2sa 



JOUKNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ October i, 1877. 



was slowly recovered by the doctor hia first words were, 

 " Where's my far cap ? " 



Beware of a man who wears a far cap, especially if he has 

 little leering red eyea. If he ia an undersized man he is a crafty 

 rogne, if a big man he is burglariously inclined. " Fur cap " 

 puts the first bird into the trap, which being suddenly opened 

 reveals the poor scared thing standing on the little platform 

 and too frightened to move. Driven away with stones it flies 

 straight towards the shooter, and towards death ; happy bird, 

 one shot and dead. Not so other birds. They are not so fortu- 

 nate, the shooter misses or he wounds only ; a few feathers fall, 

 but the bird flies on. "Was there but one gun the matter would 

 not have been so bad and the contest not so unfair, but oat of 

 the marked ground in fields all round were scouts — hobble-de- 

 hoys armed with all sorts of rusty guns. The poor escaped or 

 wounded birds have to run the gauutlet of these; bang, bang all 

 round, and continuously. Some of the birds that were out of 

 reach get across back again, and are again into the fire, so con- 

 fused are they ; of course, there are some Pigeons — the cleverer 

 fliers, probably half-bred Dragoons or Skinnums — who, on being 

 missed by the shooter, rise clear up, and being above the shot of 

 the scouts go off straight to their homes. I knew one such bird 

 in another part of England who was sold every winter for the 

 shooting, and always came back untouched. The farmer used 

 to look out for him soon after the shooting began and watch 

 him fly back, and call the children with, " Here's our old Tom 

 back again." But snch luck is very rare. 



But to return to the match at which I was present. I stood 

 usually near to the shooters, two of whom were very much the 

 observed of us all. One— ^a low class man who had married a 

 widow with good means, and whose " get up " was of most elabo 

 rate sporting style then in vogue ; poor fellow ! he soon after got 

 to his regular pint of brandy a-day besides other drinks, and of 

 course he died. But another, and the very best shot there, was 

 still more noticed by us boys, for some years before he had been 

 at our school. He was now just of age, and had come in for a 

 considerable property, soon alas ! to be all rnn through. Then 

 there were the sporting tailors and shoemakers, &c, who were 

 betting pence on either gun or bird ; and quarrels consequent 

 upon the betting till the whole air rang with bad language. As 

 to pleasure, nobody seemed pleased unless it was some scout who 

 had managed to bag a Pigeon or two. Towards afternoon the 

 cold and damp with the wind came up from the fens, and we 

 boys, even with handB in pocket and jackets buttoned-up, 

 shivered to the bone. Oh ! these dreary ugly old fens ! how the 

 cold damp of them seemed to enter into one's limbs, how the 

 water mills turned by the wind seemed as evening came on (I 

 have counted twenty-five from one Bite) to grow bigger until 

 they had a weird, uncanny, ghostly look, and I go home 

 hungry, cold, and unhappy. Why unhappy ? Because I had 

 witnessed cruelty to poor birds — shameful cruelty, unfairness 

 to the poor things ; and then what had I heard and seen around ? 

 — bad language, drunken blood-shot eyes, and bloated faces. 



Are Pigeon matches now-a-dayB sb bad as this? Some may 

 be, though manners and morals are better than formerly. But 

 there has come another feature — women attend them. Ladies, 

 dainty ladies, whom a drop of blood affrights, give their presence, 

 and they go to what has been called in refined words " a tourna- 

 ment of Doves." A wrong title, for a tournament means a mock 

 encounter, and it is the reverse to the poor Pigeons. Legitimate 

 sport there is among the stubbles on an English September on 

 the hills after the grouse; but a Pigeon match is not fair sport 

 — cruelty before it begins in the crowded hampers, cruelty at 

 the time, and cruel suffering to the poor wounded birds after- 

 wards as they sit moping and miserable in their lofts. Would 

 that all felt what I a boy felt — shame and disgust; and did as I 

 did, never be present at another match. — Wiltshire Rectok. 



BEES AT FLOWER SHOWS. 



The experiment of holding a bee and honey exhibition in con- 

 junction with flowers and fruit has during the present year been 

 tried with unvarying success at Weston-super-Mare, Taunton, 

 Dorchester, Wolverhampton, Sherborne, Carlisle, Grantham, 

 Berkbampsted, and at least half a dozen other places, and has 

 tended not a little to add to the interest and enjoyment of the 

 day ; and it is astonishing what a great attraction an observatory 

 hive of living bees is to the general public, I may safely say not 

 surpassed by the finest dish of fruit or flowers. In many prize 

 schedules of small provincial showB it is customary to offer a 

 trifling prize for honey, rightly considered a floral production; 

 and ii the committees would extend their honey prizes and open 

 them to all comers I feel sure they would make a move in the 

 right direction, and, with an exhibition of hives added, do 

 much towards placiDg before their poorer neighbours a means 

 of increasing the family income. At most of the &hows I have 

 mentioned practical demonstrations of driving, artificial swarm- 

 ing, transferring, &c, have been given, the spectators beiug 

 fenced off from the flyiDg bees by a gauze screen ; but in some 

 instances, so eager has been the curiosity of the crowd, that the 



slight barrier has been demolished without any apparent penalty 

 being enforced by the disturbed bees. Indeed at Berkhampsted, 

 where I was the manipulator, we had no screen whatever. I 

 drove the bees from their full hive to an empty one and after- 

 wards returned them, closely Burrounded on all sides by an 

 eager and curious crowd, some of whom readily became my 

 asBistantB unprotected by either veil or gloves, and I heard no 

 single complaint of a sting being used. After my exposition an 

 old man remarked to me, "Well, sir, I have taken up bees 

 many years with brimstone, but after what you have shown us 

 I hope to try next time to do as you have done to-day." 



