November 29, 1877. ] 



JOURNAL. OF HOB TIC ULT ORB AND COTTAGE GAKDENEK. 



429 



adoption of a suitable trongh, Then, again, a Babbit frequently 

 refuses its food, and loses its flesh Bimply because the food, 

 which may be of the best quality, is improperly served. The 

 time has passed when it was considered that anything would do 

 for a Rabbit, and fancierB have learned or are beginning to learn 

 that economy in small things is a necessary adjunct to success. 

 Below we give several specimens of Rabbit troughs, some ori- 

 ginal, and some improvements of the kinds now extant. 



The commonest troughs are square or oblong boxes without 

 any protection, and saucers or flower-diBhes. The former are 

 Boon destroyed and made obnoxiouB by the Rabbit squatting in 

 them. The latter are much worse. All the inhabitants of the 

 hutoh, young or old, seem to consider them lawful places for 

 xeposing in, and, moreover, to look upon them as improvements 

 in the sanitary line. It is not long before any food in them iB 

 converted into filth, and if not remedied the Rabbit will Boon 

 lose health. 



The best and simplest kind of trough is perhaps that made of 

 zinc and wood, the former forming the trongh itself, and the 

 latter the Bide pieces. The zinc should be bent into a semi- 

 circle, the half tunnel thus formed to be 9 inches long and 

 34 inches across the top. The Bide pieces should be made Bquare 

 so as to keep the trough from falling over. There will now be a 

 feeding diBh capable of holding enough food for half a day for a 

 doe and large litter of young. If left as made it would not be 

 economical, as the food would soon be scratched out and the 

 Rabbits get into the trough. To remedy this, bore four holes in 

 the zinc opposite one another, and lace them with copper wire of 

 a good thickness. If laced across one another so as to form a 

 kind of latticework it will be best, bnt care must be taken to 

 leave apertures large enough for the nose of a large Rabbit to go 

 through, but too small to allow a young Rabbit to crawl be- 

 tween. The wires should be laced at each passing for extra 

 strength. To affix the zinc to the wood it is beBt to cut the 

 former longer than necessary, and turn half an inch over at each 

 end, which can be nailed to the wood with tacks. A good car- 

 penter could make it watertight, but an amateur hardly could, 

 and it should hence be UBed for dry food only. A trough of this 

 description will not coBt more than a common one, and it will 

 last a lifetime. As it is of a really lasting kind it will pay to 

 spend a few extra pence in purchasing a piece of really good 

 wood for the sides, as deal or pine is very apt to be split or 

 weakened in the making. To keep it from being overturned 

 foore a hole in the side of the hutch and insert a piece of wire in 

 the form of a hook. ThiB can be affixed to one or more of the 

 troughs. 



Another kind of trough is a Bimple wooden box made the ne- 

 -oeBsary size and covered with wires in a similar manner to that 

 ■described above, or wires of a stronger nature may be affixed 

 longitudinally about 2 inches apart, so that if the trough were 

 4 inches across a wire should be fixed an inch from each side. 

 The cost of making a trough of this description will be but the 

 smallest trifle under the one first described, and it will be quite 

 as much trouble. It will not, however, last so long, as it is more 

 difficult to cleanse it, and be as careful as possible it will get 

 tainted by use. This should be fastened to the side of the hutch 

 in the same way as already described. 



For a watertight trongh a sheet of zinc should be obtained 

 and bent in the proper shape, the sides and joints being ham- 

 mered too tightly to allow any leakage. 



These troughB will be found to answer every purpose for does 

 with litter or batches of young Rabbits, but they would be un- 

 necessarily large and cumbersome for a Bingle buck Rabbit. For 

 him the easiest and perhaps the most serviceable trough is 

 made of zinc in a circular shape, the edges being all turned over 

 a thin iron bar for the sake of strength. The trough should be 

 'fixed to the bottom of the hutch by a couple of strong nails. To 

 prevent the food being scratched out make the sides 3 inches 

 high, and let them slightly converge towards the bottom. 

 These troughs will be found cheap and effective. — Geta. 



The BrKMiNGHAir Cattle and Poultry Show. — A consider- 

 able portion of the exhibits for this, the twenty-ninth annual 

 Show, are now in Bingley Hall, and ready for the inspection of 

 the Judges on Saturday, December 1st. The entries of roots 

 «,nd potatoes show a large increase. The applications for space 

 from implement manufacturers are larger than ever before 

 known, and many have been declined ; others cut down to very 

 small proportions. The poultry number 2700 pens, and the 

 Council have found it necessary to hire 500 additional pens for 

 their reception. Among the exhibitors are Her Majesty the 

 Queen, H.R.H. the Prince of Wales, the Dukes of Buckingham, 

 Marlborough, Portland, Northumberland, and Sutherland ; the 

 Countess of Chesterfield, Countess of Dartmouth, Earl of Lons- 

 dale, Earl of Crawford and Balcarres, Earl of Bllesmere, Lord 

 Ealmontb, Lord Chesham, Earl of Galloway, Earl of Harrington, 

 lord Leigh, Lord Lovat, Earl of Powis, Lord Tredegar, Lord 

 Waleingham, Sir Watkin Wynn, Mr. McCombie, the Corporation 

 of Birmingham, &c. As usual, the judging will take place on 

 Saturday, when the charge for admission is 10s., life members 



only having free passes ; on Monday the charge is 5s., subscribers' 

 tickets being available. The others are Is. days, a concession 

 being made on the last two evenings in favour of the working 

 classes, by reduoing the payment on entrance to Gd. 



