Jnne 11, 1868. 1 



JOURNAIi OP HORTIOULTUBE AND COTTAGE GARDENEB. 



429 



METEOROLiOGICAL OBSERVATIONS in the Suburbs of Londou for the week ending June Oth. 



POITLTRY, BEE, and HOUSEHOLD CHRONICLE. 



GAME FOWLS IN FORMER YEARS. 



The most celebrated breeders of the last generation were the 

 following titled persons, as I have read — viz., the Duke of Leeds 

 (about a hundred years ago) : the Earl of Derby, Knowsley 

 Park, Prescot; the Earl of Mexborough, Methley Park, near 

 Leeds ; the Earl of Lichfield, Shugborough Park, Staffordshire ; 

 Lord Hill, Hawkstone Park, Shropshire ; Lord Ongley, Old 

 Warden Park, Bedfordshire ; Lord Huntingfield, Heveuinghnm 

 Park, Suffolk; Sir Harry Goodrieke, Bart., Studley Castle, 

 Aloester; Sir George Sitwell, Bart., Kenishaw Park, Derby- 

 shire; and Sir Thomas White, Bart., Tuxford Park, Notts. 



Charles II. patronised the cockpit, and amongst other colours 

 was partial to the Black and Brassy-wiuged Black Game fowls, 

 a colour now generally thought both too slow and too soft to 

 be very good. King Charles frequented the Boyal Cockpit at 

 Whitehall and the Newmarket Cockpit. 



The Duke of Leeds above mentioned had a very strong and 

 powerful breed, called the " Shackbags," or " Shakebags," now 

 extinct, having been latterly crossed with the large Malays and 

 entirely spoilt thereby. Tho Duke's men used to bring their 

 birds to fight in large bags, shaking the hags, and challenging 

 aU comers to single battles, in which the great size and power 

 of the Duke's breed generally gained the victory. These birds 

 were too large to fight in mains, and were fought in the " byes " 

 and single battles, against the "catch weights" and "turn-out " 

 birds. 



The Earl of Derby, as previously mentioned, bred the white- 

 legged Black-breasted Reds with yellow or daw eyes, and this 

 breed was more than sixty years in the Stanley family, and the 

 birds were called the " Derby Beds." 



Lord Hill, I have been informed, bred the Silver-Grey breeds, 

 both Dark Silver-Greys and Silver Duckwing Greys. Lord 

 Huntingfield bred, as before stated, the white-legged Duck- 

 wings with yellow or daw eyes. The Earl of Lichfield had a 

 breed of " Tasselled Spangles" amongst liis other colours, 

 which were in existence in l.S3'2, hut are since bred out. Sir 

 Harry Goodrieke, I think, had the Brown Beds. 



The greatest patrons of the Royal Cockpit, Tufton Street, 

 Westminster, were the Earl of Derby, Lord Ongley, and Mr. 

 Germaino, the latter gentleman more especially so, and the 

 feeders principally employed there were Gilliver, Potter (for 

 the Earl of Derby), Nash, Leycester, and Walters. The fa- 

 vourite fighting weight was 4 lbs. 8 ozs., or 10 ozs., 2 ozs. over 

 li lbs. being allowed, and the cocks were as large-framed, light- 

 fleshed, and long-reached as pcssible at this weight, or as " fine 

 March cocks " as possible at tho weight allowed, which birds 

 are the fastest fighting of all. 



The middle of the reign of George IV. was about the greatest 

 era of cock-fighting, and the qualities of the best strains of 

 birds were then best developed. Brown Reds were most used, 

 and then Cheshire Piles, Dark Greys, white-legged Black- 

 breasted Reds, and willow-legged Dnckwings. These were the 

 five most common winning colours that have the most beaten 

 the common willow-legged Black-breasted Beds, which, with 

 Blacks, were considered losing colours, and so were most other 

 colours, with some exceptional strains. The north country 

 hen-tailed cocks were often fought in the " byes." 



Mains of cocks were generally of three descriptions — first, 

 the royal main, or main royal of twenty-one cocks on each 

 side, or forty-two cocks in all; second, the main of fifteen 

 cocks on each side, or thirty birds in all; and thirdly, the main 

 of seven cocks on each side, or fourteen birds in all, which 



was, perhaps, the most common, and consisted of themoat 

 select birds. There was the Welsh main, also, of sixteen 

 cocks in all, the eight survivors pitted again, four against four, 

 and again two against two, and the two survivors again, one 

 against one. Thus the winning cock had to win four battles. 

 This was of course the hardest sort of fighting of all, and only 

 really good hard birds like Brown Beds and Dark Greys could 

 genera?ly win Welsh mains, but the hen-tailed cocks did some- 

 times win them. In the royal mains some splendid Brown 

 Beds used to be seen, this bird being the acknowledged favourite 

 colour of almost all sporting gentlemen, and for the pit the 

 most cultivated of any colour— in most localities at any rate. — 

 Newmarket. 



ENTRIES IN VARIETY CLASS. 



I want the opinion of yourself and my fellow exhibitors as 

 to entries in the variety class, and although a personal matter, 

 yet as the case is one much in point, I state it. 



At the Falmouth Bath and West of England Meeting, of which 

 you gave a report last week, I received a high commendation 

 in the " Any variety" class for Malays, White Spanish receiving 

 a prize, whilst there was a class for Spanish without any 

 limitation of colour. Query. Were the White Spanish wrongly 

 entered ? and if so, ought they not properly to have been dis- 

 qualified ? 



At Weston-super-Mare Show, I think— if not there, at 

 Clifton— a pen of Black Cochin chickens, remarkably good, took 

 the first prize, I believe, in the " Any other variety " class. 

 Now, many remarked that these birds ought to have been dis- 

 qualified, because there was a class for " Cochin chickens." 



There was at Falmouth, and there is at most shows, a re- 

 gulation directing that " wrongly entered " fowls will be dis- 

 qualified. 



As there were other highly commended pens, I do not say 

 that but for this award I should have taken a prize; my 

 position might have been just the same, only I think the point 

 ought to be settled. — T. B. A. Z. 



TAs there was a class for " Spanish without any limitation 

 of colour," we think, if strictly followed, the " White Spanish" 

 ought to have been in that class, but we do not think that in 

 practice such strictness is ever admitted. When Spanish fowls 

 are spoken of, everyone understands that the normal Black 

 Spanish are meant. White Spanish and Audalusians are 

 varieties of the same breed, and properly admitted to the 

 " variety class." To prevent any misapprehension, Committees 

 would do wisely to specify in their prize lists the class as being 

 for " Black Spanish."— Eds.] 



THIS SEASON'S HATCHING. 



When hatched. No. set. No. hatched. 



March 2nd. Brahma H ? 



„ 16th White Cochin 11 o 



April 6th Brahma and White Cochin .. . 13 12 



„ 14th. Brabrna and White Cochin ... 13 9 



„ 24th. Brahma 13 Jj 



,, 27th. Brahma and White Cochin ... 15 13 



., 27th. Brahma and White Cochin .. . 15 12 



May 4th . Brahma 13 J"^ 



„ 8th. Brahma and White Cochin ... 15 13 



„ 8th . Black Hamburgh 13 H 



The Black Hamburgh eggs were bought, but all the others 

 were from my own hens, which had their nests on the ground, 

 with a good turf underneath. The chickens were all fine, 

 healthy birds, and have done remarkably well. I have lost two 

 of them by cramp among the first hatchings, and one in another 



