158 



JOUENAL OF HOETICULTUEE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ Febmary 15, 1872. 



cise.ly similar circumstances and costing more for fooil can at 

 all approach this amount of produce ; aud I may also mention 

 that to this pullet an accident happened in August, which 

 caused her to limp about on little more than one leg for several 

 weeks, and of coui-se threw her back considerably. This is 

 merely an instance and not a soUtary exception, and I shaU be 

 glad to learn how to keep pure-breds (my hobby) as profitably 

 as mongrels. — John Walton, Croydon. 



THE JUDGING AT POULTRY SHOWS. 

 " D., Deal," (in No. 564), has taken up a subject which needs 

 careful and impartial investigation both by the committees 

 of poultiy shows and judges. How often do we see the judg- 

 ment at poultry shows called in question ! In fact, I have 

 often noticed in reports in your .Journal that pen so-and-so 

 ought to have taken the place of the first, second, or thh'd- 

 prize pen. Of course, we amateurs take your Journal to be an 

 imi^artial authority, and (I can only speak of myself) your 

 reports are generally highly interesting. Now it is very annoy- 

 ing to any person to think that he is unjustly treated, aud to 

 see it in print makes the matter ten times worse. How, then, 

 does this mistaken judgment occur ? It may be, as " D., Deal," 

 suggests, that there are too few judges and too little time 

 allowed for judging. We must all admit that the task of the 

 judges is a very arduous aud often unthankful one. But why, if 

 there is too little time allowed for judging, do the judges under- 

 take those arduous duties ? Why do they not raise then- voices, 

 one and aU, against this unjust practice, aud tell the committees 

 plainly that they wiU not irndertake to do what they cannot 

 possibly do honestly towards the exhibitors, and with credit 

 and satisfaction to themselves ? But let me suggest, Ai'e there 

 not other causes in relation to judging besides the too-Uttle 

 time allowed for judging ? Does it foUow that because a man 

 is a good judge of Game he is also a good judge of Brahmas, 

 Spanish, Dorkings, Hamburghs, or many other varieties ? 

 Everyone has his peculiar fancy in fowls as in other things, 

 and it seems to me that it is impossible for one man to be 

 capable of judging the whole of the varieties satisfactorily. 

 Much may be written on the above subject, but aU to no pm-- 

 pose. It occui's to me that the matter rests mostly with the 

 exhibitors and committees of the vaiious shows. 



If the funds of any society will not admit of the proper 

 number of judges being engaged, I would suggest that the fees 

 he made up equally amongst the exhibitors to provide any 

 extra judges that may be required. Cleaiiy something must 

 be done to make matters more satisfactory than they are at 

 present. Now is the time for suggestions, and if those who 

 have grievances do not avail themselves of the opportunity of 

 making them known, it is neither the fault of the judges nor of 

 the committees. — Amateur. 



DUBLIN POULTRY AND PIGEON SHOW. 



I WAS never more astonished than at the very unfair com- 

 ment on the Pigeons at this Show, made by " A Coeeespon- 

 DENT " in your Journal of February 1st. I did not exhibit at 

 the above Show, so this cannot be put down to disappointment . 



The Pouters were judged according to the Scotch manner, 

 ■which excludes the use of the tape, and which accounts for the 

 success of the Glasgow and Belfast birds, about which there 

 is not a word in the report. These were well proportioned as 

 regards length of feather and limb, narrowness of girth, with 

 fine style and carriage, looking as well off the block as on it, 

 carrying themselves properly, and seeming to know how to 

 manage then' taUs. The majority of the English and Dublin 

 birds were longer in feather (which ought to be considered a 

 bad property unless combined with good points), and some 

 of extraordinary length ; when oft the block then- bodies were 

 almost at right angles with their legs, caused by the great 

 length of tail (cutting an inch or two off might improve them); 

 in fact, they were all tail, and it appeared to be always in their 

 way. They were runtish, and lacked shape and style. A 

 Scotch fancier remarked to me that the use of the tape was all 

 that was necessary to judge a Pouter in England. Some of 

 the unnoticed Barbs were hardly able to see, they were so 

 bunged up from old age, and were in a nasty scabby condition; 

 their necks should have been wrung long ago. The first-prize 

 Yellow Agates had a suspicious look about their very short 

 beaks, and most of the Short-faced birds were in the same 

 condition. Nobody to whom I spoke seemed to think that 

 " Mr. Waitt's best bu'ds " should have had a prize in the class 



for Reds and Yellows. If they were specimens of " Mr. Waitt's 

 best," I wonder what his second best are like. Everyone said 

 that the third-prize Reds should have been first. They were 

 two cocks, which seemed to escape the Judges' notice. Mr. 

