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THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, November 8, 1859. 
THE CANARY AND THE BRITISH FINCHES. 
The small birds, which are usually kept in aviaries and cages, and 
feed on seeds, are placed by naturalists in the second order— 
Insessores, or Perchers; and belong to the second tribe—Coni- 
rostres, or Conical-billed birds, and to the family Fringillidte. 
The English seed-eating birds, to which 1 shall now allude, 
belong to the three following groups:—Loxia, or Grosbeak; 
Eringilla, or Finches; and Emberiza, or Buntings. 
To take them, therefore, in order, I shall commence with the 
Grosbeaks in the following classification :— 
1st. Groseeak3 ( Loxice ).—The Crossbill, the Hawfinch, the 
Greenfinch, the Bullfinch, and the Serin, 
2nd. The Finches (. Fringillce ) comprise the Cibrilfiuch, the 
wild Canary; the domestic Canary, and its various breeds as 
follow: — The Green, the Cinnamon, Jonque Norwich, the 
Lizards, the London Fancy, Crested Canaries, Regular Pieds, 
Erect Belgians, Hooped Belgians, German Canaries, and Rough- 
footed ; also Canary Mules. The Linnet; the Twite ; the Red- 
pole and Mealy Redpole; the Siskin, or Aberdevinej the Gold¬ 
finch ; the Chaffinch; the Bramblefinch; the Sparrow and the 
Mountain Sparrow. 
3rd. Buntings (Emberizce). — The Common Bunting, the 
Yeilowhammer, the Reed Sparrow, the Cirl Bunting, the Snow 
Bunting, and the Ortolan.—B. P. Brent. 
(To be continued .) 
BEE-KEEPING IN DEVON.—No. XIV. 
A MIGRATION—STRUGGLE EOR ITALIAN INDEPENDENCE—A FRUIT¬ 
LESS SEARCH — A BAS LES EMIGRANTS ! — DRUMMING FOR 
RECRUITS—A PARTIAL FAILURE—A SUCCESS—AN EXAMINA¬ 
TION-AGED OR HYBRID ?—FAR-FETCHED AND DEAR-BOUGHT. 
There could be no doubt of the fact—disheartened by what 
must have appeared to them to be the utter and irretrievable loss 
of their queen and all their treasures, the unfortunate inhabitants 
of No. I. had rejected the cold shelter of an empty bos, and had 
betaken themselves elsewhere. Not a little chagrined at their 
loss, I nevertheless congratulated myself on my foresight in 
having secured the bees from two condemned stocks, which I 
anticipated would more than supply the place of the missing 
ones. Need I describe my mortification at finding that in one 
case the contents of the hive had dwindled to a cluster that 
might have been contained in a small basin ; whilst in the other 
the bees had followed the example of my own truants, and' had 
entirely disappeared ? 
But one course remained open to me—viz., to add the small 
cluster to the Ligurians already in possession of No. I., and 
endeavour to supply the place of the absentees by the inhabitants 
of other condemned stocks, if perchance they could be met with 
so late in the season. Having knocked out the cluster in the 
usual manner upon a cloth, and surmounted it with the hive for 
which it was destined, I anxiously awaited the result. In a short 
time the combined uproar from both No. I. and No. III. (which 
were placed within ft short distance of each other) afforded 
ample evidence that the foreigners were making a determined, 
but probably an ineffectual, struggle for Italian independence. 
Early next morning I cautiously raised the two hives on their 
respective pedestals, and carefully examined the dead bees which 
remained on the cloths, with the view of discovering if either or 
both of the foreign sovereigns had fallen victims to the fury of 
the invaders. The heaps of dead and dying, in which the bright 
colours of the Ligurians were unfortunately but too conspicuous, 
bore witness to the severity of the conflict; but as the most rigid 
scrutiny failed to reveal a slaughtered queen, I was not without 
hope that these all-important functionaries had escaped injury. 
The number of dead bees which strewed the ground in front, of 
two adjoining stocks showed that the unfortunate emigrants from 
No. I. had made desperate efforts to unite their fortunes with 
their neighbours, and testified at the same time the obstinate 
resistance which they had encountered. As no increase could be 
perceived in the population of these hives, it appears probable 
that few, if any, of the would-be intruders survived the attempt. 
So great an amount of confusion prevailed in No. III. during 
the next few days that I could not but fear for the result. As, 
however, nothing could now be done, I turned my attention to • 
supplying the deficient population in No. I. 
