56 



JOURNAL OP HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



( July 17. 1873. 



Eggs Blood-streaked (E. J. B.).— Yon do not say whether the streaks 

 ■were on the shell or in the egg. The latter is not an uncommon case, but it 

 is a bad sign, and shows there is something wrong about the bii-d that lays 

 them. If the streaks are on the shell they betoken fever. Castor oil given in- 

 ternally and administered with a feather into the egg-organs will cm-e it. In 

 all cases of fever, lettuces are excellent food. It is hard to find a cause for the 

 paralysis. An injury on the back will cau^e it ; being egg-bound will do so 

 also. We advise you, as soon as you see this, to take a wmg feather, dip 

 it in castor oil till it is thoroughly saturated, and then introduce it into the 

 egg-passage as fai- as it will go without hindrance. We believe you will then 

 remove the complaint, by causing an egg to be laid. You say she is only a 

 year old ; these are, perhaps, her "first eggs. If so, you may well expect to save 

 her. She is little more than a pullet. 



Lincoln Poultrv Show.— One of the pair of Aylesbury Ducks entered 

 for this Show by Mr. S. H. Harris, of Cusgai-De, Cornwall, wa^ dead in the 

 hamper when delivered on the Show ground, i and therefore, strictly speaking, 

 this peu should have been marked " absent," in the catalogue.— The Poultrv 

 Secketary. 



Incubators (H. O. O.)-— We cannot give any 'information about them. 

 Any one will hatch, but then the difficulties commence. We never knew any- 

 one who reared chickens artificially hatched except at a fearful loss. 



Buckwheat, &c., for Pigeons- Sex of Eggs (F. W. S.).— We have 

 known Pigeons fed on this, but we never used it for our own birds. In regard 

 to the disease in Pigeons known as canker, see our reply in last week's 

 " Letter Bos." As to which egg produces the cock bird, the one laid first or 

 second, we believe there is no role. Very often both the young are cocks, 

 occasionally both are hens. 



Canary's Leg- weakness (Constant Reader).— I fear there is no perma- 

 nent relief for your ailing bird, hut I think the symptoms would be ameliorated 

 by giving a drop or two of cod-liver oil. Hold the bird in the left hand, and 

 if you cannot manage to open its mouth and administer the oil at the same 

 time (which can be done by taking up sufficient on a blunt-pointed little stick) 

 get some one to assist you by opening the patient's mouth, when a little nerve 

 and a steady band will do the rest. Another method is to remove the water 

 vessel, say from breakfast time till the middle of the day. three or four hours, 

 when you can replace it, or one kept for the purpose, with plenty of oil float- 

 ing on the surface of the water. The patient will then drink its medicine 

 without assistance. Some birds soon get to like it. I once had a very valu- 

 able Variegated Jonque Norwich cock which appeared hopelessly gone, and 

 which I turned over to the care of my wife. I do not know whether it is the 

 result of practice acquu-ed in the nm-sing, but for artistic management with 

 a spoon recommend me to a woman. The way in which a woman tucks up 

 one of those little bundles in the niu-sery, pinions its fat hands, and prepares 

 to administer physic is a gift pecuUar to the sex. No sooner is the mouth 

 open than in goes the spoon and the operation is over. I should be afraid of 

 hitting the bundle in a wrong place. My wife appeared to have no difficulty 

 in managing this bird, which subsequently became the father of a family, and 

 lived almost entirely on cod-hver oil. — W. A. Blakston. 



Bullfinch and Canary Mules (^f. G.).— After a homed Canary we may 

 expect anything. Among other freaks of nature I have heard of a remarkable 

 Linnet Mule. I was told it would be sure to beat anything hkely to appear 

 this season if the prize-lists could only be made to suit the bird, " myast 

 (most) legs to win," as my informant said, "for this yane's (one's) getten 

 fewer (four)!" The notes on Bullfinch and Canary Mules in the "Letter 

 Box " a short time back attracted the attention of a correspondent, who writes : 

