September 27, 1864. ] JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



265 



rules and regulations of the Show, and, indeed, in the form 

 of entry signed by Mr. Payne, it is expressly stated that his 

 entry was so made. That being so, it is in my opinion a 

 sufficient answer to Mr. Payne's claim as to the 3s., and 

 there is nothing whatever in the rules and regulations re- 

 quiring the defendants to give Mr. Payne the notice he con- 

 tends he was entitled to, and, therefore, his case as to the 

 3s. fails. And with respect to the 5s., the residue of the 

 claim, the following of the rules and regulations appear to 

 me material to the decision of the case— viz., "All exhibitors 

 will be required to pay 5s. per pen for each class exhibited, 

 which shall include coops, food, attendance, &c." And Rule 10, 

 "Persons entering poultry and failing to send the same to 

 the Exhibition will forfeit the entrance for each pen, ffic.j so 

 left vacant." Now coupling the rules I have quoted with 

 the words in the programme of the Dorking cock sweep- 

 stakes (after deducting 5s. from each entry, for hire of pens, 

 &c), it is. I think, perfectly clear that of Mi-. Payne's 7s. 6<i, 

 3s. 6d. only was his stake in the sweepstakes, and that the 

 remaining 5s. became absolutely and irrevocably appropriated 

 to the hire of pens, &c. The &c. being large enough and 

 general enough to include, and probably also intended to 

 include, a contribution to the general expenses of the Show ; 

 and the tenth rule also shows, in my opinion, that whether 

 the birds entered were exhibited or not, the 5s. at all events 

 were not to be returned, that being, in fact, the entrance 

 fee for each entry. 



Now, that being, in my opinion, the result to be deduced 

 from the rules, it is quite unnecessary for me to decide the 

 knotty point as to whether there was, in fact, a sweep- 

 stakes for Dorking cocks or not ; because if there was, Mr. 

 Payne won it, as was decided by the Judge of the Show, and 

 has received the prize. If there was not, Mr. Payne has 

 equally got back his stake — viz., the halfcrown, which is all 

 that he was entitled to on the failure of there being any 

 Dorking cock sweepstakes, if failure there was. 



I think, therefore, the defendants have paid Mr. Payne all 

 that he was entitled to receive under any aspect of the case, 

 and the judgment of the Court must be for them ; but as 

 Mr. Dallenger's letter* of May 30th was not exactly a fair 

 statement of the facts, and was calculated to produce a 

 wrong impression on Mr. Payne's mind, each party must 

 pay their own costs. 

 Judgment for the defendants without costs. 

 * [copy of letter referred to] 



" Ecclesia Chambers, 30th May, 186-1. 

 "Dear Sir, — I enclose yon 2s. Gd. in stamps for prize Dorking cockerel 

 sweepstaTtes. There was only one entry, and we retain os. for the pen. 



■' Your cock had the privilege of competing with the Dorking cocks 

 (Class 12) against Mr. Frost, Mr. Lingwood, and Mrs. Blair, but Mr. Frost 

 beat you. We thought it only fair, as there was only one entry for sweep- 

 stakes, that you 6hould be allowed to do so, and it was done, bat without 

 success. "Tonrs truly, " JNO. DALLENGER." 



"Mr. H. Payne, Stowmarkel." 



TUMBLEES NOT FLYING. 



About four months ago I purchased half a dozen high- 

 flying young Tumblers, which when I turned out flew so 

 high as to go out of sight, and they generally were about an 

 hour before they descended ; but since that they seem to 

 have been gradually growing worse and worse in their flying, 

 and now they never fly more than ten or fifteen minutes, 

 yet I know that those belonging to the vendor fly for two or 

 three, and sometimes four or five hours without alighting, 

 and he said that mine would do the same when they grew 

 older. Will you tell me the reason of their not doing so, 

 and the remedy ? I only let them out once a-day, and some- 

 times not at all, so that it cannct be through having too 

 much liberty. Last week I shot half a dozen commoner 

 ones for the table, and they being in very good condition, I 

 thought perhaps I might be feeding the Tumblers too well, 

 sd I gave them less food, but as yet it has made no diffe- 

 rence.— A Subscriber. 