NOTES ON CANARIES. 



I have often been asked to recommend the sort of Canary to 

 make the beBt cage songster. One's idea at once inolines towards 

 the German songster, but unfortunately such is the brief dura- 

 tion of life that no dependance can be placed upon any purchased 

 bird passing through the moulting sickneBS and again breaking 

 forth into song equal to that when first obtained. Like the 

 Nightingale, appearances do not favour the German bird, which 

 possesses only a moderate garb compared with many of its con- 

 geners. The disappointment, no doubt, is great to those who 

 invest their money in purchasing a really first-rate German 

 songster, to find that after a brief seaBon the bird becomeB 

 silent. To please the ear and the eye what can Buffice better 

 than one of our charming-bred Norwich birds tutored iu its 

 youth under a German schoolmaster purchased in the spring of 

 the year? Norwich songBters possess both power and volubility 

 of voice, which when cultivated is sufficiently pleasing; and 

 more dependance can be placed upon the prolongation of life, 

 such birds generally being of robust constitution. Lizard 

 Canaries likewise are sweet songsters, but they are not so much 

 at call as Norwich, which latter breed possesses that much- 

 sought-for colour — " yellow." Everybody, at least ten out of 

 a dozen, wishes for a " yellow " bird, which is supposed to mean 

 clearly a bird without any blemishes — marks upon it. At least 

 that is the way it is interpreted by those outside the circle of 

 " the fancy." In many caseB where a marked Norwich may be 

 offered for Bale, the reply iB " I do not want a Mule." 



Now in making choice of a bird to gratify my own taste I 

 would choose a Mule proper — a cross betwixt a Goldfinch and 

 Canary, for the reason that you may obtain a greater variety 

 and change of notes from a young bird when brought up under 

 a good schoolmaster; and I have always looked upon Mule birds 

 of the above particular breed as being more vivacious and enter- 

 taining than a Canary. 



In maintaining and preserving the constitution of a healthy 

 cage songBter it should be kept in a well-ventilated atmosphere, 

 apart from a superabundance of artificial fire heat and from the 

 poiBonous fumes of gas. Thereby many good birds become 

 spoiled. Excessive heat brings about periodical moulting, and 

 thus arises the often-asked question " What is the reason of my 

 Canary giving over singiDg ?" 



In speaking of " German songsters " Mr. John Varley of 

 Nottingham, in his third edition of "Exhibition Canaries " 

 says : — " In autumn and the early part of winter every year a 

 very many trained, or partially trained little songsters, Canaries 

 and Bullfinches, are brought to England by German itinerant 

 dealers. These Canaries are a short plump race, with full wide 

 chests and very expansile throats while Binging, which last 

 property gives them the power to warble in an extraordinary 

 degree. They are mostly bred and trained by the peasantry of 

 the Hartz and Tyrol mountains, who keep and employ sets of 

 well-trained birds as schoolmasters. These schoolmasters con- 

 sist not of Canaries only, but also Nightingales, Blackcaps, and 

 other of our migratory and home warblers, which are thns used 

 for training Bullfinches to whistle tunes, which they often do 

 very proficiently and plaintively. These Hartz Canary song- 

 sters are not generally blessed with very pretty plumage, bat 

 their melodious sweetly modulated voices and free song more 

 than compensates for any want of beauty. Some of them have 

 an astonishing range of notes and deflectionB." 



Mr. Varley also Bays in reference to German birds : — " They 

 are not often exhibited as show birds, bnt are occasionally used 

 in prize song contests." In this latter remark I can bear out 

 Mr. Varley'B assertion so far as the Bhowing of them is con- 

 cerned. A bird more unlikely for exhibition I know not where 

 to find, although I have had many come under my notice in an 

 " Any other variety " class at the Crystal Palace bird shows. 



Mr. Varley in his interesting pamphlet gives the " rnles for 

 judging and determining superiority of song." He says : — ,: In 

 competing for superiority of song, quietude and reasonable dis- 

 tance from the birds to be kept; only one contesting bird should 

 sing at the same time, but the owner may have the privilege 

 of bringing another songster to stimulate his own to sing. The 

 time allowed in case of Canaries, Linnets, &c, should be no 

 longer than fifteen minutes, part of which may be in sight and 

 part out of Bight of the stimulator. Superiorities : — Greatest 

 number and variety of good notes; greatest harmony of song; 

 fewest harsh orincongraouB notes; greatest length of rolls or runs 

 on the same notes measured by seconds ; greatest length of time 

 without breaks, or least number of breaks in continuous song 

 within the given time. Harsh or otherwise bad notes to be 

 recorded by points against. Two judges, two time-keepers, an 

 umpire, and the owner or exhibitor of the bird or bis agent, 

 only to be in the room with the birds during the time of the 

 contest." 



