260 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



C AprU 10, 1800. 



RAILWAY CHARGES FOR POULTRY. 

 Since we publislied the lust list the following subscriptions 

 havo been received townrds defrn,\'inR the expenses of present* 

 ing a Memorial to the Directors of the railways : — 



Mr. .T. D. Xewsomc. 10». 6d, 

 Mr. G. U. K4jborts. Kin. GU. 

 Mr. Stfvcn^. £\ ),«. 



Mr. K. E. M. Kovd, la.. W. 

 Mr. J. R. RoMuson. 10s. Gd. 

 Mr. K. Joues. lO.^. C<1. 

 Mr. J. F. Newton, 10». M. 

 Mrs. Wolforstrtu, lOjr. 6d. 

 Mr. T. S., 10s. 6d. 



ytT. S. Lanp, jnn.. 10*. 8*/. 



Mrs. Scnninns, Hit. dd, 



Mr. Ptires. Ua. M. 



Miss Milwiira. 10*. Gd. 



Mr. Stockiill. 10a. G*l. 



lion. 5Irs. .Vrlmthnot, 10.<. Gd. 



Rev. R. C. Rov, G<. 



Mr. Pomfrct. "5«. Gd. 



Mrs. Hart, 10s, 6(f. 



PROFITABLE FOULTRY. 



Your readers may like to know the results of a twelvemonth's 

 experience ns to the profit of keepint; poultry, such as I have 

 found it. I began at the end of llarcli last year (after build- 

 ing a weather-board fowl-house, and bringing together thn 

 needful apparatus), with a lot of poultry, mostly barn-door 

 fowls, including, however, three Spanish hons and a cock of 

 the same breed. There have been from eight to twelve hens 

 and two cocks iSpanish) during the year, one of the latter of 

 my own breeding; also, I reared a quantity of Ducks and 

 chickens. The balance sheet is as follows : — 



Expenses. £ s. d. 



Fowl-honse nnd npparnlus 5 14 



Poultry and Ducks 1 18 G 



Food 4 14 7 



Total expenses 12 7 1 



Deduct receipts 8 8 11 



Balance 3 18 2 



Rkceipts. £ ». d 



11 Ducks at 8,s. Gd. per jair 19 .S 



1 chickens at 3n. 6d. „ 7 



8 „ at 4s. „ IG 



1 cock at a-f 2 



Eggs, 727. at lOrf. per doz. 2 10 fi 



170, at U 3d. „ 17 G 



2 16 8 



680, at U. 



8 8 11 



If the cost of the fowl-house be not reckoned, neither the 

 actual stock of potiltrj' (two cocks, twelve hens, and three 

 ducks), which we value at £1 14s. (not reckoning them as -fancy 

 fowls), and only the actual cost of food be taken into account, 

 there will appear a gain of £3 9.v. lOd. on the year. 



I should add. that my poultry are not confined. They lay 

 and roost in the fowl-house, where they can be shut up at 

 pleasure, otherwise they have an almost unlimited range of 

 grass land, with various dust and manure heaps to amuse 

 themselves with. They are fed on barley, Indian corn, and 

 barleymeal. — B. & W. 



"\VIGTOX rOULTRY ASD PIGEON EXHIBITION. 



It gives us mnrh pleasure to i-eport that the Show of this year, held 

 on the 5th and tJth inst.. far excelled any of those preceding it. the 

 entries pro^'ing gi-eatly in excess of the number at loiiuer meetings, 

 whilst the perfection of the specimens throughout showed an advance 

 apparent to every one. "We feur, however, that the receipts for admis- 

 sion will tell unfavoorably when tested by comparison ^rith past years. 



It hag always been arranged to hold the Wigtou Poulti-y Show at 

 the time of the "VTirrtou Spring Cattle Fair, as at that time the town is 

 nnasually full of visitors engaged in busmess t i-n n sac t ions, and they 

 mostly become risitors to the Poultiy Show. This year, however, in 

 accordance with the orders of the Pri\w Council, no cattle could be 

 Bent to Wigton : and the paucity nf attendance at the Horse Fair, onlv. 

 at once told hew much both the local Itaihvay Company ami also the 

 Exhibition Committee would iueritably be sufferci-s. AVe are glad to 

 say, however, that, nothing daunted, the Poultry Committee look for- 

 ward to a more happy state of thiugs, and express themselves *' as 

 quite too plucky to thiui; of abandoning their Snow through one had 

 year." No doubt the cattle plngue restiictious will tell most unfavour- 

 ably throughout the whole coming season on those ponltrj- shows in 

 any way connected with agiiculttu-al meetings. 



