Angnst 29, 1873. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICDLTUKE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



165 



are upwards of sixty classes ; a silver euj) or special prize is 

 offered for almost every class, and the entry fee is reduced to 

 •4s. aud Si'. We understand that Mr. Hewitt has been retained 

 as one of the poultry judges, and other competent gentlemen 

 will be engaged according to the number of entries. 



NORTHERN COUNTIES COLUMBARIAN 

 SOCIETY. 



This Society held their annual competitive Show of j-oung 

 Pigeons at their club room, at the Cathedral Hotel, Manchester, 

 on Monday, the 18th iust. There were upwards of one hundred 

 pairs competing, each exhibitor paying 2s. Gd. for every entry, 

 and the amount of entry in each class was given to the successful 

 exhibitor in one first prize. The Pouters, Carriers, Short-faced 

 Tumblers, aud Foreign Owls were not numerous; most of the 

 prizes in these classes going to Mr. Towerson. There was a 

 grand display of Barbs ; the first prize went to Mr. Magnall. 

 Por Dragoons Blue, and Any other colour, the prizes went to Mr. 

 Holland. There was a gi-and show of English Owls and Fautails, 

 the first prize in each class being awarded to Mr. T. Ridpeth. 

 Mr. Royds won in Jacobins with a splendid pair of Blacks, 

 which must be heard of again. The best Turbits were from 

 Mr. Ridpeth, and this was the largest class iu the Show. In 

 Ijong-faced .\ntwerps Mr. Appleton won with a pair of good 

 birds ; in Short-faced Antwerps Mr. Justice won with a beauti- 

 ful pair. For Baldpates the first place was taken by Mr. Uns- 

 worth, and in .\ny other colour of Tumblers by Mr. Hyde. 



Altogether the Show was a great success, and many thanks 

 are due to Mr. Haycroft and the Committee for the %'ery able 

 and perfect arrangements. Mr. Hawley, of Bingley, was the 

 Judge. 



PIGEONS AT HITCHIN AND EXETER SHOWS. 



[Our correspondent justly remarbR that it must have sur- 

 prised more people than himself that his five pens of birds took 

 first and second honours at Hitchen, and Mr. Yardley's were 

 highly commended ; but at Exeter, a few days later, the same 

 Judge to the same competing birds reversed nearly exactly his 

 awards. We add our correspondent's remarks upon other 

 matters.] 



It is well known that dealers are the principal supporters of 

 all shows in the three kingdoms, and are compelled to procure 

 birds at fabulous prices to please the tastes of those gentlemen 

 who are selected as judges, for dealers too well know that adver- 

 tising prize strains for sale will not deceive fanciers now-a-days, 

 as tliere are too many good judges amongst amateurs to purchase 

 before seeing the birds, aud they prefer birds that have given proof 

 of their quality by winning in good company before they will 

 purchase ; and too often have dealers to purchase birds to suit 

 the fancy of certain judges, although well knowing at the time 

 the same bird or birds to be greatly deficient. Still, to please 

 the judge and win the dealer must procure the bird or birds, and 

 in the event of those identical birds being purchased from the 

 dealer for the purpose of being again exhibited, aud the same 

 .come under the judgment of a man who knows their deficiencies, 

 he, of course, passes them over. Then goes a letter to the 

 dealer from the purchaser, giving him to understand that he 

 has deceived him ; and should he not do so, he, doubtless, makes 

 it worse for the dealer by quietly telling his friends that he 

 bought 80 and so from so aud so, and was worsted. Take an 

 example : Had I sold those birds I won with at Hitchin, and the 

 purchaser had shown them at Exeter, and if the purchaser was 

 uo judge of the quality of the birds, I wonder what sort of 

 letter I should have received ! I am afraid not a very flattering 

 one. Still, such cases have often happened with dealers, and 

 often the dealer thus loses a good customer. So I do hope that 

 secretaries and committeemen will endeavour to ascertain wlio 

 are the proper men to select to ofliciate as judges; aud I believe 

 the best plan to adopt to satisfy exhibitors and find out the best 

 judges would be to let exhibitors vote for the man they consider 

 the best judge, the most votes to prevail. — Eobekt Fulton. 



OxroBD PontTET AND PioEOK Show. — The prize list is largely 

 and liberally increased. There are forty silver cups and pieces 

 of plate, one of them given by Prince Leopold ; and the money 

 prizes, three in each class, vary from three guineas to ten 

 shillings. The classes are increased to forty-three for poultry, 

 aud to twenty for Pigeons. 



SHOW OF HONEY AT BURTON-ON-TRENT. 

 The readers of our Journal, I have no doubt, will be glad to 

 see recorded the results of the show of bees and honey at the 

 flower show at liurton-on-Trent. The show was not up to the 

 two last shows in the bee class. There was one beautiful glass 

 super which would have deserved the first prize had it not been 

 (or one comb having some brood. It was, 1 thiuk, the best glass 



I have seen this season. I am sorry to say the season here 

 (South Lancashire), has been the worst I have known since 1860. 

