456 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ December 12, 1878. 
again. We have never been able to obtain the secret of mixing 
ot these oils; the men keep it to themselves, and turn it to their 
account by charging for clearing the ricks from these vermin. All 
the young cattle will now be required to feed in the sheds and 
yards at night time, going out at day time into dry pastures only 
with a small bait of cut roots and sweet straw for the heifers, but 
steers should have according to age from 2 to 3 Ibs. of decorticated 
cotton cake per day mixed with 20 Ibs. of cut Swedes each in 
addition to good straw as fodder. The Dorset down sheep will 
begin lambing before the month is out. They may have a few 
cabbages out on the pastures, but no hay until after lambing ; 
if any dry fodder is required it should be sweet straw cut into 
chaff, with cake meal and water to damp the straw and make it 
palatable. The horned Dorset and Somerset ewes have now quite 
finished lambing ; some of the earliest lambs will be sold at Christ- 
mas, but the trade for them is seldom open in the Metropolitan 
Market until the first week in February. 
THE BIRMINGHAM POULTRY SHOW. 
(Continued from page 439.) 
Game.—Before beginning our remarks about the Game we must 
entera loud protest against the position of the Black and Brown Red 
hens and pullets. There are no breeds in which colour tells more 
than in these—no breeds whose colours can so little help any de- 
ficiencies of light. Ifthe Committee are bound to have pens in 
this unfortunate situation, birds whose plumage will best reflect 
the light should be chosen for it. For ourselves we are bound to 
say, that while we think Birmingham is second to no show in the 
way in which all its business is managed, it fails to rise to a due 
sense of its position as “the Derby” of the poultry year. All 
other shows must more or less tout for popularity. Birmingham 
has only not to invent means of throwing it away. Every class 
at Birmingham ought to partake more or less of a champion 
character. At such a show Selling classes shonld have no place. 
What we look for at Birmingham are the picked birds of the year. 
We have heard of people coming to Birmingham from the north 
of Scotland to see what a show ought to be. They are not likely 
to see this at Birmingham till weeding rather than increasing 
entries is the order of the day. Birmingham is the only Show at 
which we welcome rather than regret any increase in the price of 
entries. With this protest we pass to the Game. Nineteen Black 
Red cocks put in an appearance. First and cup went to Mr. 
Lyon’s £100 bird. He is not quite up yet, but seems likely to 
fulfil the predictions of those who thought he might get full in 
hackle this year; but he is a fine bird, and should be able to 
recoup his owner in the breeding yard. Second was won by 
Mr. Dutton’s cock bird, commended at the Palace. Mr. Tom 
Mason took third with a very smart bird, which, if he had been 
rather more willow in the leg and sounder in tail, might have 
been higher. Fourth went to Mr. Matthew for a fine bird, but 
rather red in the fluff and broad in tail. 1502 (Walters), highly 
commended, was a good bird and cheap. 1509 (Maynard), highly 
commended, was also good. 
Black Red cockerels showed a great falling-off in style. 
Whether Hull has had anything to do with it we do not know, 
but there was no really first-rate bird here. Mr. Lyon’s fifth- 
prize cockerel was about the best, and had he been in sounder con- 
dition could hardly have helped being first ; as it was, Mr. Halsall 
took that honour with a bird of very pretty carriage, but not 
quite light enough in colour, and with an indifferent head, made 
worse by bad dubbing. Mr. Garne, a rising exhibitor, took 
second, but his bird wanted bloom. Mr. Matthew was third with 
a bird fine in head but too long in the tail, and not bright enough 
in the eye. 1527 probably did not look so well when the Judge 
went round as later in the day, or he might have been placed. 
1531 (Walters) was cheap at the catalogue price. 
In hens first was taken by Mr. Dutton’s hen, which took the 
cup here as pullet last year. Second (Harley) a good hen, but 
with a poor eye. Mr. Pope was third with the hen second at the 
Palace. We very much liked 1568 (Goodwin), very highly com- 
mended, and should have been inclined to have put her second. 
Dark eyes seem on the increase. All the highly commended hens 
well deserved the notice, but the only ones with a really good 
eye were 1558 (Stagg) and 1565 (Maynard). 
Pullets made up in quality for the deficiencies of the cockerels, 
and the Judge would have had no easy task had the birds been in 
the best light the Show could have afforded ; as it was the task 
could only have been exceeded in difficulty by Mr. Lane’s amongst 
the Brown Red pullets. The cup went to a beautiful pullet 
of Mr. Garne’s, sister, we believe, to his bird that was so much 
admired at Oxford, and which we think we recognised here and 
preferred in his very highly commended pen, 1602. Second was 
taken by Mx. Halsall, as well as fifth, with two birds that looked 
much like those at the Palace. If these are the birds that were 
at Oxford they have greatly improyed since then. We dislike the 
bluish tinge in their legs, but except that they leaye little to be 
desired. The third-prize bird (Lyon) hada sprung comb and a 
red wing, but showed great quality, like the same owner's other 
birds—1599 (highly commended) and 1608 (very highly com- 
mended). The fourth-prize bird (Pope) was first at the Palace. 
Amongst the noticed birds which we have not yet mentioned 1581 
(Pope) was a fine reachy pullet, a little weak perhaps in the head, 
and not as brilliant in the eye as might be. 1583 (highly com- 
mended) a daughter of the first-prize hen, and with much of her 
mother’s looks, but has not inherited her mother’s good eye. 1591 
(Frith), commended, was very lengthy, but not too good in head. 
