THE PRACTICAL COUNTRY GENTLEMAN 



average, five pairs of squabs annually for every 

 pair of birds it contains. While prices vary ac- 

 cording to the season, it will be safe to count on 

 an average of sixty cents a pair, or a gross return 

 of three dollars for every pair of breeders kept. 

 Pigeons are hardy and subject to but few dis- 

 eases, but dampness is fatal to them. A loft 

 with a feeding room 8 by i6 feet, and a fly 1 6 

 by 1 6 feet, will accommodate forty pairs. If 

 the neighborhood is infested with English spar- 

 rows, the fly should be covered with one-Inch 

 mesh wire netting. The north, east, and west 

 sides of the loft must be wind and water tight, 

 the south side should have glass to the extent 

 of one-third of its area. The floor of the breed- 

 ing room may be covered either with an Inch of 

 coarse sand or fine gravel, the former prefera- 

 bly. Two nests must be arranged for every 

 pair of birds, as the female will commence lay- 

 ing again before her first brood are out of the 

 nest. The male helps with the Incubation, and 

 will often take entire charge of the young while 

 his wife Is busy starting a new family. 

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