22G 



JOURNAL OF HOBTICUIiTOBE AND COTTAGE GABDENEB. 



( March 18, 1875. 



their owners they are of great value, while in the hands of 

 others who did not know their breeding they might be of as 

 great loss if wrongly matched. Success in breeding depends on 

 the knowledge of how all one's stock is bred. 



In conclusion, I do not believe that the late Pouter contro- 

 versy has done anything to alter the position of off- coloured 

 Pouters in the least. I believe those who wrote most against 

 them know their value, and would give as much for good speci- 

 mens, and perhaps more, as those who sided in their favour. 

 Old Moore says, " The plumage of the Pouter aifords a very great 

 variety. The pieds are most universally esteemed. Under these 

 may be ranked " (for mark, there were other colours) " the blue, 

 black, red and yellow pied." — J. C. Lyell, Monifieth by Dundee. 



In the pages of a contemporary I was surprised to see a letter 

 from Mr. Wallace of Glasgow, in which he uses very tall lan- 

 guage about a mere nothing. He says, " To Mr. Huie's assertion 

 I give the most unqualified contradiction. Neither he nor Mr. 

 Ure were ever members of the North British Cnlumbarian 

 Society." I feel it to be my duty to remind Mr. Wallace that 

 the North British Columbarian consists of the mere remains of 

 (with a few honorary names added) a Society of which Mr. Huie 

 was one of the original founders, and no member did more to 

 establish the reputation of that Society than he did, the name 

 of which has been of late years only altered to '* The North 

 British Columbarian." I know that Mr. Huie wrote articles for 

 three of the Glasgow daily newspapers when connected with 

 that Society, which was the means of bringing out the public to 

 a large extent to its exhibitions, and placing it on a footing of 1 

 respectability, which Pigeon shows in Glasgow had never before 1 

 enjoyed ; and I do think Mr. Wallace acts a small part in making 

 nse as he does of the mere change of the name of a Society of 

 which the mainsprings are now gone. 



The editorial note following the letter in question is behind 

 the times. It is certain that Mr. Huie and Mr. Ure advocated 

 the Mealy Pouter and bred them to perfection many years before 

 your contemporary was dreamt of, and for aught that I know 

 years before its editor siw the light of day. — James Bruce, 

 Duvfermliiie. 



NORTHAMPTON SHOW OF POULTKT, &c. 



We have received another report of this Show, from which 

 we extract the following: — 



Rabbits. — The Lops in the Self coloured class were not nume- 

 rous, but good, and one pen empty. The first was a Fawn doe, 

 ■very good in all properties, 21 J inches by 4S in ear. Second was 

 a Black buck, partially moulted, small in eye, but trood in all 

 other points : ear, 21J inches by 4|. Third was a Silver Fawn 

 buck, 21} inches by 4}. Lops, Broken-coloured, was a good 

 class and the competition close. First was a Black-and-white 

 doe, perfect in style, marking, and eye; ear, 22 inches by 4. J; 

 rather small in size. Second, a Tortoiseshell doe, not a good 

 colour, but right in all other respects, 22^ inches by 4J. Third, 

 a Black-and-white buck, a little short of marking, very grand 

 style and carriage, good eye; 21} inches by 4^. Pen 1214, very 

 highly commended, Black-and-white, too gay in colour; 

 21'i inches by 4^. 1208, Fawn-and- white, very highly com- 

 mended; 20 inches by 45. 1212, a good Babbit in all respects, 

 and would have been first, but one leg was crooked. Angoras 

 were a very good class. Mr. Swetman's very large doe first. 

 Second, a smaller Rabbit, but very fine in wool, and with such 

 ears for shortness and shape as we have not seen in the show 

 pen before, and it is quite a moot point with ns as to whether 

 this Rabbit's fine qualities should not have been placed before 

 mere size, other points being equal. The third, from Mr. Swet- 

 man, was also large and good. Mr. Thompson's highly-com- 

 mended buck also a near run. Himalayans formed a large class, 

 but, as a whole, nothing out of the common, although there 

 were some really good specimens, as the one shown by Mr. 

 Mason ; the second, which was small and young ; and Mr. Pick- 

 worth's buck. Dutch were not good, and the first award was 

 to a very young Rabbit grey in colour but perfectly marked 

 if we except that the line in front did not extend through the 

 ears; the second and third, adult. Blue, and good. Silver-Greys 

 were the class of the Show — such a class, in fact, as we have 

 never seen equalled, and every pen mentioned separately; six 

 being selected as the recipients of the prizes, were taken out 

 and placed in separate pens in an equal light, the remainder, as 

 a rule, losing only in the extremities being a little too dark, the 

 heads especially. Of the above-named six the first was one of 

 the most equal Rabbits we have ever seen, the feet, nose, and 

 especially the ears, being exactly like the body, and the surface 

 silvering of the most correct shade, and neither mossed nor 

 mealy. Second was a large Rabbit, perhaps the lai'gest in the 

 Show, but rather gaunt-looking, showing want of condition, and 

 not of the same nor as correct a shade of silvering. Third a 

 little smaller than above with grand body colour, but not as 

 light on feet, nose, and ears as on body, but the next best in 

 silvering. Fourth not as good in silvering, and rather darker 

 on feet and nose ; and pen 12G0 close upon thelast-named. 



