J lino 3, 1669. ] 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



883 



ton. Itedcap.—l, Miss Armstroog, Boverloy. a, W. Joffcraon. SclUnff 

 Claii.—l , T. Neall. 3, 0. Orant. 



JvMiKH-.—roiiUnj : E. Hewitt. Esq., Sparltbrook, Birmjunhani. 

 ri'iMiu: W. W. Boultou. Esq., Beverley. Canaries, <fr. : Mr. J. 

 Holmes, Jan., Beverley. 



NOTES ON GOLDFr>;CII MULES AND 

 MULE-BKELJING.— No. ,5. 



Now we Ijivo arrived at the period more particularly iaterost- 

 iug to Miilo breeders. I am .luite satiatiod with the start I 

 liave taade, for with the lirat Leu wliicU liaa gone to nest with 

 Uio Goldflucb, I oau, after her week'd sittiuR, "shiuo" four 

 good eggs in a nest of four. Tlais, on the 8th of May, is com- 

 meuciug the month pretty fairly. On the twelfth day of sitting 

 I shall form a uest myself, as near as possible resembling that 

 made by Iha heu, and transfer the egga from one to the other, 

 for the purpose of preventing any of the bloodsuckers secreted 

 in the old neat annoying either mother or young ouea when 

 chipped. When the young are about ten days old, I shall 

 supply another clean uest. I have the old nesta scalded when 

 they are taken avfay. Attention in this respect, I consider the 

 most important matter in rearing birds, mhother Mules or 

 Canaries. 



It is scarcely neoe.iaary for me to advise as to general ma- 

 nagement; suffice it to say that those rules laid down in the 

 " Guide " of Mr. Blakston, published in the last volume of this 

 Journal, respecting Canary management, will be sufficient. In 

 Mr. Blakston's excellent remarks, directions may be found to 

 guide the learner in the breeding season, as to general treat- 

 ment, and the necessary requirements for breeding Canaries. 



During my many years' experience in Mule-breeding, I have 

 noticed thiit it is generally in the latter part of the season that 

 I have had the most success in breeding the best Mules, birds 

 well broken in feathers. I never think of pairing a cock Gold- 

 finch with a Canary hen in the same way that I would a pair of 

 Canarie.o, but work with three or four hens, taking the Goldfinch 

 from one hen when she has begun to lay, and putting him to 

 another ; or if two hens should be nesting at the same time, 

 changing him often from one to the other. This plan can be 

 beat carried out if the cages are so arranged or constructed, 

 that by drawing a slide the Goldfinch can bo admitted without 

 handling him, and thus affrighting the hen birds. 



During the breeding season my Goldfinches feed upon hemp 

 seed, canary seed, linseed, groats, the coarsest of Sootch oat- 

 meal, dandelion heads, groundsel, plantain heads, shepherd's 

 purse, lettuce, &c., and as soon as I caa obtain them, thistle 

 heads ; but before supplying the latter, I cut ofl most of the 

 cotton or down, to prevent it being scattered in all parts of the 

 room, after the Goldfinch has had its beak about it. 



At the end of the season, naturally enough, the birds are all 

 tho worse for wear, but extra attention should be paid to them 

 in keeping them well through the moult, or autumnal sickness, 

 which ensues. I know many breeders are iu the habit of neg- 

 lecting their breeding stock after they have been doing good 

 service for them, devoting almost the whole of their attention 

 to the young stock. The old birds are thus taken suddenly olif 

 stimulating and feeding diet, to bare seed and water, and what 

 with this change, the mcuUing, and chilly weather, death often 

 cnauea to an old favourite, much to the surprise, and, no doubt, 

 sorrow of its owner, who regrets the death of a " rare bred 'un," 

 but not thinking that a want of proper attention has been the 

 cause of if. The mortality with Goldfinches is greater in pro- 

 jiortion than with Canaries, which is, no doubt, owing to their 

 not being able to stand the cage confinement like the Canary, 

 and not having sufficient attention paid them in their diet. 



I know no breeding-cage bird of which the death can be 

 caused so easily as the Goldfinch. A change of ownership, 

 although a bird may be supplied with every requisite kind of 

 food, will often make them turn dull and die off. In proper 

 health and condition they are plucky birds, and when kept with 

 others in a cage evince much pugnacity. If by chance the 

 supply of food is not equal to the demand, watch the Goldfinch 

 when the aced-drawer or glass ia replenished ; no other bird 

 dare approach his sharp beak, but all allow him to remain 

 master of tho position until his appetite is appeased. 



