JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
412 
[ May 19, 1881. 
Sawdust may also be used, but ashes, unless in a very fine powdery 
state, are bad, as rough sharp ashes cut the feathers quickly. In 
small confined runs the sand, or whatever may be used, should be 
4 inches or more in depth, and it should always be kept loose on 
the surface. Cleanliness is very desirable in such places. When 
the droppings adhere to the feathers they soon cling together and 
form a hard mat, and when in this state they are most easily 
broken. For this reason fowls in confinement should have their 
feathers looked to occasionally to guard against accumulation of 
the kind. 
Many will now be beginning to look to the foot feathering of 
their chickens intended for the autumn exhibitions, and the main 
thing with them is to have a soft run. Apart from this there is 
no artificial way of keeping the feathers perfect, but in the kind 
of run we have indicated they will grow quickly without much 
danger of being damaged. 
Perhaps it may be well to point out that show fowls of these 
breeds have not the feet feathers always in exhibition trim ; but 
when there are no shows on they are often allowed to run rough, 
and they are only put on their soft walk a few weeks before being 
shown, and if there are any broken quills they are generally 
drawn out to give place to a fresh batch of quick-growing young 
feathers. Dorkings with gouty feet and feather-legged fowls do 
well on the same kind of run, softness of the run being ad¬ 
vantageous in both cases.—J. Muik. 
AMERICAN TURKEYS. 
The Standard recognises six different varieties—the Bronze, 
Narragansett, White, Black, Buff, and Slate. All of these origi¬ 
nated from the North American wild Turkey, and all possess 
valuable qualities ; but on account of its great size the Mammoth 
Bronze is perhaps the most profitable variety to raise for market. 
Well-grown males of this variety will weigh from 18 to 22 lbs. 
alive when six months old, and the hens from 10 to 14 lbs. at 
the same age. The Bronze Turkeys do not reach maturity until 
the third year, and we frequently see adult gobblers that weigh 
anywhere from 35 to 45 lbs., and adult hens that weigh from 
18 to 25 lbs. 
The main colour of the plumage of the thoroughbred Bronze 
Turkey is a dark bronze that looks almost black in the shade, but 
in the sunlight the back and breast glitter like burnished gold. 
Each feather on the back terminates in a narrow black band 
which extends across the end. The wing feathers are pencilled 
evenly across with bars of white or grey, and when the wings 
are closed the wing-coverts form a broad bronze band. The 
tail feathers are black, pencilled across with narrow bands of 
light brown, each feather ending with a broad black band, with 
an edging of white or grey. Legs are large and strong, dark in 
young birds, but approaching a pink or flesh colour in adult birds. 
The hen closely resembles the gobbler, except that the plumage 
is not so brilliant, and the feathers generally have an edging of 
white or grey; clear brown or black wings ; back of tail clear 
brown, black, or grey. White feathers in any part ot the plumage 
are counted as disqualifications, and no honest breeder will sell 
such birds for breeding stock. 
The White Turkey, generally called by breeders the White Hol¬ 
land, is not so common as the Bronze variety, and has not yet received 
the attention at the hands of breeders that its merits demand. 
The White is not so large as the Bronze variety, but I am inclined 
to think that this is more the fault of breeders than of the breed. 
M. T. Kelly of Bloomingdale, Ind., once owned a pair of White 
Holland Turkeys that were hatched on the first day of July, 1873, 
and on the first day of December, 1874, weighed 63 lbs. This 
shows what skill in breeding will do. I am confident that if 
breeders would take the same pains with the White that they 
have with the Bronze variety, such weights would not be 
exceptional. 
As table fowls I certainly think that the White Hollands are 
superior to any other variety. Their flesh is whiter, more tender 
and juicy, and they look more tempting when dressed than the 
dark birds. Some breeders claim that the dark-coloured birds 
are hardier than the white, but such has not been my experience. 
Other breeders claim that the White Hollands are not so much 
disposed to ramble as the Bronze, but I never could see much 
difference in this respect. Turkeys are Turkeys, and so long as 
any of the wild Turkey nature remains in them they will wander 
and hide their nests. 
Ihe entire plumage of the White Holland Turkey is of a clear 
snowy white, and this, contrasting beautifully with the rich 
scarlet of the head and the jet black beard of the male, renders 
it au object of attraction in the show room and in the poultry 
yard. F J 
The Narragansett is an old and a popular variety wherever its 
merits are known. In Southern New England this variety is 
raised extensively for home consumption and for the city markets. 
Of late years farmers have crossed this breed with the Bronze, 
until now these cross-bred birds rival the Bronze in size. 
The Narragansetts are generally called a grey bird, but when 
thoroughbred they should be of a metallic black, each feather 
ending in a broad, light steel-grey band. Carelessness in breeding 
has i; mixed ” the plumage so that in many flocks the feathering 
is uneven, or splashed with black or white, but they can be bred 
true to feather. These birds of mixed plumage are not standard 
birds, and if one cares for looks I should not advise breeding 
from them. 
