noted in speed, disposition and feathering. Being all of mug blood, no difference was noted in conformation. The following year the same black hens were mated back to the spangle stag. A son to mother and aunt mating. This is the breeding that produces 50% dark blues with the rest being brown red, black red, and blacks. It was not until this breeding that they were given the name Racey Mugs. A few years later,and still sticking to speed type cutting Mugwumps a white Mug brood cock was purchased from Frederick of Allendale S.C., and a black Mug with lemon hackles from Earl bigger. These 2 cocks were used over Racey Mug hens and in this way it is now possible for Racey to add desired pit qualities to his fowl without going out of the Mugwump family. The last 2 crosses produced high breaking, shuffling type of cocks. Racey tried a number of crosses on his Mugs, but none were as good as the straight Mugwump family. Thus, all of these trial crosses were discarded. Most people in ordering Racey mugs ask for the blue color, but the brown reds and blacks have just as high a winning percentage in the pit. When being conditioned for the pit, these fowl do better when handled gently, and are at their best fighting in good flesh. Racey got many shake cocks, but prefers smaller ones that fit well into derby.

[jungold]

Stonewalls
by McK. Albergotti (1927)

Just after the close of the Civil War, 1865, Mr. T. C. Albergotti, my father, began raising game fowl, procuring his original stock from Col. Morgan, Col. Tom Bacon and Mr. Cephus McMichel. After breeding these fowl strictly pure and breeding them very close for eight or ten years he found they needed an out-cross. At this time Baltimore cocks were great favorites in Charleston, S.C., and a great many of them were being fought very successfully. We crossed with these cocks for about four years, and the result was magnificent game fowl – rapid, game, savage and beautiful, all that could be desired. We then bred them pure until in the 80′s. Finding that their size and strength were again diminishing, we prospected for an outcross and finally procured a blue-red cock and two hens from Baltimore. As to the result I can only say that they not only never lost a main, but it was a rare ocasion for them to loose a single battle. These fowl were only fought locally in South Carolina. When another out-cross was needed we got a Grist Champion cock, direct from Col. Grist. This cock was an excellent specimen and Col. Grist regarded him very highly. A Dunbar cock from Beech Island, S.C., was bred over one of my yards and over another a cock direct from Col. R. F. Johnson, of Union, S.C. My cocks at this time were making splendid records whosoever they fought.

Mr. H. M. Kent, of Lenoir, N.C., was breeding excellent cocks and having wonderful success with them at this time and I secured a brood cock from him. Up to this time, Jamuary 19000, when we commenced to advertise in Grit and Steel our fowl had no name. We selected the name Stonewall, in memory and honor of the great Confederate chieftain, Stonewall Jackson, whom we all loved.
Since 1900 I have made several crosses, always buying my stock direct from the originator, some of the crosses are as follows: Grist Gradys, Redquills, from Col. Grist, Huddleston’s Inside Reds, from Huddleston; Rood’s Brown Reds, from J.E. Carter, and especially good cross from a cock that I went to Washington, D.C., and selected from the yards of George Smith, a Black and Tan. I have also used Mug cocks and Granger’s Irish cocks. This covers the crosses I have made, in a lifetime. I have ten or twelve yards and I always put this new blood in quarters into my old fowl.

My fowl are strictly American, no importations. They have straight, small combs, no Oriental blod whatsoever. We have infused new blood whenever we thought it necessary, according to our own ideas. My Stonewall fowl, altho not bred for color, are generally brown-reds or black-reds with dark legs and red or black eyes.

[jungold]

Wingate Brownreds
By: Full Drop

1924 Joe Wingate laid aside his life `s work and joined his ancestors. From that time on the once great family of fighting cocks that he had built decined. Though many may boast of having them today, old timers know that the claims have little or no foundation. Back in 1870 , Wingate brought over from north of Ireland a single comb strain of chickens. In color they were mostly brown red, some showing ginger color and all showing dark legs and hazel eyes. The hens were sharp and stylish looking a dark brown or ginger some showing straw neck feathers. They were medium stationed and many grew spurs.one of the Irish hens was a favorite of Joe`s . He had her set up and mounted when she died. This mounting hen is in existence today but looks nothing like the hens of the so-called wingates you see in these later days. The cocks of this family were not big cocks being in condition 5.4 or under, brown or ginger red, dark legs and hazel eyes. Broad backed and not heavy, though strong boned. They were single stroked cocks fast and strong in the mix-up not high flyers, rushing wild hitting cocks they now want to call Wingates. Did Wingate add any new blood to the above family? Of course he did he added the blood of an English hen he brought over a mahogany colored hen with hazel eyes and dark lead colored legs. He bred this hen under the Irish cock and then bread some of those cross back into the original line. The infusion of the English hen `s blood increased the poundage until off and on a cock would weigh 6.2 or 6.4. Holly Chappell enters the picture, Chappell while down in Alabama on one of his trips to the south got hold of a standout cock and brought him home. He bread him over his hens that were understood to be north Briton and brown red crosses. Wingate and Chappell were friends, wingate got one of the cocks out of this cross and bred him over a brown red hen. After reducing the cross some more, he put the blood of the Chappell line into the Irish family. That is the layout of the Wingate Irish brown reds as the old-timers up here in the hills recall it.

Bacon Warhorses

This grand old strain was originated in the 1850′s by Col. Thomas Bacon, of Edgefield, S.C. by breeding a Baltimore Cock (known as Burnt Eyes) over a yard of Irish Gilder hens direct from John Stone, of Marblehead, Mass. The cross procuced wonderful fighting cocks with a savage rushing style of fighting that was then unknown in the south, and proved to be absolutely game, although the “Burnt Eye” cock had produced offsprings from other matings that were considered short on gameness. Col. Bacon bred and fought these fowl for a number of years with marked success as “Burnt Eye-Gilder crosses, ” and it was at a main at Augusta, Georgia, in 1856 between Bacon and Bohler against a Mr. Franklin, of Columbia, S.C. that they were given the name of Warhorse by one Peter Sherron, who owned one of the cocks being fought by Bacon, and which won a sensational battle. Cocks run in weight 4:06 to shakes, and are black or black with lemon hackle and saddle. Hens are black to whipporwill brown, and both have dark legs and daw or hazel eyes. They are among one of our oldest strains, and still extensively bred.

[jungold]

Warhorses
By: Peter Sherron

Please notice that there is no mention of any black fowl in this history of the Warhorse breed nor any mention of a “Fardown blood (which is black)” either.

IN 1855 John Sherron, of Marblehead, Mass., defeated Col. Tom Bacon in a main at Columbia, S.C. He showed two different strains of cocks in the main both were imported from Ireland and were reputable originally stolen by the warden of a vast estate to exchange them for a coon and opossum that came from America. Here they had been carefully bred and guarded for over a century by a line of Irish Earls. One strain, which he called “Gilders” or “Claibornes”, came a bright red color with black or mottled breasts, orange hackle, yellow beak and moccasin legs. The other strain called “Irish Brown Reds: were brown reds or mahogany reds. All straight combed, with black faces and combs, eyes, dark red or hazel brown (not black) with lead or dark legs.

After the main Col. Bacon purchased a Gilder cock and an Irish Brown Red cock from Stone and later received a shipment form Stone of them wheaten- colored Gilder hens and three Whippoorwill Irish Brown Red hens. Major Burnett Rhett, of Chareleston, S.C. purchased the finest cock Stone showed in the main, a 6-lb. mottled breasted brown red, one-half Gilder, one-half Irish Brown Red.

Later Barney Dunbar, a wealthy game fowl fancier (but not a breeder), of Augusta, Ga., went personally to see Stone and got a trio of each family. Dunbar gave the Gilders to Tom Wilson, at Beach Island to breed and these later became famous under the name of “Gaitor Legs”. Dr. Morgan got some of them from Wilson and these were later known as Morgans. Major Rhett also got some hens from Tom (Fowl) Wilson and bred his great Stone cock over them, producing the famous Rhett fowl. These Rhett fowl were three- quarter Gilder, one quarter Irish Brown Red.

Dunbar let Tom Seily keep the trio of “Irish Brown Reds” a year, then carried them to old man Baldwin’s place on Horse Creek where they were bred until Dunbar quit the game and gave them to John Foster. Later Foster quit pitting cocks due to overweight and gave them to an Irishman Peter Sherron on the condition that he be a partner in all mains fought with these cocks. They had by devious methods finally found their true home for Sherron dearly loved them saying he knew of these fowl in Ireland, and that they were both invincible and unobtainable in the old country.

Sherron, who was very impulsive, named a great cock “Warhorse” after a sensational battle and then again the next year after this same cock, here tofore called “Store Keeper”, won the deciding fight in a $3,000.00 main in one of the greatest battles known to cock fighting. After that the family was called “Warhorses”.
After Sherron’s death, Jack Allen bought the fowl and he and his brother in law, Henry Hicks, fought them together until Allen got angry one day because of a sick Warhorse being given away after the main and swore he’d kill or sell every game chicken he owned. On the way home he met Harrison Butler and Jim Clark and told them his intentions. Butler bought all the fowl and the next day he gave a trio of Warhorses to Jim Clark, of Dawson, Ga., a trio to Col. John Fair and a trio to his nephew, Dr. Pierce Butler.

Source: Johnson’s Breeders’ and Cockers’ Guide

[jungold]

Warhorses
by Dal Johnson (1917)

Fashion is a eccentric in the course it takes and goes chasing through a labyrinth of paths most unheard of and ridiculous, but once steadied and on the serving back to reason ever turns first to some past object of popular and meritorious favoritism, hence it is not surprising that the fancy of game chicken men is turning just now to the two greatest families if fighting fowl ever sent ot America from the British Isles. Manifestly the reference is to the Whitehackles of North Briton and the Stone Irish or Warhorses of Ireland.

Of the former there are others much better qualified to speak, nor do I pose as an authority on the Warhorse, or claim to know their history better than many, but I do know the facts regarding their name, their ancestry, and the only known true source from which the pure stock could have been obtained.

To begin, I will go back to the year 1855, when John Stone of Marblehead, Mass., came south and fought and defeated Col. Tom Bacon a main of cocks at Columbia, S.C. Stone used against Bacon two styles of cocks evidently of different families and distinctive in appearance. One portion of them showing bright red plumage, black or mottled breast, orange hackle, yellow beak and moccasin legs stripped on the outside with flesh colored red. These he called Gliders or Claibornes and I am informed that occasionally one showed a tassel and some few a round head with pea comb. The other cocks he showed were brown and mahogany reds. All smooth heads and single, straight comb with black faces, comb black or sooty looking, eyes dark red or hazel brown (not black) and lead or dark legs. These he called his “Irsih Brown Reds.”

After the main there were several cocks purchased of Mr. Stone by the Southerners and when he returned to Marblehead, shipped at least two coops of fowl back to parties in Georgia and South Carolina. Col. Bacon purchased a Glider and an Irish cock out of Mr. Stone’s coops at the pit and later received a shipment of six hens from Marblehead, three wheaton colored Gliders and three whippoorwill brown Irish hens. Maj. Burnett Rhett purchased the finest cock Stone showed in his main, a 6.00 lbs mottle breast brown red with moccasin legs, said to be a cross of Glider and Irish. B.S. Dunbar of Augusta, GA., purchased of Mr. Stone and had shipped him from Marblehead a trio of each familiy. Mr. Dunbar went to Marblehead and selected these trios in person. The Gliders, Dunbar sent over to Tom Wilson at Beach Island to breed. These afterwards became famous under the name of “Gailor Legs.” It was of this family that Dr. Morgan got from Wilson and were afterwards known as Morgans. Also Maj. Rhett purchased hens of Tom Wilson and bred his Stone cock over them producing the celebrated Rhett fowl of which it is said there was never a runner.

