274 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDE NE3. 



[ September 21, 187f. 



stocks " skedaddled," not liking their new quarters, one I had 

 to take home and feed, and the moat promising of all, which 

 really did gather honey, has this year been rubbed and starved 

 to death. I have, however, a friend living very near the salt 

 marshes whose bees, " being to the manner born," get a good 

 deal of honey from the lavender, quite enough to compensate 

 them for their diminished area of pasturage, and to set them 

 up, when, as sometimes happens, the latter part of the summer 

 is more favourable than the earlier. 



Putting aside the inferiority of the flavour of the honey, sea 

 lavender can never, I take it, compete with heather as bee forage, 

 if only for the simple reason that it supposes tides, which throw 

 the poor bees quite out of their reckoning, and the capricious 

 and often boisterous winds which prevail on the sea-coast. Tet 

 I cannot but hope that these few lines will be some encourage- 

 ment to intending bee-keepers who live within easy distance 

 of a salt marsh. Many of these have been reclaimed, and now 

 grow something more valuable than sea lavender. But wherever 

 this beautiful though scentless flower still adorns the flat and 

 monotonous waste with its delicate colouring, let the merry 

 hum of the bee add another element of cheerfulness.— E. H. R., 

 West Norfolk. 



[The specimen sent was very clear and pale. The bitterness 

 mentioned was so slight that we should not have noticed it if 

 our attention had not been drawn to it. To our palate it is an 

 agreeable flavour. — Eds.] 



HONEY BEES AND MUSIC. 



The question whether bees have the power of hearing is a 

 mooted point among naturalists. Sir John Lubbock has tried 

 experiments with his bees in order to elucidate the ma ter. 

 Thus, he has played the violin close to his bees, he has tried a 

 dog whistle, a shrill pipe, a tuning fork, and shouting, but no 

 noise seemed to disturb them in the least. Nevertheless, a 

 curious occurrence took place a few days since at Windsor. 



Col. Stewart, commanding ofticar Second Life Guards, reports 

 that a few days since, when the regiment was returning down 

 the Long Walk from a field day, a swarm of bees, attracted by 

 the music, followed the regiment into barracks, flying about over 

 the heads of the band. On arriving at the barrack-yard the 

 band formed up to play the regiment into barracks ; the bees 

 followed their example, formed up also and settled on a branch 

 of a tree over the heads of the bandsmen. They were at once 

 taken prisoners by the corporal of the guard, and are now hived 

 in the barrack-yard. The distance over which the bees followed 

 the band was more than a mile. We have heard of spelling 

 bees, but these are musical bees with a vengeance. It is a com- 

 mon practice in the country to collect bees by means of rattling 

 a warming-pan with a piece of iron, or shaking a stone in a tin 

 kettle, and the idea that bees will follow sounds is as old as 

 Virgil. — {Daily News.) 



OUR LETTER BOX. 



Address (IF. L. Seabrook).~v?e cannot state the address of " W. H. A." 



Scaly Legs (L. 0.). — Wash them with soap and water; give a tablespoon- 

 ful of castor oil, and reduce the diet. A small feeding of barley in the morn- 

 ing and a small feeding of barleymeal at night are all that fowls require 

 having such a large grass rnn. 



Dorkthg Cock (J. D.). — We fear the symptoms are indicative of roup. 

 Keep him separated from the other fowls. Give him breael soaked in ale 

 once daily and other nourishing soft food. If his attack is only weakness in 

 consequence of moulting that treatment will restore him. 



Poland Fowls {J. L.).— They all have crests, and should have only four 

 toes. The produce of sunflower seed must depend on the soil and manage- 

 ment. One very large flower produced mora than 2300 seeds. 



