Thứ Bảy, 8 tháng 6, 2019

Alabama Roundheads


Alabama Roundheads

by H.H Cowan & T.K. Bruner (1924)

While  complying  with  the  request  of  the  editor  for  the  history  of  the Alabama Roundheads I wish to say that writing for publication is not one of my  strong points. However,  I am willing  to do my best and cooperate with the  plans  of  Grit  and  Steel,  which  seems  to  have  been  inspired with  new “pep” in the last few years and is now far ahead in its chosen field.
This story begins 45 years ago when I was born into the chicken game and which I have played in its every phase. I have bought, fed, fought, heeled and handled cocks of many different strains and crosses, and probably have done as much experimenting as any man of my years. It is my opinion that there is no one best strain of fowl and no one best feeder, but there are many of both in class “A” and when you make a main nowadays for real money you are sure to meet them. It seems the days of monopoly in the cocking game have passed, which I attribute to renewed interest in the sport and the increased flow of money and brains into the game.
I do not claim to have originated the best strain of the pit games in the world in my Alabama Roundheads, but the fact that they have won the majority of their fights and kept pace with the ever-increasing speed of the game for the past twenty years, under all rules and any length of gaff, is very gratifying.
For the past several years I have done most of my fighting at Memphis, Tenn., where my fowl were known as Alabama Cocks, thus their name Alabama Roundheads. My fowl have passed the experimental stage, having their characteristics inbred into them, and I feel with my system of breeding I can hold them at their present standard for years to come.
Many years ago when Mr. Allen and Mr. Shelton were defeating all opposition with their great strain of Roundheads, I attended just about all the mains and tournaments in which they were entered, forming an acquaintance and finally friendship with Mr. Shelton, as he was a man whom to know was to like, being one of those old time Southern gentlemen-sportsmen who at one time so characterized the gentility of the Old South. In his passing the fraternity lost one of its great uplifters and the South one of its best citizens. Through this association I became familiar with the history and breeding of the Allen Roundheads and secured my first of these from Mr. Shelton, personally, when at their best, and of his best. I fought them pure for a number of years. From my knowledge of the Allen Roundheads they were originated from a Saunders Roundhead cock bred over Col. Grist Grady hens and then bred closely to the Sauders side. I was breeding and fighting these Roundheads continuously each season and it gradually became apparent to me that they were being bred a bit too close to cope with the strong, rough cocks they were having to meet. It is my opinion, from both experience and observation, that the old time Allen Roundheads with their smart side-stepping tactics and phenomenal sparring qualities and rapid straight hip blows while in the air, could best most cocks they met in the early stages of the battle.
I think this excellent quality was their chief asset and enabled them to make one of the best, if not the best, pit records of any Southern strains. But in the latter stages of battle, when it came down to a give-and-take, I have never thought they excelled, and I was convinced that if they were to keep pace with the game and maintain their record they must be bred to fight as efficiently when the battle came down to a “tug of war” as in the beginning of a fight. I made several unsuccessful experiments with this end in view, but I kept on trying and about fifteen years ago I became acquainted with the great characteristics of the old time Mahoney Gull fowl, with their desperate gameness, strong constitutions and deadly heel. These being the qualities I wished to add to the already great fighting qualities of the Allen Roundheads, I decided to make an infusion of this blood. I secured a royally bred Gull cock of the old school, through friendship with a source whence no one has ever been able to buy a feather to my knowledge, and bred him over my Roundhead hens.
The Gulls being a yellow and white leg strain of black breasted reds with few exceptions of medium station, the type and color was only slightly changed from this cross; but the plumage was longer and much improved. The plumage of the Gull fowl is of a marked characteristic, consisting of a very broad feather extremely long and with a quill of whale-bone toughness. Such plumage enables a cock to be fought several times during a season in good feathers.
The first cross were strong, tough and desperately game. I bred back to the Roundhead side, fighting and testing them. Each year’s breeding showed an improvement over the preceding one, and kept this up until they again were back to the Roundhead type, showing all the old time fighting qualities of the Allen Roundheads, yet this was backed by strength and endurance, making them more efficient cocks at any stage of battle.
It is my experience that any cocks must have the ability and inhibition to go all the way, as well as great scoring or starting, in order to hold their own in cock fighting of the present day. I fought them with fair success a few years and studied them closely, and finally reached the conclusion that their ability to strike rapidly and efficiently from any angle when in close quarters could be improved upon. Knowing this quality to be one of the outstanding characteristics of the Grist Gradys their foundation stock, I made a fresh infusion of this old reliable blood.
I secured a cock that proved to be of the right sort and his produce were deep game and he imparted the quality I had aimed at to a marked degree, without the loss of any other essential quality. This proved to be a real combination fighting cocks, efficient at any stage of battle, which their record shows. By inbreeding and line breeding to the outstanding individuals for the past 12 years these qualities have been stamped into them, until they come uniform in type and action. The Alabama Roundheads are practically of the same color and type as the Allen Roundheads. Cocks are black breasted reds with white or yellow legs, but a pumpkin or a deep cherry red or a spangle occurs occasionally, as well as both straight and pea-combs. The hens come from light buff to wheaten, occasionally a green or dark legged fowl will appear among the offspring. All these slight variations come honestly from their foundation blood; the green or dark legs from the Redquill in the Gradys, and the straight combs from both the Gulls and Gradys. However, the largest proportion of them come with white and yellow legs, pea-combs and in color black breasted reds.
For the past eight years I have done most of my fighting at Memphis, Tenn., in combination with Bruner and Herron. Bruner doing all the honors in the cock house and pit. I consider him a fine judge of a cock and among the best feeders in the South. He knows what to expect of a cock, and if they had not been right in every respect he would have found it out several years ago and passed them up. He tests nearly every loser and they have to be right for him or he has no use for them. He has been breeding the Alabama Roundheads ten years and has greatly assisted me in bringing these fowl to their present state of excellence by his help and advice in selecting brood fowl from the performance of the cocks in the pit. Mr. Bruner has conditioned and fought more of these cocks possibly than any other man, knows them through and through, as he has practically lived in the cock house with them for the past several years.

