August 15, 1878. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
139 
occasion of referring to other animal power for tillage of the land, 
and allude to the working of oxen, although it is notorious that 
steam power on the larger farms occupies the attention of farmers 
entirely as supplementary power to that of horses, and very 
properly so. We can well recollect the time in our business when 
steam power was not available asit is at present ; we cannot there- 
fore entirely ignore the use of oxen as a supplementary power in 
tillage in the autumn portion of the year. This brings us to the 
point of how the extra power can best be obtained, as there are 
certain circumstances existing in almost every district which may 
prevent the application of steam power, with the customary ad- 
yantages attaching to it. In such cases we therefore recommend 
that oxen may be used with advantage. The best sort of animals 
for working on the land are the Sussex and North Devon breeds ; 
sometimes, however, we have known Shorthorns used, but the 
Sussex breeds are strong, powerful, and good-tempered animals, 
easily broken in and inured to work. The same may be said of 
the Devons, except that they are not so powerful; but the Short- 
horns are not always to be depended upon as to temper, besides 
which they are more commonly fatted at an early age. 
The plan we propose is to purchase on the eve of harvest, say 
about July 20th, three oxen which have been broken to the collar 
for every 100 acres of arable land a farm may contain, and continue 
them in work attached to the scarifier during the whole time of 
haryest after the first clearance of corn, and until the time for 
wheat-sowing arrives, up to which time, the horses of the farm 
haying assisted the oxen in autumn tillage, the work will be in a 
forward state, and the oxen will then assist the horses in helping 
forward the wheat season. , 
the oxen and horses may join in the work of fallow-ploughing all 
the land which had been previously autumn-tilled and intended 
for root crops the following season. The work will then be for- 
ward enough to dispense with the services of one horse upon 
every 100 acres, or in other words to employ three horses instead 
of four as usual. The result of this scheme of cultivation is that 
except by the use of steam power the Jand will be more forward 
that a show of poultry will be included in the programme. 
than by any other means, and at a less cost than by employing 
the usual number of horses during the year. 
To make this plan profitable we propose that the oxen shall be | 
fed during the period of work, say four months, at the same cost 
in food as the horses ; three oxen will then cost the same in keep- 
ing as one horse for the twelve months, and when fed in this liberal 
manner they will not only be strong in their work but will improve 
in value from 20s. to 30s. each during the four months, whereas | 
the horse during the twelve months would have depreciated in 
value from £3 10s. to £4. The advantages to be obtained from 
this mode of proceeding are obvious. The root land will be all 
tilled in the autumn, and done at moderate cost ; and when the 
oxen haye done the work assigned them they will be in improved 
condition, and will pay as much as any steers that can be bought, 
to be put into the boxes to fatten off at the end of twenty-one 
weeks from the time of completing the work of tillage. 
Hand Labour will now be fully employed in the harvest field | 
and stacking the corn ; there may, however, be intervals of damp 
weather when the men may be employed in hoeing late turnips 
and the women in singling the roots behind the hoers. Hedge and 
border trimming will also be done at odd times, when harvest work 
is delayed. The shepherd can seldom find time to do any harvest 
work, as he will usually be fully employed with his flock im various 
ways. The newly-purchased lambs will have to be shorn before 
the end of the month, and if this to some persons is a new idea we 
recommend them from our own experience to try one half of the 
lambs shorn and the other half remaining in their wool. Let them 
all be kept together and fed alike until February or March, and 
sold at the same time ; it will then prove the advantage or other- 
wise of shearing the lambs. The herdsman must now look to his 
yearling-off heifers, and have a well-bred young bull running with 
them in the meadows every day, in order that they may bring their 
first calves in the May month. Whilst the heifers are feeding the 
meadows at daytime, it is, however, a much safer plan to remove 
them at night time to lie in a dry pasture or on to arable lea 
ground, as they are very apt to suffer from “ quarter evil” when 
the meadows are situated below the fog level if allowed to remain 
at night time, because we often get a white frost in such meadows. 
CHESHUNT AND WALTHAM ABBEY POULTRY 
SHOW. 
THIS was held on August 8th, when the following prizes were 
awarded :— 
POULTRY.—DORKINGS.—Cock.—1, E. Snell. 2, 
Fellowes. 2, E. Snell. COCHINS.—Cock.—Cup and 2, Lady Gwydyr. 3, Mrs. 
Breeze. Hen.—land 2, Lady Gwydyr. 3, A. Todd. BRAHMAS.—Dark.—Cock. 
—1, L. C. C. R. Norris. 2, Mrs. Breeze. AHen—1, L. C. C. R. Norris. 2, Dr. 
Holmes. Light—Cock—i, P. Haines. 2, Lady Gwydyr. AHen—l, P. Haines. 
2, W. Howard. 3, Lady Gwydyr. SPANISH.—Cock—1l, R. Newbitt. 2. 
Schelp. Hen—1,J. Woods. 2, W. LD. Prosser. GAME.—Black or Brown Red.— 
Cock.—1, H.E. Martin. 2, J.Colgrove. Hen—l,E.Winwood. 2, T. D. B. Raw- 
lins. Any olher variety—tl, J. Colgrove. 2, H. E. Martin. HAMBURGHS.— 
Golden-spanqlea.—1, S. R. Harris. 2,J. Ashworth. Silver~. HOLE) . Ash- 
worth. 2. R. Mewbitt. Golden-pencilled.—1, J. Ashworth. 2, J. T. Cable, 
Silver-pencilled—1, E. Snell. 2,J. Ashworth. HOUDANS.—1, C. W. Gibbs. 2. 
A. J. Page. Hen.—l, H. C. 
After the wheat-sowing is completed | 
E.Snell. ANY OTHER FRENCH—1,C. W.Gibbs. 2,J.W.Hibbert. POLANDS. 
