JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
418 
[ November 2 , 1882 . 
within certain limitations, to prevent injury upon the cultivated 
lands and valuable pastures. There is plenty of employment for the 
odd horse in carting roots for the cattle in their boxes, also Cabbages 
for the dairy cows, carrying hay for the farm horses, and also roots, 
such as red or white Carrots, and straw for litter for all the animals 
on the farm which are confined in pens, stalls, or stables. 
Hand Labour .—The pulling and storing Mangolds will still be 
going on, and this may be best done by men, womeD, and boys, 
casting into heaps and covering with the leaves, the carting and 
storing to be done by the horses and carts at any time when the 
drying intervals of weather occur. Some little supervision by the 
home farmer is necessary as to the mode of taking up the roots of 
Mangolds, for we do not suffer the people employed to cut the greens 
off, so as to sever any portion the crown of the roots, but they 
should be cut so that all the leaves shall fall separate at the time of 
cutting. This mode will save the crown and heart of the roots un¬ 
touched, and this we find necessary, because the roots are then 
capable of throwing out a little yellow leaf. This secures them 
against decay, because they ha - e vitality in the roof, as proved by 
the sprouting. If the field producing the Mangold should be at a 
considerable distance from the farm it is well to make the store heap 
on the margin ot the field, so that the labour at this busy time may 
be diminished. Water-furrowing on the recently sown Wheat land 
should be done daily, in order that when heavy rains follow it may 
escape to the proper outlets and not sodden the surface, to the 
injury of the young Wheat plants. Hedging, ditching, and banking 
will be work for some men now, others will be required in the 
meadows at trenching, so as to prevent water lying on the surface, 
which breeds rushes or coarse sour grass. The water meadows, too, 
should receive the usual attention, for they should now be in flood 
and receiving the benefit of deposits from the hills left by flood 
water after the recent heavy rains. Cutting the wood in the hedge-, 
rows for hurdles should now be done; also all the ditches which 
receive the spring drainage in the enclosed districts should be scoured 
to prevent stoppages at the outlets of the pipe drains. 
Live Stock. —We never recollect sheep so dear before, especially the 
middling and lower grades, commonly termed calls ; but it must be 
remembered that vast improvements have been made in the sheep 
stock of the kingdom, and that there are but few inferior animals 
now as compared with thirty years ago. This, therefore, tends to 
the higher average of prices. We have seen Hampshire Down lambs 
of nine months old sold from 77 s. to 86s. each in lots of one hundred 
in number, but were sold for mutton weighing, as we estimated them, 
on the average at from 12 stones of 8 tbs. to 13 stones per hundred, 
some individual animals reaching the great weight, for their age, of 
from 14 to 15 stones of 8 tbs. each. Horned cattle are dear also, but 
not so dear after the rate as sheep ; in fact, some of the importations 
from Ireland are really well-bred, show good outlines and deep 
long coats. We have noticed this specially amongst the young 
stock under a year old ; these in good condition, both heifers 
and steers, selling at six guineas each. These, at the price, consider¬ 
ing their breed and quality, will pay better for wintering than 
sheep. Dairy cows should now be given Cabbages on the driest 
pastures, as the grass is getting both stale and short. In order to 
maintain a full supply of milk some farmers, instead of encouraging 
the flow milk, allow the cows to go dry soon after this time. We 
object to this entirely, for it has the effect of cows laying on fat 
internally, and endangering success at calving time. 
SPOILING THE DORKING.—No. 1. 
In your “ Poultry Notes at Wolverhampton Show ” in last 
week’s number I find these words : “ Coloured Dorking cocks, first 
(Smyth) was large and good in most points ; his earlobe was 
white, but the Judge, rightly perhaps, does not seem to regard 
this as a demerit.” Why should he ? The true Dorking had a 
white earlobe, or very nearly so, and it was not until it was 
crossed with the Asiatic breeds that the red earlobe appeared. 