Alabama Roundhead Pedigree Table
By Gameness til the End
Based on the articles posted on this post
Alabama Roundhead

red, white & yellow shank, peacomb

sometimes, pumpkin, cherry, spangle, green shank, single comb

HH Cowan & TK Bruner
Allen Roundhead

red, yellow shank, peacomb

Will Allen & Shelton

Bred back closely to cock side
Roundhead Cock

Saunders
Hen

Grist Grady

Infusion
Gull

red, yellow & white shank, single comb

Mahoney

Infusion
Grist Grady

single comb

Infusion
Redquill

green shank

infusion or part of foundation stock

Alabama Roundheads
By H.H Cowan & T.K. Bruner (1924)
Sư Vuơng phng dch

***Li ngui dich: Bài này nói đến mt dòng gà ln trong nhng dòng gà Hoa Kỳ đuc to bi nhng sư kê lão luyn, đu tư tin bc và tim óc vào môn chơi. Cm trong tay nhng con gà bc nht mà h không hài lòng vn không ngng ci tiến đ to dòng gà riêng cho dù nhiu ln tht bi, h mt hơn mui my năm đ cui cùng đã thành công. Trong bài nói đến quan đim pha ging và th nghim ca h và cui cùng dùng trùng ln cn huyết đ khóa li nhng gì h đã to ra.***

Câu chuyn cách đây 45 năm khi tôi sinh ra trong ngay môi trung đá gà. Tôi ra nhp môn đá gà dui mi hình th’c Tôi mua, gà, cho ăn, đá ct ca, th gà biết bao con gà thuc nhiu giòng rt và pha khác nhau, có l thu thp kinh nghim nhiu như bt c sư kê nào cùng thi tôi. Theo tôi không bn gà nào nht hay quá t trong nhóm gà hng A, nhưng trong nhóm này có rt nhiu gà hng nht cũng như gà np, mt khi bn kiếm tin bng ngh này bn truc sau gì cũng đng. Dung như thi đc tôn ca môn chi gà đã qua, chính vì đó ti tr li tiếp tc thích thú môn chơi này, đu tư them tin bc và tâm trí . Tôi không dám nói tôi là khi ngun ca bn gà Alabama Roundhead hay nht thế gii trong môn chơi này. Nhưng s tht là nó đã thng đa s nhng trn đu và gi ngang hàng vi buc gia tăng vn tc không ngng ca trò chơi này trong sut 20 năm qua. Bt c luâ,t chơi nào, bt c lai đinh dài ngn khác nhau, ca đinh chuyên nghip. Tôi chuyên đá trung Memphis, bang Tennessee dui tên Alabama Roundhead. Bn gà tôi đã qua thi kỳ tri nghim, chúng đã co’ cá tính riêng trong huyết qun và tôi thy vi hê thng gi dòng, gà tôi s gi vng tiêu chun này trong vòng nhiu năm ti. Cách đây nhiu năm, khi mà Ông. Allen và Shelton đang dùng dòng Roundheads trit ha tt c nhng ngôi v ti trung gà. Tôi d kiến tt c nhng trn đu ln và nhng gii mà h tham d, làm quen và cui cùng kết bn vi ông Shelton. Ông Shelton ai biết ông cũng thích ông. Mt trong mu nhân sĩ c đin min Nam, có thi coi như mu “ông già Nam b” (Old South) . Khi ông qua đi, bn hu mt mt ngui khích l nâng đ, min Nam mt mt công dân hng nht.