Houdahs (J. L.). — There is a portrait of the cock and hen in our " Poultry- 

 keeper's Manual.'' The following are there stated to be the characteristics : 

 — " Proportions and General Characteristics. — Body rather round, compact, 

 of ordinary proportions, short-legged, and standing firmly on strong feet ; 

 pectorals, thighs, legs, and wings well developed; large head; half topknot; 

 whiskers, beard, triple comb, transversal ; five toes on each foot ; spotted or 

 splashed plumage, black, white, or yellow-white in the adult— in chickens, 

 black and white only. An adult will weigh from 6 lb3. to 7 lbs.; flesh 

 abundant; boneB light, about an eighth of the whole weight, A chicken of 

 this breed is put up to fatten at four months, and killed at four and a 

 half months. If we take away from the weight of the carcase the liver, 

 gizzard, the flesh of the head, of the neck, and of the feet, indeed all that 

 constitute the giblets, which find a ready sale, being considered delicacies 

 by some people, there will remain from 2i lbs. to 3 lbs. of solid compact 

 meat. In this breed the bones of the chicken may be calculated as being 

 hardly an eighth part of the body, while in butcher's meat they weigh 

 a quarter. Comb.— Triple, tranBversal, composed of two elongated and 

 rectangular flattened spirals, opening right and left like the leaves of a 

 book, notched on the sides, and thick and fleshy. A third spiral springs 

 up in the middle of the preceding ones, taking the form of an irregular 

 strawberry, and the size of an elongated nut. Another small spiral de- 

 tached from the others, and the size of a lentil, should appeir above the 

 baak between the two nostrils. The wattles should be united to the comb, 

 by fleBhy parts which form the face, surround the corners of the beak with 

 apparent notches, and the eye with a naked lid. The ear-lobes short and 

 hidden by whiskers. The half topknot thrown backward, and on the sides a 

 few pointed feathers turning at the points, but sticking-up in the air. Face. 



— Naked, surrounded with whiskers formed of short-pointed and up-turning 

 feathers. Beard.— Begins under the beik between the wattles, joins the 

 whiskers, and hang3 down the neck; wider at the bottom than at the top. 

 Beak.— Strong and rathar hooked, black at its insertion, and yellowish at its 

 extremity, depressed towards the beird. and dropping considerably at the 

 corners. Physiognomy of the Head.— Differing from many other species by 

 several remarkable features; the head aid nack form rather an opeu augle, 

 so that the drooping beak is seen above it, and takes the appearance of a 

 nose. Comb. — The square and flattened comb seems to be a fleshy forehead, 

 the cheeks (in Englaad, face) are surrounded with curling feathers which 

 look like whiskers, the drooping corners of the baak resemble a mouth, and a 

 cravat of feathers joined to the wattles simulates a beard ; the topknot is like 

 a rough head of hair, and the entire face at once suggests the idea of that of 

 a man. Colour of Legs.— In adults, a leaden grey; in chickens, bluish and. 

 whitish grey, with rose-coloured spots. Plumage. — It should invariably be 

 composed of black, white, and straw-colour; those fowls that have any mix- 

 ture of red should be got rid of. The plumage of the Houdan is of the 

 variety called splashed or curl-papered. It is irregularly composed of feathers 

 sometimes black, sometimes white, sometimes black tipped with white, and 

 sometimes white tipped with blask. The Hen. — Body : well set, appearing 

 almost as large as that of the cock, firmly planted on strong legs; breast, 

 thighs, legs, and wings well developed; large hoad; demi or whole topknot; 

 whiskers and beard very distinct ; rudimentary' comb a-jd wattles; five claws 

 on each foot ; feathers of tha a'odomou very flaffy, ample and pendant ; other 

 feathers of ordinary length ; splashed plumage, blacs and white with violet 

 and greenish shades. Physiognomy of the Haad. — When the topknot is very 

 developed, the hen is unable to see in front or on either side ; she can see 

 only on the ground, because the feathers cover not only the lid but the eye 

 itself; this gives the bird a narvous motioa at every noise it hears. It is 

 only by close observation her eyes can be discovered at alL" 



Goldfinches (C. G. B.).— The terms " Caeverel," (! Chibald," or "Che- 

 valier" aie applied to Goldfinches possessing a whioe speck or mark imme- 

 diately beneath the lower miudible, sometimes so large as to completely 

 divide the bright scarlet-rei facing which mostly surrounds the heads of the 

 Finches. We do not consider birds so marked as of a distinct breed. Upon 

 this subject we shall furthar remark in our next issue. 



Canary Mule with Sore neir the Eve (Aoii). — Rab the place with 

 citrine ointment, obtainable from any chemist. 



Melilot for Bees (A. R. H.I.— The flowers of nearly all the trefoils 

 yield abundance of bse pasturage, bat especially the white clovar, Trifoiium 

 repens, and the common melilot, Trifoiium officinale. They are common in 

 most pastures, 



METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS. 