The first condemned hive I was able to meet with was four 
miles off; and this I operated on during the afternoon of the 
12th Sept. It was an old stock; and having thrown a largo 
swarm rather late in the season, its population was not particu¬ 
larly numerous. The usual amount of drumming expelled the 
bees ; and their queen having been promptly secured, they were 
conveyed to their old situation, where they were intended to 
remain until evening. It was not long, however, before the alarm 
was given that they were attempting to force an entrance into a 
neighbouring stock. They had evidently discovered the loss of 
their sovereign, and, declining to take refuge in the empty hive, 
were rushing about in the wildest confusion. In this dilemma I 
considered it fortunate that the queen was not destroyed; and 
having placed her in a small box with perforated cover, I inverted 
it over a hole in the top of the hive. The good effect was imme¬ 
diately apparent. Gradually the confusion subsided, and all 
appeared disposed to accept the refuge provided for them. Just 
as I was about to tie them up with a view to their removal, they 
appeared to discover that all was not right, and again rushed out, 
congregating on the exterior of the hive, and endeavouring to 
force an entrance into the box in which the queen was confined. 
Finding their efforts ineffectual, they once more betook themselves 
to the interior ; but before all were inside another rush was made. 
These proceedings having been several times repeated, I deemed 
it useless to wait longer; and, watching my opportunity, tied up 
the hive, and removed it with as many bees as appeared likely to 
congregate within it. On knocking out the cluster at night, T 
judged them to be about equal to those already installed in No. I., 
by which they were received peaceably enough. 
These repeated mishaps having satisfied me that it was abso¬ 
lutely necessary to confine bees as quickly as possible after de¬ 
priving them of their queen, I took care to do so with the next 
stock I was able to procure, and in this case secured all the bees. 
These having been added to No. I. without any mishap, this un¬ 
fortunate hive began to re-assume something of its former activity. 
The excitement before spoken of in No. III. having disappeared, 
I determined on the tenth day after the arrival of the two foreign 
queens to make a careful examination of both hives, with the 
view of ascertaining if they had survived the massacre of the 
great majority of their companions. This examination was 
effected by shifting the combs, bees and all, into another box of 
the same size (a process which in bar-hives is not at all difficult), 
and carefully examining every comb until the queen was dis¬ 
covered. After the removal of a few r combs I had a full view' of 
the sovereign of No. I., but found to my astonishment, that al¬ 
though of large size, she was nearly as dark as a queen bee of 
the common species. Whether this variation in colour is to be 
attributed to age, or to cross-breeding, I cannot determine. My 
impression is, that she is a hybrid between the Ligurian and the 
ordinary bee, and, therefore, entirely worthless. 
Not a little annoyed at this unlooked-for discovery, I proceeded 
to examine No. III.; and here the readers of The Cottage Gar¬ 
dener may imagine my vexation at finding an old ragged-winged 
common queen, differing in no respect from the ordinary species. 
1 could scarcely credit the evidence of my senses, and brought 
her into my sitting room, where she ran about the carpet, as 
black a queen as I ever saw r . I was, indeed, sorely tempted to 
put my foot upon her, but mastering this disposition with some 
difficulty, I ultimately returned her to the hive, a far-fetched and 
dear-bought, as well as a most unsatisfactory exchange for the 
young and prolific queen which but ten days previously had 
been so ruthlessly sacrificed by—A Devonshire Bee-keeper. 
OUR LETTER BOX. 
Collared Turtle Doves (Southern Cross ).—The Collared Turtle Dove 
(Columba Risnria), or little fawn-coloured Dove with a black ring or collar 
about the neck, has been kept at large in England all through the year 
and there used to be many flying about at Earl Stanhope’s, at Chevening’ 
and also at Penshurst Castle. I have also kept them in a pen, open on the 
south side, all through the winter, and they did well, and I have no doubt 
they will succeed in the aviary mentioned. Plain wholesome food as wheat 
buckwheat, millet, or canary seed, with grits, clean water, and shelter 
from wet and easterly winds is all they require.—B. P. Brent. 
Dorking’s Toes (It. II. JV.).—A Dorking cockerel with only four claws 
would never obtain a prize. 
Ground Oats (./. M .).—These are oats ground, but not dressed. They 
should be moistened like barleymeal before being given to fowls. 
Bees in Nutt’s Hive (A. IP. Wills ).-—Your Nutt’s hive appears to have 
prospered very well, the centre box being quite filled with honey, and a 
side box with combs. The question as to feeding a stock already rich is 
easily answered. Let well alone. Should any circumstances arise in the 
spring to render it desirable, a little food may then be useful,—barley 
sugar if you like, but the present weight of honey must be considerable. 
In a little time you may stop the communication with the end boxes, but 
on no account touch the existing combs. These in the next season will give 
the bees a great.advantage, and save labour and material in forming new 