The trio of “Irish Brown Reds” Dunbar sent out to Tom Seiley’s place and Mr. Seiley kept them one year and gave them up. Then Dunbar carried them out to old man Bladwin’s place on Horse Creek, where they were kept and bred for Dunbar until he quit fooling with cocks and gave them all to Joh Foster. Later on Foster quit pitting cocks on account of his corpulency and gave every feather over to Peter Sherron, with the understanding that latter would take Foster on as partner in all battles fought with these cocks.

Sherron was an Irishman, a cocker on the sod and again in America. He claimed to have known this stock in Ireland and that they were invincible in the old country, but unobtainable from the estate on which they had been bred by a line of Irish Earls for more than a century. He believed the tale Mr. Stone’s Irish agent told when he procured a trio of birds from a flock that had been carefully and zealously guarded for a century or over: that they were the best in Ireland and so far as known not a feather had ever gone out of the possession of the owners of this particular estate. He claimed to have carried a coon and opossum over from America and that one of the wardens on this estate was so infatuated with the animals that he stole a trio of these sacred chickens and gave them in exchange for the American rodents. Be this as it may, Sherron at least, believed it and certainly it is thousands of subsequent importations from Ireland have shown no such game fowl as the Stone Brown Reds.

Sherron is said to have made stacks of money fighting these cocks against the rich planters around Augusta. He had an old brood cock called “Store Keeper” that had a habit of lounging around inside of the Irishman’s store and bar and flopping his wings and crowing when the town clock pealed forth the hour. At the Shades on Ellis street this cock was pitted against a fine cock in the hands of Ike Little. It was a cock fight and both cocks were down unable to stand or press the battle after one tremendous pitting. Neither party would consent to a draw; dark came on, lights were gotten and the crowd stood vigil over the almost lifeless birds. Thus the watch was kept until the town clock, commenced striking the hour of ten. “Store Keeper” roused up, made an effort to regain, till finally he stood upon a pair of wabbly legs and crowed in answer to the bell as was his habit, Old Sherron was wild over the performance and cried out, “Listen to the old Warhorse,” No sooner was he thus denominated than he staggered over, grabbed that little cock and shuffled till the bones cracked.

Thus the first name Warhorse, but just a fore-runner of the laurels that were ultimately to crown that name. “The pale light of the morning star before the morning sun.” This same cock was destined to add beams to his crown of glory and make the name won beneath the torches imperishable.

During the next season (I have forgotten the year) Franklin, of Columbia, made a main with Bohler, of Agusta to show 21 cocks and fight what fell in for $200.00 a battle and $3,000 on the odd. “Store Kepper” was ordered and shown for top weight on the Augusta side. Fifteen cocks fell in and each side had won seven battles and ready to decide the biggest and hardest fought main ever known till that day. Franklin showed a Chappel Dom that the Columbia contingent thought invincible. Bohler showed “Store Keeper” who had recently won the soubriquet of “Warhorse.”

It is said that when this pair of cocks came in the betting was tremendous. Men became frantic in their efforts to place large wagers on the issue, wildly offering their homes, their negroes, bank accounts, big plantations and favorite horses on one side or the other. When the fatal moment arrived and the referee called “Pit your cocks,” the Dom as he made a lunge toward the center was caught in a viritable wind storm. “Store Keeper’s” flying, rolling, shuffling charge in the Agusta pit on that night while the town clock was striking the hour of twelve is now as famous in cocking history as are the peerless charges of Ney and Picket in the annals of human valor.

“Store Keeper” made a rubber ball out of his big Chappel antagonist, picked him clean; shuffled him into an unrecognizable piece of blood shot metal; fanned the lights out of the hall; frightened half of the spectators nearly to death, closing the world’s greatest cocking event in a charge unparalleled in cyclonic dash and spectacular high rolling and shuffling. Above the noise of battle Sherron was heard shouting – “And isn’t he a Warhorse?” The crowd took up the cry and by all that vast assembly old “Store Keeper” was for the second time christened “Warhorse” and the news of his magnificent charge and his name went out together and “Old Warhorse’ was the most famous cock in all the world.

Peter Sherron bred the Irish fowl under the name of Warhorse ’til his death in 1869. At the sale of his personal property after he died, Bob Lumpkin bid off one cock for $50.00 and the balance of the fowl were bought by Jack Allen,a brother-in-law of Henry Hicks, known as the “plunger and backer of the Warhorses.”

Allen bred the Warhorses pure and for the exclusive use of Hicks and himself. In a main between Augusta parties and the Barckley, Brown combination, Decmeber 1875, there was a Warhorse cock ordered for battle that went sick and Jim Thomas, who had him walked from Allen,gave the cock to Hone Ridley. When Allen heard of this he flew into a rage and started home swearing he would kill or sell every game chicken he owned. On his way down Broad street he met Harison Butler and Jim Clark riding horse back. He hailed down them and told the story of how he had been treated about the cock and of intentions to do away with ever damn chicken he owned. Mr. Butler asked how many he had and what he’d take for them. Allen said about sixty big and little and that $300.00 would buy the lot. Without a word, Mr. Butler gave him the money and Allen promised to have the fowl next morning. Mr. Clark rode on home with Mr. Butler and found Col. John Fair and Dr. Pierce Butler, a nephew of Harrison Butler, at the house. All three of these gentlemen spent the night at Mr. Butler’s place and they sent for the fowl the next morning (Christmas Eve morning) and all four took them from the coops and put them in new quarters. To each of his guests Mr. Butler presented a trio of Warhorses, to wit: a trio to Col. Fair,a trio to Jim Clark and a trio to his nephew, Dr. Butler.

Now, the reader will have no difficulty in following the history of the Stone Irish through their first twenty years of breeding, nor the Warhorse from “Store Keeper’s” time to the morning they landed at Harrison Butler’s place. They swapped hands several times during the years but were always confined to one man’s hands who thought them too valuable to distribute around even among his best friends. We find in the last days of December 1875, about twenty years after Dunbar shipment arrived that the stock had been kept pure, but remained only in the hands of four careful, appreciative breeders, hence any one wishing to establish the purity of his Warhorse must trace to Harrison Butler’s yard or to the yards of one of the three men presented a trio on that Christmas Eve morning, 1875; and prove that no infusions of other blood have been made since.

Of the subsequent history of the flock left in the hands of Mr. Butler, I have never known. Col. A.P. Butler, a brother of Harrison, and father of Dr. Pierce, sent me a Warhorse cock in the early eighties which he said came from Harrison. Also about that time he gave Col. E.R. Mclver, of Darlington, S.C., a trio from the same source, but other than these meager facts I know nothing of them, but they must have been crossed out and lost. Certainly they have faded away and perished or friend Jim Clark would have mentioned something of their history to me in our communications on the Warhorse.

Col. Fair took his trio to Edgefield, S.C., and bred them to great perfection on his plantations in upper Carolina. It was his pleasure to breed fine fowl and present them to his friends. Notable among those to whom pure Warhorses were given by him was the late R.C. (Dick) Johnson,of Union, S.C., and Walter Hopkinson, of Augusta, Ga. Both of these men were famed breeders and the latter, perhaps the best known of all late day Warhorse breeders. I may say that by the vast majority of uninformed, Hopkinson was regarded as the premier breeder and perpetuator of pure Warhorses, the one man owning the stock to which all must trace their orgin. This is not only a fallacy but ’tis a mooted question as to whether Mr. Hopkinson owned a pure Warhorse five years after Col. Fair made him a present of the trio.

The trio given to Jas. Clark were taken to his home and have been bred pure ever since. Mr. Clark is a good and careful breeder and a man of spotless personal character. He is now quite old but still breeds game fowl and follows hounds.

The Dr. Butler trio were shipped to Col A.P. Butler at Columbia, S.C. The Col first put these fowl at the penitentiary, but not being satisfied with the run sought my father, then in the Senate from Marion county and asked if he could not get them a run on his big Donoho plantation in Marlboro County, S.C.. The Donoho was the largest cotton plantation in the state. Some 2,000 acres of cleared land on which 500 bales of cotton, feed for fifty head of horses, for big herd of cattle, and numbers of sheep and hogs was made annually as early as 1869, and which now produces over 1,200 bales of cotton annually. The Dr. Butler trio were transfered to this place in March or April, 1876, and kept and bred in the middle of this big place for eight or ten years. Col. Butler and Dr. Butler got all of the fowl they wanted from the yard and the balance of the stags were walked around the place. Col. Butler was a t the home in Marion frequently and often drove up to Donoho to see the crops, the colts, the cows and the chickens.

To keep the record straight I may say for the information of those not informed that the Bacon fowl are not in a vital sense “Warhorse.” In the first place they are not descendants of Peter Sherron’s fowl of the old cock. Warhorse, therefore, not from the family of Stone Irish fowl that inherit the name. In the second place Col. Bacon did not breed his Irish fowl pure from Stone as he got them. He crossed the two strains from Stone and later put Wellslaeger blood into them. Col. Bacon was a great admirer of George Wellslaeger’s cocks and frquently made the statement that every fowl he owned had Wellslaeger blood in it.

There is seemingly quite a divergence of opinion as to the general description of the Warhorse,as to color, color of eyes, legs, etc. Will say the cocks were mostly brown reds, some few mahogany red and occasionally one came very dark, in fact, black except for a few brown or mahogany feathers in hackle or saddle or a dash of red across the wing butts. The hens were mostly whippoorwill brown, with quite a number shading off to jet black. They all showed sooty looking faces and combs, lead legs of light and dark red, some hazel brown having the appearance of being black at a little distance. There seems to be an impression that these fowl should have black eyes – this is not correct – on the other hand those Warhorse that show invariably a jet black eye are as a rule, clustered up with other blood.

They get the black eyes from an infusion of Eslin’s black eye stock. Of course, I would not say that this feature is fatal to their purity of blood for I admit many showing an eye almost, or quite, black and might have had black eyes by encouraging the feature, hence could not assert that they are not pure Warhorse because they show black eyes, but do know it to be a fact that certain Warhorses were once bred on Elsin black eye stock and later sold as Warhorses with the claim that the pure stock must show black eyes.

Now, I think, I have written enough. Information I have been able to give has been gotten from time to time from Col. Butler, Col. Fair, Jim Clark, Frank Battle, and Fred Mitchell.

[jungold]

BLUES

Blues
by Mike Norris

I don’t really know a lot on the history of game strains in America except that there is a book available for people interested. This book may or may not shed a lot of information on Blue fowl. What I am saying is that a man would just have to read it and find out. I have had a life long affection for Blue fowl and at times a belly full of resentment for Blue fowl. In other words I am saying that I beleive I have been exposed to some of the best and for sure some of the worst Blue fowl on earth.

I would probably be a pretty safe bet that the first Blue fowl could have been a result of crossing Pyle colored fowl onto red fowl or brown-red fowl or etc. I would also bet that the first Pyle colored fowl probably came from Ireland. I am not really sure of that, but neither is anyone else. In a very old book that I once read concerning early American history of game fowl, there were references to Irish Pyles.

About 25 years ago, when I was just a young kid, we lived in Dallas, Texas, Johnny Wooten and Burt Fuller would take me to the cock fights at Ardmore, Marietta, and Colbert. I can’t remember which pit we were at but it was on one of those trips that I was first exposed to Blue game cocks. I remember that we had just arrived at the pit and weas getting out of the car when a man walking past us stopped to say hello to Mr. Wooten and Mr. Fuller. Mr Wooten asked him if he had brought some of his bad Blue with him today. The man said “No,” he just brought some Blue roosters today. Later Mr. Wooten told me that this man’s name was Teacher and he was the originator of the Blue Darters. As the day went on I became friends with Teacher and I bet on every Blue cock he fought that day and I bet on every cock that Mr. Wooten and Mr. Fuller fought. That was my lucky day because Teacher won the derby and Mr. Wooten and Mr. Fuller only lost their money fight. I came home with a pocket full of money and hooked on Blue chickens. On of the Blue occks fought that day was the famous Pretty Boy Floyd cock, and I remember that he won easily. If Teacher is still alive and involved with the Blue Darters, I would like to get in touch with him.

