424 



jodrnaij of horticultube and cottage gaedener. 



[ May 22, 1873. 



■useil alone with woodsage to make beer as good as, and cheaper 

 than from malt. It is largely used at Burton. — B. H, W. 



OUR LETTER BOX. 



Light Br&hua's Plumage (J5. B.). — The creamy tinge you mention on 

 the plumage of a Light Brahma cock is not fatal toliia merits, more especially 

 if, as is usually the case, it is coatined to the Maddia. This shade in the bane 

 of all the white breedti. It is not the inevitable result of age, nor is it suffi- 

 ciently important to inluce us to discard a biid if thoroughly good in other 

 respects. 



Egg-Producers (I.F. E.). — We are not fond of the ^Vhite Leghorn. The 

 Spanish and Crrve-Ciieur lay the largest eggs of any fowls we know, and they 

 lay them at the smallest cust. If thare be a fuwl especially sent to lay in the 

 winter it is the Crrve-Cueur. When eggs are suld by weight, as they will be 

 some day, Crfve-Cceurs and Spanish will go up. The diflereuce is great where 

 in a cookery-book you read a certain dish requires four eggs, whether they aie 

 Spanish or Hamburgh eggs. 



Goose Sitting Twick (A.W.). — You may let your Goose sit again if she 

 desires to do so. The period of incubation is a period of rest, and every year 

 we are supplied through the winter with tender Geese from second clutches. 

 It is possible the hen eats her eggs. If she is in the condition you name she 

 muHt lay. 



Promoting Ducklings Fattening (F. C. H.), — If you mean yoxir Ducks 

 to grow fast you must begin feeding at once. Let them have plenty of good 

 oatmeal in a shallow vessel, and some raw meat chopped very fine. We do 

 not care to give them much liberty during the first fortnight of their lives, 

 not such liberty as consists in running about fields — merely such as they get 

 in eemi-coufiuement, but at a fortnight or three weeks old they may have a 

 daily run for an hour or two, not more. They should then be shut in a small 

 place — an old pigstye is a very good one — and fed on ground oats mixed ia 

 water and raw flesh, or soaked greaves. The run may be, at this time of year, 

 from seven till nine. 



Hens Laying Unmated [E. C. B.). — All the use of the cock is to fertilise 

 the eggs, he has nothing to do with laying them. We take especial care our 

 hens shall not get out, and there is no cock near the hens under rips with 

 chickens ; but we frequently take eggs out of the rips, and they are laid as 

 regularly as possible. With every egg the hen lays her affection for her offspring 

 diminirihes, until at length she becomes a very iwiratre, and receives her 

 till-then idolised chickens with more kicks than kisses. We transfer her then 

 to the ordinary run, which suits her better. 



Chickens Dwindling (A. D. C.]. — As you reared eighty-four chickens out 

 of eighty-sii hatched you have little to complain of, and need hardly ask of 

 what disease the " unhappy two " died. One of the best practical ornitho- 

 logists we ever knew gave it at his experience, after fifty years' close obser- 

 vation, that one bird in four of all hatched in the world always died. We 

 agree with him. Children's complaints, and the junior evils the flesh is heii' 

 to, carry them off, and this in spite of good food and every care. It is against 

 our habit to hide behind generalities, and we therefore tell you that the 

 symptoms you describe are those of chickens suffering from parasites. They 

 are probably the darlings of two broods, and " brandy would not save them." 

 The disease is the result of bad constitution, and were they as strong as their 

 brethren they would pull through the attack. You are vei'y little over the 

 most favoured town in England according to the bills of mortality, and you 

 must " rest and be thankful." Nothing cau be better than your feeding. 



Hens not Sitting (EUtrce). — We cannot understand why your hens do 

 not sit, unless it is that the weather ia unfavuiu-able to maternity in any 

 respect. Do not be impatient ; they will soon ask you for eggs. When we 

 went Into our house this muraing and saw the ruffled Friesland hens, and 

 heard the " cursing and swearing " there was when we disturbed and tiu'ned 

 them out, we wished they were like yours. 



" Tout vient, a qui sait atteudre." 



