AprU 19, 1S77. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND 0OJ?TAGB GARDENER. 



301 



Nature that going oue day into his garden just before a storm 

 ho found the bees crowiliug into their hives. About tifty centi- 

 metres from the best hive there was a middle-sizetl toad, which 

 every now and again rose on his forelegs and made a dart with 

 surprising quickness towards blades of grass. He was found to 

 be devouring bees which rested on the grass-blades awaiting 

 their chance to enter the hive. M. Brnnet watched till twelve 

 victims had been devoured; he expected the toad's voracity 

 would soon be punist.ed with a sting, but in vain. Objecting to 

 further destruction he seized the toad by one of his legs and 

 carried him to a bed of cabbage thirty metres off, where he 

 might do real service among the caterpillars, &c. Three days 

 after this, on going out to the hives, he found the same toad 

 (which was easily distinguishable) at its old work. M. Brnnet 

 let him swallow only three or four bees, then carried him fifty 

 metres in another direction. Two days later the " wretch " was 

 again found at his pest greedily devouring. 



OUB DUTY TO OUR FOUE-FOOTED AND 

 FEA.THEEED NEIGHBOURS.— No. 4. 



PIGEONS. 



I woSDEB much that there has ever been any cruelty shown to 

 Pigeons, for there has travelled over the world a sort of sacred 

 character attached to the bird — whether from Noah's Dove or 

 other even more holy associations, it is ditScult to determine; 

 but 80 it is, just as the egg-seeking schoolboy of England will 

 scarcely ever destroy the nest of the Eobin. rfo far, beyond the 

 British Isles, there is a special care and regard for the Pigeon. 

 The Russian will not kill a Pigeon ; Mahomedaus everywhere 

 would not on any account injure or kill the bird. The Venetians, 

 from a well-known historical reason, feed the Pigeors of that 

 city daily at a stated hour. And I have noticed much kicduesa 

 and tenderness among f^mers at a market shown to Pigeons. 

 I go in thought to a market place in the east of England, au 

 open uncovered square, where the truly burly East Anglian 

 farmers used to be seen by the dozen, sample bags in hand, 

 drawn from capacious pockets. Genuine farmers, dressed like 

 farmers (of course I am speaking of some years since), farmers 

 that might have stood many of them as types of John Bull for 

 the pencil of Mr. Teniell, had Punch existed then, which it or 

 he did not, and had Mr. "Teniell wanted a specially good cartoon. 

 East Anglia contains still the fairest of women in all England, 

 with soft cheeks, delicate features, and, above all, well grown; 

 and to match them fine, tall, rosy-cheeked, brown-bearded men. 

 So different both to the less well-grown and less good-looking 

 people of the west. 



But I am wandering from the Pigeons and must hark back. 

 Market was opened about three o'clock, the second feeding time 

 of Pigeons in the day as all fanciers know. Not far from the 

 market-place lived a painter and glazier, whose son was a sort 

 of fancier in days when the Pigeon fancy, save in London, was 

 not very far advanced — when a Pouter was a Pouter, that was 

 all — when the object was to get specimens of as many varieties 

 as possible, but the specimens were not what would be now 

 judged very good. The young painter got all he could, and par- 

 ticularly liked diverse colonrs. His Pigeons had full liberty, 

 and loved to sweep along the open market-place, and perch in 

 the sun on the small central cross, and take from thence long 

 low flights to their master's home, and to their loft over the 

 shop dedicated to paint pots and putty. The dry gravel of the 

 sunny square formed a grand parade ground for the Pigeons — 

 such a place for cooing, strutting, bowing, crop-blowing, tail- 

 spreading, and a display of all the pretty ways of the pretty 

 birds. There, too, were given the sharp peckings of the cocks 

 driving their wives to nest, well knowing they ought to be at 

 home attending to their maternal duties, but who, like some 

 human wives I have noticed, prefer playing the part of young 

 ladies rather than that of mothers. Oh! shame to them. Eug- 

 land requires every wife and mother to do their duty, and, young 

 wives, you have played-out the young-lady part, so let it alone. 

 That's all over with you, leave that game for younger and maiden 

 players. 



But I am again wandering and must go back to the Pigcnns. 

 There on the square, clean, clear, and empty, were in bright 

 days the pretty Pigeons. The big, quiet, long-bodied Runts — 

 called then and there Spanish Rants; then, too, tall Pouters, 

 the cocks so often following and flirting with littlo Tumbler 

 hens, just as I have seen tall. Pouter-blown, padded-breasted, 

 full privates of the Life Guards Blue walking with some tiny 

 nursemaid in the parks. Verily Pigeons and human beings 

 much resemble each other. Well, market day came, and didn't 

 the Pigeons know that day ! It was their feast day. From the 

 farmers' hands fell, rolling through their plump fingers, the 

 grains of sample ccrn ; and beneath, between, and on their feet 

 were the Pigeons picking up the wheat, or the barley, or the peas, 

 or the beans. The farmers looked for the birds, loved the birds, 

 " blessed the pretty creatures," told their children about them at 

 home. Just as the Square of St. Mark is famous for its Pigeons 

 BO this county-town market-place became famous for its Pigeons. 



