90 PIGEONS. 



as great an extent. To catch the birds easily some have divided their pigeon-house 

 by a movable partition ; they bring their pigeons into the narrow space shut in by 

 this partition, and in a few minutes their choice is made. Others shut out the 

 light from the pigeon-house in such a manner as to produce darkness so great 

 that the pigeons remain motionless. It is possible then to catch them without 

 risk of pulling out any feathers, or even of ruffling them. 



" Too many precautions cannot be employed during this operation, for a pigeon 

 is rendered unfit for the contest simply by breaking one or two of the important 

 flight-feathers. 



" When the competitors are shut up in a basket, it is well to pass them in review, 

 and to make sure of the state of their wings. Attention should also be directed 

 to the feet, in order to free them from any hardened dirt which may adhere to 

 them. The feet, particularly those of large pigeons, often collect dung, which 

 becomes hard in the pigeon-house. "We can understand that this weight may 

 overload a pigeon in its flight, and therefore attentive amateurs pass the finger, 

 soaked in oil, over the lower surface of the bird's foot, so that excrements may 

 not adhere to it." 



The chapter descriptive of the present state of the pigeon societies in Belgium 

 is very interesting. Dr. Chappuis remarks that the increase of railways has greatly 

 extended the number of pigeon matches. Numerous societies have been estab- 

 lished, and in some districts of Belgium there is scarcely a village that does not 

 possess one. 



Since the formation of the first societies, when pigeons were carried on the back 

 in a basket divided into compartments, considerable improvements have been made 

 in their conveyance ; and great care has been taken in the construction of the 

 boxes and baskets in which the pigeons are carried. 



The baskets are generally between four and five feet long, three feet wide, and 

 about twelve inches high, and an opening about a foot long, shut by a movable 

 door, is placed in the middle of one of the long sides. The bottom of the 

 basket is covered with a thick coarse cloth ; the baskets are made of stout willows 

 stripped of the bark ; these are placed at a distance of about one inch and a half 

 from each other, so that they are wide enough apart for the pigeons to put their heads 

 through to chink, but so close that no one can put in his hand to steal the birds. 

 Before the birds are placed in the baskets the bottom is covered with a thin layer 

 of perfectly dry tan ; sometimes chopped straw or long straw is used instead, but 

 the latter does not answer well, as the dung does not dry quickly, and the pigeons 

 soon get very dirty. The chopped straw is too light, and it readily accumulates in 

 one corner, leaving the remainder of the basket without litter; consequently the 

 tan is much to be preferred, as it adheres to the cloth at the bottom, and dries the 

 damp dung. 



In other provinces of Belgium baskets of another kind are used ; they are not 

 made of openwork, but of closely-woven willows, with square openings on one 

 side, through which the pigeons can chink out of a vessel fastened to the outside. 



