The flesh of the Game fowl is beautifully white, and superior to that of all other breeds for richness and delicacy of flavour. They should never be put up to fat, as they are impatient of confinement. "They are in no way fit for the fattening-coop," says Mr. Baily. "They cannot bear the extra food without excitement, and that is not favourable to obesity. Nevertheless, they have their merits. If they are reared like pheasants round a keeper's house, and allowed to run semi-wild in the woods, to frequent sunny banks and dry ditches, they will grow up like them; they will have little fat, but they will be full of meat. They must be eaten young; and a Game pullet four or five months old, caught up wild in this way, and killed two days before she is eaten, is, perhaps, the most delicious chicken there is in point of flavour." The Game-fowl continues to breed for many years without showing any signs of decay, and in this respect is superior to the Cochin, Brahma, and even to the Dorking. The cock's head should be long, but fine; beak long, curved, and strong; comb single, small, upright, and bright red; wattles and face bright red; eyes large and brilliant; neck long, arched, and strong; breast well developed; back short and broad between the shoulders, but tapering to the tail; thighs muscular, but short compared to the shanks; spur low; foot flat, with powerful claws, and his carriage erect. The form of the hen should resemble the above on a smaller scale, with small, fine comb and face, and wattles of a less intense red. The feathers of both should be very hard, firm, and close, very strong in the quills, and seem so united that it should be almost impossible to ruffle them, each feather if lifted up falling readily into its original place. Size is not a point of merit, from four to six pounds being considered sufficient, and better than heavier weights. Among the list of imperfections in Game cocks, Sketchley enumerates "flat sides, short legs, thin thighs, crooked or indented breast, short thin neck, imperfect eye, and duck or short feet."