July 18, 1872. ] 



JOUBNAL OF HORTICULTTJBE AND COTTAGE GABDENEB. 



G9 



Turkeys.— 1, J. B. Underwood, "Warming ton. 2, M. Kew, Market Overton. 

 he, Mrs. Baker, Barnwell Mills. 



Pigeons. — 1 and 2, H. Yardlev f Almonds, Bl*ck and Yellow Barbs, Dun 

 Carriers, Tintrettes, and Blue Pouters). 



Rabbits.— Heaviest— 1, W. Smith, Oundle. 2, H. P. "Wakefield, Thrapston- 

 Lop-eared.— -1. J. E. Palmer, Peterborough. 2, E. H. Wakefield, lie, W. Smith- 

 Fancy Yarn-tit— 1, T. Adams, Northampton (Antrora). 2, W. Smith (Hima- 

 layan), he, C. Tassell (2). c, T. Love, Kingsthorpe ; W. G. Haucock, Northampton. 



Mr. Hewitt, of Sparkhrook, Birmingham was the Judge. 



BABBITS AND CAGE BIKDS AT BOSTON 

 POULTRY SHOW. 

 We append a list of the awards in these classes, as it did not 

 ■arrive with the rest of our report published last week. 



RABBITS. 



Lop-EiRRD — 1, H. Cawood. 2, J. E. Palmer, he, A. H. Easten. c, J. E. 

 Palmer; F. Pocklington. 



Belgian Hare (or any other pure breed) — 1, H. Dykes (Silver-Grey). 2, E. 

 S. Smith (Belgian Hare). 3, A. H. fasten (Himalayan), 



Heaviest.— 1, F. Hildrea. 2 and 3, M. Taylor. 

 CAGE BIRDS. 



Grey Parrot.— 1, J. S. Harrison. 2, — Ross, he, C. P. Gibson'; — Spikins. 

 Yarie gated. — 1, Miss Jenkins. 



Parhoquet or Lorry.— 1, — Swanu. 2, H. Dykes. 



Canary.— 1, J. H, Thomas. 2, G N. Harrison, he, W. Caister, iun. Mule.— 

 1, H. J.'Waite. 2, Mrs. Bailey, he. J. S. Cater; G. N. Harrison: t. H.Dows. 



Linnet, Goldfinch, or any other English Fikch.— 1, G.N.Harrison. 2, G. 

 Scales 



Lark.— 1, T. Hobiter. 2, J. T. Muschanip. he, B. Dobson ; J. T. Muschainp. 



Thrush.— 1, B. Hayes. 2, J. Brewer. 



Blackbird.— 1, W. A. Johnson. 2, J. Queenborough. 



EABBITS AND CATS AT THE SCOTTISH 

 METROPOLITAN SHOW. 



At this Show there was the most numerous and "valuable 

 collection of Babbits ever collected at Edinburgh. Mr. Billett, 

 naturalist, of Southampton, had the management of the Exhi- 

 bition, and his arrangements were all that could be desired 

 as regards the size of the pens (2 feet 6 inches), the feeding, and 

 the general comfort of the specimens, some of which were four 

 hundred miles from home. One fact seems to have been proved 

 by this Exhibition — viz., that a very small portion of the Babbits 

 — not one-tenth, were from Scottish exhibitors, nor, w r e believe, 

 was a single prize awarded to any exhibitor north of the Tweed. 

 "We state this merely to show that fancy Babbits have not as yet 

 been reared in Scotland as pets to any considerable extent, but 

 we have no hesitation in saying that from the interest taken in 

 them during the two days of the Show, more than one observer 

 ■would add some of the varieties to his stock. It was gratifying 

 to find that all the varieties were represented and classified in 

 the most varied manner. 



The Lops were arranged in five classes, each containing some 

 of the best specimens ever exhibited, and on looking over the 

 prize list little requires to be said as to their respective merits. 

 The thirty Lops were specimens of great value, with the desir- 

 able length of ear (some nearly 23 inches), almost perfection in 

 marking, of large size, and of symmetrical shape. 



All the other classes were represented by good specimens ; 

 for instance, the Angoras were " well woolled " in most instances, 

 and one or two very large. They were well prepared for exhi- 

 bition, and beautifully clean. The Himalayans were quite equal 

 to what we generally see, and some, probably, a little beyond ; 

 as were also the Dutch — some of them of a clear-bright colour, 

 with the requisite markings of white. The Silver-G-reys were 

 perhaps not so large in some instances as they have been seen 

 before ; yet they possessed all the essentials of the breed, and 

 Were very general in the silvering, and this, in our opinion, is 

 very important. "We regret that more Belgian Hare Babbits 

 were not brought forward to compare with the splendid speci- 

 mens of Mr. Irving, of Blackburn. The Any other variety 

 class contained some fine Patagonians, and the first-prize 

 Babbit was of great size. The second prize was awarded to a 

 Silver Cream, and the third to a pretty Siberian. A Polish 

 Babbit was also shown by the same exhibitor. 



The Babbits were, with one or two slight exceptions, in ex- 

 cellent health. The longest-eared Babbit was 22j inches by 4|, 

 and some others exhibited were of almost equal length by pain- 

 less measurement. Here we may remark that great praise 

 was due to Mr. J. M. D. Brown, to whom the inhabitants of 

 Edinburgh are indebted for the Show, which was projected and 

 carried out in little more than a month. 



