68 PIGEONS. 



when they have young ones, will feed them well, which 

 a cropper, in consequence of the largeness of his crop, 

 seldom will. 



Carriers breed but slowly, having rarely more than 

 three or four pair a-year ; they are constant lovers, and 

 very seldom tread any but their own mate, and are 

 therefore hard to match when separated. 



On the contrary, a powter may be taken from his 

 own mate, and he will match to another in a day or two, 

 so that bastard-bred pigeons are most serviceable for 

 those who breed them to supply the table. 



Great care must be taken to make convenient places 

 to breed in ; each pair of pigeons must have two nests ; 

 those with baskets in them are best ; for before one pair 

 can go out of the nest, or feed themselves, the old ones 

 will lay and be sitting ; I have often, indeed, seen a 

 second pair hatched before the first could feed them- 

 selves, and the old ones feed both pairs. Be sure, when 

 you take the young ones, to clean the nest, or put in a 

 clean basket, for cleanliness is of great service to pigeons. 



Never let them want food, for if you do, they cannot 

 be provided with soft meat in their crop when the young 

 are hatched, without which, they will certainly die ; or 

 if you feed the old ones by hand, they will go and feed 

 their young immediately with what they get, which, 

 being too strong for their powers of digestion, kills them. 

 The best way is to let them have food always by them 

 in a box, with a hopper in it. 



