THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, January 26, 1858. 
271 
Golden -spangled Hamburghs.—P rize, I. Davies. Highly Com¬ 
mended, \V. II. Swann. 
Silver-pencilled Hamburghs. —Prize, Miss E. S. Perkins. Highly 
Commended, J. Mitchell. 
Silver-spangled Hamburghs.— Prize, J. Camm. 
Polish. —Prize, G. C. Adkins. 
Money Prizes of £10, £6, and £4, for the three best Single Game 
I Cocks, of anv variety, age, or colour .—First, G. D. Jarvis. Second, 
| J. T. Edge. Third, W. Dawson. Highly Commended, J. Hoyland, 
i W. Letchford, and W. Johnson. (It was the best Game Cock class that 
; has ever been exhibited.) 
Money Prizes of £10 and £5, for the two best Pens of Black Spanish, 
: of any age ; to be entered and exhibited specially for these Prizes.— 
i Prize, J. II. Craigie. 
Money Prizes of £10, £5, and £2 10s., for the best three Pens of 
Dorkings, of any colour.—First, H. Smith. Second, C. H. Wakefield. 
| Third, Mrs. Parkinson. 
Money Prizes of Five Guineas and Three Guineas for the two best 
Game Cocks, hatched in 1857, of any variety or colour.—First, W. 
Johnson. Second and Third, J. T Edge. Highly Commended, J. T. 
j Edge, W. Johnson, and W. IT. Swann. (The class throughout good.) 
Money Prizes of £10 and £5 for the two best pens of Cochin-China 
of any colour.—First, J. Iv. Bartrum. Second, J. Bradwell*. 
We will give the prize lists for Pigeons, Rabbits, and 
Canaries, next week. 
CHARACTERISTICS OF GOLDEN- 
PENCILLED HAMBURGH S. 
In my last letter I stated what I am sure are the true 
markings and colour of the above variety. And, as “ C. E. 
truly says, neither breeders, nor keepers wlio are in the habit 
of visiting Poultry Shows, can form any idea of what is the 
true standard of Golden Pencils, sucli a discrepancy exists in 
Judges giving prizes ; some giving to the light buff, and the 
grey, copper-tinged, small markings; others giving to the 
dark buff, with similar-coloured, but larger markings; and 
others taking a correct view, and giving to tlie dark-gold 
bottom, and black-green markings. Wherever there is a 
mixture of grey copper colour in the Pencil markings, there is 
sure to be a buff bottom, either light or dark. As I have 
never seen clear black-green pencillings on a buff bottom, 
therefore I take the party-coloured pencillings to be a cer¬ 
tainty in the buff variety. Now for what I consider the 
correct standard of Golden-pencilled hens. 
First, a dark-gold ground. Second, the pencil marks a 
clear black green, and not mixed with any other colour in the 
marks. Third, the marks to be uniformly oblong across the 
feather, and not jagged at the edges of tlie pencil marks, or 
ill-shaped, to extend from the tip of the tail to the bottom of 
the hackle. Fourth, the markings on the breast to reach near 
to the throat. Fifth, that the pencillings should be under 
the body, as well as on the back, though smaller; of course 
white ear-lobes, rose-combs, clear hackles, and blue legs under¬ 
stood. 
I have not hin g to add (with respect to the cocks), to the 
remarks made by the editor, except I would have them clear 
j from body marks; as I have seen very good cocks with a 
slight marking of the wing-coverts, and a few marked feathers 
on the rump near the root of the tail; yet I consider these 
faulty birds'. With respect to form and condition weighing 
with the Judges against more correctness of feather—take 
them for what they are, and nothing more—correctness of 
feather, as well as form and condition, ought to be the aim of 
all who wish to see beauty and utility combined. _ Put I 
would emphatically state that correctness of feather in all the 
I Hamburghs is the great essential. I. H. 
f - „ . „ 
AWARDS AT THE CRYSTAL PALACE 
POULTRY' SHOW. 
TT ^ vtnu- been an exhibitor at the various Poultiy Shows 
from their very commencement, and taken prizes in most ot 
the classes, I cannot but express my surprise at tlie way in 
■which some of tho prizes at the late Show have been aw aided. 
