290 
boys’ department. 
rabbits I imported ; whereas five guineas is not an 
uncommon price amongst the fancy, and 30 guineas 
have been paid for some remarkable animals by the 
more affluent breeders. 
I made four several shipments, with various suc¬ 
cess, once losing the whole, at others only a part, 
and one lot of four all lived to cross the Atlantic. 
On my return, I fitted up a small apartment, ad¬ 
joining my stable, with a regular stack of fifteen 
hutches, eight of them having small compartments, 
partitioned off as nests for breeding does, while the 
centre four, intended for bucks, have no such divi¬ 
sion. Under the whole, is a range of three hutches 
for young rabbits, when weaned. The breeding 
hutches are three feet long, two feet wide, and six¬ 
teen inches high. One foot is partitioned off as a nest 
box, or bed room, with a close door; a wired door 
forms the rest of the front. The floor should slant 
towards the back, above 1 £ inches, with an opening 
of an inch the whole length, to allow the dirt to 
fall away. The hutches for the bucks are made in 
the same manner, with the exception of nest boxes, 
and are only two feet square. I feed them out of 
small tin cups, secured by a tongue riveted on 
the bottom of the cup, which slips into a strip of tin,, 
called a “ keep,” nailed to the bottom of the hutch, 
and thus confines it to its place. 
It is not at all necessary, however, to go to such 
expense, for I have seen as good a rabbit bred in 
an old dry-goods box, or a tea chest, in the comer 
of an out house, or in a small back yard, as I have 
in the handsomest rabbitries. 
These rabbits are hardy and prolific, and are very 
delicate eating. My mode of feeding is not so 
economical as it might be, having no flour mills 
near me : so I confine myself to oats and roots in 
the winter, oats and clover, or any other greens, 
such as dock leaves, plantain, grass, carrot tops, 
beet tops, cabbage leaves, &c., &c., in the summer, 
—nothing green seems to come amiss to them. 
These substances, with a handful of hay, daily, is 
all I give them. To a full-grown rabbit, I feed one 
gill of oats, night and morning, together with a piece 
of ruta baga of about four ounces’ weight, at each 
feeding; and at noon, a handful of sweet clover 
hay, the whole expense of which is about three 
cents per week. I allow my does to breed about 
four times a year, and to bring up from four to six 
young ones at a time, though the less the number, 
the larger and better the rabbits. When a doe is 
suckling, she will require three gills of oats per 
day, and as much green food as she will eat. 
Many breeders feed but one gill of oats per day, 
and substitute shorts, grains, or pea chaff, for the 
second meal of oats. 
The properties of a good fancy rabbit, are these : 
long , broad ears, of a soft and delicate texture, 
hanging perpendicularly down by the side of the 
cheeks; a full, clear, bright eye, and a large dew¬ 
lap under the chin. The color must be in a mass 
over the entire back, and coursing well down on 
the haunch, breaking into spots on the shoulder, 
called the “ chain while that on the back is 
termed thqjf saddle.” The head should be full of 
color, extending over the ears, running round the 
eyes, on the cheeks, and over the nose : on the lat¬ 
ter, from the form it should assume, it is called 
the “ butterfly.” The fancy rabbit, in shape, differs 
materially now from the engraving of the celebrated 
Woushy, in the Boy’s Own Book,” for the shoul¬ 
der is deep and broad, the loins large, and the hind 
quarter round and full, as you will see from fig. 80. 
It is no easy matter to breed sush a rabbit as I 
have described; and you may rely upon it, that the 
same skill, observation, and attention are as requi¬ 
site in breeding a perfect rabbit, as a perfect Short- 
Horn, or Leicester: and the lad who can accom¬ 
plish the one, maybe considered no mean rival of 
the father who has succeeded-in the other. The dif¬ 
ficulty will but give increased interest to the pursuit. 
If any of your young friends, on reading this 
account of the fancy rabbit, should feel inclined to 
undertake its breeding, or be disposed to form a 
little club of their own, I shall be happy to render 
them any assistance in jny power, and will answer 
any questions they may put to me, being aware 
that I have omitted much that will be necessary for 
them to know, and, when once engaged, would be 
interesting for them to hear. But we must not for¬ 
get that we are children (though some of us may 
be, like myself, of a larger growth), and therefore 
we should not exceed the limits set apart by an in¬ 
dulgent editor for the instruction and amusement of 
, his youthful readers. 
Young rabbits, of the purest blood, may be pur¬ 
chased through the steward, or stock feeder, of a 
packet ship, at about $5 the pair, when about ten 
weeks old, and he will be fairly and honorably 
dealt by, if he calls on any of the following 
breeders:—Mr. Bailey, keeper of the Star Coffee 
House, Crispin street, Union street, out of Bishops- 
gate street, London; Mr. Webster, Pleasant Place, 
Stamford street, Blackfriars’ Road, over Waterloo 
Bridge; Mr. Payne, 142 White chapel, near the 
London Hospital; and I would name others, whose 
stocks are of the very first quality, but whose prices 
would perhaps be something higher. For instance, 
the president, Mr. Handy, Mr. Sutton, Mr. Duche- 
nuc, Mr. Farmer, Mr. Cavendish, Mr. Bird, and 
Mr. Wynne, all of whom took prizes the day I at¬ 
tended the society’s meeting. Mr. Wynne, on 
that occasion, showed a pair of beautiful black and 
white young does, which were purchased at five 
guineas : and three guineas were asked by another 
gentleman fora young “ self-colored” buck. 
“ In the Boy’s Own Book,” is quite a long 
chapter on rabbits and their breeding, from which 
much information may be gleaned, though not alto¬ 
gether free from mistakes. R. 
Butternuts , Otsego Co ., N. Y.. July 20th. 1848. 
The American Hare.— The American hare, 
usually known in this country under the name of 
“ rabbit,” is found pretty generally from Canada to 
the Gulf of Mexico. In winter and early spring, 
in the northern parts of the United States, its coat 
is nearly white, but in summer, it is of a yellowish- 
brown, with a whitish tail. This little animal 
makes a nest, or bed, of moss and leaves, in some 
old log, or hollow tree, whence it issues chiefly, but 
not altogether, by night. Though not so much 
addicted to knawing as squirrels, yet, its teeth be¬ 
ing formed in the same manner, it probably resem¬ 
bles them in its food, eating various kinds of nuts, 
and seeds, as well as green herbs, and the bark of 
young trees. The American rabbit, from its shy¬ 
ness and timidity, is somewhat difficult to tame, and 
still more difficult to breed. 
