45 



lensible that you cannot avoid occasionally feeding them on the floor, as for instance,' 

 if the mornings were exceedingly cold, or the birds deep in moult, you would be 

 desirous that all your birds should share alike when you gave them hemp seed to 

 warm and make tliera comfortable, for it would be unwise to give them a hopper 

 full as you could wheat ; under these circumstances you would be obliged to throw 

 it upon the floor as the birds eat it up, taking care that if the birds dung while 

 ■eating, not to throw any near that place. I will now return to the subject of their 

 drink. Years back I put rue into their water, 1 fancied they did not like the rue, 

 and I know they did not drink so much. It may be that I made it too bitter and 

 overdid this as everything else, (prior to my attempting to write a treatise on 

 the breeding and management of the Almond Tumbler, and in this I have caught 

 a tartar.) There is not the shadow of a doubt in my mind, provided I had the 

 ability, strictly adhering to truth, derived from observation that I should overdo 

 this treatise also ; but unfortunately for me, I see no fear of that owing to my want 

 of ability, and therefore my young and inexperienced Fancier you must take the 

 will for the deed by having it under-done. 



As a preventive is acknowledged to be better than a cure, and having endeavoured 

 to instruct you how to keep your pigeons free from diseases by cleanliness and 

 good management. 1 should not have called your attention to the subject of their 

 -complaints if it was not to have mentioned a case that happened in my aviary, 

 I I had a celebrated black mottled cock (well known by many gentlemen in the 

 Fancy by the name of " the schoolmaster") and it was seized with a violent attack 

 of vertigo, or meagrims ; not knowing what to do 1 put it into a round open wicker 

 basket, and took it to one of the most experienced gentlemen in the Fancy, living 

 at Highbury, he said that in all his experience he never had seen one so " drunk," 

 as he called it, and advised me to put it in the dark. I thought it stood in need 

 of something more than putting it in the dark, so taking it to my friend, the chemist, 

 and showing him the bird, we consulted what to do, and came to the determination 

 that if the bird did drink, it should drink that which the chemist prepared for it, 

 as it should have nothing else. The bird did not like the preparation, but thirst 

 beat it and not being able to g^t anything else, was compelled to drink when it 

 became thirsty, and that freely ; it continued in this state about a fortnight 

 without appearing to get better : it pained me to see it in this condition, and very 

 late one night, or early in the morning, after attending a show, and being assured 

 that there was not any cure for it, and if there was, the chances were so great 

 against its breeding, that under these circumstauces I made up my mind to kill it. 

 While dressing myself in the morning I heard my groom coming down stairs, and 

 ordered him to kill the bird ; but before he got to the bottom of the stairs to the 

 kitchen, where the bird was kept by the Are, I called out to him not to kill it till 

 1 had seen it, we both looked at it (for he was a good fancier) and thought it 

 better, we shook the basket and the bird kept on its feet, from this time the bird 

 gradually improved and became as well as ever. 



There was something rather remarkable about the hen that I matched to this 

 cock. A Fancier, whom 1 knew, and am sure he wished me well as a young Fancier, 

 Qalled upon me one evening at my house, and stated that be had a black mottle 

 hen, so good that he could not afford to buy a cock that was a match, and should 

 like me to have the hen, for he was sure that it would do me good ; I purchased 

 it, and being very green in the Fancy, took it to a Grand Show, and put it in the 

 penn to hear its merits or demerits, for I knew as much about the properties of 

 the bird, as the bird knew about me, being so " Raw " in the Fancy at that time j 

 the first remark that was made was by one of the most spirited, and 1 believe not 

 second best, with regard to his judgment, to any Fancier living ; his remark was, 

 as soon as I placed the bird in the penn, " I will give you fifty shillings for that 

 black mottle hen." I did not expect to hear that, and therefore ^reasoned silently 

 that if the bird was worth to him fifty shillings with his great experience, what 

 must it be worth to me 1 Being desirous of making progress in the fancy, I there- 

 fore declined parting with the bird, although a still higher price was offered. 



