January 4th, 1996

Dear Bill,

Many thanks for your letter. I was glad to hear that the book from Germany Pekin Bantams/Zwerg Cochin has reached you without problems. Unfortunately I didn’t find the time to answer before Christmas and the new year because I’m always very busy in that time of year. For example we had our “National Show of the Century” with 70,000 birds at Nürnberg one week before Christmas. I took part in it with 28 birds of my breed (10 Redcaps, 6 porcelain rosecombed Leghorns - we call them “Italians” in Germany - and 12 white and silver duckwing Creeper Bantams in the class of still non-standardized breeds) and was also very busy in noting down for my show report in one of our fancier journals the whole time trough: By the way that tremendous number of entries will probably never be repeated because it seems to be an unique exception and the friends at Number presumably won’t be ready for such a lot of number of the birds at our greatest shows (Hannover and National) is between 20,000 and 25,000 entries. The old “world record” with 53,000 birds was from 1989 in Nürnberg too, which is the only place to have such gigantic shows.

Did I already tell you that the "Handbook  of Chicken Breeds" had to be put off until this year’s summer? It’s because the printing office had got a very large and very urgent commission which had to be done first. So I hope to be ready with it round about in June.

Another reason for being so late now in answering is the coldest winter since nearly 20 years we are suffering from at the moment: Every day it needs a lot of time to than my car which has no garage and of course all the different drinking possibilities

for my birds. So I hope it will become better soon: And  to hear about the hot Australian summer season from you makes a little bit envious under the circumstances.

Elio has sent me a letter just before Christmas but I didn’t find time to answer him, too, until yet. If you are planning to visit him year in Italy, perhaps it will be possible for me to meet you there because Elio as well as other Italian friend have invited me several times but until yet I was always too busy to visit them. I hope it will become better in 1996, may be after I’ve finished the "handbook". Although it’s a little late now I wish you all the best for a successful year 1996 and most of all for your eye sight!

Regards,