Qua liên h này tôi tr thành quen thuc v lch s và quá trình to thành dòng Allen roundheads và tóm đuc con đu tiên do chính tay ông Shelton trao cho, mt trong nhng con hay nht trong thi vàng son nht. Tôi đem đá rt vài năm. Theo tôi biết Allens Roundheads xut x t Sauders Roundheads pha vi mái ca Col. Grist Grady ri pha nguc li cho gn vi nhánh Sauders. Tôi cn và đem đá dòng này trong nhiu năm. Tôi nhn thy rng nhng con này đá quá sát nút vi my con gà gai góc, lì lm thuc hng ca nó. Theo kinh nghim và quan sát, nếu xét v khi đu cuc đu, nó có buc né rt là thong minh, x tuyt diu và cú đp thng giò trên không phi gi là tuyt đnh so vi bt c dòng gà nào trong dàn np ca cuc đu, vi nhng tuyt chiêu này đã to cho nó thành gà hay nht nếu không là mt trong nhng con gà hay nht vi s chiến công nhiu nht so vi bt c dòng gà nào min nam. Nhưng đến khúc sau lúc cuc chiến nếu kéo dài đến mày đá tao, tao đá mày tôi không bao gi thy nó xut sc. Tôi phi công nhn nếu mun gi đà tiến b ca môn chơi và trình đ giao tranh kiến hiu, dòng này phi pha đ thành nhng con gà không nhng xut sc t khi đu cho đến khi cuc chiến đến phút ging co cũng phi hay tuơng t như phút đu. Tôi th và tht bi nhiu ln vi cái nhìn này. Cho đến cách đây 15 năm, tôi quen thuc vi bn gà cũ Mahoney Gull, vi tính nết lì lm, mnh m và ca đâm t thn.


