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KIDB'S OWN JOURNAL. 



public auction during the exhibition; the 

 proprietors being required to state the value 

 they place upon the birds or animals they 

 exhibit, although they are not precluded 

 from naming a prohibitory price. 



The building selected for the exhibition, 

 was the Baker Street Bazaar; where the shows 

 of the Smithfield Cattle Club and the Koyal 

 Agricultural Society have been held. The 

 extensive and commodious galleries of the 

 building are admirably adapted for the purpose. 

 There was no difficulty in ascertaining the 

 precise situation of the animals exhibited. 

 The unearthly, hideous noises, belched out in 

 continuous streams by the Cochin-China 

 fowls, at once led all visitors to their locale. 

 As a gentleman remarked, en passant, — 

 whatever might have been the " noises" 

 emitted during the building of Babel's tower, 

 they could not have been more " diabolical" 

 than those heard here. The effect was 

 deafening indeed, although, of course, un- 

 avoidable. 



The collection of animals was very con- 

 siderable, — embracing turkeys, ducks, geese, 

 pigeons, rabbits, and fowls. The principal 

 "feature" however was, evidently, the do- 

 mestic fowls, which hi number and beauty 

 far exceeded, we should imagine, any hitherto 

 shown in one place. We were greatly pleased 

 to observe the attention lavished on them by 

 many of the gentle sex, who we could see felt 

 much interest in the exhibition ; and who, 

 Catalogue in hand, were taking notes, and 

 offering comments innumerable as they passed 

 on. The study of Natural History will be pro- 

 moted, in no small degree, by the introduction 

 of these shows, and we hail them as a happy 

 omen of good times to come. 



Of the fowls exhibited, the great prepon- 

 derance was in favor of the Cochin-China, — 

 some gigantic specimens of which — " the ne 

 plus ultra of ugliness," as a young lady naively 

 called them — were submitted to the public 

 eye. The extraordinary mania for these 

 birds still continues ; and madness, as to the 

 prices given for them, has hardly any limit. 

 So fearful were the owners that any stray 

 eggs might be dropped by the hens, and 

 abstracted by the visitors, that so many as 

 eight policemen were retained to watch the 

 movements of both ! We have before given 

 the history, and recorded our opinion, of these 

 monstrosities ; and need only say here, that 

 " Herod was out-Heroded" by " new, and (so- 

 called) improved specimens." 



As far as our judgment goes, we very far 

 prefer a cross we observed in one of the pens, 

 between a Cochin cock and a Dorking hen. 

 The animals were of a fine, sensible size, — 

 not ungainly, yet large enough for any rational 

 purpose ; either for the supply of eggs or for 

 the table. We had some interesting con- 

 versation on the relative merits of the races 



exhibited, with some practical men in the 

 room ; and we were glad to find their senti- 

 ments in unison with our own. Excellence 

 does not always consist in enormity, nor in 

 extremes. This will be found out, by-and- 

 by. " Love soonest hot," etc. 



The prices set upon some of the specimens 

 were ridiculously absurd. However, it was 

 but natural to rate them high in the Catalogue. 

 Had we been going to select for our own 

 use, we should have been found among the 

 Game fowls,theDorkings, the golden-spangled 

 Hamburghs, and the Andalusians. These 

 last were in Class 47, numbers 2, 3, and 5 ; 

 and were exhibited by Mr John Taylor, 

 of Shepherd's Bush. This gentleman, is an 

 excellent judge of the qualities of poultry. 

 We were much pleased with his white 

 Spanish fowls, too, — beautiful, well - bred 

 animals, in every respect. 



To particularise, more minutely, in a 

 Journal like ours, would be superfluous. 

 There was an abundant variety of all kinds, 

 and many of the breeds were first-rate. We 

 expected to have seen much better specimens 

 of the gold-laced bantams. There were one 

 or two well-bred hens, but the rest were 

 only passable ; and in a wretched state of 

 health, for the most part. We have two 

 little hens of this breed, of which we may, 

 after this exhibition, feel not a little proud. 

 The strain is evidently fast degenerating. It 

 is rare indeed to meet with a thorough-bred 

 cock. The black bantams pleased us very 

 much, but these, too, were ailing, — very 

 sickly. The Malays were, of their kind, 

 fine ; but they " sing small" whilst the Cochin 

 rage continues. 



The pigeons were so badly set off, that 

 their beauty was quite lost. People passed 

 by them unconcerned, uninterested. This 

 was a sad pity. The same remark applies 

 to the trio of Indian pigeons, with their 

 plumed heads. They were assigned a 

 position that caused them to be quite over- 

 looked. Yet are they, of their kind, very 

 curious and handsome birds. 



There were some fine rabbits. These, too, 

 were not made the most of, by any means. 

 They deserved a more prominent position, 

 and a better light. 



The turkeys, geese, and ducks were — some 

 of them, remarkably fine, well-bred birds, 

 and attracted much notice. Indeed, great 

 interest seemed to prevail throughout the 

 entire exhibition, — which, when over, was 

 distributed, under the auctioneer's hammer, 

 among the public. 



At the head of the staircase, we saw several 

 cheap novelties exhibited, which deserve our 

 passing good word. One was an iron coop, 

 with a brooding-chamber attached, for a hen 

 and chickens, — quite portable ; and another 

 was a feeding-trough for poultry, so contrived 