Country gentlemen who have learnt to handle bees fearlessly 

 are now numerous and widely scattered. They would do much 

 in the cause of bee culture if they would inaugurate bee shows, 

 in conjunction with flower shows or not, in their various locali- 

 ties ; and if the want of funds stands in the way, then let a 

 small charge for the bees be made, and it will be found readily- 

 met. At Ealing Horticultural Show this season no provision 

 had been made for bees, but I placed an observatory hive on 

 the table, and such was the interest excited that before the day 

 closed the Committee resolved to have a bee Bhow next year as 

 an auxiliary to that of the fruit and flowers.— John Huntee, 

 Eaton Rise, Ealing. 



OUR LETTER BOX. 



Addresses (A. B. C.).— We do not know those which you ask for. Write 

 to the Secretary of the show. 



TJ.viTrsG Stocks (Anxious).— You have nothing to fear, as both the hives 

 you name are in pretty good condition for the winter. Contract their doors, 

 keep them warm and dry, and look forward to next year for a Rood return 

 from them. The best way of uniting swarmg is occasionally discussed in 

 our columns. 



METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS. 



Camden Square, London. 



Lat.51°32-40" N.; Long. 0- 8' 0" W. ; Altitude, 111 feet. 



Bate. 



9 A.JI. 



In the Day. 









Hygrome- 



a . 



= "3« 



Shade Tem- 



Radiation 



.9 



Sept. 



ter. 







perature. 



Temperature. 



« 



and 











In 



On 





Oct. 





Dry. 



Wet. 



So 



H 



Max. 



Min. 



sun. 



grass. 







Inch e 8 



deg. 



deg. 





deg. 



deg. 



deg. 



deg. 



deg. 



In. 



We. 26 



SO 277 



51.3 



50 1 



w. 



51.4 



64 



45.5 



99.5 



43 6 





Th. 27 



30.399 



44 5 



44.3 



w. 



51.1 



60.2 



38 2 



99 3 



35 7 





Fri. 28 



30.363 



50 3 



49.3 



N. 



50.8 



64.4 



39.2 



102 6 



35.0 





Sat. 29 



32 267 



4S.3 



48.S 



N. 



53.9 



64.9 



42 



103.0 



37.8 





Sun 30 



30.189 



55 



50 9 



N.E. 



51 2 



65.9 



43.4 



106.7 



38 2 





Mo. 1 



SO 193 



51.1 



49.1 



N. 



51.1 



63.3 



44 6 



99.2 



40.1 







Tu. 2 



B0.03J 



45.1 

 49.4 



45.3 



N. 



51.5 



61.5 

 63.5 



88.3 



100.3 



34.2 



— 



Means 



3. '.253 



48.2 





516 



41.6 



101.5 



S7.8 





REMARKS. 

 26th. — Grey early, bat fine forenoon, and bright all day ; rather loss so at 



night. 

 27th. — Dense fog all the forenoon, clearing off about 1 p.m.; very pleasant 



afternoon and evening. 

 28'h. — Very fine all day, though slightly cloudy about 1p.m. 

 29th. — "Very bright and fine all day. 

 30th. — Br'ght, fine, and fresh all day. 

 1st. — Another bright autumnal day. 



2n I. — Hazy at 9 a.m., but soon followed by bright sunshine all day. 

 Fine autumnal week. Slight fogs in morning and evening, but not a drop 

 of rain.— G. J. Symons. 



COYENT GARDEN MARKET.— October 3. 

 There is scarcely anything of importance to quote this 'week, the supply 

 of goods being much the same as previously, and trade quiet. 



Apples £ sieve 



Figs dozen 



Filberts lb. U 



Cobs lb. 



Grapes, hothouse.. lb. 1 



Melons each 1 



Nectarines doz, i 



s. d. s. 

 2 6 to 3 

 10 3 



s. d. b. d 



Oran<re3 ^100 10 0tol6 



Peaches doz. S 24 



Pears, kitchen,. dozen 10 8 



dessert dozen 2 4 



PineApples lb 5 8 



Plums i sieve 10 12 



Walnuts.... bushel 5 8 



VEGETABLES. 



Artichokes dozen 



Beans, Kidney., bu-diel 



Beet. Red dozen 



Broccoli bun . le 



BruHHela Sprouts 4 sieve 



Cabbage dozen 



Carrots bunch 



Capsicums ^ W0 



Cauliflowers .... dozen 



Celery bundle 



Ci'lrwnvts doz. bundles 



Cucumbers 

 Endive . 

 Fennel.. 

 Gavlio .., 

 Htrba .., 

 ttuce 



each 

 dozen 

 bunch 

 lb 

 bunch 

 dozen 

 Leeks bunch 



Mushrooms .... 

 Mustard & Cress 

 Onions 



pickling 



Parsley.... doz. 



Parsnips 



Peas 



Potatoes 



Kidney 



Ratlinhes.. doz 



Khnbarb 



Salsafy 



Scorzonera ..., 



Seakale 



Shallots 



Spinach 



Turnips 



Ye;; Marrows.. 



s. d. s. d 

 pottle 1 6 to 2 



punnet 2 



quart 



bunches 



dozen 



quart 6 



bushel 



bushel 



bunches 



bundle 



bundle 



bundle 1 



basket 



lb. 



bu-hel 2 



bunch 



each 