For sure a man name Lloyd Miner had good Blues and he proved it by winning and selling fowl all over the USA, Canada, Mexico, and over-seas that won. I don’t know exactly what the Miner Blues were in breeding but I am told that they did have some good Mahogany blood in them and that couldn’t have hurt. The Miner Blues were not uniform in color but most Blus aren’t. They would come red with a light blue to dark blue chest and tail, solid white, Pyle, Spangled, a brownred blue color, and some even came red in color with no blue feathers showing at all. It is just my opinion but I beleive that most of the Blue chickens that are around today are either Miner Blues or carry some Miner blood in them.

After being influenced by the good Blue cocks the Teacher fought when I was a kid, I began to buy Blue roosters here and there and the majority of them were simply no good. Quite a few Blue roosters quit on me during that period. Finally my father completely bought out a man named Mr. Mooreland of Lancaster, Texas. The majority of the cocks from Mr. Mooreland were a mixture of Miner Blues, Asil, and Claret, some were carrying some Blue Berg Muff blood. These were actually the first good Blues I ever had my hands on. I had a lot of fun fighting these Mooreland Blues because a lot of people would turn their nose up at them because they were Blue in color. This sure did add extra fun to whipping them. I remember Burt Fuller was at our house and we were fighting those Blues and winning nearly every fight and Burt told someone that he knew it had to feel funny getting whipped by Blue roosters like that. The man nearly growled as he walked away. I was only about 13 or 14 years old and I sure got a kick out of that.

Johnny Stansell perfected a family of Miner Blues by loading it up with his best Hatch blood and then for some reason he disposed of it. I say he perfected his family of Blues because they ended up in the hands of a friend of mine and I sometimes have to fight at this family and I have seen them fight at other people. These Stansell Blues have everything it takes to win and they do win and they are game as hell.

There came a time several years ago that I met Don Bundy and his wife Wanda of Apple, Oklahoma. I believe Wanda makes the world’s best pancakes. Don and Wanda own several families of fowl but they also own a famimly of Blues that they bred up themselves. When I first met Don he let me have a Blue cock and this cock turned out to be everything a game cock should be. Since that time I handled some of Don’s Blues in the pit for him and I came to love those little Blue cocks. Don’s Blues are game and they are above average fighters. One of his little Blue cocks will always stand out in my mind. We were at the Atoka pit and when I was to turn the Blue cock loose for the first pitting, he pulled away from and in his hurry to get to the other rooster, he stumbled. This gave the other cock the chance to free roll the Blue and the little Blue cock came up with a broken leg. This was in the first pitting. When I turned the Blue cock loose for the second pitting, he burst inot his opponent with a desire to kill and in the third buckle of the second pitting, the other rooster died. Don’s Blue chickens truly hate a rooster and they are fast, cutting, aggressive cocks.

My good friend for many years, Leroy Deloney has just recently went out of the chicken business and he had a good family of Blues that when crossed on his Roundheads made a really fine chicken. Leroy is one of the last of the true breeders. I’m not saying he bred and raised game fowl, I’m saying he did more that that. Leroy perfected several families of game fowl thta were good to start with. This may be off the blue subject but it is worth the mention. When Leroy had to sell out, he had on hand the very best Clarets that money and friendship could buy and several other families. I wrote a letter to the editor of Gamecock that was published concerning the only ad Leroy Deloney ever had to run in Gamecock. If you are losing your butt now, it’s not my fault because I told the world through Gameocck in 1988, that Leroy Deloney’s fowl were for sale and that thye would win anywhere and that even meant his Blue Roundhead cross. If Leroy reads this article, then let me say “Thank You” again to Leroy for helping me to win fights for over twenty years now.

I realize that a lot of the Blue fowl around today are not up to pare with a good red or grey cock. I am sure that there are several good families of Blues around somewhere. If you can get your hands on a good family of Blues, like the ones from Deloney or Mr. Bundy, and if you take good care of them you can have a lot of fun with them because of their color. It is like I said, a lot of people turn their nose up at a Blue gamecock. This adds a little extra fun to winning and winning is what this sport is aobut. I guess some of the most beautiful cocks I have seen were Blue cocks and the most beautiful cocks I have ever seen were a cross using a Miner Blue cock over some Madigin grey hens. The off-spring of this cross had a Grey rooster’s neck and back color with a blue chest and tail. This turned out to be a really good cross too. I guess the very best cross I have ever seen using Blue fowl was when my father gave one of his friends one ofour Morreland Blue cocks and he bred this cock over Shufflers hens. There were not real pretty but they were lighting fast in their attack and could burst into a rooster with a machine gun shuffle. This was before I started fighting in the knife but when I think about the Blue Shuffler cross, I wish I had them today because they would have been super in the knife.

Whatever type of chickens you fight, keep them rolling and if you get the chance, help a beginner. We need the beginners to keep this sport going. Good luck to everyone.

[jungold]

Blue Berg Muffs
by Ed “Fulldrop” Piper

Along about 1914 Dave Berg of N.Y. hacked a Hoy Muff cock that walked off after knocking a man down. Before Berg could kill him a young fellow with Berg asked for him to breed over some Shelton Knob-comb Blues, as the Southern fowl were not considered any good for short heels. Berg laughed and said he reckoned he’d be O.K. to breed over them and so gave hom to the boy.

In the fall, the young man stopped at Berg’s and asked if he could put his stags in Berg’s coops as he had none of his own. He told him no, he didn’t want any of that kind of chickens on his place. The fellow said that they were beating each other up. Berg told him he could put them there, all 19 of them, until he got some coops made, but to get them out of there as soon as he could. So he brought them over, big, beautiful blues with muffs. John Hoy was considered THE authority on the game at that time, came to see Berg about something and noticed the stags. Asked what they were and Berg told him, he pushed open a couple of doors and got two of them out. He watched them for a moment and said they were good, not to fool them away. They turned out to be great fowl. Phil Marsh says they were the greatest he ever saw in every way, practically unbeatable. They were later crossed with Whitehackle from Dr. Hallock, of N.Y. state.

High Creek Blues

The High Creek Blues have a long and distinguished History. I wish I knew it all, but I’ll have to settle for giving you the part I do know. Bobby Joe Manziel, Sr. a big time cockfighter in Texas originated a family of blues he called the Toolpusher Blues. Toolpusher being a term for a supervisor on an oil rig, the toolpushers can do it all if necessary. The Toolpusher Blues were the result of Mr. Manziel crossing Wilkens Typewriters with C.C. Cooke Perfections. The Typewriter fowl were originated by Judge Wilkens and contained Dr. King Blues, the old time Wildcat Blues, Smith Roundhead and possible other blood. C.C. Cooke made his Perfections by crossing Madagin Perfection Greys with J.D. Perry Hatch.

Although a real “mongrel” chicken the Toolpushers COULD FIGHT! Mr. Manziel set the cross as a family which fought very successfully for many years. Pure Toolpusher Blues can still be seen in major competition today, usually being pitted in long knife due to their speed, accuracy, and intelligent style of fighting.

I got my start with the Toolpusher bloodline over 25 years ago. They were a big hit with me right from the start. Beautiful, well built fowl and they could still fight! They were fast and aggressive, very accurate cutters. They would meet the other bird on the ground or in the air, breaking as high as necessary to do so. The thing that impressed me the most with these fowl was their intelligence. They knew when to dodge and they knew when to score! They could recognize an opening and would always take it if they could. The flip side of the coin was that they did not have a lot of bottom for a long drag fight and had a very hard time fighting an uphill battle. If we didn’t win in the first few pittings, we usually didn’t win period. Their gameness was unpredictable at times as well. Most would fight a good, game battle, but occasionally one would let up, particularly the young stags. Nevertheless, all things considered, I was sold on this family and even with their faults the pure Toolpusher Blues won a majority for me and rapidly became my favorite family.

My breeding program soon became centered around the Blues. We experimented with many battle crosses on the Blues and gradually began to infuse the family with new blood based on the results of the most successful crosses. Some of the blood which ended up in what we now call the High Creek Blues is Narragansett we got from Frank Shy in the early 70′s, Boston Roundhead from Lloyd Jenkins, Irish Pyle from Richard Saint and Sonny Hancock (actually Hancock/General crosses) which came from Mike Ratliff, and others.

Two years ago I sold out all my mugs and hatch fowl so I can focus all my attention on my favorite family, the High Creek Blues. These are high class fowl and are getting nothing but better.

Although very uniform in body conformation and station (medium high), they come in a wide variety of colors ranging from solid white, white with black and red spangles, pyles, bluereds, bluegreys, and even an occasional black. Straight or pea combed. Leg color varies from white to willow with occasional slate or yellow legs. They are generally very easy to work with, very good temperament, never a man fighter if treated properly. They take bench work well, if you’re into that (I’m not). They are very active fowl and keep themselves in good condition.

The High Creek Blues are very aggressive fowl. They get hot instantly at billing and break very fast. They are deadly cutters in the knife or gaff. They fight the most intelligent style I’ve seen, avoiding the other bird, yet always ready to hit an opening. They have good bottom and power although this is still the area I feel needs the most work. I fight my blues pure in high or medium high point, 2 1/8 to 2 1/4 inch gaffs and have been winning a solid majority with them for over 25 years fighting into tough competition. You can fight these Blues pure or use them for a good, aggressive cutting foundation in battle cross.

[timoy]

Magandang gabi mga brothers in d.i.g.,

Sir JunG., nice input.,magbasa mode muna ako dun pa ako sa page 5.,hehehe
Maraming salamat

[jungold]

Miner Blues
By Lloyd B. Miner
(Reprint from Histories of Game strains)

Several months ago you asked me to write the history of my Miner Blues. I appreciated being favored with this request and promised you that I would write same, however, when yours of July 5th came asking if I had the history written, I had failed to have a single line.

I consider myself very poor at writing anything and writing the history of my own fowl makes it all the more difficult for me, but i shall keep my promise and do the best I can. I will try and not say too much for my fowl and if I do, just remember ho much each real lover of the game cock thinks of his own strain.

I have two strains of Blues, one a strictly straight comb strain, the other of all Roundhead blood. I shall give you the history of the straight comb strain first because they were the first fowl that I really bred. I owned my first game cock about 25 years ago. At that time the village of Cornell had some men who kept a few half-mile running horses, a few scrub game cock and boasted of one real 100-yard dash men. Every summer many covered wagon loads of Gypsies passed through Cornell; they made money trading horses, racing horses and fighting cocks. Professional foot racers traveled with them. We had saloons then and the little village was pretty sporty, would gamble on anything. I took in the horse races, foot races and cock fights. Several of us young fellows liked the game cocks very much, so we all bought cheap cocks and started in the game, fighting against each other, There were seven or eight of us started in the game at that time. A few years later I secured twenty subscribers to Derby Game Bird for a premium of Gregory gaffs. All of these boys finally quit the game except George Hasel and myself. George quit about three years ago and moved to South Bend, Ind., from there to Chicago and not long ago I received a letter from him in Denver, Colo., in which he said that he wanted a trio of the old straight comb Blues as soon as he got located where he could keep chickens. Am getting off my track so will go back to the time we were fighting chickens among ourselves. At that time I was working in my fathers store and a mon by the name of Ed Foley ran a hotel next door. He had a large back yard and one day I noticed a beautiful blue-red game cock running in this yard with some dunghill hens. I asked Foley what breed he was and what he would take for him and he replied that he was one of Nick Vipond’s Blues and did not belong to him, that he was only walking him for Nick, but for me to go to Streator (which is 15 miles from Cornell) and see old Nick and he would perhaps sell me a cock, I got my best friend, George Hasel, and we went to Streator and looked up Nick. It was not hard to find him as he ran a saloon in the main part of the city. He took us to his home and showed us may fine cocks in pens. We each bought one and could hardly wait until we hot home to tackle some of the boys for a scrap. Next day both cocks were fought and both won. After that day both of us bothered old Nick quite often. We must have been an awful pest to him and I often wonder how he had the patience to fool with us. However, he seemed to take a liking to us and would let us watch him condition cocks up stairs over his saloon in the winter and at his home in his barn during the warmer months. He taught us how to hold a cock and how to work him and to this day I have never seen a man who could put a cock through his work and not break a feather as he could. He had a world of patience with a biting cock and his condition was good, but now I think that he pulled his cocks too low for them to be at their best. Nick traveled and fought his cocks and also fought mains against Col. Minton, George A. Fuller, the Red Hornet man, (at that time of Springfield, Ill.) and many others. Like most others Nick had other fowl besides his blues, some good and some bad, some of them belonging to other parties that he would condition and fight for them. Years have proven that his Blues were the best that he had and were the only ones that he kept when he got old. The straight comb Miner Blues that I breed today are direct descendants of the best and last brood yards of Nick Vipond’s Blues.

