378 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. [ October 10, isss 
should be dealt with as experiments in the first instance, owing to 
the variation of soil and climate in the different districts of the 
kingdom. I pon all cold soils it is quite a matter of necessity to 
plough and seed the land daily, the seeding keeping pace with the 
ploughing. It was a rule we practised for many years, which secured 
us against the risks of delay in seeding. 
Live Stock. The dairy cows, and also young stock, both calves and 
yearlings, should now lie at night time on the driest pastures, and 
also receive a little cotton cake, the cows to get it at milking time as 
meal, mixed with Cabbage or early Turnips passed through Gardner’s 
cutter ; the young stock may get hay if they have a shed to retire to 
at night, or otherwise a little cake, with cut roots in troughs similar 
the dairy cows. The bullocks which have been grazing for beef 
will by this time have been sold, or put into the boxes or stalls for 
fatting, to be sold further on—at Christmas or spring as the case may 
require. We have often advised the home farmer in regard to either 
cattle or sheep to rear all he requires either for dairy work or fatten- 
ing for beef or mutton ; and this year at any rate the advantage of 
having done so will prove more than usually to his benefit. All 
kinds of stock, both cattle and sheep, but especially the latter, are as 
dear to purchase as we have ever known them, and it is certain they 
cannot pay for high feeding, either ewes for lambing or tegs for 
mutton-making. It must at the same time be understood that justice 
cannot be done to fatting stock without consumption of cake or corn 
to a considerable extent. The hill farms with their breeding flocks 
will pay well this year, and so will the stock kept over for the second 
crop of lambs on the vale farms. But generally on the vale farms 
sheep of any sort are too dear to pay for fattening; nor should we 
hesitate instead of feeding our Turnip and Swede crops with sheep to 
plough in two-thirds of the roots after being passed through an old 
cutter, greens and bulbs together, the other portion to be removed 
for feeding young cattle in the yards, and also, together with the 
Mangold crops, to fatten the bullocks in the boxes or stalls. 
WBkMjk 
IliBSS 
II 
iRtSll 
THE PRODUCTIVENESS OF HENS. 
It may be useful to your readers to know reliable examples of 
peculiar productiveness in hens ; I therefore think it worth while 
mentioning the following, for the correctness of which I can 
vouch. I have three-Black Poland hens, not white-crested, but 
pure black. They were hatched in 1880, and in the autumn of 
that year were shut up in a small grass run, and have never since 
been out of it. It is about tne worst of my enclosed runs, sloping 
towards the north, and somewhat exposed, on heavy sticky soil, 
with no scratching place, and no dry path through it. The house 
is a small portable one with wooden bottom. A little heap of 
lime rubbish in a corner is the only luxury of the birds. These 
three hens began to lay during last December, and from January 1st 
I have kept a record of their eggs, which is as follows:— 
January, 29; February, 19; March, 60; April, 51; May, 42; 
June, 21 ; July, 59 ; August, 59 ; September, 35—3 75 in all, or an 
average of 125 eggs per bird in nine months. Two of them are 
now in moult, the third is laying still on alternate days. This 
certainly is no mean performance for two-year-old birds in such 
quarters. They are fed regularly twice a day, and get occasional 
snacks at a third time as their feeder passes to a chicken yard 
near them.—0. E. Cresswell. 
“ THE PRACTICAL POULTRY BREEDER AND 
FEEDER.”* 
So much has been written of late years in connection with the 
subject of this little work, that one feels disposed to doubt whether 
there can be anything that is new to be told. Mr. Cook, however, 
takes up the subject in a somewhat different spirit to that of most 
writers. .He states his object in writing the book to be “to endea¬ 
vour to give in as few words as possible such plain and practical 
information as will enable anyone, who has little or no idea of 
poultry and only the smallest accommodation, to keep fowls and 
make them pay well.” He disclaims any intention of dealing with 
fancy poultry, and states, as is undoubtedly the case, that birds 
reared only for the show pen seldom lay any large quantity of eg as. 
His idea in writing his book “ is to describe the best fowls to keep 
for egg-producing and table purposes ; ” and he therefore has written 
very fully regarding the properties of the different crosses, all of 
which he has personally tried. 
It is in the portion of the work relating to crosses that most that is 
* “ The Practical Poultry Breeder and Feeder.” By William Cook. Journal 
of Horticulture Office. 
new and interesting is to be found. The directions for manage¬ 
ment, feeding, &c., are plain and practical, but are necessarily 
much the same as those given by the best of former writers. He 
dwells on the necessity for personal attention, and further points out 
the advantages to be gained in laying qualities from a careful selec- 
tion of the best layers only as breeding stock. We doubt, however, 
it he sufficiently indicates the extent to which this had been done in 
the case of the birds whose wonderful laying powers he instances. 
