470 



TEE AGBICULT 



UBAL JOURNAL. 



grand old fathers they would be if they 

 only could. 



In the event of a beginner cutting an 

 artery, the only thing to do is to cut the 

 bird's head oif , and use him for dinner. 

 You cannot save him, or rather it would 

 not be worth while to try. But there is 

 very little danger of accidents with the 

 living birds if the caponiser has first ex- 

 perimented on dead. In those countries 

 where caponising is done as a regular and 

 recognised industry, the great art is to 

 breed birds with yellow legs and skin, the 

 poulterers objecting to all others. In one 

 district in France, they mate Houdan 

 cocks with Cochin hens, by which they 

 get fine large pullets, and these they mate 

 again with Plymouth cross cockerels, by 

 which they get fine large birds with 

 yellow skin and legs. Capons from the 

 cross are about the finest table birds in 

 the world. The Brahma and Cochin cross 

 crossed again with Wyandotte, gives a 

 splendid bird for a capon. 



We want to establish a desire for capons 

 among the richer people. Once get them 

 to say they will only buy capons for their 

 table, and someone will start a farm. The 

 thing is to educate those who are in the 

 habit of buying poultry to wishing for 

 nothing else. Apparently the matter is 

 interesting a few poultry-keepers just 

 now, who intend to try them for their 

 own tables, so possibly in another few 

 years the practice will be universal. 

 There are people at the present time who 

 imagine the capon is a new breed, as was 

 evidenced by a man sending to a poultry 

 man in Victoria, a few months ago, for a 

 setting of " capon eggs." 



I have now written all there is to be 

 written on caponising, and I trust my 

 many correspondents who asked for the 

 information may be able to understand 

 and benefit by it. And once more, I will 

 ask them to cut out and keep the article 

 for future reference. 



A Pigeon House. 



THE pattern of the pigeon-house shown 

 in our sketch (from " Poultry ") is of 

 convenient form and easily made. It will 

 be found especially useful to the breeders 

 of dragons and turbits, which mature best 

 at liberty. The pigeon-house on a pole is 



usually made out of an old barrel, with 

 holes made in the sides. The drawback 



Fig. 1. 



to this is the want of shelter from which 

 all its inmates suffer. The pigeon-house 

 shown (fig. 1) is meant to accommodate 

 on two floors four pairs of birds. The 

 ground plan (fig. 2) explains itself. In 

 one half the size is given in inches, and 

 the other shows the best position for the 

 nest pans. A shelter board runs down 

 each side of the entrance, to keep out the 

 weather, but does not go sufficiently far 



r 





1 ■ 





O: ;0 







Fig. 2. 



back to prevent the birds having free 

 ingress to their breeding places. The 

 position of the landing board is also 

 shown. The doors are arranged in the 

 same way on both sides of the house, and 

 are necessary to clean it out and to ex- 

 amine the squabs. The best way to fix 

 the house to the pole is by wrought iron 

 elbows, screwed to the floor, and then to 

 the pole. Place a strip of zinc 2ft. broad 

 round the pole about 6ft. from the ground ; 

 this will be a protection from cats, rats, 

 and other intruders. 