Just what blood these Blues are no one really knows. Many have asked Nick what blood they were and I have asked him where he got them, but he never would say, his reply being to all “they are my old Blues.” However, Nick was born in Wales, He moved from Pennsylvania to Steator over 50 years ago, was a coal miner and later went into the saloon business. He brought with him from Pennsylvania some very dark blue fowl, dark eyes and dark legs. Some say that they were imported from Ireland and that Nick bought them from a man in the east who needed money badly, however, I don not know that this is true, and doubt if there is any one who does know, but I do know that the first fowl that I saw at his place were dark-blue. Later he had a very beautiful, white leg, red eyed, light-red cock over some blue hens and in a short time he had many white leg and yellow leg Blues of different shades of lighter blues, also many light-red with white or yellow legs. I asked him one day what the white leg red cock was and he said that he was just the same as the Blues and added that some of them came red. I bought a 4.14 white leg red cock of him that had won bottom weight in one of his mains and six dark blue hens. My friend Hasel bought a 5.04 dark blue, slip leg cock and two dark-blue hens. I had the pleasure of being in on the last three mains that Nick fought, my friend George Hasel was also in on one, these being fought against local parties. In two of the mains he won every fight but one and lost but one main, by the odd. After the last main, which he won, he told Hasel and I that he was going to give each of us a good cock that had won in the main and tell us how to breed them. We already had eight dark-blue hens, the dark-blue slip leg cock and the white leg 4.14 cock, then he gave Hasel the white leg red 6.02 cock. This cock was old, but did not show it, and had won quickly in the main. A year or two before Hasel had asked Nick to price this cock, but he would never do it. When Nick gave Hasel the cock he told him that sense he had always wanted him so badly that he would make him a present of the cock and told him to breed him over the pullets from the slip-leg blue. He then gave me a fine young 5.08 dark-blue cock that had won a sensational battle in the main and told me to breed him to the pullets from the 4.14 Red. I never got a picture of the slip-leg nor the old white leg red Hasel got, but I had a photographer take a picture of the 4.14 Red and I took a snap shot of the 5.08 Blue. The one I took is not clear, but I am sending both for you to print. Hasel and I bred these four cocks and eight hens just as we were told to do and exchanged stags and pullets each year and mated more yards. We could do this nicely with four yards to draw from. At about the same time that we got the last tow cocks from Nick a friend of mine named Harry Rucker (who lived in Cornell) bought a 3-time winner brown-red, white leg cock from Nick and bred him on some Dom hens he had and two years later Hasel bought this Vipond cock from Rucker and later bred him over daughters of the slip-leg.

About ten years ago, Nick quit business and moved to Chicago, later moving to either Marion, Ohio or Indiana, I have forgotten which and finally came back to Streator where he died about three years age. When he moved to Chicago he sold all of his fowl except two large dark-blue hens and one large white leg hen. These he would not sell. He called on me just a short time before he left and brought these three hens and asked if I would keep them for him, said that his daughter was sick and that he and his wife must go and live with her and that they had no place to keep chickens. I kept the hens and bred them single mated. I have a letter that Nick wrote me sent from Chicago, about eleven years ago asking me to have his hens caught up as he would be after them soon. He never bred any more fowl, but came and took one of the blue hens for a friend and gave me the other, the white leg hen having died.

My straight comb Miner Blues I breed today are direct descendants of the four cocks and the eight hens that Hasel and I got from Nick, the cock that Rucker got and the three hens that Nick left with me. I have many yards and believe that I can breed them indefinitely without a cross. I have mated them as I know that they must be mated and at the same time I have line-bred them to the most sensational fighting cocks that have been produced from time to time. For instance, Hasel, by mating a dark-blue stag that I gave him over one of his white leg red hens, produced a white leg blue-red stag that proved, in the brood yard, to be one of the best producers of all. He fought this stag against Sam Brazier in Chicago in 1919. Brazier had a wonderful stag and cut Hasel’s stag blind in one eye and broke one wing in the first pitting but Hasel could hardly hold his stag during the rest period and when turned loose for the second pitting he went across like a flash, and with one eye and one wing gone he shuffled Brazier’s stag to death. Hasel bred this stag that year and as a cock for two years. We called him old Blinker. He gave me one of his first stags from this cock, also one of his daughters and in 1922 traded me the old Blinker for a brood cock of mine that had won several times. I bred old Blinker until he died in the fall of 1924. He was a great producer and was line-bred from the start. Many of ny yard carry more or less of his blood on each side. I have bred many cocks that have won several battles but never have I found one that produced more winners that old Blinker did. Old White Leg, a four time winner that I raised is a grandson of the 4.14 and the old white leg Vipond cock. This strain of cocks have not been bred to color but have been to fight, however, in the last few years I have mated Red to Reds and Blues to Blues whenever I could do so and not sacrifice fighting qualities nor the proper mating. At the present time they average in color about 50% blue reds with white or yellow legs, 40% light reds with black or brown mottled breasts and white or yellow legs and about 10% come dark-blues with dark legs. I get more dark-blues in hens than in cocks. Are medium, low station and the cocks run in weight from 4.06 to 6.08 and the hens from 3 to 5 pounds. They are exceptionally game, extra good cutters and know how to fight. Just to give and example of the gameness of these Blues I am going to quote what a friend in Omaha Nebraska wrote me about one of these Blue cocks that fought in a main there in 1925. “Fourth fight we matched your straight comb Miner blue against a Harry Williams Warhorse cross from Covington, Ky. Warhorse coupled your Blue in first pitting and the fight dragged out to 68 pittings, 48 minutes of terrible give and take on both sides. In my opinion your blue was the best cock and his gameness was remarkable. He crossed the pit several times on his wings and shuffled whenever he could get a beak hold, only to be counted out in the 68th pitting, his opponent dying soon afterwards. Blue had two counts on Warhorse but could not see or stand on his feet, yet he always broke all counts except the 68th..”

I call these Blues Miner Blues because most of them come blue and they have been bred by my method long enough to make them the type they are today. I have the same opinion as Mr. Ewing A. Walker has in calling his Mugs Walker Mugs. My friend Hasel advertised and sold some of these Blues that he bred and called his Hasel Blues. As he had bred them many years he felt that he had the right to call them Hasel Blurs. I have never spent much time in thinking up a name for my fowl as I feel sure that if cocks can fight they will make a name for themselves and if not a blood curdling name will not help them.

While I have always kept these Blues pure that I got from Nick Vipond, I have also made some crosses. Most of us experiment some and I have always thought it best to make a cross when I had time to try them out than wait until I had to have a cross and trust to luck for a nick. I have made several crosses and fought them all to find out what I had and found that some were good and others were bad. Those that were good I bred back to my Blues and then fought the quarter bloods, then bred back again and fought the eighth bloods. I do not need a cross on my old Blues at this time, but if I ever do I now have on hand some good hens with one-half, one-quarter and one-eighth new blood that are sisters to cocks that have proven good and of which I breed a few each year. In 1917 D. H. Pierce loaned me a young Wisconsin Shuffler cock to breed. He was a dark eyed brown-red and an extra good one. I tried to buy him from Pr. Pierce but he would not sell him, so I returned him in good shape in the fall of 1918. I mated this Pierce cock to one of the old dark-blue hens that Nick left with me when he moved to Chicago and from this mating I got dark-blues and dark-brown reds. Fought the stags and refought them and only one lost his first battle. I then bred one of my Blue cocks over one of the half blood hens and the quarter-bloods win a good majority of their battles. I have two dark-blue hens today that are daughters of the Pierce cock. They are over nine years old and are strong and healthy brood hens yet.

In 1923, Henry Flock sent me a blue-red, white leg, red eyed, straight comb cock from El Paso, Texas and wanted me to breed him. Said if I did not want him to just send him to his daughter at home and that she would care for him until he returned. Flock had won twice with him and had pronounced him a wonder. He said that Jas. G. Oakley had bred him out of a Smith Blue cock that he got off Smith Bros., that won in the Opelousas Tournament. I bred this cock single mated on one of my old Blue hens and he nicked well with my blood. I bred back to my Blues and the quarter bloods won a larger percent than did the half bloods. I am saving some of the quarter-blood hens. My friend Hasel made a cress several years ago with Gleezen Whitehackel on Blues, also a cross of a Shawlneck hen from Elmer B. Denham and both were good. I traded some of my Pierce cross and of the Oakley cock cross to Hasel for some of his Whitehackles and Shawlneck crosses and breed a few each year carrying this blood. This concludes the history of my straight comb blues.

[jungold]

Typewriters
by Lunchmoney

My first introduction to the Wilkens Typewriters was in April 1946, when the Judge fought a main against Ford & Luster, as memory has it, at the Berg’s Mill Pit, San Antonio, Texas.

This was a three-day event with the main being fought the first day followed by a tournament. The tournament included the Walton-Wortham entry, Hale Brothers, Judge Ed Wilkens, and aobut four or five other entries.

Having always been an admirer of blue game fowl, dating back to the old cock my grandfather had on the yard – a blue-red, yellow legged cock, and having a little more money than normally, I found the odds laid on the Ford & Luster fowl to be irresistible when they were 10-8 and 10-7 on every fight. The Judge won the main rather handily 7-4 as I recall and it should have been 8-3 since one fight was won by a seemingly unfair handle by Mr. Luster, but that is water under the bridge. At that time, most of the cocks that the Judge showed in the main were lemon-hackled, blue-reds with yellow legs mostly, some pyle colored cocks with white legs, and nearly all of the fowl shown during the main and tournament, as memory serves me, were straight comb.

My life-long frined Edward Bently took me out to the Judge’s home and we had a short visit there, seeing the quarters where the Judge conditioned his fowl and also a few othe fowl on the yard.

I made more than my expense money on the trip, thanks to the Judge’s cocks, and the Walton-Wortham fowl and came home a winner.

I could not resist the temptation to obtain some of these fowl. Edward located a pyle colored, pea-comb, white legged Typewriter cock for me and I purchased a hen from the Judge. I remember her this day almost as well as the day I received her. She was a blue-red hen, with large blue fan tail, red eyes, white legs, straight combed. During the period after her mormal laying season had ended, she would act almost like a cock. She would fly upon a pile of wood, or a post or pen and crow, popping her wings just like a cock.

The remarkable thing about this hen is that the cock which she was mated with, an old ham-strung cock, produced nearly all shakes. The first two were fought when they were about 13 or 14 months old against fuly matured cocks. The first one – a yellow legged, sky-blue pyle stag killed a 3-time winner brood cock that had won three fights in three pittings, in one pitting. His brother, a dark blue-red with yellow legs and peacomb won his fight but slipped his spur. I believe that we fought the sky-blue cock when he was two for $100, Ernest Trochta doing the feeding and pitting, and he won an uphill fight, coming from behind. From that Typewriter hen and the old Pyle cock, we fought about six stags amd cocks and all won. Several Thaggard Grey-Typewriter stags and cocks were fought also and the records kept up through the first 21 fights were 20 wins and 1 loss. The loss was with a Grey-Typewriter stag that fought a long hard fight and losing but being thoroughly game. I lost track of them after that they must have all eventually lost, but 20 of the first 21 fought won their first fight or more.