I can only account for it by supposing that the number being 
so very great, and the time for inspection short, the Judges 
were particular as to tlie first prize; but the second and third 
were taken almost as they stood, and with but little discrimi¬ 
nation as to their real merits. Now the Judges are well paid ; 
and if they found they could not get through with their task 
properly, they should not have undertaken it at all. That 
they did not get through with it properly is evident from 
wliat follows. 
They say the Duckwings were the finest ever shown. I 
agree with them : but let us see how they have displayed 
their knowledge. 1st. prize no one can find fault With ; it is 
a beautifid pen. 2nd. prize, much inferior in size, shape, and 
plumage to those “ highly commended and badly matched, 
compared with them. The 3rd. is even worse than the 2nd., 
being an imperfect pen, the cock having only one eye—a 
disqualification of itself; and yet they have awarded a third 
prize over a pen as good in every respect, excepting the colour 
of the cock, as the pen taking the first prize. 
Again: Two pens of Black-breasted Red, side by side, 
belonging to the same person; one valued by the owner at 
five guineas, tlie other at three guineas. Prize given to the 
latter: when no person who has ever bred a Game fowl would 
look at the prize birds when compared with the others. 
I am one of the largest breeders of Spanish, Dorking, and 
Game fowls in England; and take as many prizes in the two 
first, and more in the last, than any person in England: but 
I will show no more, if the prizes are to be awarded in the 
way they were this time. Do not fancy I anl writing this 
from any feeling of annoyance at not having taken a prize; 
for I had not a single bird in either of the classes mentioned. 
I do it from a feeling that justice should be done to every one 
wlio places bis birds in competition with others ; only asking 
to be fairly dealt with by men competent to decide as to the 
merits of the various breeds placed before them. I trust to 
your known impartiality and love of justice for the insertion 
of this.—H. B. 
PAINTED EARS AND LEGS. 
Since the exposure of painted legs at Bradford Show, and 
the painted ears at Burnley Show, it is high time that Judges 
were on their guard. Before placing prizes anywhere, the 
birds ought to be thoroughly examined, the* Judges having 
the power to take the birds in hand, and to wet, or otherwise 
use what tests they think proper to the ears or the legs. . With 
reference to the painted ears at Burnley, the birds in tlie 
Silver-spangled class had got both first and second prizes, the 
Judges having left the room : but some one more wide awake 
than they, found the error they had made; and they (the 
Judges), returned and replaced the prizes, after having dis¬ 
qualified the pens with painted ears. 
There was not one class at tlie Burnley Show, amongst the 
Hamburghs, in which there were not birds with painted 
earlobes. It is time that these nefarious practices were put 
down, and the parties held up to public odium. 
What can those do, whose sole aim is to show honestly, 
with parties who resort to those practices above mentioned. 
And there is another nefarious practice resorted to as had as 
painting. In the gold and silver pencils, as your corres¬ 
pondent who signs himself “ I. H.” truly remarks, nearly all 
the best hen birds in both gold and silver pencils are a little 
marked in the bottom of the hackle. The practice of certain 
parties is to pluck out the marked feathers, or pinch off the 
pencilling, so as to make the hackle look clearer : but tins is 
easily discovered if the birds are made to hold up their heads ; 
then the hackle feathers appear too short, and there is an 
evident want of covering in the bottom of the neck. The 
Judges then can handle the birds, and open to the place 
where they will see the featlier-lioles, and the places where 
the pencillings have been pinched off. There was a large 
sprinkling that had undergone trimming of this description at 
the Burnley Show. Now, this is no new 'thing : numbers of 
amateurs of my acquaintance have ceased to show in conse¬ 
quence of tho aforesaid practices ; and more will do so unless 
the Judges will fully expose these attempted frauds.—A n 
Old Subscribes. 
[Any parties detected in such attempted deceptions, should 
have their names sent to the Secretaries of all other Poultry 
Shows; and such delinquents should never be allowed to 
exhibit.—E d.] 