The Black, Buff, and Slate are smaller varieties than either of 
those that I have described, and need no particular description, 
as the name sufficiently indicates the colour. The Slate is some¬ 
times called the “ blue ” Turkey, and, barring the size, is a good 
variety.— Fanny Field (in American Prairie Parmer'). 
PROPERTY IN HOMING PIGEONS. 
A decision of much interest to Pigeon fanciers was given in 
the Birmingham County Court on the 9th inst., by Mr. J. 
Motteram, Q.C., in the case of Stanley v. Birch. The plaintiff 
claimed £5, the value of an Antwerp Pigeon shot by the defen¬ 
dant while flying over his grounds on its way home to Castle 
Bromwich from Aston, a place some five or six miles distant, 
where it had been tossed. His Honour in giving judgment entered 
into an elaborate review of the legal authorities bearing upon the 
case, and stated the questions for decision as follows—1, Whether 
the plaintiff could be said to have a property in the Pigeon, which 
was admittedly tame and reclaimed ; and if so, then, 2, Whether 
by the act of taking the Pigeon away from its home for the 
purpose of training it, and there releasing it, the plaintiff lost 
his property in the bird, and thereby his right to bring the action 
to recover damages for the killing of it by the defendant— 
whether, in fact, the Pigeon, in consequence of the plaintiff’s 
act, lost its character of a tame Pigeon and became farce natures. 
His Honour, not without much hesitation and with some doubt, 
held that there could be property in a Pigeon, and that the 
mere taking the bird from its home and releasing it for the sole 
purpose of training it did not amount to an abandonment of the 
owner’s property in the Pigeon. The plaintiff was therefore 
awarded a verdict for the £5 claimed and costs. 
OUR LETTER BOX. 
Hops (J. D., Wilts ').—The book to which you refer is probably a small work 
by Mr. Whitehead, entitled “Hops from the Set to the Skylights.” It contains 
full particulars of the culture aud preparation of Hops, and is illustrated. It 
is published by Effingham Wilson & Co., Royal Exchange, London. 
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS. 
CAMDEN SQUABE,LONDON. 
Lat. 51° 32'40" N.; Long. 0° 8'0” W.; Altitude,lll feet. 
DATE. 
9 A.M. 
IN THE DAT. 
• (J 
sa 
Hygrome- 
P . 
c^, ; 
Shade Tern- 
Radiation 
d 
1881. 
— -J 4) <U 
ter. 
'-H d 
d— 9 
perature. 
Temperature. 
d 
« 
May. 
££ 
o 9 1 ” 
In 
On 
23 % oj 
Dry. 
Wet. 
5 o 
R 
Max. 
Min. 
sun. 
grass. 
Inches. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
deg. 
In. 
Sun. 8 
30.643 
57.5 
49.0 
N. 
53.0 
63.3 
44.8 
118.3 
38.0 
_ 
Mon. 9 
30.604 
55.6 
47.8 
N.E. 
53.7 
61.4 
40.2 
119.3 
33.7 
_ 
Tues. 10 
30.631 
47.4 
41.6 
N.E. 
53.2 
57.0 
40.0 
98.3 
34.7 
_ 
Wed. 11 
30.629 
48.2 
42.8 
N. 
ol.6 
62.7 
31.2 
108.7 
23.8 
_ 
Thurs. 12 
30.428 
57.3 
59.3 
N.E. 
51.8 
69.3 
37.8 
116.8 
32.0 
_ 
Friday 13 
30.220 
50.3 
50.5 
S. 
5 * 2.7 
74.1 
41.8 
116.4 
35.7 
_ 
Satur. 14 
29.913 
55.6 
51.0 
W. 
54.0 
69.0 
42.5 
112.8 
36.2 
— 
Means. 
30.438 
54.0 
47.6 
52.9 
66.1 
39.8 
112.9 
33.4 
— 
REMARKS. 
8th.—Bright, fine, and warm. 
9th.—Bright and fine, with fresh cold wind. 
10th.—Cool, overcast first pare of the day, latter part bright and fine ; moon¬ 
light evening. 
11th.—Cool, but fine and bright throughout. 
12th.—Fine sunny morning; overcast hazy afternoon ; fine evening. 
13th.—Very fine and bright throughout; quite warm. 
14th.—Fair, but rather overcast and hazy. 
Mean temperature nearly the same as in the previous week, and not very 
different from the average for the middle of .May ; but the range of temperature 
very great, that of the air being from 31 - 2° on the morning of the lltli to 74‘1° 
on the afternoon of the 13th. The average daily range was 26-3°. The baro¬ 
meter was very high on the first four days, but fell rapidly on the 13th and 
14th. No rain during the week.—G. J. STMONS. 