Kailway Errors (T. S.). — The death of your bird owing to the railway 



officials' mistake is very annoying, and if you could prove who was in error 



you might recover the value of the bird from the company who employed him. 



Ei'WLtKTH Show. — Mr. S. Ball informs us that he won the first prize for 



Himalayan Babbits. 



Marking Young Pigeons (H. F.). — We have often found great difliculty 

 in marking Pigeons. Feai'iug to injure their legs, we have tied round them 

 wools of different colours, making a note as to what each colour meant, but 

 the wool in time came off when the birds bathed. Then we cut the tips off 

 from one of the feathers (first, second, thhd, &c.) of the wings, making a 

 note also of the why; but the feathers were lost in moulting, neither cmld 

 the birds so marked bo exhibited. Our trouble was at one time very great, as 

 we kept a large number of Fantails of the same colour. Your idea of some- 

 thing to snap on the legs made of steel, each one bearing a number, is an 

 excellent notion, but we know of none as yet in the market. We suggest this 

 plan to Mr. Crook. 



Value of Old Pigeon Books (Top Saicyer). — Girton's was published 

 after the Treatise, the authorities at the Biitinh Sluaeum think as late as 

 IttUU. We incline to the belief that it was Bomewhat earlier. It is much 

 more common than the Treatise. We have bought three copies at different 

 times at one shilling each, and in good preservation. Each copy was picked 

 out by us at old bookstalls. The Treatise is much rarer, and we have never 

 been able to get a copy. Still it may be bought, as friends of ours hate done 

 BO. There is one edition on large paper, which is much more valuable and much 

 better got-up; yet this we have known bought for a mere trifle. The most 

 rai'6 is Moore's " Columbarium," which few indeed possess. It is not the 

 most useful, as it has no pictures and the letter-press is brief, but it was the 

 first of the series. They rank thus — Moore, a first edition ; Treatise, second 

 edition of Moore with improvements ; Girtou. third edition enlarged and im- 

 proved. All these old books are more valuable now that Pigeons are more 

 highly thought of. If you want to sell your books, offer them in our columns 

 to the highest bidder. 



" For the value of a thing 



Is just exactly what 'twill bring." 

 Kabbit's Fur Coming off (A Young jRfdtit-r).— Your Rabbit seems to be 

 troubled with the mange or scurf. Sprinkle the parts affected with flour of 

 sulphur; and if not removed by this application, soak for two or three hours 

 half an ounce of Limerick roll tobacco in half a pint of hnb water, and when 

 co<il apply to all parts affected evdry day for three days^the eyelids, nose, aud 

 routs of ears if troubled, which is frequeuily the case. "When a Babbit is 

 suffering from this rather tediuus complaint except taken in time — and all 

 Rabbits kept in close ill-ventilated hutches are liable to it— remove all 

 others from it, and wash, all feeding dishes and whitewash the hutch to avoid 

 contagion. 



Feeding Parrot (C. D.).— We should advise you to give the grey Parrot 

 the cold sopped bread and milk two days running, on the next the rice boiled 

 in milk, and on the fourth day the soaked Indian corn. In addition to this a 

 smaU quantity of hemp and Canary seed mixed should be put in a separate 

 tm every day, and a little fresh water in another tin in its cage. We should 

 also occasionally give it some watercress, a radish, or a piece of raw potato, 

 and sometimes a nut or some orange ; but it should never taste pastry, meat, 

 nor, m fact, anything that has fat in it. 



Bees in Tavlou's Bar Hive {Miss B., a Subscriber).— Hive your swarm 

 into the lower of Taylor's bar-hive boxes, and put on a super as soon as the 

 bees have pretty weU filled the hive. If you put the swarm in place of your 

 actual stock, removing the latter to some other stance, you will have a very 

 large swarm, on which you may put a super in three weeks' time, and get a 

 good deal of honey. The old stock will probably not swarm again. 



METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATION'S, 



Camden Square, London. 



Lat, 5r 32' 40" N. ; Long. 0"^ 8' 0" W. ; Altitude 111 feet. 



