_Comb._—There is no style of comb so difficult to breed to perfection as the rose comb, and the excellent combs shown on Black and Spangled Hamburgs at our recent shows prove how much can be accomplished by judicious breeding. To our eye it is beautiful and elegant, and forms one of the chief attractions of the Hamburg. It should be a deep, rich red; not so large as to overhang the eyes or beak; square in front; fitting close and straight on the head; not inclining to one side; not hollow in the center—on the contrary, we prefer a slight rise in the center, although an even comb throughout is better. It should be uniform on each side; the top covered with small points, and terminating in a spike behind, which inclines upward very slightly. The absence of this spike is a grave defect, which if a natural blemish disqualifies a bird by the _American Standard of Excellence_, as does likewise a comb so large as to obstruct the sight.
_Ear-Lobes._—The ear-lobe is one of the most striking features of the Black Hamburg, and in connection with the bright red comb and greenish plumage, form a _tout ensemble_ such as no one can see without admiring. The ear-lobe on the old Black Hamburgs was smaller than it is nowadays, although it is noticeable that those birds which have been kept pure have a smaller and finer ear-lobe than those which were crossed with the Spanish. As we have before observed, Mr. Beldon (in common with some other breeders, who all ought to know better) has thought that the white ear-lobe was only introduced by the Spanish cross, an error which we have furnished abundant evidence to refute; so that really all that was gained by this unnecessary cross was a large, pendent ear-lobe, which is totally at variance with our accepted ideas as to what a Hamburg ear-lobe should be. It has been allowed by most judges, until quite recently, to be a little larger in the Blacks than in any other variety of Hamburgs, but it must be pure white, well rounded, lying smoothly and close to the face, like a piece of white kid glove, and _the smaller the better_. A large, pendent ear-lobe, like that of the Spanish and Leghorns, is certainly a grave blemish; nor should it be wrinkled or puffy, or at all tinged with red about the edges.