 Waitt's Blacks should have been disqualified, as they were 

 trimmed in the most barefaced manner, but " these were im- 

 noticed " very properly, as there were better in the class. The 

 correspondent was quite right in his remarks on the FantaUs. 

 Though the first-prize Blue EngUsh Owls had slightly whitish 

 rumps, stUl, for aU that, they were the best. He says about 

 Turbits that " Mr. P. H. Jones's Reds should have been first, 

 with Mr. Fielding's Reds aud Mr. Horner's Blacks to foDow." 

 I did not meet anyone in the Show who thought so, except, 

 perhaps, the owners, whom 1 have not the honour of knowing. 

 Mr. Scale was first and thu'd, and Mr. Tivy second. Your 

 correspondent probably thought that such comparatively new 

 aud unknown exhibitors as Mr. Scale and Mr. I'ivy could not 

 possibly have superior bh'ds, and had no right to prizes. 

 Pigeons of the best strains have been imported into Ireland 

 within the last few years, and Enghsh exhibitors will have to 

 make up their minds to acknowledge that they have been fairly 

 defeated. 



In reporting on Pigeon shows, I think that it is very unfair 

 to pass over prize birds without any comment on them, which 

 is tantamount to saying that they were not woi-th noticing. 

 The first, second, and thh'd prizes should be all noticed, with 

 owners' names mentioned, or there should be no comment 

 allowed at all. Condition, cleanliness, &c., should be taken 

 into account when judging, which would prevent exhibitors 

 from sending the same pair- of birds to shows until they are 

 fagged to death by overshowing. 



"The Committee of the Dublin Show made a good rule, that 

 anyone guilty of a dishonourable practice would be disqualified 

 and lose all prizes that he might become entitled to ; and I 

 would suggest that the disqualified birds be sold by auction for 

 the benefit of the society. This did not prevent trimming, &c., 

 as there were several Nuns and Jacobins trimmed, several 

 couples of cocks, and several couples of hens ; Tumblers and 

 Barbs with burned beaks ; and Black Mottles dyed over the 

 beak. AYhy were none of these disqualified ? An exhibitor 

 who woirld exhibit his birds in theh' natural state is compelled, 

 in self-defence, to " do in Rome as the Romans do," or, if he 

 does not, what chance of a prize has he, when a worse bird than 

 his can be made better by a clever hand ? It is all this sort of 

 work that prevents many from showing both poultry and 

 Pigeons, and which drives so many from these fancies. I per- 

 ceive one thing — that if ever I should become an exhibitor, 

 unless things are changed, I must go in for all the duty work 

 at present in vogue. As I do not believe in anonymous con- 

 tributions, I give my name, and expect that your correspondent 

 will give his. — J. Ceosbie Siiiih, Terenure Villa, Terenure, 

 Dublin. 



[After omitting many sentences pointed against the supposed 

 contributor whom we styled " A Coerespondent," and many 

 other sentences ascribing motives and assailing supposed 

 cliques, we readily insert the foregoing, but we advise Mr. 

 Smith aud all other exhibitors not to " go in for the dii'ty work," 

 not only because it is dishonest, but because sooner or later 

 they are sure to be held up to public scorn. — Ens.] 



INDUCING A HEN TO SIT. 

 If " A Subsceibeb" or anyone, wUl take a laijinfj hen — 

 Brahma or Cochin to be preferred — .and will place her in a 

 sitting-box, only just large enough to hold her nest, into which 

 have been preWously placed half a dozen eggs, and will keep 

 her very warm, she will soon show a desu'e to sit. Her food 

 must be stimulating, aud should consist of Indian corn, raw 

 liver chopped, buclrweat, hempseed, and a small portion of 

 bread steeped in ale. — Vincexi Fiuser. 



[The above will be a reply to many querists. Many years 

 since Mr. Holroyd, a druggist at Maldon, in Essex, had a hen 

 that would sit until she hatched them whenever he placed her 

 on a nest of eggs. — ^Eds.] 



SILVER-SPANGLED HAMBURGHS. 



" J. K. O." seems to think there is a great deal of difference 

 between the Silver-spangled Hamburghs of the present day aud 

 those bred a few years since. We have been breeders of them 

 eight or nine year's and see none, only that cocks such as " J. E. 0." 

 has seen in his " Poultry Book " used to win, now they must be 



