March 6, 18«6. i 



JOURNAL OF HOETICULTUEE AND COTTAGE GAKDENEB. 



191 



that aviary expenses are Lnclnded (I cannot at present separate 

 them), and though I have sold aviary birds well, their profits 

 are uncertain. In yonr first ansv.er to my questions, you ask 

 what extra or accidental food the fowls obtained. They mostly 

 have free range of the shrubberies and grass fields, and some 

 have access to the stable, pig, and cow-yards. There are no 

 grain stacks. They share with the pigs and dogs what scraps 

 there may be from the house- The only extra not entered is a 

 little hempseed, which I gave as an occasional luxury. — C. E. 



GAME BANTAMS. 



The "Wiltshire Kectoe " tells us that his plan in life is 

 never to enter into any controversy, but openly to state his 

 opinion honestly formed on any subject that lies in his way. 

 This is all very well in private matters, although there it will 

 not bear examination ; but when an opinion is given in public, 

 and affects the interests of others, a man is cleai-ly bound to 

 defend his opinion, or to hold his tongue. It is not my in- 

 tention to involve the Rector in a controversy. It so happens 

 that I do not agree with him, and so far a? he is concerned I 

 am content to use his own words, " Doctors differ, that is all." 



It is another matter, however, with Mr. .J. Crossland's letter, 

 quoted by the " Wiltshire Eectoe," because it comes from a 

 practical and experienced man. He says, " From a single yard 

 in Yorkshire there have been sold upwards of £180 worth of 

 Game Bantnms in twelve months. The breeder has also 

 taken himself, I see from this Journal, from December 1S64 to 

 December 1865, four silver cups, cup and second at Darlington 

 1864, cup at Thome for two years, 1804 aad 18C.5, cap and 

 second at Darlington 136.5, cup at Birmingham, given by sub- 

 scribers, in 186.5 I have only crossed once in ten years, 



and I gave £5 5s. for the bird — first at Bii-mingham, first at 

 Plymouth, and first at Liverpool." Surely Mr. Crossland 

 knew without the help of The Jocrxal of Horticcltcbe how 

 many prizes the breeder he aUuded to had taken. 



At an average of £7 a-pen — no bad price for birds so easily 

 bred — it would require about twenty-six pens, or seventy-eight 

 birds, to make up the £180. Game Bantams must be easy 

 indeed to breed, their powers of production must indeed be mar- 

 vellous, if, between January, 1864, and this time seventy-eight 

 birds could be bred from one stock which would realise such 

 prices ! Will Mr. Crossland venture to say that all these birds 

 were in a bon'i fide manner bred by the breeder and exhibitor 

 in question? Was nothing added or purchased from other 

 stocks? Was he never at a loss for birds to make up a pen, 

 and glad to fall back upon the assistance of others ? If not, 

 then he is indeed a prince of breeders, and fortunate must Mr. 

 Crossland be in his confidence. If it be so easy to breed birds 

 of this kind, how does it happen that the greatest part of this 

 breeder's birds were " sold to our well-known exhibitors in the 

 Game Bantam classes ? " Surely they could not have wanted 

 to buy. — A Cheshire Pile. 



Being a constant reader of your Journal, I have noticed all 

 the correspondence which has resulted from the " Wiltshire 

 Eecior's" " First Impressions of Bingley Hall." If you will 

 allow me a little space I will endeavour to give you a specimen 

 of my experience in the breeding of Game Bantams, wjiich has 

 extended over a period of five years. At the commencement I 

 claimed three pens at different shows, and put them out on 

 separate walks, and bred from them, fully expecting they would 

 produce some first-class birds. However, I was doomed to dis- 

 appointment, not one first-class bird came from the whole lot. 

 I tried another year, with the same result. 



A short time afterwards I was present at a show, and ad- 

 mired verj- much the pen which had taken the first prize, and 

 on referring to the catalogue to ascertain if the price was one 

 I could afford to give, I found I knew the exhibitor well. The 

 remarks of the fanciers present were, that he must have some 

 good birds, from the fact of his name appearing so often in the 

 prize-Usts. However, as I fully intended buying the pen if 

 possible, I took an early opportunity of calling upon him, 

 and requested to see his Bantams, and he at once compUed, 

 remarking, however, that his best were from home. The day 

 being fine we walked down to his runs, and I there saw birds 

 which threw my own at home completely in the shade, and I 

 at once determined to clear my own stock off, which I did, and, 

 as in the drapers' advertisements, at an immense sacrifice. 