 Several of my friends have lost many stocks, not thinkiug they 

 would be dying of starvation iu August. I have sixteen stocks 

 in the heather, which are looking well, but it the weather do 

 not improve soon it will be all over for 1873. We are expecting 

 a good show at Manchester, iu September, at the Botanic Gar- 

 dens ; and I understand there will be a new design of bee hive, 

 with bees at work, but I am afraid the show of honey will be 

 light. — South Lanc-vshibe Bee-keeper. 



Pr.\ctical Bee Hive.— 1 and 3, G. Cross, Burt.m. 2. — Young. Horuinglow. 



ScpER HoN-EY.— 1, G. Cross (12 lbs.). 2, — Young (21 lbs.). 3, — Sylvester, 

 Barton-unJcr-Xeetlwood. 



COTT.VGERS' CLAS3. 



Humane Bee Hive.— 1, T. Pegg, Dallow Street. 2, — Smith, Doveridgi'. 3, — 

 Mungleston, Kepton. 



Sci'EH Honey.— 1 and 4, — Withnall, Rangemore. 2, E. J. Draper, Newton 

 Road. 8, — Smith. 



JuDOEs. — Mr. Spencer, of Stourbridge; and Mr. Cooke, of 

 Denton, near Manchester. 



THE HONEY SEASON, 1873. 



I AM very much surprised, at the same time rather pleased, to 

 find that experienced bee-keepers complain of the scanty har- 

 vest this season. I say I am rather pleased, because it is a 

 proof to me that my own deficiency does not arise from bad 

 management. 



I commenced bee-keeping last year with one hive, which of 

 course I was very careful in feeding, &c. They sent out a fine 

 swarm on the 29th May, almost the only May swarm in tliis 

 neighbourhood. About a week after sending out the swarm I 

 placed a cheese-box underneath, in which the bees constructed 

 three medium-sized combs. To my deep regret I had disturbed 

 the box, and taken it from beneath before I discovered the combs. 

 I then placed the combs in an old hive cut down at the top. 

 They appear to have gone on making combs, but to have gathered 

 no honey for filling. The swarm worked exceedingly well, and 

 in a month's time had sealed-up a good deal at the top, and 

 commenced building in one of Pagden's glass supers. They 

 appear to have half filled the latter and begun to seal. 



I beg now to ask you what you would recommend me to do. 

 About a mile from my house is an extensive common covered 

 with heath. I am of opinion that my supers should be left on 

 until the end of September in expectation of the bees obtaining 

 a good supply from the heath, aud, failing that, allowing them 

 to withdraw what stores they have in the supers, so as to be 

 abundantly suppUed for the winter. Do you think the distance 



too far ? WOLLASTON. 



[No. Let them remain untouched till the end of September. 

 Your plan ia excellent. — Eds.] 



THE BEE SEASON IN SOUTH DEVON. 



Mr. George Fox, of Kiugsbridge, states, in a letter to me, 

 that his experience this summer has been much the same as 

 my own and that of others who have written on the subject, 

 particularly with respect to the profuse breeding which has 

 been carried on in supers. He writes: " I never had so many 

 swarms from the few stocks with which I started, or had my 

 supers so much bred iu. The queens have always been in them 

 when removed. On the whole I have had no cause to complain. 

 Six supers have been worked, mostly square boxes with glass 

 sides and top. The first taken oS was full of honey (about 

 iij lbs.) aud brood, and the queen was iu it. This I keep as a 

 stock, and it makes a good one. Brood-comb was supplied to 

 the old stock from which a queen was raised. The next super, 

 being much in the same condition, was also kept as a stock. 

 Another super gave 25 lbs. or 30 lbs. of honey; it had a little 

 patch of brood ; the queen also being up in it, I caught and re- 

 turned her to tlie old stock. I had three or four other supers, 

 some of which are kept as stocks, the others for honey." 



Mr. G. Fox also says that the bees of many of his stocks 

 exhibit their descent from his original Egyptian queen pre- 

 sented to him by the late Mr. Woodbury. Though the Egyptian 

 blood has been much ** diluted," some of the bees are as well 

 marked as were those of the original stock. They are very 

 quiet, and he has required no bee-dress or gloves in any of his 

 operations this season, even in transferring combs and bees 

 from boxes into observatory hives. This amiable character 

 does not agree with my own experience of the true Egyptians, 

 which were perfect savages ; but it must be remembered that 

 Mr. G. Fox is a king or conjuror among his bees, and would 

 seem to bear a charm which enables him to handle them with 

 impunity. — S. Bevak Fox, Exeter. 



A GOOD HARVEST DRINK. 

 Last summer we attended a field trial of ploughs, and for a 

 drink in the fields we had buckets of (-old water with oatmeal 

 stirred in, which we found to be both victuals and drink, and 