1593, highly commended (Phillips), had a very odd tail. 1597, 
highly commended (Maynard) and 1606, commended, which was 
one of the best-coloured pullets in the Show. 1600, highly com- 
mended (Pope), very much like the same owner's other birds, and 
full of quality. 1605, highly commended (Van Wart), very cheap 
at catalogue price. In Brown Red cocks Mr. Matthew took first 
witha cock that should have had the cup for the best cock in the 
Show. His legs were perhaps a trifle too willow, but with that 
exception he was perfect. Second, 1620 (Brierley), was rather 
red in face. We liked the third-prize bird, 1626 (Watson), better, 
but he had one of his claws broken. Fourth (Morgan) a very in- 
different bird. 1618 (Martin) and 1628, commended (Tom Mason), 
were either of them better. In cockerels champion cup and 
second went to Mr. Brierley for two beautiful cockerels of Mr. 
Garnett’s strain. The first is the better bird now, but the future 
belongs to the second. ‘Third (Wolff) we could never get to hold 
himself together, either on Saturday or Monday. Fourth (Martin) 
wanted brightness, and was not up to Mr. Martin’s usual form. 
1651 (Fenwick) fifth, was the best-coloured bird in the class. 
His hackles were too full, but we should have placed him third. 
1642, highly commended (Matthew), was rather high in tail. 
1645 (Adams), commended, was good in colour but rather full. 
Brown Red hens and pullets we cannot criticise. We cannot 
see in the dark. Mr. Matthew won the cup with the bird that 
was first at the Palace we believe, and which we thought should 
have had the cup there. Second (Fenwick) was a bird which 
must have made the Judge wish for two first prizes. Third 
(Brierley) was hardly brassy enough in the hackles to please us. 
1657 (Tom Mason) was a good bird. 1663 (Watson), highly 
commended, had rather a brown wing we fancy. 1665 (Martin), 
highly commended, might have had a darker face. 1666, highly 
commended (Brierley), was too long for her pen. Brown Red 
| Game hens want pens very little smaller than the cocks’. 1671 
(Parker) we preferred to 1670 (Morgan), highly commended. In 
pullets Mr. Fenwick was first, Mr. Martin second, Mr. Brierley 
third, and Mr. Meredith fourth. Of these we may say that the 
first excelled in colour and the second in style, while the third 
had better colour than the second and more style than the first. 
Fourth was a good pullet with a nice swinging hackle. The 
following remarks concerning the noticed birds must be taken for 
what they are worth :—We thought 1672, highly commended 
| (Voisin), was the unnoticed bird we admired at the Palace ; 1673, 
highly commended (Ward), was bright but short, and had too 
much hackle; 1674 (Brierley), highly commended, had a good 
breast for cock breeding, but wanted a longer head ; 1679, highly 
commended (Matthew), was very pretty ; 1680 (Tom Mason), 
highly commended, might have been brassier; and we thought 
1693 (Frith) should have hadacard. _ : £ 
Duckwing cocks, and we are in the light again! Mr. Martin 
takes the cup with a bird much like his third Palace cock. We 
liked the first cockerel (Matthew) better, but Mr. Martin’s is a 
yery good bird. Second (Matthew) many preferred to the first. 
Third (Watson) was a fair colour, but a bad tail. 1709 (Oakeley) 
and 1712 (Staveley), both highly commended, were fair birds. 
Tf Mr. Matthew’s cockerel was the same that was at the Palace 
he has recovered from the injury he there did his face by fighting. 
He is an excellent Duckwing. Second (Harley) and third (Lyon) 
were both fair birds. As to the noticed birds, we can_only say 
that Mr. Lane takes a more charitable view of what a Duckwing 
ought to be than we do. In hens Mr. Matthew was first with an 
excellent hen ; Messrs. Staveley second and third. Mr. Lyon and 
Mr. Goodwin both showed good birds, the latter with a very good 
eye. In pullets the cup went to Messrs. Staveley for the pullet 
which was second at the Palace, while the bird there first is here 
third. As our remarks concerning her were then misprinted we 
take this opportunity of saying that though the third (Harley) is 
very good in shape the first beats her in colour and eye. Second 
(Lyon) has a dark eye too. Good eyes are becoming almost ex- 
tinct. 1750 (Lyon), highly commended, might have been Black- 
eyed Susan” herself. in aes 
ota Pile cocks there was a mistake about Mr. Halsall’s bird (17 54). 
He was. the best bird in the class, but Mr. Lane, misled by his 
short spurs, thought a chicken had been sent by mistake. What 
was decided as to a prize for him we do not know. As it was the 
Duke of Sutherland took first, and the Palace first cock was 
second. 1755, highly commended, had alight eye. In cockerels 
Mr. Halsall took cup with a bird good but for his tail. Second 
(Mrs. Bell) was light in eye, but otherwise good. Highly com- 
mended, 1766 (Crowther), pretty, but thickish head. 1759 (Otter), 
commended, pretty; and 1763 (Pratt), a white-legged bird of 
very good style. Hens.—First (Adams) the Palace bird appa- 
rently. Second (Halsall) was high in tail. We preferred 1770 
(Walker), highly commended. 1774 (Brierley), highly com- 