REMARKS. 

 14th, — Fair all day, very bright at times, but very cold compared vrith Monday, 



the 12th. 

 15th. — Fair, but dull morning; fine afternoon and evening. 

 Kith. — Rather dull morning; very fine, though cold the after part of the day. 

 17th. — Vei7 fine till noon, then cloudy; raiu at '6 p.m., but not heavy till 



between 5 and 6 i-.m. ; rainy the remainder of the day. 

 18th. — Dark and dull in morning, a few gleams of sun between 11 a.m. and 



noon, but a dull day; sprinkles of rain dui-ing the after part. 

 19th. — Dull and cold all day, a little sunshine between 5 and p.m. ; very 



bright starHt night. 

 20th. — A very beautiful day, much sun, and the air much warmer than it has 



been lately, though still cold for the time of the year. 

 A cold dull week, except the last day, which was very fine ; temperature 

 about t)"' below the previous week, and much below the average. — G. J. bvMoss. 



COVENT GARDEN MARKET.— May 21. 

 Moderate business transactions are current, with a tendency to lowes 

 prictis, as the supply is well kept up. Importations continue heavy, and 

 further advices mention a lai'ge addition being made to them in the event ot 

 a few days of fine weather setting in. 



8. d. B. d. , 

 

 



'\ 



Apples i sieve 



Apricots doz. 2 



CuemeB V box 8 



CbeatnutB bushel 



Curranla i sieTo 



Black do. 



Figs doz. 6 10 



Fub«rtB lb. 



Cobs lb. 2 2 6 



GooseberriL»8 quart 1 a o 



GrapeB, holhuuse lb. 6 12 



Lemons V 100 6 in 



M«lon3 aach 6 12 



s. d. s. d. 



Mulberries ^Ib. OtoO 



Nectarines doz. 



Oranges ^^ 100 4 10 



Peaches doz. 15 80 



Peara, kitchen ooz. 1 S 



dessert doz. 6 18 



Pine Apples lb. 8 12 



Plums i sieve (J 



Quinces doz. 



Kaspberriea lb. 



Strawberries ^1*02. G 1 



Walnuts bushel 15 30 



ditto ^;*100 2 2 



VEGETABLES. 



Artichokes doz. 



Asparag^us ^100 



Frtnch 



B«ans. Kidnsy ^ 100 



Beet, Red doz. 



Brocculi bundle 



Cabbajo doz. 



Cftpsicumi ^100 



Carrots bunch 



Cauliflower doa. 



CoUry bnudla 



Colaworts.. do£. bonLhaa 

 Cncambers each 



pickling doz. 



Bndive doz. 



Fennsl banch 



Garlic lb. 



fcierbi bunch 



Horseradish bundle 



Loska bunch 



Lettufle doz. 



I. d. B. 

 3 0to6 

 3 G 

 6 IS 

 1 tl a 

 S 



Mashrooma pottle 



Mustard A Cress. .punnet 

 Onions ^ bushel 



piokUug quart 



Parsley per doz. bunches 



Parsnips doz. 



Peas quart 



Potatoes bushel 



Kidney do. 



Round do. 



Radishes., doi. bunches 



Rhubarb bundle 



Salsafy ^bundle 



Savoys doz. 



Scorsonera.. .. ■i^ bundle 



Sea-kale basket 



Shallots lb. 



Spinach bushel 



Tomatoes doz. 



Turnips bunch 



Yttffetabla Narrows 



B. d. B. a. 



0to2 & 

 2 



POULTRY MARKET.— May 21. 

 Terrible weather! nothing grows, and chickens are dying. This is oui 

 cuckoo note from all breeders. 



s. d. s. d. 



Large Fowls 6 to 6 6 



Smallerditto 5 £6 



Cbiokene 4 4 fi 



Goslings 7 8 



Guinea Fowls 8 6 4 C 



Ducklings 4 4 6 



d. s. d. 

 Pheasan's OtoO 0- 



Partridges 



Hares 



Rabbi'.B 1 6 



Wildditto 9 



Pigeons 9 



• 



e 



1 7 

 10 

 10 



