American Poultry Advocate, Volume 27 , Page 562
COLOR TERMS OF RHODE ISLAND REDS
The term "Smut" is one used to designate a defect of foreign color in the rich red under color and is nothing less than an over-plus of the black pigment part of Rhode Island Red color. It may completely cover the fluffy part of the feather or may be between web and lower part of fluff showing thus generally in black bars across the feather.
Dark slate is simply smut under another name. It is black but it gets its title from its appearance on fluff.
Smoke and mouse color defects are the same; found also in under color Unlike smut, it is not found in bars, but spreads along shaft of feather, more or less, from web to skin. It is sometimes called light slate.
White in under color defect is absolutely the worst defect in Rhode Island Red as it prevents pigmentation in under color at flights and main tail feathers and shows many times in surface color.
Kidney white defect is only a bleaching of a few feathers over kidneys through the influence of some internal ailment and is not to be confounded with the promiscuous white nor smoke or light slate. It generally disappears after first moult.
Silvery red under color defect is the white taint mixed with the red and in time encroaches upon the surface, forming what is called "Splashings" or roan spots or streaks imperfectly mixed into the red surface. Any defects from the white-taint are hardly ever eradicated even in years of careful breeding.
Mottling is caused by defective light red or brown patches on the darker red surface of females and is classed partly as a heritage of early breeding when the female color was of no importance. It also is caused by imperfect or faulty moulting, which leaves old feathers mingled with the new ones.
Peppering is a defect; it is also an over-plus of black pigment. On males it lodges generally on wing bar and on females in black pepper, like specks in shoulders and upper wing bows and on flights in both sexes.
Ticking designates black spots at end of hackle and, please note, is a defect on males only, but not serious, as a male bearing this ticking is believed to be a first class progenitor of females bearing it. Ticking on females is a much desired qualification specified by the standard.
Lacings are defects of which there are three sorts.
A lacing follows web of feather entirely around and on its edge.
The one found in hackle or neck is black and is generally found on birds carrying pepper and smut.
The other sorts are found generally on females on every feather of the body, one being darker red than the main web of the feather; the other simply a lustrous lacing of the same shade surrounding the duller part of the web. Any sort of a lacing on a red is defective as it spoils the harmony of an even shade of red from head to tail.
Striping is a defect as applied to Rhode Island Reds, which is found in both sexes in hackle or neck feathers. It is a black stripe down center of web from under color to tip. It is counted quite objectionable as it carries generally an orange shaft which is the seat of the next defect.
Shafting is a serious red color defect. Its general appearance is the shaft of each feather presenting a light orange hue in decided contrast to red web under color of feather. It is propagated by breeding from males with orange shaft in black striped hackles.
The term "wavy red" is applied to a defective color condition of flights where the red pigment shows imperfect distribution by waves of different shades of red.
Chocolate is a general defect spread all over the surface where the red pigment seems to strive for dominance over the excessive black pigment, said excessive black dulling the red throughout the whole surface to an oily lustre of the under color with a pinkish cast, indications of this over-plus in dull red flights well peppering in both sexes.
For more complete and general information on Reds write W. H. Card, secretary and treasurer, The Rhode Island Red Club of America, Manchester, Connecticut.