 After viewing the whole of his stock, I conclaled a bargain 

 with him, and bought a cockerel and four pullets on the ex- 

 press condition that I sold him all the chickens I had to spare ' 



from them at a guinea each ; so you may judge that the prise 

 I gave him was not a very small one. However, he gave me 

 his word that they would breed as true to feather as the par- 

 tridge in the stubble. 



When they commenced laying I collected all the eggs, and 

 sat four Game hens with seventeen each, from which I obtained 

 forty-nine chickens, and reared forty-two — thirty-one pullets 

 and eleven cockerels. On their being ready I advised the per- 

 son of whom I bought the fowls to come over and inspect them, 

 and not wanting many myself, and also having others coming 

 on, I agreed to sell him, as per agreement, thirty-seven of the 

 birds, and had the satisfaction of receiving £38. On meeting 

 with him some time afterwards, he informed me that out of the 

 lot he had made in sale and prize-money the handsome sum 

 of £80 ! which, of itself, I submit, is a sufficient guarantee of 

 their worth. 



If breeders would only be carefiil in selecting their stock, and 

 not purchase from so many yards, but breed from some well- 

 known strain, mark the eggs from each hen, and send their 

 chickens to separate walks, they would at once find which were 

 the best hens to breed cockerels and pullets from. I am of 

 opinion that a great many breeders do not take notice of that. 

 I should be glad to see a few remarks from some of our oldest 

 breeders and exhibitors on this subject ; but I hold the opinion 

 of the " WiLTSHiEE Eecior," that Game Bantams are easy to 

 breed good if proper care and judgment be exercised, — A Wes-t 



Yor.KSHlEElIiN. 



ARTIFICIAL INCUBATION IN CHINA. 



M. Darry, French Consul at Han Keoo, in China, has just 

 published an interesting paper ia the " Bulletin de la Societe 

 d'Aclimatation " on the process employed by the Chinese in 

 hatching eggs artifically. The places where this trade is practised 

 are called Pao-jang ; each consists of a mud hut, 3 yards in 

 height, exclusive of the roof, made of tUes ; the inside of the 

 hut measures 8 by 4, and its entrance is situated due west ; the 

 north-east wind is provided against by a layer of straw applied 

 to the wall ; the door is made of planks, and measures 1 yard 

 by 2. Light is admitted through four apertures in the roof. 

 Within, there are eighteen brick stoves, '2i feet high, along the 

 wall, and close to each other. Each of these stoves supports a 

 large earthenware dish, sunk into the brickwork and just above 

 the fireplace ; and inside this dish there is a basket of nearly 

 the same shape, resting on a layer of ashes about 24 inches 

 deep. It is in this basket the eggs are to be hatched ; 1200 in 

 number are arranged in three layers, and the whole covered 

 with a cane lid half an inch thick. Kine of the stoves are 

 lighted at a time, but only eight have eggs, the ninth being in- 

 tended to regulate the temperature of the room, which must be 

 maintained the same throughout. The combustible employed 

 is charcoal, and the temperature in the basket never exceeds 

 38' centigrade (100.4° Fahr.J The eggs are shifted five times 

 during the twenty-four hours — viz., four times during the day 

 and once during the night, the upper layer going to the bottom, 

 and the bottom becoming the middle one. 



On the fifth day a small hole is pierced through the door, and 

 by the pencil of light penetrating through it each egg is ex- 

 amined, in order to ascertain which of them are in course of 

 incubation. On the twelfth day the eggs are taken out of 

 the baskets and arranged on shelves above the stoves, provided 

 with layers of straw, 2 inches thick, and mats over them. 

 Upon these the eggs are laid, with a cotton quilt nearly 3 inches 

 thick between each layer, and another quilt just above, the 

 whole being weU secured by means of a thick straw rope to pre- 

 vent the air from getting to the eggs, which are regularly shifted 

 as before, five times a-day. As soon as the eggs are taken out 

 from the baskets, the fires are put out in the stoves which have 

 been used ; the nine other stoves are lighted, and the process 

 re-commences with a new batch of eggs. On the 21st the 

 former lot is hatched, yielding about 700 chicks for every 

 1000 eggs. Every egg costs G sapeks, and each chicken obtained 

 is sold for 14; the sapek_being the 130th part of a franc. 



HrVTSS. 



Ix your Number of the 20th ult. Mr. C. F. George describes 

 a plan for making the square straw hives, and he says thatmy 

 " native hives " seem " exactly like " his. Now, as my hives 

 can be purchased (see advertisement in your Niunber of the 

 20th ult.), I ought, perhaps, not to notice Mr. George's com- 

 mimicatiou, but, as our object is doubtless the same, the en- 



