Hay 23, 1887. ] 



JOUBNAL OF HORTIOULTXJBB AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



367 



effect, that if I had not sent them I was not to do so at present, 

 as my correspondent had failed in disposing of some birds, and 

 had not room for them. 



After a while, when I had almost forgotten the matter, I re- 

 ceived a note requesting me to send some pens immediately. 

 I wrote asking for a cheque or a reference. I heard no more. 



.-There used to be a phrase, " It's all up at Peckham." I sup- 



.. pose this was the ease at Camberwell. 



The inquiry in last week's .Journal concerning Camberwell 



• bronght the matter to my recollection. — Egouet. 



WOODBRIDGE POULTRY SHOW. 



I WAS much gratified to see by the letter of your correspon- 

 dent " Egomet," which appeared in last week's Journal, that the 

 Committee of the Woodbridf;e Poultry Show now purpose to 

 discharge in full all outstanding claims. This is a step that 

 will, no doubt, insure a perfect reconciliation with all claimants, 

 and also public support, should it be deemed advisable to re- 

 Bnscitate the Woodbridge Poultry Show. That the Committee 

 were placed in a most unenviable position during their last 

 Show, from the fact of a sudden gale of wind overturning the 

 tent, is probably known to most of your readers, and, doubt- 

 less, a very heavy reduction in the receipts from this unforeseen 

 cause ensued, independently altogether of the great personal 

 annoyance to the managers themselves. 



The Committee having adopted their present course, I can- 

 not forbear (as having arbitrated at so many of their meetings), 

 Riving my unqualified approval of the great care and attention 

 bestowed on the poultry during the time of exhibition, which, 

 in fact, could not be exceeded ; nor can it be doubted the 

 institution of the Woodbridge Show did much to improve the 

 poultry in the surrounding district. — Edwahd Hewitt. 



ARTIFICIAL HATCHING. 



1 SHOULD feel greatly obliged if some of your readers who 

 have had personal experience and success in artificial hatching 

 would kindly tell me what they consider the proper temperature 

 for eggs. I presume there would be a difference in cases where 

 the whole of the egg is constantly exposed evenly to the same 

 heat, from those where only one side^receives the greatest 

 degree. 



What should be the temperature when the egg receives on 

 all sides the same heat ? and when one side receives a greater 

 degree, of what temperature should the hottest side be ? 



An old book which I have on tbe subject states, that to have 

 strong birds there ought to be a difference in the heat applied 

 to the top and bottom of the egg of from 8° to 10°, but I 

 cannot beheve there should be so great a diilerence. — E. 



[There need be no attempt made to secure a difference of 

 temperature between the upper and under side of an egg whilst 

 incubating. When a hen sits upon eggs the temperature 

 aionnd them is uniform. The temperature should be 104° ; 

 but 2° or 3° higher or lower occasionally are not detrimental, 

 and if once in each twenty-four hours the temperature for 

 half an hour is allowed to sink to 90°, in imitation of the hen's 

 leaving the nest for feeding, all the better. This lowering of 

 temperature must not be permitted during the day or two 

 cloring which the chicks are coming out of their shells.] 



RH^AL INCUBATORS. 

 IrrHiNK most of your readers will agree with me that one of 

 the greatest drawbacks to poultry exhibitors is the difficulty of 

 obtaining early chickens. Cochins are the only fowls which can 

 bo safely relied upon as sitters in the early part of the year, 

 and they frequently crush one-half of the chickens in hatching, 

 and clumsily tread some of tbe others to death afterwards. 

 Moreover, to fanciers of a non-sitting variety, the necessity of 

 keeping sitting hens which are useless for the greater part of 

 the year, is a great inconvenience. This obstacle seems likely 

 to be overcome in a great measure by artificial incubation, the 

 great difficulty being to select from among so many incubators, 

 new and old in principle, that best adapted to the purpose. I 

 would beg to suggest that, alive as you always are to the in- 

 terest of exhibitors, and holding tbe position of the recog- 

 nised authority in poultry matters, you should kindly intimate 

 to manufacturers of incubators that you would be willing to 

 experiment with the different incubators, and report on the 

 merits of the same after the manner of Tlie Field trials of 



breech-loaders and sporting rifles. I feel persuaded that your 

 kind compliance with this suggestion would be a great boon to 

 very many subscribers. — Brown Bed. 