From the above remarks it will be seen that evenness and 

 silvering take the lead over sheer size, which agrees with our 

 opinion from long experience ; colour, as in the Silver-Grey 

 Dorking, being far ahead of size, although the latter is a very 

 desirable property as enhancing tho value of the skin. 



In the Variety class Belgian Hares won the prizes, the winners 

 being quite clear of the rest, most of the others being good in 

 fore quarters, but only a common wild-rabbit colour on the 

 hind quarters. 



In the Selling class for any breed. Lops excepted, the first was 

 a better Belgian Hare doe than the first-prize winner in the above 

 class; the second a fair Silver-Grey, and third a Black-and- 

 white Dutch. In Selling class for Lops the first was a Fawn- 

 and-white buck, 21 inches by 4J ; second, Black-and-white, 

 20 inches by 4J ; third. Fawn, 20 inches by4|. In the Local 

 class was first a Fawn buck, 21J inches by 4; ; second Angora, 

 and third Dutch. 



Mr. Hutton judged the Rabbits and Pouter Pigeons. 



CRYSTAL PALACE BIRD SHOW.— No. 2. 



Delightful as were the Canaries, equally so were the Mules 

 and those birds in the other portion of the Exhibition. I always 

 had a very great fancy for Mule birds, and my curiosity was 

 much appeased after going through them and admiring the 

 beauty and respective qualifications of the prizewinners. There 

 is something exceedingly smart and aristocratic about Mole 

 birds, more particularly in those brea betwixt Goldfinches and 

 Canaries. One cannot fail to become ardent admirers of them, 

 close as they are in plumage, and so very vivacious and amusing 

 in their ways compared to Canaries. Some were faultlessly 

 marked and pencilled about their eyes and smaller flights, and 

 others nearly clear, throwing up that splendid Goldfinch flush 

 around their faces and on their wing-bars and breasts, that each 

 bird with its delicate lovely garb and ancestral form brought 

 to mind the words of our poet laureate — 



"Half 18 his, and halt is thine ; it will be worthy of the two." 



Mr. James Djel of Stonehouse, Plymouth, was the fortunate 

 possessor of many of the prizetakers, he having won ten prizes 

 out of the eighteen the Judges awarded, thus becoming the 

 winner of the silver cup offered (in classes 30 to 33 inclusive), 

 to the exhibitor gaining the greatest number of points. Mr. 

 Doel took first and second and extra third iu three of the classes 

 (30, 31, and 32), and first, third, and extra third in class 33. The 

 whole of his birds were in fine condition, and were sent to the 

 Show wonderfully clean considering the distance thev had 

 travelled. In class 30 Mr. Hawman's Evenly-marked Yellow 

 played a good third to Mr. Doel's pair. In classes 31 and 32 

 the chief competitors to Mr. Doel were Messrs. Bunting, Stevens, 

 Caplin, and 'Tomlin. Class 33, which was justly specified a 

 " very good class," contained some birds very nearly clear. Had 

 they been clear it was stated that special prizes would be 

 awarded, but they were not, and so they had to go without. 

 The two nearest approaching to clear were those numbered 

 770 and 778, exhibited by the Messrs. E. & J. Baxter and Mr. 

 S. Bunting, the former exhibitors' specimens being marked very 

 distinctly but slightly about each eye, and the other slightly 

 grizzled upon one of the flight feathers: two superb birds. By 

 some slight error the equal second-prize ticket was placed upon 

 Mr. Boatwright's cage instead of Mr. Bunting's. This, however, 

 was rectified during the second d»y of the Show. 



The Mules were continued with a couple of classes for Dark 

 Mules (Jouqua and Mealy), a class for Linnet Males, and one 

 for Any other variety of Canary Mule. In these four classes 

 there were sixty specimens, but the more interesting ones were 

 those exhibited in classes 36 and 37. The Dark Jonqnes must 

 have been a troublesome lot, for I could not see very much 

 difference betwixt the first three or four birds, still I think Mr. 

 Hawman's bird was rightly placed. In the Mealy class Mr. 

 Cox won first with a fine-made bird full of quality, Messrs. 

 Bunting and Moore & Wynn following well up with birds far 

 beyond a middlina quality. Mr. Spence took first and second 

 for Linnet Mules, Jlr. Stevens being third. I have seen a better 

 class than this, the birds not being quite up to ray expectations. 

 In class 37 Mr. Hawman's Greenfinch and Canary Mule ap- 

 peared to be at home ; it is a fine bird and will take a lot of 

 beating. Mr. Alwin's second-prize bird was in good plumage ; 

 and the third prize, a very prettily pied Siskin and Canary 

 Mule, was won by the Messrs. Baxter. 



Betwixt the Mule classes and British birds the cages of sixes 

 were shown. Eight sixes of Norwich of varied sorts were 

 entered, the best of the lot being the six in spanking plumage 

 exhibited by Mrs. Maria Judd of Newington Causeway. Messrs. 

 Mackley, Norwich, were second, third, and extra third— three 

 good lots. There were but three Lizard sixes, and not much 

 difference betwixt either. First was given to 819 (Fairbrass) ; 

 second Bunting, and third Cleminson & Ellerton. The sixes 

 for Goldfinch and Canary Mules only reached two entries, and 

 one prize only was given, that to Mr. Doel's cage, which con- 

 tained half a dozen birds fit to compete Vith singly. 



