56 



JOUENAL OP HOKTICULTUEE AND COTTAGE GAEDENEB. 



[ Januiu-y 15, 18Q7* 



Certainly Black Bantams sLould Lave black legs and not 

 puckered earlobes, such as "Black Bantam" Las seen dis- 

 qualified at many previous exhibitions. Well, so far so good ; 

 but I suppose wo do not end with an idea, that because one 

 pen is better in the colour of the legs, and to " Black Bantam's '' 

 fancy better in the earlobes, that ho ought to have won. I 

 trust, however, that " Black Bantam " will grant me as much 

 forbearance as be seems to have towards the Judges, and that I 

 may be exonerated from blame, as on the Leeds Show day I ex- 

 pressed my opinion against him, and although we did not then 

 aga-ee, we parted good friends, and as such I trust we shall con- 

 tinue. Still, I must tell "Black Bantam" honestly, that in my 

 estimation his birds were beaten at Leeds by the pen he con- 

 demns as having Mesh-coloured legs and puckered earlobes, and 

 if he will look at his own pens I will read him their faults 

 from memory, and for which I vouch. 



The cock which " Black Bantam " had in his pen has the 

 most disagreeable comb I ever saw in a pen to win a Birming- 

 ham prize ; it is large, tall, clumsy, and at the top, where it 

 ought to be serrated, it is neither like a comb nor approaching 

 one, and I heard a friend of " Black Bantam's " say it was 

 like a piece of pudding batter. The hens were small and good, 

 " if.'" — if what ? why, they had been healthy ; but they were in 

 such a bad state, that 1 trust "Black Bantam" will require 

 me to say no more on this subject. Perhaps he will ask. 

 Where was he beaten after all ;' Well, in the comb of the cock, 

 the plumage of the pen, and the health of the birds. These, 

 in my estimation, were the points which carried the honours 

 to the pen which contained a cock with lightish-coloured legs, 

 but in every other point a pen difficult to excel ; and liad 

 "BI.ACK Bantam " judged without prejudice, he would, in my 

 estimation, not have dwelt so long on the puckered earlobes, 

 as he calls them, as there was very little difference in that 

 respect betwixt the lirst-prize pen and his own. Having stated 

 my opinion so candidly in this case, I must only add that 

 I have not the slightest desire to offend one for whom I have 

 a strong feeling of friendship. 



Next for " J. W." If he will read my remarks on the Ham- 

 burgh cup pen he will see that though I differed from the 

 knowing ones, yet at the time I honestly quoted their opinions. 

 — J. D. Newsome, 



DOTTINGS AT THE BRISTOL AND CLIFTON 

 POULTRY SHOW. 



Fon some Tveets past tte west of England lias been invaded by hnge 

 placards advertifing tbis Show. Tbese placards have not been 

 headed by nngninly Cochins, as is generally the case — and by the 

 ■word " ungainly " I do not refer to the breed, but to the representa- 

 tions — but by very respectable portraits of white-faced Spanish fowls. 

 This, at least, is appropriate, for is there any part of England or the 

 world that can cope with dirty Bristol in* this aristocratic breed? 

 Surely, if Dorldng was right in holding a show for Dorkings only, 

 Bristol might thus have acted in refe-rence to Spanish ; but wilder 

 counsels ruled. Still, it is an interesting poultrj- speculation to dis- 

 cover why Bristol and Spanish are inseparable ; why the best exhibitors 

 and the greatest prizetakers should have congi-egated at Bristol — in 

 early "mania" days Rake and Plummer. the latter sweeping first, 

 second, and third prizes for chickens at the first Worcester Show, and 

 then, as if satisfied, retiring from the fancy ; these quickly followed 

 by Kodbard, and now Lane. Jones, Parsley,' Roue, and others, till, in 

 a poulti-y Bense, Bristol may be called the capital of the Spanish 

 country. Time was when a darkened house was thought to improve the 

 white face. Well; at Bristol it is nearly always dark ! So far, if this 

 theory is still held, Bristol atmosphere is in favour of first-rate Spanish. 

 Be this as it may, whatever the local advantages may be, Bristol 

 people, who, in my boyhood's days were said "to sleep with one eye 

 open," know how to take advantage of them. 



"Whatever may be the faith of other parts of the country in the 

 great Game critic of our Journal, Bristol has no faith in " New- 

 market," and evidently believes in the beauty of tlie Spaniaid rather 

 than of the Game ; and so long as they can show us such Spanish as 

 appeared at the Bristol Show, so Ion. may they retain their prtference. 



l>oubtless, it has often been a mystery to poultry-breeders, and es- 

 pecially to us southrons, why, with many local prixetakers in Bristol 

 and its environs, ^vith a teeming population in addition, Bristol should 

 be withont a poultry exhibition. "A burnt child dreads the fire," 

 proverbs tell us ; perhaps this explains it. Many years ago Bristol 

 held an exhibition. I think it was the first place where Mr. Rake ex- 

 hibited his strain, which he had kept many years without Imowing 

 their real value ; he was at the head of the chicken class. This show 

 was, I believe, the starting-point of his triumphs. Alas! like many 

 other attempts, I fear, this show was not a success. Nothing daunted, 

 two or three years later Bristol essayed again, this time at the Zoolo- 

 gical Gardens, but again, I fear, in a pecuuiaiy point of view it was 



a failure. I recollect well going onco to see that show, and feeling 

 convinced that the influx of visitors conld not possibly pay — there was 

 no difficulty in seeiug any pen you pleased, the fact beiug, as 1 believe, 

 that the Gardens were too far away from the town. For many years, 

 then, matters have remained dormant, and Bristol men have been 

 content to reap their triumphs abroad instead of at home. The 

 autumu of 1S60, however, brought whispers of a poultry exhibition; 

 but the first-bom, and let us hope not the only chUd, was to be no 

 puny bantling, but one that should at starting boldly challenge any of 

 its older rivals for liberality of prize list and accompanying excellence 

 of specimens. The appearance of the prize list satisfied the first ; 

 some one or two minor points might be wisely amended, but the prize 

 list was eminently liberal. As regards the second point, any connois- 

 seur who visited the Exhibition would allow that the eight hundred pens 

 formed a splendid collection of domestic poultry. It may, I think, be 

 safely affirmed that never in the western counties has so valuable a 

 collection of birds been brought together. 