Đây là nhng điu tôi mun thêm vào đc tính chiến đu tuyt vi đã sn trong dòng Allen Roundheads. Tôi có đuc con con trng thuc dòng “vuơng gia Mahoney Gull qua tình bng hu vi mt ngun mà theo tôi biết chưa tng nhung mt cng lông gà h cho ai. Tôi pha con này vào mái dòng Allen Roundhead. Gull có chân trng và vàng, ô tía, Lông to bn, rt dài và cng cng như xuơng cá voi. Vi phm cht đó con gà có th đá nhiu trn mt mùa mà lông vn tt. La đu mnh, gai góc và tuyt đi lì. Tôi cn vô li nhánh Roundheads, đem đá, th nghim. Mi năm bn này mi tiến b cho đến khi tt c phm cht cũ ca con Allen Roundhead tr li và đuc h tr them cái tánh chu đng và sc mnh khiến con gà chiến đu thêm kiến hiu ti bt c giai đan nào trong cuc đu. Tôi đem chúng đi đu và khá thành công trong vài năm và theo rõi sát, tôi nhn thy rng kh năng tn công mau l và kiến hiu bt c khía cnh nào ca nó có th ci thin. Cái đc tính tuyn diu này có trong dòng mái ca dòng Allen Roundheads, dòng Grist Gradys. Dòng này có gi trong chung gà gc, tôi châm cái máu tuyt diu ca dòng gà cũ đã đuc tin tung vào. Rt cuc tôi đã khóa đuc mt ging gà chng minh là đúng ngun, con gà chiến đu vi chiu sâu bng nhng kh năng mà tôi đã nhm khi to nó đến mc đáng k mà không b mt nhng phm cht ct ty khác. Đây là mt lai to thành công, đánh kiu gì, ti bt c giai đan nào. Chiến công ngòai trung đã chng minh điu đó. Kế đến dùng trùng huyết và cn huyết vi cá tính vut bc trong 12 năm qua, cho ti lúc ging gà đã thun t th đến thế, nhng phm cht này đã đuc đóng mc vào dòng gà.
Gà Alabama Roundhead màu sc cũng như cách đá tuơng t như Allen Roundhead; gà điu chân trng hay vàng, đôi khi có gà vàng hay đim chút bông; mòng lá hay dâu nh, mái mu lúa chin hay nâu nht, chân đôi khí có chân xanh hay chân chì . Chân xanh hay chì ly t dòng Redquill trong h Gradys; mòng lá t the Gulls và Gradys. Tuy vy đa s vn là mòng dâu nh chân trng hoc vàng, và gà điu ô.
Tám năm qua tôi thung đá Memphis, bang Tennesse, đá chung vi Bruner và Herron. Bruner gi vinh d làm mi công vic t chung gà đến si gà. Tôi coi Bruner như giám kho gà và coi như tay nuôi gà c phách nht min nam. Bruner biết nhìn con gà, nếu tt c có gì không đúng ông ta s nhìn ra cách đây nhiu năm và b. Ông ta th tt c nhng con gà thua, chúng cũng phi hay, nếu không ông ta cũng chng dùng dòng gà.

Ông Bruner nhân ging Alabama Roundheads mui năm qua và giúp tôi rt nhiu đ mang ging gà này đến mc tuyt ho hin nay, bng cách chn gà nc qua tài ngh ti trung gà, ông nuôi, dt và cm đá dòng gà này nhiu hơn bt c ai, biết chúng tung tn. Tóm li coi như ông ta sng trong chung vi bn gà đó nhiu năm qua.


Los Angeles, Calif., Aug. 24, 1927.
Mr. H. H. Cowan,
Riverton, Ala.
Friend Cowan:—Feeling  certain you would  like  to know how  the  twelve cocks  you  sent me  at  the  beginning  of  last  season,  fared,  it  is  with  great pleasure  that  I  am  able  to  send you  about  the  best  report  of  any  individual shipment that has ever come west.
These cocks were not “coddled”  in  the  least, as  is self-evident  in  the  fact that  these 12 cocks were  fought 31  times  in  the  short  space of one  fighting season. Upon  their arrival  they entered 4×12 foot scratch pens, and  the only time  they came out of  them was  to enter  the cock house.  In  fact,  they spent almost as much time in a 2×3 conditioning coop as they did elsewhere. This sort of  treatment  is  the supreme  test of moral courage of a game cock. Lord deliver me  from  the  “temperamental” kind  that  easily go  coop  stale! Of  all the discordant, unmusical  sounds  that can greet a cocker’s ear  is  the hoarse hen-like song of a cock that has lost his nerve.
Taking  it  for granted  that  I have mistreated  this splendid bunch of cocks, that  they met  nothing  but  conditioned  opponents,  that  I was  unable  to  pick easy matches  for  them—yet  these  twelve  cocks  participated  in  31  battles, winning 24,  losing 7. The remaining five cocks are sound of wind and  limb and promise to boost this already splendid record the coming season.
Gone are the days when a good conditioner could take a bunch of mediocre cocks and whip combinations whose only redeemable asset was their sporting blood.  It now behooves us  to  turn our attention  for  superiority  to  the brood yard. One of the chief features that prompts me to prefer your cocks to go for my money,  is  their plumage.  I am afraid  that we American gaff fighters do not  take  into  consideration  the protective,  armor-like  advantage  which a properly feathered bird enjoys. The Mexican slasher fighters have long since learned  to appreciate  it. Any person having possessed  a cock  that has been fortunate  enough  to win several  battles will  testify  that  he  had wiry, tough plumage. Any brittle  feathered  cock,  loses with his  feathers, both offensive and defensive qualities—and, mister, a cock needs both to become a multiple winner. Was out to pens yesterday and the wing feathers, while frayed, were whole; speaks mighty well for your cocks after four and five trips to the pit.
I  am  indeed  glad  to  hear  of T. K. Bruner’s  return  to  the  game,  because when we lose one like him we have lost a scholar and gentleman. I feel that these 12 cocks were materially aided in making such a splendid record by a couple of pairs of gaffs which J. W. Wisecup made especially for them after seeing the first few “strut their stuff.” By the way, these gaffs look like a cross between a Cincinnati and a jagger.
I trust that the order for more cocks which I sent you towards the latter part of last season has been transferred to your shipping list and that I head the list of those you already have booked for 1927 delivery.
Trusting this finds you and yours well, and that I hear from you relative to some cocks for the coming season, I beg to remain, with sincere esteem, Very truly yours,

