February 20. 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER, 
343 
than two eggs in three days, without you have some good 
reason for sparing her. If the hens which ought to lay are 
inclined to take holiday (except during the moulting), re¬ 
mind them of their duty, by giving warm food every morn¬ 
ing until they lay again, hut do not let fowls eat of it which 
lay well without. Let there he a supply of oyster or shell¬ 
fish shells broken up, or old building rubbish, as fowls must 
have lime in some shape for their egg-shells. 
In the third place, carry on your little trade with perfect 
honesty —have no concealments. Write the date upon the 
eggs, and after they are four days old, sell them no longer 
as new laid eggs, but at a somewhat cheaper rate. I believe 
there would be a much greater demand for fresh eggs than 
there is now, if those which are sold as such could be fully 
depended on. 
Fourthly—keep as little unproductive stock as possible. 
The most expensive time with fowls is from when they 
cease to be quite chickens, until they become productive. 
It is therefore advisable, for economy’s sake, to pick out 
all not intended for stock, and sell them for the table at 
three or lour months old. Pullets of common breeds will 
often not lay until they are eight or nine months old; some 
of choicer kinds lay much earlier. 
I have never found any kind of fowl so good, or so profit¬ 
able, as the Cochin-China, and I hope to see the day arrive, 
shortly , when the poor man, as well as the rich, may possess 
his cock and hens of this excellent sort. They are at 
present dear, but with a little time and patience, I am sure 
a stock might be got together at small expense, and their 
great superiority as profitable poultry is so well worth the 
etfort, that I cannot help offering a suggestion on the subject. 
I speak of the Cochin-China not as fancy , but only as 'pro¬ 
ductive stoc/i. 
First. Make it your business to know thoroughly what 
the true bred fowls should be, for if you attempt to obtain 
them without this thorough knowledge, your trouble is only 
likely to lead to disappointment, and to the loss of your 
little capital. The general characteristics of this fowl are 
now too well known to need repetition here, but when I 
select, I like to take the bird in my hand; it should be very 
plump, and broad made, not too tall, and very deep from 
back to breast. The quality of the fluff is very important; 
on raising that on the thigh with the hand, there is as much 
difference in the texture in the choicest specimens of the 
Cochin-China fowls, and in some of a coarser kind, as there 
is between fioss silk, and cotton. When you know what the 
fowls should be, and where to find some of first-rate quality, 
get together half-a-guinea, or any sum you can manage, and 
with it purchase as many eggs as you can get. Where you 
buy the eggs, notice that the cocks are good, and take care 
to know which hen laid your eggs ; any amateur who obliges 
you with a few eggs will pardon you for being thus particular, 
when he knows of how much importance this little sum of 
money is to you. Give these eggs, and no others, however 
small their number, to one good hen that you can well 
depend on; raise the chickens with great care, and feed 
them very abundantly. When they grow up to be cock-birds 
and pullets, sell the young cocks, and keep the two best 
pullets; if you are lucky enough to have more than two 
pullets, you may be glad to let the remainder go with the 
cocks, as an inducement to purchasers to take them, for it is 
often very difiicult to get rid of cocks alone. With the 
money thus produced, buy a good young cock, the best your 
funds will permit you to choose, and take care that he is not 
of the same blood as your pullets. The following spring 
you will have young fowls fit to breed from at once, and 
which will continue to increase in value and good qualities 
for a long time. 
I am really almost ashamed of returning again and again 
to this well-worked subject of Cochin-China fowls, but I find 
them so very fit for the purpose I now advocate, that I 
cannot forbear. It is a recommendation that they are 
easily kept to the place intended for them; while the work¬ 
ing man is at his daily occupation, he cannot afford to let 
his hens amuse their leisure by turning his neighbours into 
enemies, by trespassing and depredations ; this need not be 
feared with Cochin-Chinas. They also come to maturity, and 
begin to lay so early, that at the age when other fowls are 
most expensive, and when eggs are scarce, they begin to 
produce. Anster Bonn. 
JUDGING FLORISTS' FLOWERS. 
1 here is one, and only one, way to judge correctly florists’ 
flowers shown in stands. How often does it happen that 
judges go into the exhibition room to award prizes without 
either pencil or paper. They look from end to end, and 
returning say, “ We are going to have a very hard task, for 
the stands are really good, but we must make haste, for the 
doors have to be open at such a time.” After having gone 
several times over a dozen stands of dahlias, they say, “ Put 
the first prize on that, we all agree this is the best.—Now 
for the second.” Then over they go again, and at last find 
one they think the next best. “ Now for the third.”—“Well, 
I think that should have it; we had a sad job to say which 
of those had to be second; well, put it on, we have avast 
deal to do yet, and we have been a long time over this lot.” 
I hen the sixes are got over in the same uncertain way. 
Now, when competition is anything like equal, no man 
can judge by the eye alone. He cannot lift stands together 
to compare, as he could in class showing; but when judges 
proceed to examine, if they will follow the plan I lay down, 
they cannot make a mistake. I take two stands of twelves,— 
dahlias, for example, but it holds good in all stand-showing. 
Let one of the judges have pencil and paper, or note book, 
and let them start at the front row at the left-hand corner. 
I will suppose there arc two stands, and call them A. and B. 
By once going over, the judges readily see which stand has 
the most good blooms, and which the next, and so on. I 
give nothing to bad or middling flowers; they must go for 
nothing. The exhibitors must put better in, or they will 
not win a first prize, if there is a stand that has one point 
more. It will be the means of having better stands on the 
table in future, for the exhibitor will not run his blooms so 
far, tempted by a desire to win many prizes, nor put a part 
good into the twenty-fours, a part into his twelves, and a 
part to the sixes, instead of making one good stand. 
If two stands have equal points, I divide the prize be¬ 
tween the two. Judges thus judging, can show their notes 
of each stand, without the least fear of well-founded dissa¬ 
tisfaction, and show where such and such stand or stands 
lost the prize by bad blooms. 1 do not write because I 
think this plan will do, but from experience of its success; 
but the judges must be competent, and know Mr. Glenny’s 
standards.—.T. (Jrossi.inu, ietlon Park, Northumberland. 
Dahlias.- 
—Stand A. 
* 
•55- 
* 
55- 
Bad 
Outline 
Good 
Good 
Bad 
Sunk in the Eye 
* 
•55- 
55- 
55- 
Good 
Bad 
Over Small 
Good 
Good 
55- 
* 
55- 
55- 
Bad 
Eye Sunk 
Good 
Bad 
Coarse 
Good 
Dahlias.- 
—Stand B. 
* 
55- 
55- 
55- 
Good 
Bad 
Sunk Eye 
Good 
Bad 
Outline 
* 
* 
55- 
51 
Good 
Good 
Bad 
Reflexes 
Good 
* 
•55- 
55- 
55- 
Good 
Bad 
Quilly 
Good 
Good 
B wins, having eight points; A but seven. 
YORKSHIRE ASSOCIATION FOR THE 
IMPROVEMENT OF DOMESTIC POULTRY. 
The first show of this society was held on Thursday and 
Friday, 12th and 13th February, in the Riding School, 
Halifax. It was well attended, and was the finest exhibition 
of domestic poultry ever seen in the north of England. 
The judges were—Edward Bond, Esq., Middleton Lodge, 