Let us. however, take the prize list. Spanish, of course, were first- 

 class. Never, jierhaps, has a better collection been seen; bat every 

 prize, whether in the adult, chicken, or single cock class, was taken by 

 Bristolians. Bravo, Bristol ! In the chicken class were twelve 

 highly commended pens ! The show of these birds was magnificent. 

 The secoud-i)rize single cock was a most splendid bird ; but, unfortu- 

 nately, had one side of the face disfigured, or he must have taken the 

 cup. Mr. Parsley's cup chickens were also most excellent ; and the 

 other prize pens, with Mr. E. Jones's very highly commended pen, 

 were only behind because they could not all be first. 



Uorli Hfja formed a large entry ; but as far as one can gather, not a 

 first-rate collection. In the chickens not a single commendation was 

 awarded amongst thirty pens! The old birds contained the pen that 

 the Judges considered the gem of the Exhibition, to which Mr. Lang's 

 ten-guiuea cup was awarded. I am no Dorking breeder, and possibly 

 know nothing of Dorkings; but I liked Lady Holmesdale's second- 

 prize pen better than this her cnp pen. I examined it closely. The 

 local papers said it was owing to the particularly " clean condition of 

 the legs ■' that it obtained its position. The legs were clean certainly, 

 the scales looked soft, but the cock was deficient, as it appeared to me, 

 in the proper Dorlcing fifth claw. This I had always imagined should 

 be distinct, standing out from the other toes, and generally from 2 to 

 3 inches long. If this be correct, then the bird failed here, for the 

 claw was certainly not 2 inches long, and this claw seemed rather to 

 have an inclination for the fourth, and somewhat to follow its coui'se. 

 The comb of the cock was large, and certainly t^ristcd. Lastly, one of 

 the hens had a much smaller comb than the other, and, instead of 

 falling over, it twisted, but remained erect — at least, so it appeared to 

 me and to many, who examined the pen closely. They were certainly 

 vei-y heavj- birds. The third-prize birds were large, but the cock was 

 duck-footed, and one of the hens incUned to the same defect. 



The CorJiins were a grand array of bii'ds, especially the Brown birds, 

 some of these being magnificent specimens. Mr. Fenton's cup hens 

 appeared too fat to me, and they were dull and heaw in the pen. 

 With my pcncltaiit for a moderate vulture hock, my delight was great 

 at seeing many birds in these classes prizetakers, with unmistakeable 

 vulture hocks' Mr. J. Cattells third-prize Buffs were even a shade 

 beyond what I like — at least, the cock was. The cnp chicken birds 

 had also well-covered hocks, which added greatly to their beauty ; so 

 had several cf the highly -commended pens in all the varieties. 



I cannot sufficiently express my satisfaction at seeing these adjudi- 

 cations, the more so, as when I came to examine my favourites the 

 Hv(ihmn:<, there was unmistakeable evidence of the mischief that the 

 fear of the vulture-bock disqualification had produced in legs absolutely 

 with feathers as far apart as the raisins in my grandmother's pudding. 

 Numbers of the pens shown were positively deficient in leg feathers. 

 Sir. Boyle's cup Itirds were beautiful in condition; good in all respects. 

 They were, however, iu my humble opinion, closely pressed by an un- 

 noticed pen, belonging to Mr. Lacy, that contained two magnificent 

 hens, only one of them was, I imagine, too old and too fat. and the 

 hinder parts often seemed on the ground. 'Jlhe second-prize birds had 

 nothing to recommend them that I could see. The third-prize cock 

 was wretchedly feathered. A pen from the Rev. W. J. McUor deserved, 

 but did not obtain commendation. So much for the adult Dark birds. 

 Passing to chickens, I did not see a good pen there, to my fancy. The 

 fii'st-prize birds were coarse-combed and poorly feathered. Mr. Boyle's 

 second-prize was better, but the pullets did not match on the breast. 

 In one respect there was a general improvement — viz., the bronzing 

 of the wing ; this was far less visible. In Light birds Mr. Pares had 

 it almost his own way, in spite of his sad loss through railway tender 

 mercies, for which I heartily trust the company will suffer. I cannot 

 say that I liked these bii-ds ; generally the poorness of leg -feathering 

 was lamentable. One of the chicken pens that was awarded the third 

 prize was claimed for Her Majesty the Queen, at .t'-^O ! The single 

 cock class contained the gem of the Brahmas in Mr. Boyle's first-prize 

 bird. He left nothing for me to desire — heavily feathered, short- 

 legged, splendid black breast, evenly spotted, and faultless condition. 

 The rest of the noticed birds in this class were wretched. 



3Lifaj!S. — Yes, to be sure, Bristol had a class for them, and by 

 several it was not the smallest class in the Show. The cock exhibited 

 by Mr. Cooper was a beautiful bird ; the hens very poor. The cock 

 shown by Mr. Brooke was a veiT good-coloured bird. 



Of Crive C'u'urs there was a good entry ; but why not Black Polands ? 