DR. W. P. CARTER.

Mercedes, Tex,. Oct. 30, 1927.
Mr. H. H. Cowan,
Riverton, Ala.
Dear Mr.  Cowan:—According  to  my  records  I  got  nine  cocks  of  you breeding this season and I give you the record of all of their fights as follows

Nine cocks won 34 and lost 5 fights.
Mr.  Bruner,  your  fighting  partner,  may  be  right  about  the  game  being harder in Memphis, but I have had to fight top cocks with all your cocks; and all who  have  come  down  to  this  country—and  a  lot  of  them  have  been  to mains in Memphis—say they are as hard to whip here as anywhere on earth.
They  were  a  real  bunch  of  fighting  cocks,  and  if  Mr.  Bruner  had  been fighting them he probably would have won more than I did with them.
I can’t ship you back the little pumpkin-colored cock, as I fought him once too often; but  it was a  fluke  that killed him. He  fought every battle alike— would stay away and dodge  the other cock a couple of  times,  then grab him and kill him the first pitting. But this time, as the other cock went over him he hit him a brain blow and took the top of his head off. The old Mexican who trains part of my cocks has him buried in my orange grove with a head-stone with  his  name  on  it.  A  lawyer  here  who  has  Sid  Taylors  from  Gay  was talking  about  the  little  cock  yesterday. He  is  from  near Memphis  and  is  a lover of game chickens. He said: “Of all the game cocks I have seen fight, I considered that little cock by far the best.” The stag you shipped me last year has  developed  into  one  of  the  finest  looking cocks  I  have  ever  seen,  and  I believe he  is as good as he  looks. From  the  trio  I got  from you year before last, have  fought  twelve  fights  and  lost  two.  I  consider  them  all  extra good and  I  have  about  a  dozen  of  them.  One  of  the stags I  have  fought  twice against a cock,  the next  time against a stag, and he never got a scratch. He fought exactly like the little pumpkin cock. You have never answered me about the refusal on all the cocks you sell inthis country. I don’t care to fight against them.

Yours truly,
H. W. ALLEN.
(Note: The pumpkin cock mentioned in Mr. Allen’s letter won three times in the hands of Mr. Bruner during 1925, and eight times the following season of  1926-27  for Mr.  Allen,  making  his  record  eleven  wins  before  he  was killed.—H. C. C.)