I often wondered why these fowl have not been more prominent in the game fowl journals. They could fight; they could cut; they had bottom and they deserve a better place in the history of game fowl than they seem to have received.

I recall that the Judge had at about that time two great cocks that he had fought a number of times – One Round Hogan, a Pyle cock, and Pay-Day a dark blue-red cock. I’m sure that there must be a lot of people in and arround San Antonio, Texas that would remember these cocks. I always found the Judge to be quite honorable in his dealings with me and I also found him to be quite an understanding gentleman.

[jungold]

Chet

The actual originator of the Chets was the late Al Ashton. He had Joe Wolfe feeding his cocks; they fought a little cock several times and proved a sensation. In breeding, this bird was an even 4way cross of OK Roundhead, Red Quill, Butcher Boy and Mortgage Lifter.

Ashton had two cocks half Tuzo Jap and half Rood Brownred, they were several time winners. After fighting these particular birds. Chet Robinson, a policeman who never fought a cock but a convivial companion was present. Ashton asked Robinson to take a sister to his half Jap, half Brownred and the 4way cross cock and breed them in his backyard.

Chet Robinson did this and raised two clutches of chicks, more than half stags, approximately fifteen. When big enough to pick up, all were brought to Ashton. These stags won from four to 21 fights each and were mated for several years. All looked alike and fought alike?just about whipped everyone in the far west for years. Ashton was a good breeder and feeder, one of the best in pen walking cocks.

All Chets were uniform; green-legged, peacomb and whippoorwill color for a period of years. They were bred and inbred for several generations and occasionally a straight comb appeared.

Ashton fought hundreds of cocks each season and won his share. Very few people ever received a pure Chet from him. The first man to ever secure any Chets was the late Bill Stevenson?in turn he let Bill Hentges have some and the latter won a grand majority for several years. Later on Hentges infused a trace of Nigger Roundhead in his and they turn were good for a few years. It was evident the yard of the latter had a race of donkey in them and it started to show up.

I imagine the most exciting main ever fought on the west coast was between Ashton and the Reno (Nevada) Cockers. Twenty-one were shown and fought, and as I recall Ashton won seventeen—Don Carse handled for the winner.

The writer paid an even hundred for a Chet cock he was handling for Al in a fight won with one leg. Carse secured an old hen, sister to Peanut, a Chet winner of 21 battles. Carse and myself bred the pair and started our Chet. Later on, after Al knew we had the real McCoy he would exchange pure ones with us. As has been stated, very few men ever got a hen and a cock from Ashton.

I know of one fellow, here on the East Coast, who advertised for some long time, offering pure Chets?he never had over three quarter Chet blood. Just one time, lasting but a day, he entered Ashton?s yard when the latter was away and ?appropriated? a hen. The neighbors told Al what had happened. It so happened he had a cocker friend who was a highway patrolman and he made a quick trip and brought the hen back.

The incident is mentioned to illustrate how difficult it was to obtain a pure Chet.

Very few cockers know how good a cocker was Al Ashton?few can say they ever beat him. I did defeat him in his last main which was fought at the age of 83. He was as sharp then as most cockers are at 25. He passed away several years ago at the age of 86 and to the time of death fought his cocks. At one main, he told me he had no more pure Chets left. Ashton was a friend of the writer and I acquired much chicken knowledge in our association. It was on his place I saw pen walked cocks for the first time.

A closing tale on the Chet origination?Ashton and Robinson visited me one day. Chet had been struck by a car receiving a broken leg. He was using a walking stick. I asked where they had been and Ashton replied, we have been looking for Chet?s cane. Seems they had been imbibing and he had thrown it away. Further, this is the true breeding of the Chets, anyone can take it from here

[jungold]

Chet

The actual originator of the Chets was the late Al Ashton. He had Joe Wolfe feeding his cocks; they fought a little cock several times and proved a sensation. In breeding, this bird was an even 4way cross of OK Roundhead, Red Quill, Butcher Boy and Mortgage Lifter.

Ashton had two cocks half Tuzo Jap and half Rood Brownred, they were several time winners. After fighting these particular birds. Chet Robinson, a policeman who never fought a cock but a convivial companion was present. Ashton asked Robinson to take a sister to his half Jap, half Brownred and the 4way cross cock and breed them in his backyard.

Chet Robinson did this and raised two clutches of chicks, more than half stags, approximately fifteen. When big enough to pick up, all were brought to Ashton. These stags won from four to 21 fights each and were mated for several years. All looked alike and fought alike?just about whipped everyone in the far west for years. Ashton was a good breeder and feeder, one of the best in pen walking cocks.

All Chets were uniform; green-legged, peacomb and whippoorwill color for a period of years. They were bred and inbred for several generations and occasionally a straight comb appeared.

Ashton fought hundreds of cocks each season and won his share. Very few people ever received a pure Chet from him. The first man to ever secure any Chets was the late Bill Stevenson?in turn he let Bill Hentges have some and the latter won a grand majority for several years. Later on Hentges infused a trace of Nigger Roundhead in his and they turn were good for a few years. It was evident the yard of the latter had a race of donkey in them and it started to show up.

I imagine the most exciting main ever fought on the west coast was between Ashton and the Reno (Nevada) Cockers. Twenty-one were shown and fought, and as I recall Ashton won seventeen—Don Carse handled for the winner.

The writer paid an even hundred for a Chet cock he was handling for Al in a fight won with one leg. Carse secured an old hen, sister to Peanut, a Chet winner of 21 battles. Carse and myself bred the pair and started our Chet. Later on, after Al knew we had the real McCoy he would exchange pure ones with us. As has been stated, very few men ever got a hen and a cock from Ashton.

I know of one fellow, here on the East Coast, who advertised for some long time, offering pure Chets?he never had over three quarter Chet blood. Just one time, lasting but a day, he entered Ashton?s yard when the latter was away and ?appropriated? a hen. The neighbors told Al what had happened. It so happened he had a cocker friend who was a highway patrolman and he made a quick trip and brought the hen back.

The incident is mentioned to illustrate how difficult it was to obtain a pure Chet.

Very few cockers know how good a cocker was Al Ashton?few can say they ever beat him. I did defeat him in his last main which was fought at the age of 83. He was as sharp then as most cockers are at 25. He passed away several years ago at the age of 86 and to the time of death fought his cocks. At one main, he told me he had no more pure Chets left. Ashton was a friend of the writer and I acquired much chicken knowledge in our association. It was on his place I saw pen walked cocks for the first time.

A closing tale on the Chet origination?Ashton and Robinson visited me one day. Chet had been struck by a car receiving a broken leg. He was using a walking stick. I asked where they had been and Ashton replied, we have been looking for Chet?s cane. Seems they had been imbibing and he had thrown it away. Further, this is the true breeding of the Chets, anyone can take it from here

[timoy]

Magandang gabi mga brothers in D.I.G.,

Sir JunG., Nice input po.,basa mode muna ako nsa page 5 plang ako hehehe.,salamat

[jun parana]

wow! lumabas din ang history ng Albany sa wakas maraming salamat Preng Tukayo marami nannamang matutuwa nito

[jungold]

Magandang gabi mga brothers in D.I.G.,

Sir JunG., Nice input po.,basa mode muna ako nsa page 5 plang ako hehehe.,salamat

wow! lumabas din ang history ng Albany sa wakas maraming salamat Preng Tukayo marami nannamang matutuwa nito

Marami pa yan mga Parekoy, Bukas naman yon 100 pages pa, Baka tamarin ang mga Viewer's dito sa Ka-Babasa, ayaw ko ng Putochop, sa Orig tayo palagi at yon may mapulot na Importante ang mga Beginner's,,,Basta ang Maka-Hiya ,Walangya, he,he....

[jungold]

wow! lumabas din ang history ng Albany sa wakas maraming salamat Preng Tukayo marami nannamang matutuwa nito

Pre Tukayo Yon CHET Marami tayong palabas ngayon, Imported yon na Uwii ko, from my partner in CA.,,,,,,,

[jungold]

Divine Intervention Group Roll Call kasali sa ambagan na 500 pesos per month Starting October 2013. Breeding to Conditioning Expenses.

1.Jun Parana---- Confirmed
2.Jun Gold----Confirmed
3.PARAWAKAN Maui---- Confirmed
4.Paikulanaces...Cesar----Confirmed
5.WHEL----Confirmed
6.r$y---Confirmed
7.Genis----Confirmed
8.RpChef---Confirmed
9.rolando 329---Confirmed
10.timoy----Confirmed
11.ratratan 43 (Mcoy)----Confirmed
12.Leorb----Confirmed
13.james-----Confirmed--
14.GreyHound-----Confirmed----

Final Divine Intervention Group Breeding & Stag Fighting (2013)

@ ako mag-breed ng mga Panlaban natin Stags.
@1 month or 2 months dalhin na kay Pre paiks ang mga Stags Lang, para doon ang range
@ Sharing would be Peso.100/week = Peso.500/month
@ Designated Person to handle all collected share's will be Pre Paiks & Pre Rw.
@ Included sa mga gastos at Bibilhin na Gamot & Vitamins -Feeds for Brood hen & Broodcock like Breeders Pellet/Crumbles, Grains like Concentrate & Oats & Corn. Mga Chick Boosters & Crumbles for the Chicks 1 month only, Stag Developer 1 month to 4 Months, Vaccines for the Brood Materials & Chixs.
@ Stag will be Banded for Digmaan & Bakabakan ,
@ All Stags will be Selected & Classified for all Derbies & Hack fights.
@ Kumausap tayo ng poultry supply na magbibigay sa atin ng credit line .

APPROVED BY DIVINE INTERVENTION GROUP COMMITTEE & WILL BE POSTED EVERYTIME


Divine Intervention Group Roll Call kasali sa ambagan na 500 pesos per month Starting October 2013. Breeding to Conditioning Expenses.
1.Jun Parana- ___________________Paid 6k____________
2.Jun Gold- ___________________Paid 6k____________
3.PARAWAKAN Maui--------------------- Confirmed
4.Paikulanaces----------------- Confirmed
5.WHEL----------------------------------- Confirmed
6.r$y-______________________ Paid 6k____________
7.Leorb-------------------------------Confirmed
8.Genis-____________________Paid 6k____________
9.RpChef-___________________Paid 3K_____________
10.rolando 329-_______________Paid 3k____________
11.timoy-___________________Paid 6k__________
12.ratratan 43 (Mcoy)_________Paid 6K________
13.James------------------------Confirmed-------------
14.GreyHound-------------------Confirmed------------

Final Divine Intervention Group Breeding & Stag Fighting (2013)

@ ako mag-breed ng mga Panlaban natin Stags.
@1 month or 2 months dalhin na kay Pre paiks ang mga Stags Lang, para doon ang range
@ Sharing would be Peso.100/week = Peso.500/month
@ Designated Person to handle all collected share's will be Pre Paiks & Pre Rw.
@ Included sa mga gastos at Bibilhin na Gamot & Vitamins -Feeds for Brood hen & Broodcock like Breeders Pellet/Crumbles, Grains like Concentrate & Oats & Corn. Mga Chick Boosters & Crumbles for the Chicks 1 month only, Stag Developer 1 month to 4 Months, Vaccines for the Brood Materials & Chixs.
@ Stag will be Banded for Digmaan & Bakabakan ,
@ All Stags will be Selected & Classified for all Derbies & Hack fights.
@ Kumausap tayo ng poultry supply na magbibigay sa atin ng credit line .