Some 172 Cats were entered in forty-seven classes. The 

 arrangements made for them were comfortable, each Cat having 

 a pen about 2 feet 6 inches square ; and a scarlet cushion with 

 blue tassels imparted a clean and happy look to the inmates, 

 who were supplied liberally with food and new milk. "We 

 need not say they excited much interest, especially amongst 

 the ladies. In judging, great consideration and care were 

 exercised, and many special prizes were awarded. Most of the 

 specimens were local, yet some were forwarded from the south 



of England and other parts. The heaviest animal exhibited 

 weighed 20 lbs. The exhibition of Cats was a great success. 

 "We published the awards and names of the Judges last week. 



BEE MANAGEMENT. 



The letter from which you published extracts on the 6th June 

 last, showing a convenient mode of forming guides to frames, 

 and an easy means of imparting warmth to a chilled stock and 

 expelling dampness from it, originally appeared in the " English 

 Mechanic and "World of Science," on December 29th, 1871. — 

 [The source from which it was derived was duly acknowledged. 

 — Eds.] The sketch of the knife-guage was given by me because 

 I thought it an excellent thing for the purpose, and that it 

 might be of service to amateurs. Your correspondent " Novice " 

 gratuitously says it is not new, and I shall not quarrel with him 

 on that score, for nothing is new under the sun. I wonder 

 " Novice " is "staggered" at the warming apparatus for winter ; 

 his witt}* brain could surely have invented something more like 

 it than the poor countryman's hot stones in summer — some- 

 thing, indeed, that would have been as much superior to it as 

 his zinc guage is to my steel one, for it is as easy to invent a 

 thing after someone else has published it as it is to prophesy 

 after an event has happened. " Novice " does not give one 

 single reason why the thing ought not to answer, but contents 

 himself with ridicule, and loftily proposes "the destruction of 

 the few remaining bees." But killing is not curing; and killing 

 in my case would have lost me the services of a valuable Ligu- 

 rian queen, as well as the "few remaining bees," which this 

 spring led off a very fine swarm for which I readily obtained 

 two guineas ; the hive also threw off a cast, which is now filling 

 two bell-glasses. I raised several queens from the cells in the 

 hive, and the few remaining bees are now filling a Woodbury 

 super. 



" Novice " talks of autumn feeding, a matter which I perfectly 

 understand ; and if he understood it half as well he would know 

 that autumn feeding is in many cases the cause of dysentery. 

 The case I alluded to was one in which no autumn feeding had 

 been required ; and was rather puzzling, as the bees were in a 

 hive with straw-panelled sides and top, and ought not to have 

 required extra ventilation. Can "Novice" suggest the cause 

 of dysentery in that hive ? and can he suggest a better means 

 of cure than that which succeeded so well not only in that case 

 but in several others ? Dysentery is a disease which does not 

 discover itself until a great deal of mischief has been done, and 

 dead bees and filth at the month of the hive do not always indi- 

 cate the extent of the evil. No matter how caused, if dysentery 

 exists what is the best remedy ? Simple syrup, so say the bee 

 books ; but they do not tell one how to make bees take it with 

 the thermometer at 19°, nor do they tell one that dead and fetid 

 bees up in the combs are the main causes of the continuance of 

 the disease. 



My invention is not for sale ; it was offered to the public 

 through the " Mechanic " gratis, as a machine my experience 

 could vouch for as invaluable to a bee-keeper at his wit's end. — 

 C. N. Abbott, Hanwell, W. 



FOUL BROOD. 



I have to report a case of foul brood in the only hive I 

 keep. The hive was a large wooden box, containing eighteen 

 frames, and had a Ligurian queen at its head. Last summer 

 the population was very strong and filled the hive. I was 

 about to leave home for two months, and I attempted to make 

 an artificial swarm. I removed the queen and some four or five 

 frames, leaving, as I thought, plenty of worker brood. I noticed 

 that the bees built drone comb only, and I examined the hive 

 along with a well-known bee-master in Edinburgh. We found 

 royal cells, but all tenanted by drones. I then put in worker 

 eggs, and left home ; when I returned the old hive was empty 

 of bees. The new hive looked pretty well. I saw no signs of 

 foul brood. This spring, however, the increase of bees was very 

 small. I fancied it was the cold weather, but in the middle of 

 May an examination was made, and foul brood was discovered. 

 I took away all the comb, gave the bees fresh frames, and put 

 them into a clean hive for a week. They made, during this 

 week, a bit of comb the size of a walnut. I then put them into 

 a unicomb hive with a fresh frame, and a bit of clean old comb 

 which had not been near the bees. At first they were active, 

 but they gradually became weaker and weaker. I sent the hive 

 to a friend, a well-known bee-master, and foul brood is worse 

 than ever. 



I cannot account for this outbreak ; there were no bees near 

 mine, as far as I know ; they had two removes into clean hives, 

 and yet they carried it with them. I attribute it in some way 

 to the attempt I made to make an artificial swarm, but the bees 

 wintered well, and there were a good number of bees this spring. 

 Can any of your correspondents give their opinion as to how 

 this has been brought about ? I have now handed over the 



