70 Pigeons and Ai.i, About Them. 



Given ordinal-},' natural ability I maintain that 

 what one fancier has done, another may do, even if 

 he does not make advance on what has been done 

 before. Those voting fanciers who read my book 

 should remember that the novices of thirty years ago 

 had no such assistance as those of to-day receive. 

 Elementary, educative articles were seldom seen in 

 those days, whilst cheap handbooks dealing 

 with Pigeon life were also tmknown. Thirty years 

 ago fanciers had to grope and grope, dig and delve, 

 and search and seek in the blindness and blackness 

 of ignorance ; yet they conquered. If they could do 

 it, surely the novices of to-day ought to prove vic- 

 toriotis in tenfold degree, because of all the. aids to 

 success which they have at command. Indomitable 

 pltick and energy will carr}- one far, and there is no 

 height in the Pigeon Fancy which may not be scaled 

 liy the young aspirant to honottrs if he is only deter- 

 mined to make full use of the aids to success which 

 are \\ithin his grasp. 



r'REr.\R.\TION FOR THE SECOXT NEST. 



But to get back to our Pigeons. When the young 

 birds are from a fortnight to three weeks old their 

 parents "will manifest a desire to go to nest again. 

 This is often a troubled and anxious time to the new 

 beginner. He sees the old birds so intent upon 

 bringing another pair of squalis into the world, and 

 they neglect those to \\-liich they ha\'e already given 

 hfe. This is a time when the owner can do much. 

 With some birds little has to be done, because no 

 matter how anxious they may be to go to nest again 

 they never cease to look after the youngsters they 

 have alread\- brought into the world. The owner 

 should, however, keep a watchful eye over any young 

 scpiabs which are in the nests at such time. If they 

 are very choice birds, no harm will be done if each 

 morning and night he gives one or two of A^'oods' 

 Nutrisules, or Tocher's Invigorators, to the voung- 

 sters, whilst if they are being neglected, he will be 

 doing a great deal of good by possibly saving the 

 lives of his squabs; in any case, he will, bv givino- 



