September 8. 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
449 
another bed far more chalky and more in the sun, hut none 
have lived but this row at the hack. The position is shady, 
and the ground nearly free from chalk ; they were taken up 
in flower , and yet they did not die. The fact is, that a little 
projecting hit of the roof of the house keeps off the heavy 
rain, and this one advantage appears to compensate for 
everything. ? 
My advice, then, is—plant them on a sloping hank which 
has been “ made ” for them, and in a good sunny position, 
and if they will not do then, T will believe that they cannot be 
grown ; but till then, I shall still believe it practicable. 
Some of the Orchises require a different soil and position; 
perhaps, in another letter, I may say something about them ; 
hut Ophrys apifera , Ophrys muscifera, Aceras anthropo- 
phora, Gymnadenia conopsca, and Orchis pyramidalis, will 
all enjoy the sunny chalky bank. W. P. 
[We had expunged the “ perhaps ” from the above half¬ 
promise, but leave it that we may append this expression of 
our hope that you will favour us with your remarks upon 
other British Orchids.—E d. C. G.] 
SHANGHAE COCKEREL AS A NURSE. 
Perhaps some of your readers may feel interested in the 
following, as a further illustration of the docility of the 
Shanghae Cocks as nurses :— 
I have a White Shanghae Cockerel, of Mrs. Plerbert’s 
breed, hatched in January last, whose usefulness well repays 
me for the care requisite in rearing- so early in the year. 
A few weeks ago, I had four hens, with each a brood of 
chickens, and I wished to have their eggs before the usual 
time for them to lay again. How could I manage this ? I 
had observed this young cockerel to be very kind among 
chickens. Was it possible that lie would nurse them ? I 
determined to try, and placed them with him, in a warm, 
large, dry pen, and he appeared perfectly to understand the 
importance of the trust committed to his care. For an hour 
or two, some of the chicks were fretful for their mothers; 
he seemed to interpret their feelings, and chuckled, and 
called, scratched, broke bits of soft bread placed for their 
food, and, in short, did everything to comfort and amuse 
his young charge until they became tranquil, walking about 
the pen with the utmost caution, lest he should tread upon 
any of them. They soon became quite familiar with him, 
and he will carry four or five on his back at once. At night, 
the youngest of his large family sleep under his wings, and 
he looks most paternally anxious until they are all housed 
and settled. 
Thus, through the docility and care of this cockerel, I 
am receiving four extra eggs every day, one from each of 
the mothers, and he is nursing forty-five healthy chickens. 
Two or three times, I have put him into another pen, to 
see what would be the result, when he showed the greatest 
uneasiness to return to his broods, and they gave the most 
cordial signs of welcome when he was restored to them. 
I have two other Shanghae cocks which, though I have 
never tried them as nurses, are also very good with chickens. 
—M. C., Altrincham. 
MANAGEMENT OF GOLD FISH. 
In one of your recent numbers, you noticed that a cor¬ 
respondent had made enquiries respecting the proper treat¬ 
ment of Gold Fish. The following remarks, made by a person 
long resident at Shanghae, may, therefore, be acceptable. 
The Chinese say that these fish were first brought to Amoy 
from Japan, where they are indigenous, being found in a 
tepid lake on the summit of the Laconie Mountains, pro¬ 
bably the crater of an extinct volcano. 
The Mandarins- avail themselves of this fairy family as 
garden ornaments, frequently introducing them between 
plates of glass in the interstices of their favourite rockwork, 
which they render water-tight by a varnish, which they call 
Tamfoo; or retaining them in porcelain vases, symmetrically 
disposed on the balustrades of their houses. 
They are generally fed on a sort of biscuit made of rice, 
with, in the colder season, a small quantity of the bark of 
the camphor tree, very finely-powdered (called Fangti). 
During the breeding season the eggs of certain insects are 
liberally supplied. 
Rain-water agrees better with them than the spring-water, 
for, if there is iron in the soil, they gradually lose their | 
brilliancy, and become of an ashy-brown colour; or, if chalk 
abounds, or porcelain clay, they become blind, the scales 
throw out a cottony exudation, like the American blight on 
an apple tree, and they die. 
It is a singular circumstance attending gold fish, that i 
under certain dispositions of their temperament they are | 
seized with a sort of furor, and devour each other; the 
stronger preying on the more feeble. The Chinese call this 
disease Chang-poo-Cliing. I do not know whether it occurs ! 
in our latitude. T. Werthein. 
GAPES IN CHICKENS. 
I have endeavoured to follow out the excellent sug¬ 
gestions of Mr. Tegetmeier with regard to the “ Gapes,” 
hitherto so destructive to our best breeds of chickens; and, 
in enumerating the results, I will indicate a mode of ope¬ 
rating which may prove of value. I took six well-marked 
cases, and determined to treat three of them with the 
turpentine fumigation, and three with the direct application 
of the turpentine by means of a feather passed down the 
windpipe. 
The three to which the turpentine was directly applied 
lived and did well. To fumigate the other three, I used a 
case, containing the bird, and a piece of saturated flannel to 
create an atmosphere of turpentine, and this atmosphere 
was respired, (at short intervals) for several hours, and two 
of the cases with success, but the third bird died ; and, on 
examination, I found one large worm and five small ones, 
which were still adherent to the windpipe, and were not at 
all disturbed from their position. 
You can imagine, that I rather hold to the superiority of 
the direct application of the turpentine, and I have thought 
much of the best mode of applying this worm poison. It 
seems to me that there would be an advantage gained, in 
addition to the application of the turpentine, hy causing a 
small mechanical disturbance to the worms themselves, by 
some mode which would not wound the windpipe; this 
could be done, I fancy, by means of a slender bit of whale¬ 
bone, having left at the end a small button, on to which a 
small sponge is tied; the instrument is easily made after 
the manner of a surgeon’s “probang.” The sponge may 
be cut away, little and little, till the proper size and shape 
are obtained, and will have this advantage, that the tur¬ 
pentine will not drop from it into the lungs; but will be 
necessarily distributed, by the round or conical sponge, on 
every part of the windpipe to which worms may be affixed, 
and which would not obtain, in many cases, by the use of 
the flat feather. I do not know if I have made my sug¬ 
gestion clear; but it seems to me, that it will render the 
operation more certain and uniform ; and if so, it is worth a 
few minutes’ trouble in preparing the little instrument. I 
intend to use it myself, and shall be glad to hear how it 
answers to others. 
I may mention, as the result of observations I have made, 
that all my breeds of fancy fowls are equally subject to the 
disease of Gapes, except the Malays, and in no case have I 
ever found them affected; this is curious ; and I should 
like to hear if it be a fact confirmed by other observers, or 
only a curious coincidence. 
W. Lort, Great Heath, near Tcnbury. 
GREAT SALE OF STOCK AT TORTWORTH. 
august 24th and 25th. 
The sale of the magnificent stock of the late Earl Ducie 
took place at Tortwortli Court, the scene of the late lamented 
nobleman’s exertions in the cause of agriculture. The 
fame of the stock bad long since spread beyond the shores 
of England, and we were not surprised to see an immense 
assemblage, amongst them being many American breeders— 
men who spare neither money nor trouble to improve their 1 