 — "I had a hen Bullfinch which I had reared by band. Seeing her evidently 

 preparing to nest, I introduced into her cage a very vigorous Buff-crested Nor- 

 wich Canary, which paired with her successfully. She behaved in every way 

 as a Canary ; if anything she seemed more amorous. She dropped the first 

 egg in the cage bottom, and finding it broken I examined it ; it was to all ap- 

 pearance properly impregnated. I that evening strewed the cage bottom with 

 tine sawdust, and so saved the remaining eggs — five, some of which she laid 

 in the nest, and others on the sawdust. These eggs I placed as laid under 

 different Canaries, but they all proved infertile. I gave the Bullfinch some 

 had Canai-y eggs, which she sat quite carefully, and after a week or two bad 

 elapsed I again tried her with the same Canaiy, with precisely the same 

 result. She again laid six eggs, all infertile." " M. G." also, in reply to 

 whom the notes in the " Letter Box " appeared, writes, " I was not successful 

 with the Canaiy and Bullfinch. The Canary had five eggs, which sbc sat for 

 fifteen days. She was a small hen, and did not cover well. Some time after 

 she laid again, and the Bullfinch made a hole in the egg. She is now sitting 

 on two eggs, and never stirs except to eat, and that seldom." fio far, then, 

 the weight of endence in this m'xata qiKestio is against the production of 

 Canary and Goldfinch Mules. Other Finches also will mate with the Canary 

 readily, but the result is iiil. — W. A. Blakston. 



Young Canaries Losing Feathers {A Reader).— li 1 shut some young 

 Canaries into a cage with theu" father, and I noticed that one of them became 

 rather short of feather, I do not know that 1 should suspect the old bird of 

 the theft, because young ones are very apt to pick one another, aud when they 

 once begin it is extremely difficult to get them to discontinue the practice — in 

 fact, they will continue to pick as long as there is anything to pick at ; but if 

 I observed that one of them was " minus his tail, with blood all abaut the 

 tips of its wings and the roots of the tail, aud I noticed blood on the cock's 

 beak," I should consider that strong presumptive evidence of his guilt, and 

 I do not think an action for Hbel would lie if I charged him with the crime. 

 At all events, I should lock him up on suspicion. Yon have done quite right 

 to remove him, and if the young ones can only pick a little there is not much 

 fear that you will rear them. Give them plenty of sofc food, such as stale 

 bread soaked in water, and squeezed dry, or nearly so ; add to this a little 

 chopped egg and a little mawseed. Supply wbite canary seed, and when you 

 notice that they can crack it, reduce the quantity of soft food and put them 

 on hard seed entirely. I should not, as a matter of choice, always allow 

 young ones " to be fed through the bars of another cage hung on to the 

 other;'' but when they are so ill used, what else can you do ? In such casea 

 all depends on the ingenuity of the breeder ; and any contrivance whioh, 

 while it protects them, gives the old birds access to them for feeding pur- 

 poses, is an admissible adjunct to the breeding cage. The method you have 

 adopted is very common, and you will see by referring to my ABO Canaiy 

 papers in previous numbers of the Journal, that I recommend the wires of 

 the breeding cage to be inserted at such a distance as will admit of the birds 

 getting their heads tlu-ough without fear of their bodies following, or, on the 

 other hand, strangling themselves. You must be careful, however, to put the 

 perch on which the young ones will have to sit at such a distance from the 

 wires of their nursery cage that they will either have to stretch their nocks a 

 little, or go to the wires to be fed, or else, when they are resting after a meal, 

 the cock will be sure to help himself to any juicy little tail feather he can 



reach. The life of a Canary, from the shell to the show-cage, is beset on all 

 sides with dangers, and were it not for the great number of deaths which 

 occur, an ordinary room would scarcely hold the produce of a season. — W. A. 

 Blakston. 



Silkworms (E. M. N.). — Thanks for your note, but our con-espondent needs 

 more details of the size of marketable skeins, (fee. 



Payne's Hives {T. M. P.). — Either Messrs. Neighbour, High Holbom, 

 London, or Mr. W. J. Pettitt, Apicultural Institute, Dover. 



Sale of Honey (A Kentish Bee-ket'iu'r). — Write to Messrs. Neighbour, 

 Messrs. Fortnura & Mason, and other Italian warehousemen, whose directions 

 you can find in Kelly's " Post-office Directory." 



