268 



JODENAL OP HOBTIOULTORE AND COTTAGE GAEDENER. 



I March 26, 1874. 



and thus give them scope for breeding, is a stroke of policy and 

 good management, the importance of which ia not yet generally 

 understood. 



There are many other appliances need and modes adopted in 

 feeding bees. The exercise of a little ingenuity on the part of 

 the reader may enable him to make improvements on any one 

 of them, and to introduce other modes for all seasons, equal to 

 any that have been practised heretofore. — A. Pettigbew. 



OUR LETTER BOX. 



Brahma's Leg-weakness (Dover). — V,'e are Boldom troubled with leg- 

 weakness. "We attribute much of it to the use of bad food, and to bad feed- 

 ing in the earlier stages. Birds of large growth require much while they are 

 joung, and should have it frequently. We adhere entirely to plain food, and 

 seek as much as possible to choose it as nearly like that which a bird finds 

 when at liberty as possible — ground oats, barleymeal, and some whole com ; 

 plenty of green food. Some when young get laoky and knock-kneed, we eat 

 them. Birds that show leg-weakness at this time of year are ill or under- 

 fed. What IB the flooring of your house? If stone, wood, or brick, it may be 

 rheumatism from which they suffer. 



Spanish Pullets Laying iKREOtTLARLY (I. L. IT.).— It is possible your 

 pullet lays her eggs with difficulty ; that would cause her to squat about, 

 dropping her hinder parts to the ground till she is relieved. Examine her 

 when squatting ; if you can feel the egg, pull out one of her wing-feathers, dip 

 at in oil and pass it in tih it meets the egg. This will give immediate rebel. 

 If this is not the case, she is injured in the back. In any event the oil will 

 do good. 



Diseased Liver in Fowls and Babbits (Agnes).— lAwer disease in fowls 

 ia caused by over-fattening or by injudicious feeding, it is also caused by poor 

 food. Potatoes cause hver disease, but they make fat liver. Rice, bad corn, 

 constaut stimulating food produce the hver you mention in fowls. Rabbits 

 are very subject to it, and it may be traced to the same cause — improper 

 feeding. They want variety, and when they have not a supply of root food, 

 such as swedes, mangold, &c., they should have water. We believe many of 

 the diseases to which they are subject would be avoided if they were supplied 

 with water. 



Partridge Cochin's Plumage (T. J.).— We should be sorry to doubt the 

 parity of the bird you mention; but it is a defect for a Grouse cock to have 

 white feathers in the wing. Unless, however, you are breeding for show, you 

 may use him with confidence. The pullets you have bred will always be 

 liable and likely to go back to the original buff, and will, while they are 

 Partridge- feathered, have a yellow tinge on the marking of their feathers. 



Andalcsians' Face and Legs (S. F.).— The ear-lobes and face of the An- 

 dalusians should be rtd, but they are seldom so entirely. The white is 

 generally in the npper part of the face. The legs should be dark lead colour. 



Lice on Chickens (W. E. S.).— The chickens get the lice from the hen. 

 Let them have when they are off plenty of dust and grit mixed with powdered 

 sulphur. They will take their dust-bath, and the vermin will soon dii-appeor. 

 Of what material are your nests ? Aie they on the ground ? Old baskets and 

 hay rubbish at the bottom for nests always breed lice and fleas. Put your 

 hens and chickens out of doors, and let them be on the ground. Give them 

 the opportunity of running in the grays, and they will get rid of the pests 

 Neither hens nor chickens will do any good till they are free from them. 



Andalusians and Houdans {J. fl.).— Andalusians are not good sitters. 

 Their chickens are to our taste neither bo quaint nor so hardy as the Iloudans. 

 Ab a r^^le, the early pullets of every breed lay in the winter. The Andalusians 

 lay a larger egg than the Houdans, the latter are the best table fowl. You 

 will not get any fowls to lay largely in the winter unless they can have more 

 than half an hour's liberty per day. It is hard work for them to lay in the 

 winter, and they want all the help they can have. 



