362 JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. [ October i 4 , isso. 
first specially struck us. Pouters. —The three first were good birds, 
the rest not remarkable ; the first a Red-pied, very slim in girth and 
all round a fine bird ; second a Blue, third a Black. Barbs were one 
of the most remarkable classes we have ever seen at any of the 
smaller shows; first a magnificent Yellow, second and fourth fine 
Blacks, third a good Red. Tumblers. —Short-faced.—The winners 
were chiefly Almonds ; first very good in head. Muffled.—First a 
Rose-wing, second a Black Beard, third a Blue. Long-faced.—First 
a good Red Mottle very rich in colour, second a Silver Bald. English 
Oiols were a large class. First a Blue, particularly deep and good in 
colour, and with good head properties too ; second a beautiful Silver, 
third a Blue with a very good frill, a point in which many birds were 
deficient. Foreign.—First, second, and third White, the first winning 
easily ; fourth a Black. Fantails were few ; the first and second were 
very fair birds and in fair condition. The Judge did not award more 
prizes, as the rest were deep in moult. Jacobins. —Red or Yellow.— 
All the winners were Red, the first good all round with a short beak ; 
second good too, but less blooming in condition. In the Any other 
colour class a beautiful Black was first, failing a little in colour, but 
perfect in hood; second and third pretty Whites. Turbit. —Blue or 
Silver.—A remarkable class ; several birds generally in the prize list 
had to be content with high commendations. First a Blue very 
remarkable in head properties, second another Blue good in head and 
frill, third a fine Silver, fourth a Blue. Any other colour.—First a 
Red, a grand bird all round ; second another very good Red, and 
third a Black. Magpies were a capital and very large class. Fii'st a 
Black, extremely rich in colour and clear cut; second and third good 
Reds. Archangels were a fair class, but in a very poor light. The 
Judge had to carry them two at a time to the light for comparison. 
First was very good in both Black and Bronze, and second not far 
behind. Trumpeters were capital. First a Black in good healthy 
condition, with a most symmetrical rose and splendid foot feathering ; 
second, third, and fourth all mottled, with very little to choose be¬ 
tween them, all fine in rose but not equal to the first in foot feather. 
Dragoons. —A class of twenty-two. First a long rich-coloured Blue, 
the only one in the class -with a really good dark eyelash ; second a 
stylish Blue, a smaller type of bird; third a Yellow'. Antwerps. — 
Short-faced.—A most superior class, the winners all very fine in head. 
Long-faced, too, were little behind them, first and second winning 
easily. Any other variety was a most excellent and interesting class. 
The Judge awarded an extra fourth prize, and considered many birds 
worthy of very high commendation. First was a Blue Priest, second 
a Blondinette, third a Satinette, fourth a Blue Pigmy Pouter, and 
extra fourth a particularly frilly Red Frillback. A good Blue Swallow, 
a Fire Pigeon, and a Black Priest all deserved their notices. The 
day of the Show was unfortunately a damp and dull one, after a 
drenching night, and the attendance of visitors w'as very poor. 
The Judges were for poultry, the Rev. Grenville F. Hodgson, and 
for Pigeons, Mr. O. E. Cressw'ell. There was a pretty 3how of cage 
birds, which Mr. P. R. Spencer of Hereford judged. 
VARIETIES. 
Hew Books. —We have received the following books from the 
Bzaar Office:— Notes on Game and Shooting, by J. J. Manley 
M.A., an attractive and admirably finished volume of nearly four 
hundred pages, which pleasantly tells much that is interesting about 
game furred and feathered, and will be welcomed by sportsmen. 
The author writes learnedly on his subject, and combines with much 
technical knowledge an agreeable mode of expression. In addition 
to the table of contents the book ought to have had an index. Stock¬ 
keeping for Amateurs, by W. H. Ablett, a neat volume of 18G pages, 
treats concisely and well on the management and diseases of the 
various farm animals. Rabbits for Prizes and Profit, by Leonard IT. 
Gill, is similar in size and style to the foregoing ; it contains illustra¬ 
tions of the different varieties of Rabbits, and gives reliable information 
relative to their management and diseases. On gardening subjects 
we have the Hardy Fruit Boole, by D. T. Fish, who has given a great 
deal of useful and interesting matter in the 276 pages. Popular 
British Fungi, by James Britten, F.L.S., an excellent little w T ork, both 
useful and instructive. Orchids for Amateurs, by the same author 
and W. H. Gower, contains descriptions and illustrations of the most 
popular Orchids, with brief but sound cultural details. Greenhouse 
Management, by W. J. May, refers to the ordinary routine of culture 
of plants usually grown in greenhouses. 