APPROVED BY DIVINE INTERVENTION GROUP COMMITTEE & WILL BE POSTED EVERYTIME


Bentahan 4 Cock Derby sa Jan.3 pago's

Enrty Name : DIVINE INTERVENTION GROUP

1. r$y....................... 11K..(Open Parada)... 4 Cocks------(Paid share for Conditioning)--
2. rpchef................... 5.5K ...(Open parada)......
3. PaikulanAces......... 5.5K...(Open Parada)
4. jungold................. 5.5K (Open parada) ----(Paid share for Conditioning)-
5. Jun Parana............ 5.5K. (Open Parada).... 2 cock-----(Paid share for Conditioning)--
6. Genis................... 5.5K...(Open Parada)....2 Cocks----(Paid share for Conditioning)--
7. WHEL................... 1.1K........................ 1 Cock
8. Parawakan.......... 2.2K........................ 1 Cock
9. roland 329............5.5K..........(Open Parada).....4 Cocks---
10. timoy.................. 5.5K..........(Open Parada)...
11. ratratan 43 (Mcoy).... 11K
12.James........55k....(Open sa Paradas)
13.GreyHound......55k....(Open Paradas)

Please Review & Suggestions and Add comments if Possible, Thanks,,,,Will be Posted every time...

[jungold]

CLARETS

Written By: Bill Marsh Article from History of Game Strains by W.T. Johnson & Frank Holcomb

Concerning the Madigin fowl and perhaps even Madigin himself no two people seem to be in complete agreement. He gave statements as to the breeding of his fowl and as to who had access to them and later repudiated both statements. There is confusion and endless contradictions as to the exact origin and breeding of the Daddy of Clarets, of the mother of the Clarets and of the worth of these; some saying they were the best in the world and others saying the first Clarets were absolute duds. Then we have the same confusion about what blood, how much, and when was later added. He stated several times that they started with a Hanky Dean cock and a hen from A.P. O?Connor that O?Connor said was a Duryea Whitehackle. Editor Piper, of Feathered Warrior, says this hen was bred by Mr. Hillsman of Va. out of a cock or stag (supposedly Whitehackle from a man named Hanna) and one of O?Connor Duryea pullets.

Col. Madigin often stated that only one man was ever given a female of any of his blood. Later changed that to two, after getting a letter. After his death many men showed letters signed by Madigin showing where he had given away and sold both male and female. Some of this blood was very good and some of it very bad.

Below is part of one of Mr. Gus Frithiof?s ads that favors the goodness in the Clarets to have come mostly from the original stock. After that follows part of a letter from Mr. William Mash with what I would say is the opposite viewpoint. This is interesting as both of these men are prominent cockers and both have worked for, or with Madigin.

Mr. Madigin told me that the Reds and Whites were the same identical chickens and that the greys were very close in the original. In fact, the ?daddy? of the nine original Clarets was sired by a Mansell Pyle, Joe Gilman grey cock bred from a pair of fowl from the Earl of Craven. His mother was obtained from Tom McCarthy, who raised her from fowl of Mr. Beard, of Toronto, Canada. Light-red, yellow legged fowl, same as the cocks made famous by Dennis Mahoney. The ?Mother? of the original Clarets was a pure H.B. Duryea Whitehackle hen, whose sire had won 19 battles, 14 of them in the hands of Michael Kearney and 5 in England and Ireland for the Earl of Clonwell. Duryea cocks bred from the 19 time winner, his mother and sisters, defeated all the leading strains in Europe, including 2 out of 3 mains for $50,000 on the odd, 2 mains, vs. William Gulliver, England?s premier cocker, the other main ended in a draw.

As the years went by both Madigin and Deans made many crosses most of which were discarded. A ?New Hope? cock, white legs, black spurs, won 9 times and was nicknamed ?Black Spur?. He, containing a shot of Mansell Pyle blood bred in Spain, threw them many whites and was used in 1917. Madigin bred from the Roland Mimton ?Skyrocket? cock, that he got from my friend, Frank Raggio, Austin, Texas, who got him from Julius W. Bell, Cincinnati, Ohio. Madigin and Deans made many families of these fowl and bred from among others the following cocks: Two ? Phil Marsh cocks (Grover Whitehackle ? ? Clarets) called ?My Choice? and ?Tuck In Under?. They won many times. They also used a Lowman Whitehackle cock and a Hardy Mahoney cock, a Duryea cock, 1927, threw many ?Pumpkins? or ?Canary? colored cocks, wonderful cocks. A grey Claret cock bred to a Herrisford Brown Red Black and Tan hen in 1922 was the source of the dark legs in many of the greys.

Author?s Note: The Hardy Mahoney cock should be Hardy Mahogany

The Origin of the Clarets
by J. H. Madigan

The Gamecock Magazine November 1936

In the year 1907 I received from my friend, Andrew P. O’Conor, of Maryland, two pullets — one a black-red with pea comb, the other a wheaten with single comb. I lost the pea comb pullet. I put the single comb pullet at the race track where I was walking a stag for Henry Deans — a pure black-red with white legs.

Early the following spring the O’Conor hen stole her nest in the bush and brought out a large clutch of chicks, of which nine were stags — all black-reds with white and yellow legs and of very deep wine color; hence the name Claret.

We walked and fought them, and they proved to be very successful. Upon breeding them further, one in every eight or ten came white, and they are still doing so. In fact, this year we have many whites and a few spangles.

I have tried to keep the same blood, as nearly as possible. All crosses have been a failure, with few exceptions.

I notice that certain people in Houston, Texas and Hendersonville, North Carolina, and also in Michigan, are advertising Clarets for sale. They are not my blood unless they were stolen, which I doubt.

[jungold]

Doms

The Dominiques

Game Fowl News November 1926

It has been written that the Dominiques as we have them today were originated in this way: In the 1830s there was being bred on Rabbit Island, near New Orleans, La., some imported English-Spanish hens and a cock of the same. From this breeding came a stag that was different color markings from any that had ever before came from this mating. The owner took especial care of this stag, walked him well and when he was old enough took him to New Orleans and fought him.

When he was pitted the crowd laughed and called him a barn yard dung-hill. He was speckled yellow, blue and white, rose comb, yellow legs and beak. He walked in and made mince meat out of his opponent but everyone thought it was an accident. He was matched again and did the same work as before. His owner fought him time and again, always winning nicely. He was 3 years old and had never been bred from on account of his color.

Captain Warthall, an old river an, purchased him and brought him to Louisville, Ky., and gave him to two known well known cockers of that day. They saved him and bred him to some English hens. They saved all the pullets that came the color of the cock and bred the old cock back to them, and in this way in a few years they had a strain that was known all over the country as the Kentucky Dominiques.

The originals were yellow and blue Dominiques, yellow legs and beak, with the cocks generally having white tails, speckled with blue or yellow. The hens were either solid blue with dark eyes or mottled like a Plymouth Rock or pale blue or nearly white. In later years White Pyle was crossed on them and the rose comb bred off. At present they breed pure white, pale blue, mottled breast and hackle and saddle speckled. Some come pyle colors and some the regular Dominique color.

Tom O’Neal secured some of these fowl around 1886, and began to fight all comers.

In the early 80s [1880s] we never thought of a Dominique game fowl unless we thought of Tom O’Neal at the same time. As he was never an advertiser, and too as our country at that time had no game papers, you could readily imagine that their popularity was discovered through mains and the process of word of mouth and anxious ear.

When in the 80s [1880s] the first journal devoted wholly to pit games made its appearance Dr. J. B. Frymire was the leading advertiser of the Dominiques. It was not long before other men began taking up the advertising of other breeds, but Ohio, the Virginias and other states near Kentucky were hotbeds of Dominique breeders. In Kentucky the restraint concerning cock-fighting was synonymous with the sport of horse racing and fox hunting. Little or no opposition appeared, therefore the native sport state became the center of the Dominique breed, and its greatest activity. When Tom O’Neal began with the Dominiques he did not strive to breed them to the Dominique color. He was a cocker with a large following who had had his defeats and bore them gamely. O’Neal and James Waddell were at this time partners, and were taking on all the big ones of those days and annexing the receipts with ease. They fought the Doms up and down the Ohio river, made more than one trip down the Mississippi and took a whole main of Doms to New Orleans and won there. Afterwards O’Neal lost the oua tournament in New Orleans).

Wingate won 20 out of 21 battles. In those days they fought for sport as well as for money and it was no uncommon thing to continue the fighting after one side had won a majority. It was at this main that Sid Taylor, who later was affiliated with O’Neal and Waddell was impressed by the almost inconvincible Heathwoods, and which blood finally went into the Sid Taylor breed of Doms.

Something else surely went into the O’Neal fowl later on, as they bred many shades of dom colors and had yellow, white and even white legs with dark spots on them. I have seen pure O’Neal Doms that were white as any Leghorn, with clear yellow legs and red eyes. I have seen others white in both hens and cocks whose only variation in color was a few pencil stripes of red, black or yellow in hackles. Others were exact duplicates of the domestic American Dominique. Some with black neck hackles; some with brown and some with golden hackles.

O’Neal was at one time ailed the Champion cocker of America, but so was Denny Mahoney, Chas. Brown, William Morgan, Michael Kearney and Anthony Greene. Championships in these days rests but lightly with the laurelled brow – too many better ones in better fix than they were before are appearing and a championship that holds more than a year or two is one not often obtained, so let us only say that the Doms were champions of their day.

Some of us see the tournaments, but the majority have to content ourselves with reading about them. In these events a certain breed may win, but more often there are several bloods and colors in the winning entry, so that it is unfair to say that John Smith’s ?Bear Cats? won the tournament, when in truth John used three Bear Cats and more of other breeds whose breeding was not known to John himself. Mr. J. D. Gays breeding won two or three Orlando tournaments, and there as not the slightest hesitancy on his part to say that not all were Sid Taylors or not all were Doms. Both entered into the winning although I recall that the Sids were used the majority of the times. That Mr. Law chose the side Taylors does not detract from the rating of the good old O’Neal blood which can show more gameness. Fancier or better cutters than the Taylors were difficult to locate. So it remained a dark horse breed to run in under the Madigan entry at the next tournament, and the next tournament, and the next also which was won by the same blood under another name, and they were far from a uniform lot of cocks. They had condition and won, and they were exclusively short heel cocks bred in a short heel country and had no right to win according to the controversial disturbances among the long and short gaff enthusiasts.

I believe it was the Doms who by their steady work held both events for Law at Orlando; those old O’Neal Dom bloods sent this end of the U.S. by Mr. Gay are about as near one-style performers as cocks get to be. They will step in and show as pretty a bit of sparring as is rarely seen. They can get out of a tight corner with a wicked shuffle and go as high in a break as is necessary. I am not writing to uphold the merits of individual fowl, but rather the species.

Chappell Doms

The Chappells of S.C. crossed a black strain and a white strain to produce their Doms. While many showed true dominique color, some had a tendency to come speckled and even white. Merrill H. Smith closely inbred some of them and about 30 % came slate-legged, low stationed, pea combed black fowl with broad, flat-iron bodies. About 30 % came yellow legged, high stationed, round bodied white fowl with large tassels. The other 40% came all shades from speckled to dominique.