Books (Dot).— Mi. L. Wright's is by far the best. 



Goose Becoming Beoody (W. C.).— She ceases to lay and;takea to the 

 nest. 



Brahma Misdescribed {Nostaic). — The bird you describe, and that de- 

 scribed in the vendor's letter, ore two and very different birds. No one is 

 justified in praising a Brahma cock if it is nearly white from the breast to 

 the feet. We should have mistrusted such high-flown description. We see 

 little that is " splendid " or " superb " about an ordinary fowl. Everyone has 

 a right to his opinion, and men differ. Eetum the bird, and no doubt the 

 gentleman will return the money. 



Beahma Pullet's Tumour (A. H. M.).—lt is not an uncommon thing for 

 fowls to have tumours such as you describe, and siiuilarly situated. They 

 ai-e difficult of cure, but she will not lay while it exists. If it is quite hard, 

 we advise you to kill her ; if it yields to the touch, make a small incision with 

 a sharp knife and see what it contains. Discontinue all fattening food under 

 any circumstances, at least all those you have named. The fowl is quite fit 

 for culinary purposes. 



Brahma's Vent Inflamed (W. 8. L.).— Separate your hen from the others. 

 It is more than probable they pick it. Does she lay ? The formation of these 

 water- bladders is common in hens, but very unusual in pullets. Continue the 

 soft food, give scantily of water, and administer a table-spoonful of castor oil 

 €very alternate day for a week. An operation may be performed wheu the 

 laying season is over. 



Influence of Male (K. J.).— It is a disputed point. All will say ten days ■ 

 we say three weeks if the breed is valuable and you wish to be sure of it. * 



Fowls for near Lfverpool [D. JB.).— If you take up the bricks in the 

 yard, and if you always have the use of the field, you may keep Dorkings. No 

 county has done so more successfully than Lancashire. If, however, you can- 

 not do away with your bricks, you may have Brahmas, Cochins, or Houdans ; 

 we advise the first. If you are ever confined to the yard, when that ia the case 

 you must cover a good part of it with earth some inches thick. ..jLjii 'iH'Hf 



Dorking and Brahma Cross (A Subscriber).— The most approved cross 

 is between the Brahma cock and Dorking hens. 



Fo^vx's Feet Swollen (A. M. O.).— Either your fowls perch too high and 

 braise the balls of their feet when they fly down, or some small sharp sub- 

 Btance has penetrated the skin and caused inflammation. If there bo only " a 

 watery bladder," open it ; if there be inflammation poultice it, and in both 

 cases shut them up where they will walk only on hay or straw till their feet 



are hardened. If they have been roosting high shift their perches, and bring 

 them within 2 feet of the ground. 



Spanish Fowls Out of Condition (O. F.). — The fowls are manifestly 

 out of condition to a serious extent. Rub the combs with sulphur ointment. 

 Give each of the birds a table-spoonful of castor oil at once, and repeat the 

 dose every alternate day for sis days. Feed on soft food ; give some bread and 

 ale twice every day, and supply them with green food — lettuce, and large soda 

 of growing grass cut with plenty of earth. You do not say if they are at 

 hberty or in confinement. 



Disinfecting Hen House (Levion Buff). — Whitewash it with a creamy 

 mixture of chloride of lime and water. 



Bed Jacobins Breeding Blacks, &c. (-S. A. B.).— This is not onusnal* 

 as Blacks and Reds are frequently bred together to get the red of a deeper 

 colour, and one result is that a pair of Reds au bred will often throw Black 

 young ones, and I'ice viTud. The eyes should be pearl, but not unfrequently 

 they come odd-eyed, or, indeed, neither of them pearl if not well bred ; in the 

 former case the young often come all right. Your birds would not have left 

 their home to roost elsewhere at night unless they had been frightened, most 

 probably by a cat. Shut the birds in by net or wire, and watch for aud kill 

 the cat. 



METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS, 



Camden Square, London. 



Lat. 51° 32' 40" N. ; L3ng. u'^ 8' 0" W. ; Altitude 111 feet. 



EEMAKKS. 

 18th. — Kain in the morning, but soon cleared off, and very fine after. 

 19th. — White frost early ; cloudy about 1 p.m. ; rain at intervals after 4 p.m. 

 2Uth. — Very fine in early morning ; cloudy at noon, and cold afterwards, but 



no rain. 

 21st. — Hazy morning; fair all day, but not bright. 

 22nd. — Bather dull, no sun ; a few drops of rain in the evening. 

 23rd. — A most beautiful day throughout, not merely spring-like, bat almost 



summer-like ; brigbt, warm, and without wind. 

 24th. — Morning rather hazy, but soon clearing, and getting brighter and 



brighter from noon to night, but not quite so brigbt as the preceding 



day. 

 The waimth and brilHancy of the 23rd forms a striking contrast to the cold 

 and snow of some of the days in the last week, the mean of the 23rd and llth 

 differing, even in London, by more than 20'''. The mean temperature of this 

 week ia about 7*^ above that of last week. — G. J. Symgns. 



COYENT GARDEN MARKET.— March 25. 

 No alteration worth much notice, demand and supply being about e^ual. 

 Importations are well kept up, and a good supply of 8t. Michael's Pines are 

 again on the market — capital fruit, ranging from 3 to S lbs. each. Some new 

 Grapes from pot Vines are offered, but do not equal the beat samples of re- 

 tarded ones; of the latter, however, there is a great deal of rubbish about, 

 selling as low as 2^. per pound. 



FRUIT. 



Apples 1 sieve 2 



Apricots doz. 



Cherries V" 'b. 



Chestnata bushel 10 



Currants i bieve 



Black do. 



Figs doz. 



Filberts Iij- 1 



Cobs lb. 1 



Gooseberries quart 



Grapes, bothouse.... lb. 2 



Lemons *^ lOO 4 



Melons each 



Artichokes doz, 8 



Asparagus vlOO 4 



French 12 



Beans, Kidney ^ lOJ 'i 



Beet, Red doa 1 



Broccoli bundle 



Cabbage doz. 1 



Capsicums 1*100 



Carrots bunch 



Cauliflower doz. 3 



Celery bundle 1 



Coleworts. . doz. bunches 3 



Cucumbers each 1 



pickling doz. 



Emive doz, 2 



Fennel bunch 



GarUo lb. 



Herbs bunch 



Horseradish bundle 3 



Leeks bunch 



Lettuce doz. 1 



d. s. d. 

 0to3 



8. d. s. d. 



Mulberries ^ lb, OtoO 



Nectarmes doz. 6 



OraDges ^100 4 16 



Peaches doz. 



Pears, kitchen doz. 2 3 



dessert doz. 8 IJ 



PineApples lb. 5 8 



Plums 4 sieve U 



Quinces doz. 



Kaspberries lb. e 



Strawberries ^ oz. 1 2 



WaUiuts bushel 10 IG 



ditto ^100 2 a li 



VEGETABLES. 



d. B.d. 



utofi u 



10 



VO 







S. d. B. d. 



Mushrooms pottle 1 to i o 



Mustard & Cress.. punnet 2 U 



OniODs bushel 4 7 (I 



pickling quart 6 OB 



Parsley per doz. bonobea 4 6 



Parsuips doz. 9 



Peas quart 19 



Potatoes bushel S 6 



Kidney do. 



Round .do. 



Radishes., doz. bonches 1 



Rhubarb bundle 9 



Salsafy bundle 1 6 



Savoys doz. 1 



Scorzonera bundle 1 



Sea-kale basket 1 



Shallots lb. 8 



Spinach bushel 2 



Tomatoes doz. 



Turnips bunob 



Vegetable Marrows 



