Booting is variable in amount. To indicate its degree I have had recourse to an artificial scale. I recognize 11 grades, running from 0 to 10. The grade 0 implies no feathers whatsoever. Grade 10 implies heavy booting extending over the front half of the shank. Grade 5 implies an extent of only half of the maximum, _i. e._, the outer front quarter of the shank. Intermediate grades indicate intermediate extension of the feathered area. A. TYPES OF BOOTING. The races of booted poultry used have been as follows: First, bantam Cochins of two varieties; second, a bantam Dark Brahma; and third, the Silkie. In my representatives of the first two groups, but particularly in the Dark Brahma, the amount of booting is variable. In one type the outer third of the shank in the newly hatched chick is covered by strong, heavy, specialized feathers, directed outward, while the middle and inner thirds are covered by smaller, finer, imbricating feathers sparsely placed and resembling reduced contour-feathers. In most individuals the transition from the one kind to the other is gradual, while in others it is sharp, and in a few the outer third only of the shank is feathered. In the Silkies, which the standard poultry books describe as being more sparsely feathered on the shank,[8] the outer zone of feathers is the only one developed; and, occasionally, as table 31 shows, even these feathers may be lacking. We have thus two types to distinguish--the extended (Cochin, Brahma) type and the restricted type. [8] Thus Wright (1902) says the shanks of the Silkies (in England) are "slightly feathered," and Baldanus (1896) says that (in Germany) they are feathered on the _outer half_. B. NORMAL VARIABILITY. To appreciate the results of hybridizing we must first examine the variability of pure-blooded races. This is done in table 31. TABLE 31.--_Distribution of boot-grades in the offspring of Cochin, Dark Brahma, and Silkie parents._