November 23, 1876. ] 



JOURNAL OF HOKTICULTCBE AND COTTAGE GiRDENEK. 



455 



The absence of mismarked Pouters was a good riddance; they 

 are birds for the loft like stock birds. But I should much like 

 i o have seen a class for standard Pied Mealies, for it is a beautiful 

 colour, with proper bars, A-c , not washed-out Mealies, and it is 

 a very old colour. Then Mealies are cheap, so the poor fancier 

 could have a chance, and in shape the birds are often elegant. 



One met at the Show with pleasure old acquaintances and 

 made new friends; saw in propria persona those known before 

 OLly by letter. There were enthusiastic new fanciers come for 

 a first tight of this great Show, aud old fanciers whom its birds 

 made again enthusiastic. Grave men looking delighted, fair 

 ladies whose cheeks glowed with pleasure. " There were," says 

 old Grnmbleton, "those horrid cocks everlastingly crowing, I 

 tapijose." Ijmswer in the words of a lady, that under this high 

 crystal roof "the crowing sounded like a band of music." 

 There's for yon Mr. Grumbleton, please to grumble no more. 

 1 have spoken of the good judging — all things are not good at 

 iLe Palace. Having a spare half hour I tried every weighing 

 machine I could find, sat down, smart boy handed the card 

 v»ith correct (!) weight on. Every machine gave a different 

 weight, and not one of them was correct. This is a little thing, 

 but a lie even in little matters deserves exposure. I dare say the 

 "weights had never been touched sio.ce the Palace was built; 

 hence they are all light with wear. It's a grand old place though, 

 m spite of weighing machines, an historical place. 'lis the 

 test sight we have to show to ttrangers, and ought to be adopted 

 by the nation, and a part rebuilt and everything kept in repair. 

 It awakens in one's mind different feelings to any other place. 

 Poxton, Chatsworth, Hyde Park in 1851— grand opening — high 

 hopes in regard to art culture, not, alas ! realised, for the court3 

 aie by most unnoticed. But there are the gardens always grand 

 either with shrubs or flowers, or both, but never to my mind 

 dots the inside of the old Palace look better than at our annual 

 niid national (make it more entirely national, good fanciers) 

 Pigeon Show. The elegant birds of various colours form a soft 

 moving carpet in the transept. Even the Pigeon-ignorant like 

 c i walk through the rows and admire, and may they increasingly 

 admire until they learn the pleasure of being Pigeon fanciers. — ■ 

 \\ iltshihe Rectok. 



POULTRY. 



Dorkings. — Wo have perhaps seen one or two finer shows, 

 mil on the whole there was a grand collection of birds, and the 

 standard was- high throughout all the class. First in Dark cocks 

 was a fine bird in size and shape, capital in colour and genera! 

 condition, but he had too much white in his tail, and was shaky 

 in his legs— a serious fault. Second was out of condition, and 

 canied his tail too far back, but had beautifully white feet. Third 

 a big bird in fair condition, but gouty. The class for hens was 

 in our opinion the best of the Dark DorkiDg classes. The cup 

 went to a bird quite to our fancy, moderately dark in colour, 

 large without being coarse in bone, and in admirable condition; 

 second, a fine hen with a broad tail, a point which we admire, 

 as such birds breed cocks with good sicKles, she was not quite 

 so white in feet or so blooming in condition as the first; third, 

 a very loDg hen, the shape for a stock bird, lighter in colour 

 than Mr. Burnell generally shows. Various other hens were 

 well worthy of honour and remark. We specially noted 16 (Mrs. 

 Eadclyffe), a gocd white-footed hen; 20 (Walker), very large 

 but with a double toenail, and a little gouty ; 26 (Burnell), very 

 rich in colour; 29 (Mr. Sapwell), very white in feet, and light 

 in condition though Bniall. As a class the hens were in good 

 condition, and we were pleased to see prizes again going to hens 

 of moderate darkness in colour, for we believe that the prevalent 

 tooiy feet have some connection with very dark plumage. 

 Cockerels were in our opinion the next best class to the hens, 

 and the cup went to a grand and massive bird, lightish in 

 colour with perfect comb and fine broad black sickles ; his only 

 fault is that his fifth toes does not turn up. Second, a capital 

 bird, dark in colour with white in tail; his feet are good, but he 

 has not the breadth of the cup bird. Third, a blooming dark 

 cockerel again. Fourth, a well-shaped dark bird with white in 

 tail and bronze on wings, his feet very white. Fifth, a good 

 bird all round, with brown on the wing again. There were many 

 oilier capital birds among the forty-six. We noticed 33 (Ellis), 

 a tall white-footed bird, as yet a little raw; 36 (Lord Turncur), 

 a thorough Dorking in shape; 59 (Beachey), a big dark bird, 

 spurs not well inside; 68 (Beachey), good, but white in ears; 

 73 (Rev. H. F. Hamilton), a pretty bird. The pullets, thirty-five 

 in number, we did not think equal to the cockerels. First was 

 not in good condition, and we did not agree with the award. 

 Second a very dark bird with very white feet, but with no other 

 merit. Third, a moderate bird, rather dark in feet. Fourth, a 

 decidedly fine pullet. Fifth, good in frame. We liked 88 

 i, Burnell); 93 (Parlett), a capital bird all round; 99 (Barker), 

 though her feet are too dark ; 102, a big bird (the Duchess of 

 Hamilton) ; 111 (Lingwood), large in frame. 



Silver-Grey cocks were bat a small class. FirBt, a very small 

 bird, we supposed his style procured him his place. Second, a 

 fine bird but with white in Eickle, and one spur not well inside. 