—1, T. Norwood. 2,G.W.Boothby. LEGHORNS.—1,C.W. Gibbs. 2,Bradbury 
Bros. BANTAMS.—Black Red.—l, W.F. Entwisle. 2, T. Ponting. Brown Red. 
—land 2, W. F. Entwisle. Any other variety—1, Rey.F.Tearle. 2,7. F. Phelps. 
3, E. Snell. ANY OTHER VARIETY.—1, H. Pickles. 2,J. Ashworth. DUCKS. 
—land 2, E. Snell. SELLING CLASS.—Cock.—l, Lady Gwydyr. 2, Mrs. Breeze. 
3, R. Newbitt. Aens.—1 and 3, J. A. Hicks. — Schelp. 
PIGEONS.—CARRIERS.— Co. Cupand 3,J. Baker. 2, R.A. Pratt. Hen.— 
1, J. Baker. 2, J. H. Smith. 3, R. A. Pratt. POUTERS.—1 and 2, J. Baker. 
‘TUMBLERS.—Short-faced.—1, J. M. Braid. 2, J. Baker. Wot Shor't-faced.—, H. 
W. Bruno. 2,J. Barnes. OWLS.—Znglish—1 and 2, J. Baker. Fs 
J. F. Loyersidge. 2, Miss A. E. Warhurst. TURBI1T'S.—Blue o7 H 
Webster. 2,J. Baker. Any other colour.—l, G. Webster. 2, J. Baker. 
WERPS.—1,T.S. Kemp. 2,G. F. Gowing. DRAGOONS.—Blue or Silver.—l, J. 
H.Smith. 2,—Lush,jun. Any other variety —i,J. Atkins. 2,J. Baker. ANY 
OTHER VARIETY.—1 and 2, J. Baker. SELLING CLASS.—1, H. Dacey. 2, J. 
Barnes. 5.R. A. Pratt. 
JUDGES.—Poultry: Mx. J. Long, Hitchin. Pigeons: Mr. P. H. 
Jones, Fulham, 
AN INTERNATIONAL POULTRY SHOW. 
It is often said, and we believe with much truth, that we are 
apt in England to “ lock the stable door after the horse has been 
stolen.” Any public, especially any international undertaking, is 
sure with us to be got up on a grand scale, and as sure to be 
carried out in no niggardly spirit ; still it very frequently happens 
that many small matters of detail, which may in themselves seem 
trivial and unimporiant, are not duly considered beforehand, and 
consequently some undertaking which apparently goes off with 
éclat does not prove really satisfactory to those particularly and 
intimately interested in it ; and behind thescenesit is said, ‘“‘ What 
a pity it is that such and sucha matter was not before thought of, 
for had it been otherwise the success of the affair mght have been 
real, and not seeming only.” This has been the case in inter- 
national meetings of various kinds where courtesy prevented ex- 
posure. All the world knows by this time that a grand agricul- 
tural show is to be held in London next year, and that there is 
every prospect of its being an international one; it is also 
rumoured, and we have reason to think the rumours not unfounded, 
This 
being the case we shall endeavour beforehand, and not when it is 
too late, to point out some of the conditions which to us appear 
essential for the success of an international show. It would be 
affectation to conceal the fact that most of those are suggested 
to us by the experience of the late Paris Show. That that Show 
was not a success and was not well managed can no longer be 
a secret. Indignant letters of complaint about it daily reach us, 
and the columns of one of our contemporaries have been filled 
| with them. As far as we know the most successful English ex- 
hibitors, who might naturally be biassed in its favour, were not 
satisfied, and would gladly have sacrificed all honours and prizes 
not to have sent. The English judges were highly annoyed at 
many things both during the Show and since ; and, lastly, the loss 
of birds through death by starvation and fatigue on the return 
journey seems to have been simply enormous. Did exhibitions 
ordinarily entail a tithe of this suffering on the poor creatures 
exhibited nothing would ever induce us again to exhibit a living 
thing ; and had the whole taken place on this side of the Channel 
there would have been a host of defendants in the Courts, with the 
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals as plaintiffs. All 
this can now only be regretted, not avoided ; timely warning, how- 
eyer, and reasonable forethought may prevent the chance of such 
a disaster in this country. 
We will begin with the very beginning—viz., the schedule of 
prizes. A schedule for a show in which foreigners are invited 
to compete should not be drawn up without consultation with 
eminent fanciers of the nations most likely to enter. Nations 
have their tastes and prejudices as well as individuals, andif these 
are not previously taken into consideration differences or dis- 
appointment will infallibly ensue. It would be truly dishearten- 
ing and unsatisfactory to a Frenchman or a Belgian to be told 
“Your bird is in its way by far the finest in the class, but it is 
not quite in accordance with English taste, and consequently it is 
not noticed.” Where national tastes are utterly different, or where 
the same names signify birds with totally different characteristics 
in different countries, matters can alone be satisfactorily arranged 
by previous consultation between connoisseurs of the various 
nations to be represented. Then as to the translation of the 
schedule when once drawn up, it is absolutely necessary that this 
should be done by people who have some slight special knowledge 
of the subject. For instance, in the Paris schedule, or rather its 
English translation, a class was devoted to Hamburghs. Natu- 
rally English fanciers sent specimens of all five kinds recognised 
here as Hamburghs ; but in French Hamburghs include but two 
of these five, while two others should have been in the Any-other- 
class limbo, and the fifth, Blacks, should not have been sent at 
all, at least if their owners did not wish to hear their pets run 
down as mongrels. 
Again, the question of judges is an important one. It seems 
but natural that in an international show various nations should 
be represented among those who award the prizes. Still there are 
practically great difficulties in carrying out this theory from the 
deadlock which occurs where national tastes are opposed; and 