But to the Show itself. Thi; lai-gc increase of entries this year 

 proved unfavourable to the display of the poultry exhibited, as it 

 necessitated the Pigeons being shown iu a ]irivate room in connection 

 with the Odd Fellows" Hall : and iu the Hall itself this greater number 

 of poultrv- pens, in a space li-jhted only from one side, caused the spe- 

 cimens in many portions of the Show to l>e very obscure. In all such 

 cases it is the prudent course for committees to place the darkest- 

 coloured varieties in the brightest jwiiion of the exhibition, as the 

 lighter-plnmaged birds show to less disadvantage so circumstanced 

 than their more sabU- brethren. 



The Gauif fowls qeuerally were very good : but as the breeding 

 season is uow somewhat advanced, the hi^h condition we meet with in 

 winter was very rarely attaiuable — a feature ou which, in all varieties 

 of Game fowls, so much depends. Referring to the awards, it ^rill be 

 seen that many of our best-known breeders comjuted. The Sjumish 

 class was by far the best ever yet seen at \Vi;/t<>ii ; and the tirey 

 Dorkiiwfa shown by Messrs. Rowleudsou and Kobinson won their 



lanri'U in a v<Ty severe comiietitinn. In Cctrhxns there was only oti- 

 general class for all colomN. the HiifTs in both in^tnuce"* proving tl ■ 

 winners. The (irst-prize birds belonging to Mr. nenrj- TomliuBon. - ' 

 liinnin^ham, were u truly maguiticent ]mir. of a decidedly cletir bright 

 liufT colour, and hhon-n in such perfect condition that the jien proved one 

 of the lions of the Show, and, as boint; mirki-d at the low ytkcv of L'1" 

 only, would most probably change liands. Mfssr>f. Bowm m .V Fearoii 

 svc4)nd-prize birds were also nnasUQlly good. The (toldi*u-s]>ftngl' i 

 Jliimftiin/Ifi wiTC a very excellent class, pjrhui*s one of the best in the 

 whole Show, but unfortunately laboured under the disadvantage of 

 being placed iu the darkest pens in the room. Messrn. Beldon, Ro- 

 binson, Wowl. and Hend^*rsou were the principal comp titers. The 

 Silver- spangled Hamburj;bs stood ne\t in order in the prize schedule, 

 and, though few in numbers, those shown were of unuiQol merit ; it is 

 only u very rare occurrence, in fact, that such good specimens arc ahovn 

 at eveu onr largest exhibitions. 



We regret to record, however, a circnmstauce that hero came to 

 light that desen-efi animadversion. After the prizes were awarded, 

 hut before the admission of the public, it was discovered that the hen 

 in the first-prize pen of Silver-spangled llarabnrgh'i. the propertv of 

 l\Ir. A. K. Wood, of Buniside. Keudal. had, by some one or other, 

 been most ci-uelly tampered with. The extreme poiut of a common 

 sowing-needle was noticed as shghtly protruding near the peak of tho 

 comb, so little as to be scarcely discernible excejit when under 

 pressure, and. after some considerable ditKcnlty. it was finally extracted 

 ^rith pliers by the Judge m the presence of some half dozen or more of 

 the Committee. It hod eridently been forced through almost the 

 .whole length of the hen's comb, and the portion of the needle colled 

 tho eye had been broken off abruptly. It is scarcely needful to re- 

 mark ou the evident injustico of such pmctices. much less to insist on 

 the gross barbirity of thus treatijig an unoffending bird, for its Buffer- 

 ings must have been scarcely conceivable. The exposure resulted in 

 tho Judge at once disquahf\-ing the pen altogether, Messrs. Beldon 

 and Robinson taking the Society's premiums. Ou 'looking at the 

 *' disqualified " pen a few hours afterwards, the hen's comb slightly 

 drooped over to the side on which the needle had been extracted. 