Camden" Square, Lokdon. 



Lat, 51° 82' 40" N. ; Long. 0" 8' 0" W.; Attitude, 111 feet. 



Date. 



9 A 5T. 



Itf the Day. 





■ a. 



Hydrome- 



a • 



3T3 



O o . 



Shade Tem- 



Radiation 



1 -5 



1876. 



-;== O — 



9 a 1 ' > 



ter. 





nib 



peratnre. 



Temperature 



1 B 



Sept. 











In 



On 







Dry. 



Wet. 



• So 



H 



Max. 



Min. 



sun. 



grass 

 deg. 







laches. 



deg. 



deg. 





deg. 



dec 



3eg. 



deg. 



1 Tn. 



We. 13 



■29 763 



51.0 



4S.2 



N.W. 



54.5 



55.8 



41.3 



79.8 



S9.2 



. 0.040 



Th. 14 



29.758 



5S.0 



6 '.9 



N.W. 



51.3 



64.0 



47.8 



106 3 



45.2 





Fri. 15 



29765 



46 1 



46 1 



N.W. 



54.3 



64.3 



42.9 



100.4 



40.3 



0.102 



Sat. 16 



29 650 



53.3 



52.7 



N. 



53.7 



57.8 



43.1 



67.2 



38.0 



0.(54 



Sun. 17 



29.764 



59 2 



55.0 



w. 



54.8 



67.2 



50.4 



112.8 



47.5 



0.120 



Mo. 18 



29.870 



57.0 



55.2 



S.W. 



54.8 



67 6 



47.4 



113.2 



42 2 



0.02S 



Til. 19 



30.289 



57.1 



54.0 



N.W. 



55.3 



67 4 



47.1 



112.0 



43 2 

 42.2 



- 



Means. 



29.831 



53 8 



51.9 





51.5 



63.4 



45.7 



98.8 



0.344 



REMARKS. 

 13fch. — Fine but cold morning and forenoon ; very dark between 3 and 4 p.m., 



and again after 6 p.m.; rain in the evening. 

 14th.— Fine forenoon, bat rather cloudy about 1 p.m.; taken as a whole a 



pleasant day. 

 15th. — Dense fog, clearing off about 11 ah ; slight sprinkle of rain between 



2 and 3 p.m., but a pleasant day. 

 IGth. — Wet and uncomfortable morning; showery and disagreeable all day 



even to midnight. 

 17th. — Beautifully fine morning and forenoon ; rather cloudy at 2 p ar. and a 



slight thunderstorm (but not heavy rain here) from 3.20 to 3.45 p.il ; 



wet afternoon, dull evening, but fine night. 

 18th.— Fine morning and (but for a heavy shower between 1 and 2 p.m.) a fine 



day, and starlit night. 

 19th. — A beautifully fine day and starlit night ; slight aurora about 7 p.m. 



Mean temperature slightly lower than the previous week, barometer rising 

 rapidly at the end with indications of fiuer weather.— G. J. Symons. 



COYENT GARDEN MARKET.— September 20. 

 The market continues thinly supplied with nearly all classes of goods 

 with the exception of AppleB, there being a larger quantity arriving than 

 was anticipated, but prioes remain much the same, basiness bjing generally 

 very quiet. Apples are fetching from Is. 6d. to 5&. the half-sieve, and Figs 

 from Is. to Ss. per dozen. % 



FRUIT. 



s. d. b d. [ 



Apples i sieve 



Apricots dozen 



Cherries lb. 



Chestnuts bushel 



Currants 4 sieve 



Black 4 do. 



Figs dozen 1 



Filberts lb. 



Gooseberries quart 



Grapes, hothouse.... lb. 



Lemons ^100 12 



Melons each 2 



6 to 5 

 

 

 

 

 

 S 

 1 

 

 6 

 18 



Nectarines dozen 



I Oranges ^-10) 



I Peaches dozen 



I Pears, kitchen.... dozen 



dessert dozen 



Pine Apples lb. 



Plums J seive 



. Quinces bushel 



! Rispberries lb. 



0' strawberries lb. 



Wa'nntj bushel 



0i ditto V100 



s. d. s. d 

 CtoH 

 24 



