May 2S, 18CT. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGK GARDENER. 



36S- 



Sea-kalk Bittrr (S.J. T. B.).— We should attribute the hittemess to 

 somethinR deleterious in the fishes, whioh are not a desinible material 

 for blanching it. Snnd ia far belter, and nothing is equal to pola covered 

 with litter. Perhaps the Sea-liale was imperfectly blanched ; it would 

 then have a strong bitterish taste. 



Names op Plants (Llanwedyn^ .—Tt^Uimn tenclln. (Bournemouth). — 

 Halesia totraptera. fn. i». ./.I.— Trillium Rrandiflornm. The"Mai>na" 

 is Oplismenus cru-f-g.alli. '(7. .4. i''.).— Ledum latifolium. (J. P. i.— Daphno 

 cneorum. (P. E. F.j. — 1, Ledum latifolium ; ^, not determinable; 3, Sta- 

 phylea pinnata. 



METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS in the Suburbs of London for the Week ending May rUst. 



POTJLTRY, BEE, and HOUSEHOLD CHEONICLE. 



THE STORY OF THE BLACK BANTAMS. 



Cousin Janet took a fancy she would have some chickens of 

 her own. Sue had an idea tliat I bad derived great pleasure 

 and profit from my White Dorkings, and being of rather a 

 speculative turn, she would make the venture ; so one morning 

 early in April she sent a maid across to South Field, to borrow 

 one of our White Dorking bens to sit upon some Black Ban- 

 tams' ecgs she had that morning received from Brighton. 



" A White Dorking weighing 7 lbs. to hatch Black Bantams 

 weighing a few ounces — absurd!" said papa; "I hope you 

 told her so." 



" No, I did not." 



" Then you would have done the greatest kindness to have 

 said so. They have no convenience for poultry-keeping at 

 Oncle Tetley's, and cannot succeed." 



" I can tell her so yet, it is net too late ; only I am afraid 

 Cousin Janet will think me mean and ill-natured." 



"And if you do," said Aunt Margaret, who was with us at 

 the time, " she will miss the knowledge she might have gained 

 by experience. Ah, Maud ! if you live to be an old maid you 

 will find out it is much better to let people have their own 

 way — read their school-books after their own fashion, upside 

 down if they chose." 



"If I were you, Maud," suggested mamma, "I would send 

 in the hen and your ' Poultry Book,' and ask her to read it, so 

 that she might kuow what she was doing." 



" Janet will bring up her chickens and then read the book," 

 said papa with a great laugh ; " and snub you into the bargain 

 for seeming to know more than she does." 



But Cousin Janet did not do that : she accepted the hen 

 with a long string of compliments, but returned the book with 

 many thanks, saying she " did not need it — had more than she 

 could read, and that she knew all about poultry-keeping, having 

 once visited at a farmhouse for three months, where they kept 

 a first-rate henwife." 



So the Dorking was taken to her new quarters. She had 

 long cherished the desire to have a family of her own ; yet 

 when shown the nest containing more than a score small, very 

 small eggs, she manifested great discontent — seemed by instinct 

 to know that they were not her eggs, and would not produce 

 her sort of chickens. So she grumbled and cackled, and flew 

 up and down ; and though over and over again she was taken 

 to the nest, still it would not do— they were not her own eggs, 

 and it was not her nest. She was not like the little Game hen 

 that stole a nest in a manger, and, when the eggs were found 

 and removed, took the baiter ball under her wing, and kept it 

 warm for days and nights ; so determined to sit was she, that 

 anything was better than nothing. There was no way for it 

 but taking the hen back to her old nest and seeing it that 

 would bring about the desired result. Even then she did not 

 seem exactly suited, but scratched about among the eggs, turn- 

 ing them right and left. Some rolled out — they were given 

 back to her ; again she rolled them out more roughly than 

 before, for this time they were broken. At last she was left in 

 quiet possession of sixteen eggs, over which she broorled, and 

 evidently intended to take great care. Whether the Dorking 

 was gifted with numerical qualifications, or was a believer in 

 the old saying, " There is luck in odd numbers," I cannot tell; 



but when she left her nest the next day there were seventeen 

 eggs — a large round white one in the midst of the small ones : 

 this was taken away. Next time the eggs were counted there 

 was still an odd number, another large white egg being added ; 

 but this time it was loft to take its chance — no doubt it would 

 come on well. It was a great favourite : it was always found 

 in the warmest, softest part of the nest — no daily turning over 

 of the eggs ever turned it to the outside. 



As the twenty days passed the wonder was, how many 

 chickens the Dorking woidd batch out of her seventeen eggs. 

 She had not broken any, but the critical time was yet to come, 

 and, which appeared far more likely to have happened, Cousin 

 Janet had not broken any. Never " sitting ben " bad such a 

 life of it as the poor Dorking had. Many a time did I wish 

 she had been a Game hen. better to have defended the rights 

 and quilt of her nest. Of course the hen and eggs had been 

 removed to Ridge House as soon as the former had settled. 

 Every egg was marked on one side " up," on the other " down," 

 and daily did Janet take otT the ben to see if the eggs were all 

 as they should be, all " up " or all " down ;" if not, they were 

 turned over to the proper side, for the days when they should 

 be " up " or " down " were marked in her almanack, so she 

 "could not forget if the ben did." Then every four days the 

 nest was watered with warm water, and, when the last week 

 arrived, daily. Then every night a caudle was taken into the 

 outhouse and the eggs looked through. All the eggs had ths 

 same appearance —they were either all good or all bad ; Kate 

 said the former, Janet the latter. So a basin and warm water 

 were brought to test them ; for George said, " If they sank 

 they had chickens in, the weight carried tl em down." Cook 

 said, " If they had chickens in they would float, for as soon as 

 the bird felt the influence of the warm water it kicked about, 

 and the motion kept it up." George said he could not tell how 

 anything so tightly packed as chickens were in the shell could 

 possibly kick. "Why, then," replied cook, "they breathe 

 faster, and that moves them about." 



Kate thought " nothing could breathe without air," and she 

 did not see "how the chicken could get any through the shell 

 and the thick underlying skin." Aunt Margaret thought " every 

 egg contained a certain portion of air kept in reserve for the 

 growing bird." 



So, with so many different opinions, Janet was puzzled and 

 refused to try the warm-water test. 



" And when they snip," said Janet, " what would you do ? 

 The hen has so many I am sure she cannot take cire of them 

 all. I have heard say you may help them out by wrapping 

 them in a warm, moist, flannel ; and there were four with little 

 holes in this morning. I will try." 



" But. why would you take all that bother when the hen can 

 do it for you so much better ?" said Aunt Margaret. " I would 

 leave her quietly alone to do her own work ; and it you must 

 help, just take away the little chickens and put them by the 

 fire, and then the others will come on faster." 



During the day four of the chickens were put into an old hat 

 and placed before the kitchen fire, covered over with flannel. 

 The brimful kettle was hanging up over the fire, its low-set 

 and yet far-projecting spout already fiUmg with the swelling 

 water ; a few minutes and itioiled over, pouring out its scald- 

 ing contents right into theTiat, which seemed to have been 

 lilaced there on purpose. The poor little Bantams' short Hves 

 were soon over. 

 Next morning there were five more chickens out of the shells. 