- The Price of Milk. —The wholesale price of milk varies with 
the season, though the public seldom gain the benefit of a reduction. 
The farmer usually sells his milk by the “barn gallon,” as it is 
termed—that is, seventeen pints to the gallon, or half a pint over- 
measure at each imperial gallon. Many of them are not aware that 
it is illegal to sell by such measures, and we would refer them to the 
Weights and Measures Act, 1878, 41 and 42 Viet., c. 49, sections 15 
and 19. The selling by a barn gallon is, of course, an old custom, 
in which the extra pint was thrown in—for the same reason that 
extra lbs. of cheese are thrown in at the cwt., and extra ozs. of butter 
at the lb.—in order to improve the bargain to the buyer. At first 
these additions were part of the bargain, but they soon became a 
custom. Other farmers, again, sell their milk at so much “ a dozen ” 
—that is, a dozen quarts ; this custom is not illegal, but it is rather 
clumsy. A few sell by the standard imperial gallon, which we think 
is the best. Milk i3 generally cheapest in the months of April, May, 
and June, when the price the farmer receives, less the carriage, is 
Is. 4 d. per barn gallon. In the following three months he gets Is. 5 d. ; 
in October and November Is. 8(7.: in the next three months Is. 9c7.; 
and in March Is. 8d. These are the actual prices contracted for 
by one who has been in the trade many years, but they are subject 
more or less to variation in different cases, in different years, and in 
different localities. The carriage from the midland counties to 
London is usually 2d. per barn gallon, the empty cans being returned 
free of charge.—(From “ Dairy Farming ,” by Professor Sheldon, for 
October.) 
- Potatoes in America. —The Potato crop of the country 
will, it is believed, reach 125,000,000 bushels this year, valued at 
100,000,000 dollars. New York, as usual, leads in the cultivation of 
this esculent, producing not less than 25,000,000 bushels. Illinois 
comes next with 12,000,000 bushels, and Iowa next. The six New 
England States produce about 25,000,000, Maine taking the lead in 
this direction. Her crop of Potatoes last year was estimated worth 
4,100,000 dollars. The Early Rose is now confessedly the popular 
Potato throughout the country ; neither rot nor beetle has impeded 
its march. Its cultivation began in the eastern and middle States 
about ten years ago. Another Potato, the Prolific, is also sought for 
on account of its good flavour and evenness of surface. In the New 
York market the Mercer and the Peachblow at present dispute the 
palm with the Early Rose, but the last-named commands the highest 
average price. The Peachblow seems better adapted to a warm 
climate than the kinds previously named.—( Prairie Farmer .) 
- The Islington Dairy Show. —The show of dairy stock and 
produce which opens at the Agricultural Hall on the 26th of the 
present month promises to be one of unusual excellence. The entries 
are largely in excess of those received for the exhibition of 1879 
there being forty-six more cows and forty-one more goats, besides a 
large increase in the quantity of utensils and produce. In the depart¬ 
ment for Dutch butter and cheese the entries have been so large that 
the Committee have decided upon awarding extra prizes, and also to 
still further subdivide the classes, in order to embrace the various 
makes that are to be exhibited from Holland. 
- Cheshire Cheese. —A cheese fair was held at Chester on 
Saturday, at which from 45 to 50 tons were pitched, mostly of medium 
quality. The prices for the commoner sorts ranged from 50s. to 60s. 
per cwt., while medium fetched 70s., and a few prime dairies 74s. The 
demand was rather slack, and as a consequence prices showed a 
decline on those quoted at the last fair of from 3s. to 4s. per cwt. 
- Agricultural Prospects. —Another spell of excessive rain¬ 
fall has brought outdoor operations to a standstill, and in many 
districts of the midlands the damage done by floods has been very 
serious. Prior to this latest deluge the land was working exceed¬ 
ingly well, and seldom have the stubbles turned up in better form. 
Now, however, all the clays are very wet, and preparation for Wheat¬ 
sowing must be delayed. Portions of the late harvest still remain to 
be secured, and must now be considered of very little value. Disease 
appears to be showing itself amongst Potatoes in Durham to a serious 
extent. This crop in the later districts is now being secured as fast 
as weather will permit, and it is every where s, oken of as an unusually 
heavy one. Pastures are now very full of grass, and both grazing 
and dairy stock are doing well. Flocks are not well spoken of by 
the majority of our correspondents, and there is a great want of 
confidence amongst purchasers in most of our important English 
fairs.—( Mark Lane Express.) 
-Agricultural Disasters in Kansas.—U nder the above 
heading a daily paper has published the following :—In New Mexico 