Third, the largest bird in this class, but not well through the 

 moult yet. The first hen is a magnificent bird, capital in 

 colour and square in body. Second a much smaller bird, an 

 old-faBhioned Dorking in form. Third, a capital matoh for the 

 first in shape, but very inferior to her in colour ; 123 (Cresswell) 

 the cup-winner at various previous shows, we much preferred to 

 her owner's prize bird. Cockerels. — First a noble-looking bird 

 with good comb. Second a well-shaped Dorking, but not in the 

 condition of the first. Third a promising young bird, but very 

 inferior to its owner's highly commended one. Pullets. — First a 

 beautiful pullet all round, white in feet, silvery in general colour 

 and deep in breast colour; she was claimed for ±'12, as was her 

 owner's unnoticed pullet for the same sum. We have never 

 before heard of two Silver-Grey pullets fetching so large a sum 

 as i'24. Second, a fine large pullet, a little mixy in colour. 

 Third a very fair bird; 140 (Plummer), good but dusky in feet; 

 148 (Burnell), large, but in the moult. 



Cuckoos were shown in pairs ; there seems at last to be some 

 improvement in this breed. First were a pair of chickenB good 

 in all points. The second pen contained a very dark cockerel, 

 good in Bhape, but with an ugly double spike behind his comb. 

 Third, old birdB, the c ck rather coarse but very large; 169 

 (Young), cockerel good in comb and worth notice; 170 (Lady 

 G. Gordon), very young and promising chickens. 



Whites were not quite so numerous as last year, but good and 

 well shown. In c:cks first was a young bird, second at Oxford, 

 when we especially mentioned him as admirable in Ehape; un- 

 fortunately he is turning yellow. Second, a fine cock, not through 

 the moult and wiih the yellow sap still much in his feathers. 

 Third, a small cock but very white. HenB were a better class 

 than the cocks. First-and-cup, a lovely old bird — the cup bird 

 too last year — we never saw a better. Second, another grand 

 hen, a good match for the first. Third, a pullet upon which 

 we remarked favourably at Oxford ; 189 (Darby), square and 

 good in shape; 192 (Hayne), also a good Doiking. There waB 

 a five-guinea Selling class containing some very fair specimens, 

 but snch bargains are gent rally delusive. 



Bkahhas, Dark. — First, a grand old bird, good all round, the 

 one of which " W." spoke so highly in Mr. Lingwood's "Basse- 

 cceur.' Second, a magnificent bird in capital condi.ion with 

 good broad hackle stripes, but disfigured by abad comb. Third, 

 hocked, not very good in colour, but with attractive wing-bars. 

 Fourth, a broad, deep, and massive bird but in poor condition. 

 Fifth, a small fairly-shaped bird with a horrid comb. We cer- 

 tainly Bhould have put Mr. Ansdell's bird about third in the 

 list, for he is a grand fellow all round, though certainly at pre- 

 sent out of condition. In hena the cup went to an exquisitely 

 pencilled bird, but rather brown and teriibly scaly ia feet. Se- 

 cond, a fine bird, dark all over, with rather blunt pencilling, 

 a little deficient in leg-feathering. Third, better pencilled on 

 the breast than elsewhere. Fourth, too heavily feathered, with 

 beautifully pencilled breast, but a little mixy on the wing. We 

 thought 554 (Newnham & Manby) and 564 (J. F. Smith) two 

 very good hens. In cockerels Mr. Lingwood is in his old place ; 

 the cup bird is one of the real Creeting type, somewhat hocked 

 and high in tail, but with small highly bred head. Second, 

 smaller, but in point very even with first. Third, a severely 

 plccked bird. Long before the awards were given out we ex- 

 claimed on casually passing this bird at his plucked appear- 

 ance, for the business had not been artistically done, and the 

 exposed white ncder-do*-n easily betrayed it. How the Judge 

 did not at once find it ont we cannot comprehend; subsequently 

 on a protest being entered against the award, the bird was dis- 

 qualified and the prize forfeited. Fourth, a little long on leg. 

 Fifth, very peculiar in tail. Sixth, a well-shaped bird for breed- 

 ing, but too yellow. Seventh decidedly bad in comb, otherwise 

 a good bird, well grown tail and good orange legs. Beyond the 

 winner there were very few we much cared for in this class. 

 The mottled-breasted cockerels (when really mottled) were as 

 last year decidedly inferior in the points to the Black-breasted 

 birds ; their price seemed in most cases low. FirBt was a capital 

 bird with curling hock feathers, but not really mottled. Se- 

 cond, prettily mottled. Third, a fine bird; 600 (Gamer), un- 

 noticed and good. Pallets.— We must say we did not think the 

 cup-winner by any means the best bird in this class ; she is 

 certainly good in shape but very small ; her pencilling is really 

 black, and ground colonr white. Second, a fine large pullet, re- 

 markably well-pencilled on back. Third, hocked, very dark all 

 over with good breast. Fourth, slightly hocked, with silver 

 ground colour, and very pretty round pencilling, rather brown 

 on the back. Fifth, neat small pencilling but rather light on 

 breast. Sixth, evenly-marked. Seventh, Eplendid in pencilling 

 but rather narrow in body, and with a slipped wing. There 

 were many remarkable birds in this class beBidea the winners; 

 6i3, very highlv commended (Lingwood), well pencilled but a 

 little leggy ; 650 (Lingwood), spoilt by different pencillings being 

 combined; 654 (Pearson), should have been noticed; 655 

 (Peake), very pretty ; 673 (Peake), very dark and good in breast ; 

 682 (Newnham & Manbj), fine in shape ; 694 (Mrs. A. Tindal), 

 wonderful in pencilling, but almost devoid of leg-feathering. 