The Chappell Doms

It is a great honor that I be given the privilege of presenting to the public for the first time, a written history of a Grand old strain of game fowl affectionately known as the “The Chappell Doms.” The Chappell Doms were born of an importation of a single pair from England by one W. R. Smith of Lawrence, S.C. near Cross Hill. In the year 1855 all of Mr. W.R. Smith’s Doms were acquired by J.W. Chappell who bred them in their purity along with his brothers Henry and Jim. The brothers Chappell, with J.W. leading the way built quite a reputation for breeding and fighting cocks of exceptional quality by taking on all comers near or far and fighting every year for 50 Years in and around Columbia, S.C. The Chappells and their Doms migrated to Alabama and settled in the town of Falkville just north of present day Cullman. The Chappells along with their strain of Doms have remained on the same farm for numerous generations while maintaining the Doms as a strain with minimal outside influence. There are 4 documented infusions of outside blood used to maintain this family. A Spanish Cock called Santa Ana used by J.W. Chappell, an Arlington cock used by J.W. Chappell, a Mingus Dom cock in the 1970′s used by Jerry Chappell and turning them over to his son Kris, the 6th generation to carry on the family has added the blood of the Sureshot Dom from Mr. Scott Gay in 1991. Kris has maintained them as is from that time to present day. It is of interest to note that Mr. F.D Mingus used the Chappell Dom blood in maintaining his famous strain of Doms as well. After Nearly 150 years this Grand old strain of fowl still maintain the winning traditions of their originator. J.W. Chappell of South Carolina. In 1998 Kris won a prominent 5 cock gaff derby showing pure Dom nest brothers. In the year 2000 he won another prominent 6 cock knife derby. In 2001 Kris partnered with Brian Corkren and won the Jerry Ellard Tribute at Hickory along with several other derbies which culminated with winning the Cocker of the Year Award at Hickory fighting Chappell Doms and Corkren Sweaters respectively. 2002 was a repeat success for the Chappell/Corkren team winning Cocker of the Year for the second consecutive year at Hickory. Kris has recently returned from the Philippines where he and his partner scored a 3-1 record with the Doms in the Cavite Int. Long Knife Derby. Mr. J.B. Chappell compiled a record of the Chappell Doms to be submitted to Grit and Steel for publication yet it was never submitted. I have included a complete transcription of his original history and have forwarded a copy for of the original to Grit and Steel for filing and hopefully publishing. I have also transcribed several letters from customers and friends of the Chappell family which will give some insight into the family and fowl. There will be highlighted links throughout the history that will allow viewing of the original documents as written in Mr. J.B. Chappell’s hand and I will do the same for the letters that I have included. I am truly honored to have been given the opportunity to associate with the Chappell family and find them to be of unquestionable character and true lovers of game fowl just as their ancestors were. They have protected the sanctity of this family for generations and feel it is time to honor the one that started it all. Kris, I am truly grateful.

You’re Friend
Brent R. Scott (tnerb)

The Chappell Doms

Grit and Steel: As I have been called on several times to write the history of my Chappell Doms, I will endeavor to tell you all I know about them. In 1855 my honored old father J.W. Chappell (1st) got them from W.R. Smith of Lawrence, S.C. near Cross Hill S.C. W.R. Smith was an old bachelor and very rich; also a true lover of a game cock. This W.R. Smith went to England to a horse race and cocking main. There he saw those Doms fight and was so impressed with their fighting and true gameness he paid a fancy price for one cock and one hen. He brought them home with him and found they were exceedingly fast and dead game. J.W. Chappell, my father, bought every Dom chicken W.R. Smith had; and Smith never fighting anymore. Two years after my father got these chickens he fought them and almost every one won their fights. Later on J.W. Chappell and his brothers Henry and Jim Chappell fought a fifteen cock main with one Rob Franklin of Columbia, S.C. whipping Franklin every fight in the main. Mr. Franklin saw that they were the best fighters he ever went up against and he insisted on my father fighting a main with one Mr. Liverman, of Augusta, Ga. My father fought the main with Liverman and won for a big amount. I don’t recall how much, anyway, they matched eighteen cocks, the Chappells winning every fight also the main. Afterwards, father fought a Mr. Ben Brazzle near Columbia, S.C. and made a clean sweep of the Sandy Hill Boys.

The Chappells of South Carolina fought those Doms every year for fifty years in Columbia, S. C. The hardest fighting J.W. Chappell ever did was against Nickerton of North Carolina; Mr. Phil Joiner of Columbia, S.C. made a main with Arlington of N.C. showing eighteen Chappell Dom cocks and Nickerton cocks were the hardest cocks to whip the writer ever saw. Now as to the color of the old pure Chappell Doms. At first they were white almost. They are known all over the South as the Chappell Doms. The old white Doms all have Tassells or Top Knots. As to the Rosecomb cross in them, this came from a Spanish cock that J.W. Chappell got from a Mexican and he called this cock after a Mexican General Santa Ana. This rose comb cock was a dangerous cock winning eleven battles in J.W. Chappells hands.

J.W. Chappell bred one of those Arlington cocks over some of his Dom hens and that cross proved to be the best cross that we Chappells ever made. The Arlington cock killed a Chappell Dom lying on his back, Mr. Pom? Floyd of Newberry, S.C. paid $50.00 for this Arlington cock and gave him to me and I bred him over five of my fathers Chappell Dom hens; and some of our Doms have some of that blood in their veins now. J.W. Chappell was the first Chappell that brought those Doms to the front. J.W. Chappell had those Doms before the Civil War between the north and the South. Just before my father went to the war he left his Dom chickens with Mr. Ben Wells, in Lawrence, S.C. Ben Wells was a true lover of a game cock, and kept my fathers Doms in their purity. Mr. Wells was a fine gentleman. In 1891 at Atlanta, Ga. Fought Tennessee a main; eleven matched. Chappell of Alabama furnished Tennessee the cocks to fight in this main. Tennessee whipped Atlanta ten out of eleven fights with J.B. Chappell Doms and crosses.

J.W. Chappell, my father, died about twenty one years ago.

Signed
J. B. Chappell
Falkville, Ala.

J.W. Chappell the founder of the strain in S. C.
J.B. Chappell son of J.W. migrated to Ala.
O.B. Chappell son of J.B. Falkville, Ala.
J.W. Chappell son of O.B. Falkville, Ala.
Jerry Chappell son of J.W. Falkville, Ala.
Kris Chappell son of Jerry Falkville, Ala.
Six generations of pure Chappell Doms.

O’Neal Doms

Tom O’Neal of Louisville, KY., said that he gave an old Irishman $40 for a trio of dominique chickens many years ago, and they are what were later, and are today, known as the O’Neal Doms. They have been very successful strain. The come light and dark doms and some are almost white. Have yellow or white legs and usually red eyes. Run in weight from 4:08 to 6:00 and are said to be good cutters in any style heels.

Gee Doms

Dr. James T. Gee, who originated this noble strain of game fighting fowl, was born at South Hampton, Va. , March 8, 1821 and died at Burnsville, Alabama, February 19, 1891. For forty years Dr. Gee stood the undisputed champion cocker of the south. The Gee Doms are also known as the Georgia Doms. The first Dom was the result of a cross of a Black Sumatra cock on a White Pyle hen, the results of this cross which came in light and dark blues were then crossed on a strain called the heatherwoods–a cross of the Earl Derby and a Red Pyle hen imported by Ed Heatherwood. This cross ws in color a dirty white similar to the Dusty Millers. This cross was then bred back on the original cross and produced a beautiful fowl of light and dark blue color with typical Dom markings, which were known as the Blue Champions of the South. Dr. Gee and “Dad” Gleezen fought them together. “Dad” Gleezen then suggested a cross of the Doms with one of his best Whitehackles which turned out to be a wonderful success. The Dr. Gee Dominiques are the oldest strain of Dominiques in the country today, as they had been going strong for more than 20 years when Dr. J.W. Cooper described them in his Standard Edition of “Game Fowls” published in 1869. They run in weight from 4:08 to 6:08 in condition. In color they come all shades of the Dominique, guinea, red or orange dom and quite frequently one comes pure white. Have very red eyes and yellow legs, extra fine feathers and stong tail and wings, and aside from their pit qualities, are a very handsome fowl. The Dr. Gee dominiques have qualified in both long and short heels, and competent cockers say they fail to see where they do any better in long heels than in short ones, for they seem to be at home in either style. As long as the sport of cocking lasts, the name of Dr. Gee will be heard, and so long , also will the birds be bred that the Doctor originated, for they are too grand a strain to ever fall into decay. Mr. J.E. McLaurin, of Salida, Colorado, is perhaps the foremost breeder of this strain, he having bred them pure for more than forty years at the present time.

Cassidy Doms

This strain of Doms, was originated by R. Cassidy, of Sioux City, Iowa, in 1913, by blending the bloods of the Minton, Chappell and Harvey doms. They come all colors of the dom family, and run in weight 4:12 to 7:00. Have mostly yellow and white legs and red eyes. They are good in any length heels, and are considered extra good finishers on a down cock. Absolutely game, fast scorers and good cutters. Mr. Cassidy is one of the formest of present-day breeders, backed by many years experience.

Giant White Doms

This is a large strain that was originated by George Hathaway, of Independence, Iowa in 1920. To Dom hens he bred a buff colored cock that was 5-8 Dom and 3-8 Jap, and weighed 8:08. The cocks come white with a few dom feathers throughout the body. Have yellow legs and red eyes and both straight and peacomb. They come about 80 % shakes, and are said to be very fast for large birds.

Sure Shot Doms

This strain was originated by the late Quinn E. Robb, of Springfield, Mo.We have been informed by parties who were closely associated with Mr. Robb that he used the old Minton Dom, White Tails and Grist Champion in their making. They come all shades of dom, with yellow and white legs, red eyes, straight and peacomb, and run in weight 4:06 to 6:00. A classy pit fowl, being good cutters and great shufflers.

Pittsburgh Dominiques

These were originated around 1800 in York County, Pa., by breeding a 7 pound Pittsburgh cock over a Virginia hen. Along hten a dominique colored cock was considered a rank dunghill and often he was given weight and odds bet against him, sometimes as much as 2 to 1. Many raised them especially for this purpose. Their fame soon spread over Pa. , Md, and W.VA, and were still fought in their purity around 1850. About the same time Gad of Fayette, Pa., was getting odds the same way with his Muff fowl as they too were considered dunghills at that time.

School House Doms

Osa Lentz and Lewis A. Lentz of Kentucky originated these about 50 years ago by breeding an Irish cock raised at an old school house in Browns Lane near Barbourville, Ky., over Dom hens from Tom O’Neal of Louisville, Kentucky. Lewis was still fighting and selling these in 1951 when a tornado and thieves wiped his stock out twice in succession.

Harveys Shuffling Doms

This strain was originated by W.L. Harvey, of South Carolina, about twenty years ago, and are well favorably known all over the Southern states. They contain the bloods of G. Perk Huddleston Doms, an old strain of Cuban Doms, Thompson Whites, Pea Soup Pyle, Arkansas Traveller and dom blood from O’Neal, Dr. Frymire and H.B. Spencer. Theyare medium to high station; mostly straight combs with yellow legs and come in all shades of dominiquer color. Cocks are very aggressive and good finishers.


Pre Mcoy Paki basa mo ito sa Doms, saka tayo mag-usap sa FB kung gusto mo gawin yan Breeding na Proven nila noon 1930's,,,, Iyan yon na Kwento ko sa iyo at yan mismo ang sinabi namin sa Kumpare Idol Bulikeke ng Tarlac (Hindi po si Pre JunP, Hilig po niya ay Putepepe na),,,Ayos....

[jungold]

GREYS

Chocolate Grey Part 1 by Rex DeRusseau

The first part of this information came directly from Rex DeRusseau, of Kansas, a breeder for Dave Ward. Ward told DeRusseau that his Chocolate Grays were an infusion of four different strains of the old Gray bloodlines; the Madigin (Regular) Gray, The C.C. Cooke’s Perfection Gray, the Deans Gray and the Four Webber Gray, from Bobby Manziel Sr. Manziel and Cooke were partners at this time.
As far as we know, only S.B. Clay, Rex DeRusseau, and Sam Bingham had these Chocolate fowl. They come both straight and pea-combed. They will come with pearl, yellow, green or dark slate colored legs. They have a superb style of fighting, and fight as well pure as they do crossed. They are smart, aggressive, and game to the end.

Chocolate Grey (HOLCOMB STRAIN) Part 2 by Frank Holcomb

We took the above mentioned strain, purchased from Robert Logan, of Mississippi, we then took an Asil hen from Vasco Sibert, of Florida, and bred her under a Chocolate cock (from Logan), called “Number 18″, alwats carrying the same punch – right-out and left-out, and still do until this day.

We then bred this cross to a Lundy Roundhead, from Jimmie Johnson, of Americus, Georgia. We then bred this down until all fowl carried 1/8 Asil and 1/8 Lundy Roundhead. By having from 4 to 6 breeder pens we were able to keep this percentage in all of our Chocolate Gray fowl. We have experimented with other degrees of blood percentages, but found with out a doubt this is the best that we have come upon.