Then the wiseacres who had spoilt the Dorking in the crossing, in 
all its fine qualities as a table fowl, claimed as a point the red 
earlobe. For my part I look at the red earlobe as one of the 
proofs of the mongrelism of the present so-called Dorking. On 
no account would I purchase for breeding purposes a bird with a 
red earlobe. I should fully expect, and I have but little doubt 
that my expectation would be realised, that I should have chickens 
with sooty feet. The dark colour is another proof of the mon¬ 
grelism of the present Dorking. Let us look at what the present 
breed has in common with the old and true. In the old, there 
were the Grey, the Brown, the Bay, the Silver-Grey, the Speckled, 
and the White, besides the Cuckoo. Now the judges have reduced 
the colours to the Dark (nearly black, never a Dorking colour), 
the Cuckoo, Silver-Grey (is now not a silver grey but a dirty 
brown grey), and the White. The angle of the carriage of the 
Dorking was much more upright than the present, which tends 
towards the horizontal Asiatic carriage. They have got rid of the 
rose-combed variety as nearly as possible, and many oE the single 
combs have sprigs at and about the large part of the comb, as 
could be seen at the Tonbridge Wells Show. They have produced 
sooty feet and white spotted with lead colour, as could also be 
seen at the same Show ; and, as the reporter of this Journal 
noticed, even some of the prizewinners at the Dairy Show were 
tinted with dark colour. They have thick skins, yellow skins, 
yellow fat, instead of thin and white; and the flesh is a dirty 
colour by comparison, red earlobes instead of white, and they 
have got size and great coarseness of both flesh and bone, long 
fibre to the flesh instead of the short. 
A few years back I knew a stock of good Brown Dorkings. In an 
evil hour the higgler who bought the young chickens of thehenwife 
persuaded her to have a Dark Brahma cock to breed from. The 
result was much larger chickens at three months old, much darker 
in colour, with white legs. The Brahma was then got rid of, the 
cockerels were chosen from the home produce, the biggest being 
selected. Now, without any further cross, the whole of the stock 
have sooty legs and feet, or nearly so, and the colour of the hens 
and chickens is nearly black. I purchased a brood this year for 
table purposes ; I found they all had dark legs, and the flesh was 
of a muddy colour comparatively to the original breed. The 
reason, no doubt, was this : The owner selected the largest (there¬ 
fore those that most partook of the Brahma element), and so 
again and again, keeping to the dark colour because it was 
fashionable, not because it was better in any respect nor prettier ; 
and so more and more Brahma without the feathers on the legs, 
but the red sides to the legs clearly showed that they had been 
so bred, instead of the pure white colour of the true Dorking. 
But how come the sooty legs and feet ? Why, in this way : 
The Dark Brahma or Cochin has dark feathers on its legs, and 
when these are got rid of the stain of the colour remains in 
the leg, the more so when bred with a white-leg fowl. Yellow 
and white legs will often make darkish legs. This I have found 
by experiment with a Dorking and a yellow-legged Game, but 
more olten they have been white. I am deeply sorry to find that 
there are those who act as judges still giving prizes to sooty- 
footed fowls. It is very wrong, and it is disheartening to the 
breeder who is endeavouring to restore the Dorking proper with 
all its points. Quality is not looked to, but size and colour. 
Why such a stress should be put on colour I cannot imagine. To 
me it appears utter nonsense when as a table fowl the Brown, 
Light Reds, Bays, and the old Grey were far superior in the 
colour and texture of fat and flesh. For my own part I ignore 
colour altogether. I intend to breed for the white legs, the full 
rounded breast, and thin skin, white fat and white flesh; and on 
no account will I purchase a cock bird to breed from that has a 
red earlobe or the slightest tint of sootiness on his feet, or a 
black toe-nail; for the latter proclaims its pedigree to my eyes, 
and I am most likely to get sooty-footed chickens as his produce. 
It is very uphill work to try and get back to the old sort, and it 
will take years of patient work; but it is to be done, and I for 
one mean to work steadily at it. I care nothing for colour ; but, 
if any, I shall try and raise for my own keep the old, scarce, rich, 
red-brown colour, but that will depend on circumstances. I have 
this year bred several very dark birds with pure legs, feet, and 
toe-nails, and by careful selection and watching I hope to get 
more next year if I am spared. 
I find on reference to the Live Stock Journal that Mr. Cresswell 
judged the Dorkings at Wolverhampton Show, and his giving the 
first prize to a bird with a white earlobe is no more than I should 
expect from him, as he knows, if anyone does, what a good pure 
Dorking should be, for I well remember birds of his that were 
shown long ago. Ab, me ! yes, long ago, when Dorkings were 
Dorkings, and I hope and trust he still has some of the blood left. 
—Harrison Weir. October 2Sth, 1SS2. 
THE NEW STANDARD OF EXCELLENCE. 
Herewith I enclose draft Standards of Excellence for Brahmas 
and Cochins. The Committee of the Poultry Club are anxious, 
if possible, that these, as also the Standards for Dorkings, Game, 
and the French breeds, which I shall send you next week, shall be 
considered and finally settled at the Crystal Palace Show. 
The Committee will feel much obliged by your inserting the 
drafts. 
I would remind fanciers that the Standard as now published is 
merely tentative, and I trust that all interested will aid in making 
the final Standard as representative as possible, by either sending 
me their views as to any alterations or additions they may think 
desirable, or attending the meetings of the fanciers of the various 