Were the farmers inclined to kick or trample on the birds ? Not 

 a bit of it. These were too fat and kindly. " Let me have men 

 about me that are fat; sleek-headed men, and such as sleep 

 o' nights," said Cfesar. Such are all, as a rule, kind not only to 

 men but to birds and animals ; they are not little lean wasps 

 and waspish-tempered. Give me fat coachmen, plump grooms, 

 comfortably-covered gardeners — anything but fat short-jacketed 

 boys ; they are detestable, and ought to be kept on half rations 

 until thinner. Fat and goodness go together in this world; and 

 the old painters always represent the angels as fat, so I suppose 

 they go together in the nest. 



The Pigeons were great favourites with the farmers because 

 of their beauty and great tameness, and pairs were bought to 

 take home to cheer some sick child or grandchild at the farm in 

 the great black flat feus. Now all this was as it ought to be, 

 but it is not always so. Sometimes there is cruelty to the birds 

 without intention, as when the new comer's wing is tied, and 

 the bird put up with the rest in those very unsatisfactory lookers 

 nailed to the end of a building. The bird tries to fly down with 

 the rest, and breaks perhaps a leg or sadly bruises itself. Some- 

 times cruel boys tie crackers to the tails of Pigeons. Then 

 theru is the crowding cruelty of the dealers' cages, when a large 

 number are put into the cage in the window, and there is peck- 

 ing, and fighting, and crowding, and often starving and want of 

 water too. But go to Leadenhall Market, and there, if things 

 are as bad as they were sis or seven years ago, there is cruelty 

 enough in the crowding of poor birds of all descriptions ; where 

 you might, and I fear may, see fowls. Ducks, Geese, Pigeons, 

 literally jammed together in cages with no room for movement. 

 Ducks putting pitifully their long necks through the openings, 

 asking either to be taken back to the farmyards or to be merci- 

 fully killed. Anywhere, anywhere out of such a world. 



Then, fanciers, I turn to you. What about the overshowing of 

 your birds? Fun for you, aye, and cups and prizes, but death 

 to the poor birds. If you enter them at far-distant shows go 

 with them or send some trusty person with them. The best 

 birds ever bred in Eeglsnd have been killed by overshowing. 

 This is too bad (bad in every way), for we can ill afford to lose 

 from the fancy splendid specimens. Then the fanciers of 

 homing birds are not guiltless. Forcing their birds to over- 

 long flights is surely very cruel. It is abusing a beautiful 

 instinct— the love of home and of young— all for money, and 

 often bets and gambling. Homing birds deserve better treat- 

 ment, for they may some time or other be useful to their country, 

 and, though not strictly fancy bird'), are deserving of as great 

 care as fancy birds. Think, then, of the cruelty of making these 

 good home-loving creatures fly even nine hundred miles, as in 

 the race from Rome to Belgium in 18G8. " Of the two hundred 

 liberated," says Mr. Tegetmeier, " not more than twenty ever 

 returned" What of the 180? Some perched lonely on the 

 Apennines, fome died on the Alps, some dropped in Swiss 

 hollows. Poor birds ! trying so bard to get home— trying so 

 hard to reach the little nest in their Belgian lofts. How they 

 tried and still persevered in spite of weakness and hxrnger, tiU 

 the fleet wing failed quite and they perished from man's cruelty. 

 Never more, I trust, will there be such over-long races. As 

 matters of business they would not be needed. The sore needs 

 of a besieged city would never require such long flights. " Use, 

 not abuse," must be your motto, homing fancier. Of the cruelty 

 of the Pigeon-shooting matches I will speak next time. — 

 Wiltshire Rector. 



TIMELY PREPARATIONS. 



Evert bee-keeper should prepare beforehand for coming 

 events. Though bees in this locality were late in commencing 

 breeding this year, and though the weather has been and is still 

 very unfavourable for bees, we are expecting things to take a 

 favourable turn for them. The fruit trees are well set with 

 flower buds, promising a great show of blossom. Flower huda 

 on sycamores are very abundant this year and swelling fast. The 

 white clover plant of the fields should be strong, as it was not 

 injured by frost last winter. If weather permit we shall have a 

 year of honey. Last year we had unfavourable weather until 

 the middle of June, afterwards a good yield of honey was ob- 

 tained. 



Whatever mode of management be followed, it is wise to 

 make preparitions in time. Hives should he ready for swarma 

 and supers for stocks managed on the non-swarming system. 

 On the swarming principle we provide about one-fourth mora 

 empty hives than the number of our swarming stocks, say 

 twenty-five hives for every twenty stocks. The additional hivea 

 are used for second swarms and turnouts. In fine honey 

 seasons, when most of the stocks are heavy at swarming time 

 and have their honey taken from them three weeks after, we 

 use the hives a second time the same season byrepeopling them 

 with the turn-outs. Hives thus used and managed are filled 

 twice in a season. Two of the advantages of this system are- 

 first, an early harvest of flower honey; and secondly, the hives 

 are refilled with young aweet combs and virgin honey. 