We fear this may have a twofold evil effect upon his readers. On 
the one hand, those who are ignorant of the subject will imagine 
that it is only necessary for them to procure birds of the crosses he 
names in order to have an equal result in eggs to that the author 
cites. On the other hand, those who have had considerable experi- 
ence. of fowls bred without any very special regard to their laying 
qualities, will be inclined to throw down the book with a sneer at 
the author’s faith in the credulity of his readers. 
Mr. Cook has apparently experimented in the matter of crossing 
the various breeds to a greater extent than any other writer. He 
advocates first crosses as being best, and here we may note a trifling 
confusion in his use of the word “ pure,” as applied to a cross. He 
speaks of pure cross-bred fowls when he evidently means birds bred 
from pure-bred parents on each side, and which are generally 
known as birds of a first cross. 
As a rule, the author seems to have used Cochin in preference to 
Brahma crosses; but in his introductory remarks upon crossing he 
says that if it is more convenient such substitutions as Minorca for 
opanish, or Creve Coeur for Houdan, or Brahma for Cochin, may be 
made. We cannot, of course, do more than select for mention one 
or two of the many crosses instanced. 
Hamburgh-Cochins are described as very good table birds and 
enormous layers, averaging 240 to 250 eggs per annum. They do 
well in confinement or with a large run. 
Houdan-Cochins are described as very hardy and easily reared, 
good table birds, and layers of large brown eggs. Six hens of this 
breed averaged in the winter of their first and second years twenty- 
six eggs per week, and the author considers 240 eggs per annum 
about a fair statement of their laying powers. 
For table purposes the author recommends Game-Dorkings and 
Houdan-Dorkings, the latter being also spoken of as good all-round 
birds where there is an ample run. 
We can safely advise a careful perusal of the entire work to such 
of our readers as desire to take up poultry-keeping with a view to 
the return in eggs or table fowls, and those who already do some- 
thing in this line will also gain much useful information from the 
author’s narrative of his experiences. 
OUR LETTER BOX. 
Incubator ( Ramalho ).— You can gain the information you require by 
writing to Messrs. Cnristy & Co, 155, Fenchurch Street, London! 
Andalusians {Inquirer'). —Yes, a fifth claw is an absolute disqualification 
in the hens of the above breed. 
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS. 
Camden Square, London. 
Lat. 51° 32' 40 ’ N.; Long. 0° 8 0 W.; Altitude, 111 feet. 
bate. 
9 A.M. 
1 
IN THE Bay. 
1882, 
w c3 _■ 
CM Oi flj 
£ ^ 
Hygrome¬ 
ter. 
Birection 
of Wind. 
| Temp, of 
Son at 
1 foot. 
Shade Tem¬ 
perature. 
Radiation 
Temperature. 
B 
a 
Ps 
October. 
as £ 
Bry. 
Wet. 
Max. 
Min. 
In 
sun. 
On 
grass. 
Sun. 8 
Inches. 
30.095 
deg. 
52.0 
deg. 
51.1 
Calm. 
deer. 
54.0 
cietr 
GO 4 
deg. 
-4 a.- 
dee. 
GO. 2 
deg. 
40.G 
in. 
Mon. 9 
30.163 
63.9 
52.5 
N.E. 
52.9 
65.3 
46-9 
89.3 
41.8 
Tues. 10 
30.090 
52.5 
51.8 
N.E. 
53.0 
62.8 
75 2 
42 3 
0.043 
Wed. 11 
29.723 
57.6 
56.5 
S. 
53 9 
61.5 
52 8 
67.2 
48.2 
0.378 
Thurs. 12 
29.516 
51.2 
49.5 
N.W. 
51.3 
59 7 
48.9 
81.6 
49.3 
0.046 
Friday 13 
29.766 
50.9 
50.2 
N.W. 
53.8 
63.0 
45 8 
88.0 
42.2 
0.017 
Satur. 14 
29.968 
55.0 
52.1 
N.E. 
51.2 
58.0 
50.7 
66.4 
52.4 
29.903 
53.3 
52.0 
53.7 
615 
43 3 
76.7 
45.3 
9.484 
REMARKS. 
8th.—Fog in early morning; fine calm day ; much haze. 
9th. Fog in morning; fine autumnal day ; distinct solar halo in afternoon. 
10th.—Bull and hazy; rain in evening. 
11th.—Warm, dull, generally rainy. 
12th.—Rain in early morning, afterwards fine, but not very bright. 
13th.—Fog early, afterwards very bright during the morning ; afternoon and 
evening cloudy. 
14th.—Fair but overcast. 
A dull autumnal week, but the temperature still above the average. Very 
cloudy, especially at night.—G. J. SYMONS. 