The Golden-pencilled Hambnrghs were superior to the Silver-pen- 

 cilled ones, but it is geltijii; too late in the season for exhibiting adult 

 Pencilled Hamburghs. The Any other variety class of fowls was 

 jiecnUarly good. The Game Jiantam.<t were scarcely equal to the or- 

 dinary run. but some excellent Sebrights and Japanese were shown. 



In Duels the extra class was a perfect treat to visitors ; Mandarins, 

 Carolina Ducks. Teal, Grey CjUI, and Wild Ducks being shown in 

 perfection of plumage. This class proved the gayest object of attrac- 

 tion in the Show. The Rouens were without exception all of them 

 faulty, the Dncks having dark slaty bills. In the Aylesburys. also, 

 many of the specimens sliowu were much spotted with black on the 

 bills — an insuperable objection, and one against which exhibitors can- 

 not too carefully provide. 



The Pifft'oiis were a very superior collection, the Blue Owls, the 

 Shoi-t-faced Tumblers, Xuns. Turbits, and the whole of the Kxtra 

 variety class being especially woiihy of the closest examination. 



It has always been the custom at Wigton to give prizes for dishes of 

 e{;^s, to be fliown in dozens, and a capital entrj- generally ensues. It 

 would be well, however, for exhibitors to pay some little attention to 

 matching the thfferent lots, so far as they con. for colour and general 

 appearance, as also to avoid sending deformed eggs, however large, as 

 weight is not the only requisite expected. The heaviest hens' e^s 

 (a dozen), weighed '2J lbs. ; the heaviest Ducks' eggs, 2 lbs. 7 ozs. 



The weather proved remarkably fine and spring-like, and the visitors 

 appeared much interested in the proceedings. Bt'fore the time for 

 holdmg another meeting comes round, we sincerely hope the drawback 

 we at first alluded to will have ceased to exist, and that the Wigton 

 Show will be again available to as many sight-seers as foimerly. 



Game /Black-hvcastcd and other Reds;.— First, J. Bell, Wigton. 

 Second, H. Beldon, Goitstock. 



Game fWhite and Tiles).— Furst, J. Brough, Carlisle. Second, W. Todd, 



Waverhridge. 



Game iDuckwinff and other Greys, Blacks, and Bloes). — First, Messrs. 

 Enston A Mabon, Jedburgh, ^econd, J. Brough. 



Game Pci.lf.ts (Any colourl.— First, J. Harris. Wigton. Second. J. H. 

 Wilson, St. Bees. Highly Commended, T. Mandnell. Aikhcad : J. Brough. 



Spanish.— First, H. Beldon. Second, J. H. Wilson. Highly Com- 

 mended, H. Beldon ; J. Hamson, Bumside. 



Dorking. — First, J. I{t)wlendson, Hawkshead. Second, J. Robinson, 

 Gnrstang. Hit,'hly Commended, Messrs. Gunson & Jefferson, ^NTiitehaven ; 

 J. L. Jackson. Bust Ewes. 



CocHiN-CuiNA (Any variety). — First. H. Tomlinson, Birmingbnm. 

 Second, Messrs. Bowman & Fearon, Whitehaven. Commended, iSiss 

 AsUonby. The Hollins ; H. Beldon. 



HAMBimiHiGoldenspftmrledi.— First. H. Beldon. Second. J. Robinson. 

 Highly Commended, A. K. AVood. Bumside, Kendal; W. Henderson, 

 WtRton. 



HAMniROii (Silver-spanpled). — First, H. BeUTun. Second, J. Robinson. 



Haxiuvkgh (Gold and Silver-pencilled). — First, R, Burrow, Lonfftown 

 (Goldeu-pencilledl. Second. J. Robinson (Silver-pencilled). IlJghly Com- 

 mended, H. Burrow. Commended, A. K. Wood. 



.\ny nxuF.n Variety. — First and Second, H. Beldon fSilver-spancled 

 find Goldeu-spanpled Polandsi. Hiphly Commended, G. H. li^^berts, 

 I'reston (Dark Brahma) ; li. S. Jessop. Hull (Black Polish). 



(tamf. BANTAiis (Black-breasted and other Kcdst. — First, C. Ashworth, 

 Halifjix. Second. I. Monkhouse, KendaL Highly Commended, H. Beldon ; 

 T. Arm><trong, Wigton. Commended, T. C. Harrison, Hull; T. KenyoD, 

 Blaokbum. 