*****
Well, boys, here  is where  I get on  the caboose. Cowan has  told  the story    and has the nerve to ask me to write the balance of the story; but I am going to  fool  him  and  add  to  his  story where  he  left  off,  and  thereby  stay  in  the good graces of our editor.
You might say I connected up with the Alabama Roundheads by chance or accident. About  ten years  ago  a  former  friend  presented me with  a  yard  of fowl  that had been presented  to him by Cowan. Afterwards  I  fought several cocks bred from them, one of which was one of the most wonderful fighting cocks  I  have  ever  seen.  He  was as smart as a whip, had blinding speed combined with  a  deadly  heel  and  perfect  judgment  of  distance.  I  bred  this cock on my yard and,  in fact, he was bred  turn about by Cowan and myself until  his  death. He  produced wonderful  fighting  cocks  in  his  sons,  and  his daughters have produced  just as good  sons as  their brothers were. We have bred as closely as possible to retain as much of this cock’s blood in our fowl as possible, and even  today Cowan’s brood yards carry  from one-quarter  to fifteen-sixteenths  of  this  cock’s  and  his mother’s  actual  blood.  All  of  our brood cocks for the last ten years have been selected not only from their own, but  also  their  brothers’,  performance  in  the  pit,  and  the  hens  on  each  yard have always been full sisters. In this way we felt we would be able to produce cocks of uniform style, conformation, action and cutting ability. In the past five years I have fought practically every cock both Cowan and myself were able to walk of  this  family. I mean up to the close of the 1925-26 season. I found them to come  uniformly good  and  that  they  showed  up much better with gaffs on than with muffs, which of course was due to  their superior cutting qualities. From the record of  these fowl  in  the pit, I feel fully repaid for all the time and thought I have devoted to them.
To a real lover of game cocks there is no greater pleasure than to step into the pit with a cock you know to be desperately game, one that will go off fast, one  that will cut with deadly effect, one  that will when wounded (apologies to “Tan Bark”) throw all caution to the winds and close in to kill by striking harder and oftener than the average opponent, so long as he has his feet under him.
During the Memphis Tournament held on the  Island in January, 1924, I met the Smith-Dejean  entry at the 5.08 weight with one of their wonderful Smith Blues, a winner of several  battles. He met one of our Alabama Roundheads  that I had selected as a brood cock. Dejean was  taking all bets and for a time it seemed he was  right, as his cock broke my cock’s wing, knocked out one eye and rattled him. Dejean was offering bets of 100  to 10 with no takers as we pitted for the last time. As the cocks came together our cock  rose  or  jumped  up,  catching  and  killing  this  great  Smith  cock  stone dead. Dejean, without  stopping  to  catch  his  breath,  changed  his  tune  from “100 to 10” to “the best cock won,” and his pitter (Courtois) chimed in with, “He is dead—dead—dead.” This cock proved the old saying that a game cock is never whipped until dead.
I  retired  from  the  combination  at  the  close  of  the 1925-26 season and, desiring to place my brood fowl where they would be appreciated and cared for as well or better than I could, I presented Cowan with all of my best brood fowl except two small yards. One of these I presented to another friend, and the other I retained to play with and keep from getting lonesome.
I have just recently spent a week with Mr. and Mrs. Cowan at the home of the Alabama Roundheads  and,  boys, I wish everyone of  you who  love Roundheads could have been with me;  you would  have  seen  a  picture  you could never forget. He had at his home over 250 head of as fine game fowl as it has ever been my pleasure to see. Most of these, of course, were youngsters just brought in from his free range brood yards. All of them were bred from cocks that have fought and won in the fastest company of this country. Cowan told me to take my pick of anything I saw and liked, but the trouble with me was I liked all I saw and, being hoggish, wanted them all.
While there we drove between 50 and 100 miles looking at fighting cocks on their walks and his numerous brood yards. Riverton, Ala., is located in the foothills of Northern Alabama, which is an ideal place for the proper raising of game fowl. Every brood yard and most of his walks are located on a hill with  running  water,  either with a spring  on  the place or a small stream running through it. Cowan has just completed his new home, which is located in  the center of a ten-acre tract. He has a nice, comfortable home and has every facility for properly taking care of his fowl when brought in from free range walks and brood yards  in  the wilds of Northern Alabama. He has his yard at home divided into two sections.  In one  section he has  cock houses, stag pens and medium size brood pens for single mating. The other section is used as a range for the  young  fowl  that are not properly developed. On bringing in the fowl from free range brood yards, Cowan personally goes over each bird to see that they are perfectly formed and immediately isposes of all that do not come up to his standard. He has been doing  this  for years now, and  it has resulted in his fowl coming as near perfectly shaped as  they  can come.

In conclusion I want to say that the Alabama Roundheads are game, sure-cutting  fowl,  free  of  disease,  well  shaped,  well  balanced,  and  with  the strength and stamina to go the limit when necessary. I expect there are many other strains of game  fowl as good as  the Alabama Roundheads, but I have never seen any better. I have also  found that they will produce  a  higher percentage of first class cocks from one yard than any other strain I have ever had the pleasure of seeing. To produce such fowl they must be given the care and attention such fowl deserve.
Last,  but  not  least, I want to say in dealing with Hugh Cowan  one  can absolutely  depend  upon what  he  tells  you  about  one  of  his  chickens, as  he stands squarely behind them at all times.
(Signed) T. K. BRUNER.

November, 1927.







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