November 27. 
THE COTTAGE GAKDENEE. 
139 
not drop their dirt on to each other. The interior of each 
dwelling should he furnished with two nests of plaster, one 
on the right hand and the other on the left—nests of baked 
earth may be made use of. This manner of distributing an 
aviary is so much the more advantageous that each pair of 
pigeons is lodged by itself, without risk of being troubled 
by the others. When their dwellings are not closed, and 
independent one from the other, each male posts himself 
near his female while she is sitting, and not only will not 
allow other birds to approach, but he even prevents their 
sitting within four or live nests on each side of him. We 
have seen them furiously defend a whole row where they 
had established themselves. The result of this habit is 
quarrels and battles without end, the smallest inconvenience 
of which is that it produces confusion in the aviary. We 
may in these nests enclose one or two birds brought from 
another aviary, and there retain them prisoners until they 
have coupled and laid, and by this means accustom them to 
a change of residence without fear of losing them, or the 
annoyance of keeping the others prisoners. 
In all cases the nests should be placed in the darkest part 
of the aviary, because pigeons always seek obscurity for 
laying and sitting; some persons, in constructing dwellings 
like those we have just described, add to them, for this 
reason, two small planks, one on each side, which shades 
the two plasters or nests. The w r alls of the aviary should 
be plastered and whitened with lime; they should be pierced 
with one or two windows, to admit a little light, without its 
being too strong. The Hooring should be covered with a 
good inch of fine sand, on which the dung very soon be¬ 
comes dry, and is easily removed every two or three days by 
means of a small rake with very close teeth, or a birch 
broom. The person who makes use of this last article 
must be careful to press very lightly on the sand, so as only 
to remove the surface. Those pigeons which inhabit a 
sanded aviary always have a clean and glossy plumage. 
It would be advisable to divide the aviary into two or 
three separate compartments by lattice-work, if we wish to 
have all races of pigeons. The Pouters, .Jacobins, Cavaliers, 
&c., might, in fighting with the others, receive in their 
swelled throats very dangerous blows; they should, there¬ 
fore, be shut in one of the divisions of the pigeon-house. 
The large species, such as the Homan, &c., should be in 
another, and the small ones in a third. The less commu¬ 
nication the races have with each other, the less amateurs 
will have to fear intermixtures. 
We should take the precaution of always keeping several 
water-troughs in the aviary, and in a corner a little straw 
cut into pieces of two or three inches in length, so that the 
birds may find materials to construct a clean and convenient 
nest for their young ones. Some races entirely neglect this 
I attention; they lay their eggs in an empty nest, which is 
1 frequently followed by the eggs being broken, or quickly 
I becoming cold: the amateur will remedy this by himself 
placing a little straw in the nest. Others, on the contrary, 
collect such a quantity of twigs in it that they raise the 
nest much too high, which causes the eggs to roll out; in 
this case we must take out the superfluous quantity. 
DESCRIPTIONS OF PIGEONS. 
FIFTEENTH RACE. 
Swallow Pigeons (Columha hirundininu ).—These birds 
have derived their name from their resemblance to the Sea 
! Swallow (Peterel). The underneath part of the body, head, 
j and neck are white; the upper part of the head, tire covering 
I of the wings, and the feathers of the thighs are black, red, 
blue, or yellow. They are feathered-footed, and the colours 
; of the feathers on their feet are always like those of the 
I cloak; the upper part of the head is also of the same 
colour, proceeding from and including the upper mandible 
j of the beak, the colour passing towards the middle of the 
| eye, and terminating at the under extremity of the skull, 
very much like that of the Tomtit, with a black head. They 
have a long body, like the Turtle-dove, but are much larger. 
| They fly very well, and like to hover with rapidity to a very 
great height. If they have the same facility in flying that 
the swallow has, they have also the same difficulty in walk- 
( ing, and are still more ungraceful in this movement. The 
shortness of their feet, and the length of the feathers with 
which they are covered, obliges them to advance heavily, 
and with constraint, by raising their feet slowly, and in an 
awkward manner. In wet climates and dirty dovecotes their 
feathers become loaded with dirt, and inconvenient. Besides 
this, they sometimes have the defect of a streaked iris, by a 
part of the white extending over it, which lessens their value 
in the estimate of amateurs. These pigeons ought not to 
have any black feather across the white, but the dealers, 
before offering them for sale, carefully cut them out with a 
pair of scissors. The amateur may easily avoid being 
deceived in this manner, by examining them attentively ; if 
he finds any vacant places in the smoothness of their 
plumage, or if, by blowing them, he perceives the quills of 
cut feathers, there is no doubt of their toilette having been 
made. 
Common Swallow Pigeon (Columhakirundmina galeata ).— 
Naturalists have doubtless given it the name of galeata from 
fancying they could see the form of a helmet in the spot on 
their head. The iris is yellow, or sandy; they are very 
much shod, and highly esteemed by the amateurs. 
Yellow Swallow Pigeon (Columha hirundinina luted ).— 
Piesembling the preceding, but having those parts yellow 
which in the other are black, red, or blue. These birds are 
prolific. 
Speckled Swallow Pigeon {Columha hirundinina scintil¬ 
la fa ).—This charming bird is extremely rare in France ; it 
can scarcely be procured except in Germany, where even it 
is not common. Its cloak is fawn-colour, prettily speckled 
with black or red. 
TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
*** We request that no one will write to the departmental writers ot 
The Cottage Gardener. It gives them unjustifiable trouble and 
expense. All communications should be addressed “ To the Editor of 
The Cottage Gardener, 2, Amen Corner, Paternoster Row, London. 
Cheap Literature (A Subscriber). —Whoever sneers at you for any 
supposed deficiency, be assured is of superficial acquirements himself; 
for he who knows much is always the most conscious of how little he 
knows. If, in addition to The Cottage Gardener, you purchase ! 
The Cottage Gardener’s Dictionary, you will have all you need upon the 
subjects of which they treat, and if you require information on the cur¬ 
rent literature and science of the day, take in the Athenaeum. 
Gas Stove (L.). —This is merely a common iron stove of any diameter 
required, with a circular row of jets of flame issuing from a coil of pipe 
within it, or from a common argand burner so placed, and with an iron ! 
instead of a glass tube round it. The fumes are carried away by an iron 
chimney passing through the roof or side of the house, and the burning ; 
gas is supplied with air by a small pipe communicating with the outer 
air, and passing into the stove at its bottom. Any gas-fitter knows what 
it is. Your other queries next week. 
Name ok Insect (Paul). —You say you caught one of the insects 
which feeds on the leaves of your Roses and Clematis. Why did you not . 
add that it is a small beetle, or what it is like '/ 
North Border (E. D. B.). —We intend to devote an article in the 
Kitchen-garden department to “ north borders ” and their various uses ; 
but, in the meantime, you may plant a part of it with Elton Strawberries, 
which is a late kind, and being placed in such a situation tends to 
lengthen the season ; as these ought to be planted immediately (if done this 
autumn), we at once reply to your query, but the uses of the remainder 1 
of the border will be treated of at length next week. 
Cedar ok Lebanon Cones ( L. B.). —It is very questionable if there 
are any good seeds in the cones. We have sown a great many seeds | 