[I think that you allow your flying Tumblers to associate 

 •with common Pigeons, and as the old proverb asserts, 

 ". Evil communications corrupt good manners," your Tumb- 

 lers learn to imitate the habits of the common birds. I 

 would advise you either to kill off all the common Pigeons, or 

 to keep them confined until the Tumblers have had their daily 



fly. If your Pigeons are too fat more exercise will reduce 

 them to proper condition. Weather permitting, make them 

 fly every day, and keep them to it until they are again in 

 good training, and then be careful that they do not relapse 

 into idleness. They cannot be fed too well when they are 

 in training, and have regular daily exercise. Peas, Indian 

 corn, and lentils, are variously recommended as the best 

 food for flying on, and a little hempseed just at starting ; 

 but the Pigeons must not be turned out too full. You will, 

 perhaps, have some trouble to make the Pigeons keep up at 

 first, but you must not expect to succeed unless you attend 

 them regularly. — B. P. Brent.] 



WINTEEING A CUCKOO. 



I perceive one of your correspondents is very anxious to 

 preserve through the winter, alive and in health, a young 

 cuckoo which he has reared this summer. 



I have not myself any fear that this may be easily effected 

 by proper care, as I, when a youth, kept both the cuckoo 

 and the corncrake the year round. I had both when quite 

 young. The cuckoo I fed at first on raw meat and boiled eggs, 

 of which it always ate ravenously during the time it was in 

 my possession — viz., until the 26th of April, being very nearly 

 a year old. It then escaped by the neglect of a servant, its 

 health and plumage being perfect, for, singularly enough, it 

 moulted to adult feather during February. 



The meat it preferred was either sheep's heart or sheep's 

 kidney cut into moderate-sized pieces, of which it consumed 

 considerable quantities. Until the November of 1828 it had 

 the free range of a large back unoccupied attic. Severe 

 weather then setting in, this bird was placed in a throstle's 

 wicker cage near the fire in the kitchen, and as it at that 

 time seemed very listless and drooping, possibly in part 

 from being more closely confined, it was then supplied with 

 an occasional treat of " mealworms " from a flour mill in 

 the neighbourhood. The moment it saw mealworms it ate 

 heartily, however disinclined to motion previously. The 

 dull habits of this bird continued only during the really cold 

 months of winter, for in February it was again set at liberty 

 in the room with its old companion the corncrake, and flew 

 about as happily as ever. During the whole time it was in 

 my possession it never once uttered the well-known cry from 

 which it takes its name, but frequently when flying about 

 the room made the exceedingly rapid monotonous noise, 

 customary to this bird at spring time, when flying in the 

 open country. They are a very objectionable bird to keep 

 on account of the nature of their excrement. 



The corncrake was a truly lively and most interesting 

 pet, and was so young as to be only covered with black 

 down when I obtained him. He was at first fed on chopped 

 eggs, boiled hard, mixed with cheese and meat, and even- 

 tually he went on well with chopped bread and cheese alone. 

 He was always in motion, for his hearing was so singularly , 

 acute that to approach him without his knowledge was im- 

 possible. I kept him nearly three years, and he almost 

 invariably "craked" before rain. He was jokingly called 

 my " weatherglass," and mostly proved a very correct one. 

 He had a turf of grass whenever it could be readily obtained, 

 and was especially fond of grasshoppers and woodlice, and 

 would leave any other food to seize a stray mealworm, if by 

 chance his cuckoo-friend happened to let one fall. He was. 

 a great favourite of all the family during the whole time we 

 had him, and never evinced the sullen disposition of the 

 cuckoo, for he would follow us when spoken to — in fact he 

 seemed determined to cultivate acquaintance with every one. 

 His plumage was, except at natural intervals of time, of as 

 brilliant a character as though at liberty, and strong were 

 the expressions of regret, when one morning he was " found 

 dead" without any apparent indisposition beforehand. — 

 Edward Hewitt, SparTcbrooh, Birmingham. 



MANAGING BEES ON THE NATURAL SYSTEM. 



Some time ago you were good enough to insert a letter of 



mine on the subject of bee-keeping, wherein I expressed my 



intention of abandoning the " scientific " system for a more 



