52 NATIONAL STANDARD SQUAB BOOK 
the water. The reservoir holds quite a supply of water, 
which feeds down as fast as it is drunk by the pigeons.. We 
have seen beginners puzzled by these self-drinking dishes; 
they cannot imagine why the water does not all run out at 
once by the bottom hole. Itisa simple principle in hydraulics 
which you may demonstrate to your own satisfaction by fill ng 
an ordinary tumbler with water and then inverting it in a 
saucer of water. There is no way for the air to get to the 
inside of the tumbler except by passing under the rim at the 
points where it touches the saucer, consequently it does not 
flow down unless the water is removed from the saucer, and 
then it ceases as soon as tlie water in the saucer rises over 
the rim of the tumbler again. In fact, some self-drinkers 
for poultry are made of two pieces of pottery exactly on the 
principle of the tumbler and saucer.. These fountains are not 
so practical as the fountain which we illustrate, because a 
pigeon can roost on the top of it and foul the saucer with its 
droppings. In the fountain which we picture it is impossible 
for droppings to reach the mouth containing the water, even 
if the pigeon is perched directly on top of the fountain. The 
barrel shape of the fountain makes it hard for more than one 
pigeon to perch at the same time on its top, but one pigeon 
usually isfound there. He gets there, for the special purpose, 
it seems, of fouling the water, but the fountain beats him 
and he can’t do it. Neither can he put his feet into the water 
unless he is an extraordinary gymnast capable of holding his’ 
body..out at an angle to the perpendicular. The result is, 
that.in actual practice the water keeps clean, and there is a 
supply of it ready about all the time. A fountain of a gallon 
capacity will keep two or three dozen pairs of breeders supplied 
all day. The fountain is filled by turning it on end and 
pouring water down into the opening. If you fill the fountain 
at the same time you fill the bath pan in the morning, you 
will have done your duty by the pigeons for the day. 
Cleanse these fountains at least once every two weeks 
with sca'ding hot water containing squab-fe-nol (pigeon 
disinfectant; see our price-list for description). 
The best place for the bath pan is out in the yard of the 
flying pen. A pan fifteen inches in diameter is right for a 
flock up to twelve pairs of birds. The pan should be from 
four to six inches deep, not over six inches, for a pigeon will 