[It was an easy task for our sporting contemporary to de- 

 cide on the merits of rival rifles ; but to watch incubators for 

 three weeks would require an expenditure of time which wa 

 cannot afford. Moreover, we think that if three disinterested 

 breeders of poultry would undertake the task their decision 

 would be more satisfactory. — Eds.] 



NON-RESISTING BEES. 

 A FEW weeks ago the attention of bee-keepers was directed 

 to the subject of non-resisting bees. That the bees of a hivo 

 well stored with honey and a numerous population should 

 allow themselves to be tamely plundered by marauders, with- 

 out offering any opposition, is certainly an anomalous proceed- 

 ing; but that such is the fact I am able to attest from per- 

 sonal observation. 



In the early part of February last, my attention was directed 

 to bees deliberately entering a hive and carrying off the stores 

 without challenge. They came from a colony a few yards dis- 

 tant, as was proved by sprinkling them with flour, and the cir- 

 cumstance of their meeting with no repulse from the inmates 

 led me to suppose that they had found out a queenless hive. 

 An inspection of the interior, however, proved not only that I 

 was mistaken in my conjecture, but disclosed the gratifying 

 truth that an active queen reigned, and that there was no lack 

 in the number of her attendants. Although, however, the 

 population was such as to be capable of defending itself, it yet 

 in the most unaccountable and helpless manner allowed its 

 treasures to be pillaged. For two weeks a regular system of 

 pilfering was established, and not till the unfortunate inmates 

 were reduced to the verge of famine did they awake from their 

 apathy and become aUve to the evil that had befallen them. 

 Then, when almost too late, a change of sentiment took place, 

 for on the return of the thieves to complete their work of ruin, 

 they were met at the entrance, collared, and stung to death, or 

 hurled over the landing-board. 



So discouraging was the reception from their enraged victims, 

 that a timely retreat was deemed advisable and a truce was 

 entered into for the futiue ; but as the stores had in a great 

 measure disappeared, I found it necessary to replace the emptied 

 combs by some well-furnished ones which I had laid aside 

 as a reserve for any weak stocks that might require a little 

 help in spring. The new supplies kept up the spirits of the 

 bees, and they were not again molested by their former as- 

 sailants. , , . 



All went on well till the 22nd of April, when the hive m 

 question for a second time became the victim of misfortune. 

 Thieves again found a peaceable entrance to it, but this tima 

 they came from a different colony— one that occupied the site 

 farthest from it in the apiary. The weather was favourable 

 for making incursions, and the new thieves continued them 

 daily till the 28th, when a grand and final siege was laid to tha 

 sweets, and the whole carried off without remorse. 



What struck me as rather remarkable was tbe fact that not 

 only was no defence by the assailed set up, but that they never 

 seemed to intermit their labours for a single minute during the 

 commission of the depredations. Pollen was as diligently carried 

 in as honey was carried out, and the queen, without showing 

 any signs of perturbation, pursued her materaal duty of ovipo- 

 sition. Not one intruder attempted to injure her, and the 

 unfortunate bees seemed to have no concern but care for their 

 brood, of which there was a considerable quantity in the hive. 



As the food was now exhausted I knew a hunger swarm 

 might soon be expected,and therefore to prevent so undesirable 

 a result, I provided the hive with my last spare comb, and re- 

 moved it to another apiary a mile distant, where tbe persecu- 

 tors of the inmates would have Httle chance of finding it. 



Since its removal they have manifested great activity, and 

 now that their foes have found that no spoil can be extracted 

 from the vacated stance, these are wisely betaking themselves 

 to legitimate labour. 



Had it been earher in the season I might have resorted to a 

 remedy which in another instance of the kind was found suc- 

 cessful—viz., to shut up the plundering hive one day and the 

 plundered hive the next, continuing the practice for a week or 

 longer ; but in May every day is precious, and I was unwilling 

 to retard the progress of either hive by causing a suspension 

 of out-door work on alternate days for even a short period.— E. S. 