Pot Pourri (A. Jackson . — You must mix your rose petals (leaves as yon 

 call them) as follows : — Gather the petals of the most fragrant kinds of roses, 

 with which other flowers maybe mixed at pleasure in smaller proportion: 

 spread them out to dry in the sun, or in a warm room ; sprinkle a little salt 

 on them, aud put them into a jar, in which they ax-e to be kept covered up till 

 wanted for use. Take of these rose leaves 4 ozs. ; dried lavender flowers, 

 S ozs. ; vanilla, cloves, storax, and benzoin, all bruised, of each 1 drachm^ 

 ambergris, 20 grains ; otto of roses, twenty drops. Mis. 



Kose Leaves (St. Edmund}. — See the above answer. 



METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS, 



Camden Square, London. 



Lat. 51° 32' 40" N. ; Long. 0° 8^ 0" W. ; Altitude 111 feet. 



REMARKS. 

 9th. — Fair all day, but occasionally cloudy all thi-ough the day. 

 loth. — Bright and fine, with a pleasant breeze all day. 

 11th.— Fine day, but slightly clouded in the after part of the day. 

 I'ith. — Thi'ee or four slight showers, but veiy fine between. 

 13th.— Fine early, but rain commencing at lU.iJO a.m., and continuing to fall, 



more or less heavily, all the day. 

 14th. — Showery in morning, but very fine after. 



15th. — Heavy showers in morning, with thunder between 11.3 and 11.18 a.m., 

 thunder also at 2.13 ; fine evening, distant lightning in the south at 

 9.13 P.M. 

 A moderately fine week, temperature very similar to the preceding four 

 weeks. Very heavy rain on 13th. — G. J. Symons. 



COVENT GARDEN MARKET.— July 16. 

 We ai-e now getting into full swing with the standard and bush frnits, all 

 of which are well supplied and of good quality, especially Currants, Rasp- 

 berries, and Strawben-ies. The latter are very abundant and can be had at 

 very low figures. Fi-ench goods are also freely offered, comprising Peaches, 

 Nectarines, Cherries, Apricots, Plums, and Melons. Potatoes are showing 

 symptoms of disease both in rounds and kidneys. 



Apples A sieve 



Apricots doz. 



Cfierries l;*- lb. 



Chestnuts bushel 



Currants ! sieve 



Black do. 



Figs doz. 



Fdberts lb. 



Cobs lb. 



Gnoseberries quart 



Grapes, hothouse lb. 



Lemons !!>' 100 



Melons each 



Artichokes doz. 



Asparagus 1* 100 



French 



Beans, Kidney ^100 



Beet. Red doz 



Broccoli bundle 



Cabbage doz. 



Capsicums V 100 



Carrnts bunch 



Cauliflower doz. 



Celery bundle 



Coleworts. . doz. bunches 

 Cucumbers each 



pickling doz. 



Endive duz. 



Fennel bunch 



(larlic lb. 



Herbs bunch 



Horseradish Imutlle 



Leeks bunch 



Lettuce doz. 



s. d. s. d. I 

 6 ton 

 3 

 6 10 

 



Mulberries Tfvlb. 



Nectarines doz. 8 



Oranges ^ 100 6 



Peaches doz. 15 



s. d. 8. d. 



4 Pears, kitchen doz. 



4 dessert doz. 



10 PineApples lb. 



Plums i sieve 



Quinces doz. 



6 Raspberries lb. 



6 I Strawberries If lb. 



14 Walnuts buahel 



3 ] ditto 1*100 



VEGETABLBS. 



8 



6 



1 6 



1 



9 



1 

 



6 

 S 



1 6 



2 6 

 8 

 

 2 

 3 

 6 



Mushrooms pottle 



Mustard & Cress. .punnet 

 Onions bushel 



pickling quart 



Parsley per doz. bunches 



Parsnips doz. 



Peas quart 



Potatoes bushel 



Kidney do. 



Round do. 



Radishes., doz. bunches 



Rhubarb bundle 



Salsaf y bundle 



Savoys doz. 



Scorzonera bundle 



Sea-kale basket 



Shallots lb. 



Spinach bushel 



TomatLies doz. 



Turnips bunch 



Vegetable Marrows 



16 a 



30 







8 



6 











1 



1 6 

 12 



2 6 



d. a. d. 

 0to4 

 2 

 10 

 6 



4 



1 



1 





 

 I 

 1 

 1 

 

 

 

 

 S 

 3 

 U 



POULTRY MARKET.— July 16. 

 There is a tendency to lower prices, and a change may be looked for daily. 

 This season will for a long time he remembered as a bad hatch for fowls and 

 Ducks. 