I have seen it stated that in Canary-breeding the cock bird 

 should be two years old and the hen a little older— I suppose 

 this means three years — before commencing breeding, but for 

 what reason I cannot comprehend. It is well known that a 

 Canary cook is in full vigour for breeding before it arrives at 

 the age of twelve months, and were I to choose a hen for nest- 



ing, I should prefer a fresh young hen — one bred the previona 



season. I have generally found young hena good layers, and 

 more vigorous and healthy than three-year-old birds. Well, 

 then, if possessed of a Mule-breeding hen do not wait until it 

 arrives at tho age of two or three years, but begin at once, or it 

 will be so much time lost, and perchance the bird may die 

 before it reaches a greater age. 



Ileapectiug Mules, tho fumoua specimena of both Goldfinch 

 and Linnet, and the dark Mules also, now-a-daya — thoae in 

 particulor shown at the late Sunderland and Crystal Palace Ex- 

 hibitions — were alone worth witnessing, but to my sorrow, in 

 several instancea, some of the beat m an unwashed, emoky 

 state, had to retire from foremost positiona for others smarter 

 in feather and appearance, and in accordance with the printed 

 instructiona in the schedule, that " Pri/.as will be awarded for 

 beauty of plumage, quality, and high condition." It is not a 

 pleasant duty for a judge to put back specimens which beneath 

 their dirt have something good. But, atill, this point must be 

 carried out, otherwise a judge would bo encouraging that which 

 ia offensive to the sight of so many visitors, who go to admire 

 "beauty of plumage" and "high condition" in birds, not 

 dirty birds. 



During my visit to the Crystal Pulaco Show, on the open- 

 ing day, having been engaged the day previous with the 

 arduous task of judging, I may state that I waa one of 

 the privileged five who passed through the " open sesame " 

 door — the particular door named by " W. A. B." in a previous 

 Journal, for the purpose of enjoying a cheroot. The party 

 being iu " full feather," the conversation naturally enough 

 turned on the subject of birds, of which muling hens formed 

 the principal topic. Various opinions were put forth, one in 

 particular from a young Mule fancier, although a spirited ex- 

 I hibitor, to the effect that it is immaterial about a particular 

 i strain of heu being requisite to throw good pied Mules. I may 

 ' here state for the knowledge of many, borne out by several of 

 i the best Mule breeders in England, that it is necessary for suc- 

 cessfully breeding pied Mules, to be particular in obtaining 

 hens, not any kind of Canary heu, to breed good Mulea. Of 

 thia I am fully convinced, although a casual or haphazard hen 

 may perchance breed a nioe-marked Mule. S udi a hen I should, 

 of course, put by for muling alone with, and breed young stock 

 for future seasons. — Geo. J. Barnkshy, Derbij. 



DELAY IN BREEDING. 



I HAVE made three artificial swarms from a strong black 

 colony, and even now it seems the strongest I have. In two of 

 these the queens were at liberty on May 5th. I have never been 

 able to ascertain that the queen of either had been out for her 

 wedding trip, and I examined one only yesterday (the 20th day), 

 and find no signs of eggs or brood. The queen is there, and 

 seems all right, but no breeding is going on. The other swarm 

 was in the same condition a day or two previously, and so I 

 seem to be in a fair way to have two drone- breeders only. I 

 tried a few days ago to set the queen of one of them off, and 

 took out the comb with her on, and with a feather caused her 

 to take wing three times, but all to no purpose, and she was 

 back directly. — J. R. J. 



[Unfavourable weather is the probable cauEe of (he delay in 

 the fertilisation of your j'oung queens. They need not, how- 

 ever, necessarily turn out drone-breeders, since Mr. Woodbury, 

 in No. 83 of our new series, recites an instance which occurred 

 in 1862, in which a queen hatched on the 17th of August in 

 that year, did not commence egg-laying until the lOih of Sep- 

 tember, eo that she could not have been fecundated until the 

 thirtieth or thirty-first day of her existence, notwithstanding 

 she laid worker eggs as usual, and turned out a good queen. 

 We think Mr. Lowe also once related a case in which the period 

 was extended to forty days with no injurions result.] 



NEW MODE OF INTRODUCING QUEENS. 



During the second day of tho meeting of German bee-keepers 

 held at Darmstadt in September last, the President read a 

 letter from Mr. Uhle, in which he deacribed the following pro- 

 cess for effecting the safe and speedy introduction of queen 

 bees : — 



Remove the queen of a colony, and feed the bees with simple 

 syrup scented with freshly-grated nutmeg. When the bees 

 have freely partaken of this, dip the queen intended to be 