As to my way of thinking, the Chocolate in this confusing blood mixture is the very best that I have ever run upon. It is easily kept in this percentage, but also would be just as easy to unbalance it by putting new blood into them, or by crossing and double crossing.

Chocolate Grey Part 3 by Jim Gooch

As you probably know, I have been advertising 4 Webber Grays for a long time, since 1949. Through friendship, I secured the last of the Manziel 4 Webber Grays the late S.B. Clay had. Clay wanted me to get back into the game chicken business, and told me to look over his place and pick out anything I wanted for brood stock. I saw a well built Gray cock, about 6 years old, that Clay had in a stall, that had bad feet. I told Clay I liked his looks and he was too old to fight, how about that one? Clay gave me a big smile and said, “Jim, do you know what cock that is?” I told him I did not. Then he told me he was the old 4 Webber Gray cock from Manziel, and that this cock had been fought in 5 large tournaments and derbies. This cock was marked all 4 webbs out. Whether Madigin marked them that way, I do not know. I was under the impression that was Manziel’s mark, but Grady Hamilton says it was Madigin’s. Regardless of who marked them, mine were marked that way.

I told Clay I had better get something else as I didn’t want ot get one of his best brood cocks, but he said he wanted me to have the best and to take him, which I did. This was about 1949. He also secured three C.C. Cooke Perfection hens for me to mate with this cock, and I raised quite a few, and gave most of them to Clay, in appreciation for what he had done for me. I bred this 4 Webber cock for three seasons and when the cock became sterile, due to age, I took him to Clay, and Clay told me to destroy the cock, which I could not do, and left him with Clay, and he destroyed the cock.

The year Clay passed away, I gave him 6 Gray stags out of the old 4 Webber cock and he shipped them to the islands. The same year I gave him 4 pullets that he wanted to mate with one of his cocks to ship to LA in exchange for 5 Shake cocks. I asked Clay why the name “4 Webber”, and he told me because they were marked all 4 webbs out.

Mr. Hamilton said there were 3 hens, two went to Henry Wortham and one to Bobby Manziel, Sr. I do know that Bobby Manziel, Sr. had gray fowl that were marked all 4 webbs out, (4 Webbers, as they were called.)

Manziel was associated with C.C. Cooke and they had the fowl from Law, which fowl came from Madigin. I do not know when Manziel became associated with Cooke, but they did fight lots of derbies here at Waco, and Manziel fought lots of Grays when they were fighting as Manziel and Cooke, and anyone that attended these meets knew what records Manziel and Cooke made with their fowl. Both Law and Madigin got gray fowl from Hanky Deans, so evidently they were of the same breeding. It is a fact that Law shipped Gray fowl that were red in color, so after Law got these Grays, no one but Law would know how they were bred.

Bobby Manziel, Sr. was a good friend of Law’s, and am sure they exchanged fowl. Law let Manziel have a red cock, called “Repeater”, to breed over his 4 Webber Gray hens, and lots of white fowl showed up. What this “Repeater” red cock was, I do not know, but probably a Clipper.

As to the $1,000 hen, or Chocolate Hen, it is my understanding this hen went to Dave Ward, in Kansas. She was a gray hen with chocolate colored body, with lots of chocolate color feathers, hence the name Chocolate. The information I have from Kansas, this
Chocolate hen was a Madigin Regular Gray.

Shelly Clay told me that C.C. Cooke gave the grays he had their name, Perfection Grays, and in bloodlines they were the exact breeding of the Regular Grays. Cooke had a cock that he said was what you would call “Perfection” Gray.

I still have some of the 4 Webber Gray blood, and the gray cock that appeared in Grit & Steel some time back, the one that moulted out white is a pure 4 Webber Gray, and he is still on my brood yard, and is out of the old original 4 Webber fowl from Clay.

I had a very lengthy letter from a Red Robertson (or Roberson) that worked for Bobby Manziel at the time he had these 4 Webber Grays. He said the late E.W. Law let Manziel have new blood to use with his 4 Webber Grays, and that Law let Manziel have a red cock to breed over his 4 Webber Grays, and when mated, they produced lots of white stags, and Manziel did not like the white coloring, and gave them to Clay. When in partnership with Cooke, fighting at Dripping Spring Pit in Waco (Clay’s pit during the 1940′s) I did not see any white fowl fought by Manziel. Law didn’t know Manziel gave the fowl to Clay, as he did not like to see them go into other hands. Clay tried the white stags and they were excellent fighters, and this changed Manziel’s mind about not wanting them.

I do not know how Clay got his 4 Webber blood from Manziel, whether he bought fowl or Manziel gave them to him, Clay told me they were the best he had on his yard.

After Clay passed away, I gave Mrs. Clay two of the 4 Webber Gray stags to mate with some highly inbred gray hens she had. The stags from this mating were bought by Mr. Galbreath when he was in Colorado, as I helped Mrs. Clay dispose of her chickens. Galbreath bought both red and grays and when he moved to Orgeon, he got in touch with me and wanted some of the 4 Webber blood. Galbreath won a six cock derby with 6 full brothers of these grays, winning six straight without a loss. He entered another derby and used two of his 3 Spur Grays, and won six straight again. One of Galbreath’s stags was returned to me for a brood purpose, and I have him in a brood pen at this time. Galbreath wrote me he won 10 fights with 8 stags without a loss.

There is no question about it – anyone having this 4 Webber Gray blood, has just about as good, if not better than any fowl.

I have corresponded with Rex DeRusseau, of Kansas, a breeder of Dave Ward fowl, and part of this information came from him, and as he was on the ground, he got the information first hand from those that bred this $1,000 hen, and fought stags from her. He told me the $1,000 hen was in Kansas, and he talked to the man that ran the pit at Beloit, where Dave Ward, a noted cocker in Kansas fought fowl from this Chocolate or $1,000 hen, and Mr. Ward said the Chocolate name given the hen was account, as stated, her feathering. This letter from Rex DeRusseau was dated March 2, 1959, and he had bought Choclate blood from Bob Basham. As to where Mr. Basham got his blood, I do not know.

When I bred the 4 Webbers straight, I did not get anything but gray fowl. I got a stag from Clay, a J.D. Perry Gray, and used him over the gray I had, and that is when I began to get fowl that were red in color. This Perry Gray blood was a perfect blend with my 4 Webber Grays. Don’t anyone write and ask me what are the J.D. Perry Grays, as I do not have this information, and I doubt if Clay knew.

About 1957 I bought two white hens from Bob Basham, went to his place and picked them up. He told me they were Deans Grays, and some come white. These two hens were a little too old to breed, and I only raised one stag to maturity. These hens were mated to a pure 4 Webber Manziel Gray, and this stag came light red, with lots of white in feathering, and looked more like a Whitehackle. A party from St. Louis visited me when I had this stag, and I told him the full history, and that I had this one stag, and as I did not like his color, gave this stag to him, and he was shipped to St. Louis. The white hens did not moult out completely the next season, and were very short feathered, and they would not lay any eggs; so I have them to a Waco friend of mine and told him to take them to the country and turn them loose and they might freshen up and start laying. The last I heard of these two hens, they died and none was raised from them.
If Grady Hamilton is correct about the three hens, Bobby Manziel, Sr. gave or sold the hen to Dave Ward, as that is where the $1,000 hen went to.

The 17 years I have been breeding these 4 Webber Grays, I got one white hen, but the following year after moulting, she turned gray, and is still gray. My old white 4 Webber gray cock is moulting out this year with lots of dark feathers in his breast, and red on his back. He is not solid white at this time.

My pure 4 Webber Grays did not throw any white fowl, but if crossed on the pure Madigin Claret, you would get some white ones. I made this cross of 4 Webber on pure Sam Bingham Red fwol that came out of the Old Cedar cock of Clay’s and this mating produced white dowl, but I discontinued this cross and bred them straight.

What information I have, I got from the late S.B. C.ay, Rex DeRusseau and the late Sam Bingham, and I believe what they say about these Grays. Sam Bingham told me that Madigin had lots of Gray fowl with dark legs, and they came pearl legged, yellow legged and dark legged. Sam ought to know, as he walked hundreds of cocks for Madigin, and had access to his best.

So, summing it all up, the Madigin Regular Gray, Cooke Perfection Gray (bred by C.C. Cooke) and the Deans Grays are close kinfolks, if not exact bloodlines.

English Grey
by Cocking Cousins (1992)

In Britain, there are three well known strains of English Greys. Namely Felix Leach Greys, Colonel Greys, and Hawes Greys. Their may be others but these are the most well known and widespread.

Felix Leach, a racehorse trainer of Newmarket in Southern England, is perhaps the most famous breeder of Grey fowl over here. He took great pride in these fowl during the early and middle part of this century. They were and still are a good fighting bird and are used a lot in English pits. They are around 4 1/2 pounds and are low to medium station, aggressive pressure fighting type fowl, allowing their opponent no room or rest, fighting mainly low to the ground and looking to keep on top their opponent. They need to be dead to be beaten. My knowledge of Colonel Greys is slightly better, having used this strain of Greys myself for a few years. They come slightly bigger than Leach Greys being about 4.10 to 5.4, they are long in body and narrower than most English strains, looking more American in appearance. When right they are very fast, heads high, legs in front type fighters, they are also very aggressive. When “oure” they are prone to man fight, but cross very well for battle. They are light boned birds appearing big for their weight. They perform much better when fought in lean flesh and mature early.

Hawe’s Greys are not so widespread in England. They are very much like the Leach Grey, both in size and fighting style, in fact Felix Leach and Hawes were friends and its likely the strains are of very similar blood.

At a recent sale of gamefowl by Sir Mark Prescot in Newmarket, both Hawes and Leach broodstock along with American strains were sold in good numbers. They also made a high price by English standards. It was quite an event for English gamefowl lovers, being the only public sale of gamefowl in England this century.

I’ve also seen a lot of Black Grey Hennies fought over the years, though the origin of these birds is unknown to me at present, they have been game and always deadly cutters.

Well, thank you for listening, as you can gather we are not done yet on the gamefowl front. I even know of old strains of Creel and Black Toppy that are game and deadly but we will leave it for now.

Ginn Greys

The Ginn Greys were bred and fought by Col. S.A. Ginn, of Georgia, and their blood lines are unknown. Ginn and more used these Greys in some of the biggest and best mains ever fought in the south, and they made a wonderful pit record. They are still extensively bred throughout the country. The males come a light silver grey to a solid white, with hens the same color. Both have straight and peacomb, and some show a small tassel. Red fiery eyes and both yellow and white legs. Run in weight 5:00 to shakes.

Regular Grey
Regular Grey is said to be a combination of three grey families: the Law Grey, the Sweater Gray and the Plain head Muff Grey. Regular Grays come green legged, sometimes with yellow, silver duck wings and straight comb. They are medium to low-stationed, and are known for power and gameness. Breeders note that they are as powerful and dead game as the Blue faces. Because of these, many breeders have made Regular Grey as their foundation line.

[jun parana]

aba! aba! mga bagong linyada yan ah Bulikeke at putepepe hahaha ayos mukhang meron na yata akong ganyang linyada Preng Tukayo

[jungold]

aba! aba! mga bagong linyada yan ah Bulikeke at putepepe hahaha ayos mukhang meron na yata akong ganyang linyada Preng Tukayo

Sabi nga ni Pre Genis,,Raragragan naten yan Bulikeke at Putepepe na Bloodlines naten at improved naten lahat yan, yan mismo ang tinuro at sinabi sa Kumpare Idolz na Tiga-Tarlac,,,Di po si Pre JunP yon, Maliwanag po....Pre Tukayo maghanap ako ng 4 na Bulikeke na Bloodlines na authentic, May nakita ako sa Davao noon 2000, naka-tago lang doon, tinanong ko kung ano gawin nila , gawin pang-kulay lang daw at di gamitin sa Breeding, itanong ko kung nandoon pa rin sa Farm sa may Buhangin,,Uwii nila yon from Kentucky-Alabama-Texas-Oklahoma, sana mag-Bigay, ipa-Tanong ko nga kay Drigs...