THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN’S COMPANION, March 3, 1857. 
385 
you were in partnership with any exhibitor, nor have I heard 
any one else say so, nor have I heard the most slight 
allusion to anything of the kind. I much regret that any 
unpleasantness should arise out of an amusement, and 
more particularly under your present circumstances. 
“ I remain, <fec., 
“ Your obedient Servant.” 
Mb. Hewitt to Mr. J. B. Chune. _ 
“Eden Cottage, February 13 th, 1857. 
“ Sir, —In explanation of my seeming intrusion on your 
privacy I inclose a correspondence that will best * tell its 
own tale;’ and in common justice to your character as an 
exhibitor of poultry, and my own as that of a Poultry 
Judge, I simply beg to request, without any reservation 
whatever, a statement for publication of our relative past 
and likewise present positions as to poultry matters. 
“ I am, <fcc.” 
Mr. Chune’s Reply to the above Letter. 
“ Oreen Bank, Coalbrookdalc, Shropshire, Feb. 1 ith. 
“ Sir, —Your note came to hand this morning, the con¬ 
tents of which quite astound me. As I have not taken The 
Cottage Gardener for some time I was quite ignorant, and 
the note just received is the first intimation I have had of 
the base accusation made against us, that is, of being in 
‘ partnership ’ with you in poultry matters. I never bought 
a fowl of you, never sold you one, nor have I had any con¬ 
nection whatever with your poultry-yard. I never yet even 
entered your premises, neither have I seen you a dozen times 
in the whole course of my poultry career. From the corre¬ 
spondence inclosed with your note I perceive this false and 
wicked charge was first ‘ cooked up ’ at Prescot, allowed to 
get cold, and now has been ‘ warmed up again ’ at Preston 
by Mr. W. C. Worrell, my ‘ old competitor’ in Hamburghs, 
and almost the last man I should have thought would have 
supposed such a thing. 
“My same birds won at Preston last year, when Mr. 
Worrell's ‘ friend,’ as some exhibitors term him, was one of 
the Judges. 
“ A Liverpool friend of mine says, ‘Mr. Worrall was sorely 
put about with what transpired at the London Show and at 
Preston. Disappointment raised his thermometer to a state 
of blood heat, and he seems to have fixed upon you and me 
as the objects of revenge.’ 
“ So let it be—‘ a rotten stick soon breaks.’ Mr. Worrall 
falls back upon Mrs. Sharp as being the instigator of this 
infamous report. 
“ I believe the poultry fancy is getting to a state of excited 
* jealousy.’ If it does, down it goes for certain. If Mr. 
Worrall is not satisfied with something like a share of prizes 
I would advise him to have a show and award the prizes 
himself. 
“ I have, by this day’s post, written to Mrs. Sharp, de¬ 
manding an apology or the name of her authority for cir¬ 
culating such a base falsehood. 
“ Yours, &c.” 
Mr. Chune to Mr. Worrall. 
“ Green Bank, Coalbrookdale, February 15 th, 1857. 
“ Sir, —Yesterday I received a note from Mr. Hewitt, 
inclosing correspondence referring to a letter sent by you to 
the Preston Committee, in which you state that Mr. Hewitt 
and myself are partners in poultry matters, which assertion 
is most false and unjust, and I now request the name of 
your authority for circulating such a report. I never bought 
a fowl of Mr. Hewitt, never sold him one, never have had 
any connection whatever with his poultry-yard, never yet even 
entered his premises, neither have I seen him a dozen times 
in my life ; in fact, I know but little about Mr. Hewitt. I 
have met him at several Shows in this neighbourhood, and 
any information I required as to the merits of fowls he has 
always given me in a most kind and gentlemanly manner, 
as, I believe, he does to every one.” 
[Then follows a charge against Mr. Worrall not relative 
to the charge against Mr. Hewitt and Mr. Chune.] 
“ Whoever the instigator may be, I hope Mr. Hewitt will 
use every exertion with poultry Committees to have him 
excluded from all future Exhibitions, which will be the best 
means of putting down such a wicked, malicious person. I 
will conclude by sincerely hoping Mr. Hewitt may live 
LONG TO TRAMPLE DOWN HIS ENEMIES. 
“I am, &c.” 
From Mr. Worrall to Mr. Chune. 
“ February 17 th. 
“ Sir, —I was so much startled on opening yours of 
Saturday last, that I must beg you, if further communica¬ 
tion be required, to give up * illuminations,’ or, in other 
words, not to underline your letter so much, as the effect is 
severely felt by a highly nervous system, and cannot possibly 
make your style and matters more impressive. 
“ In my letter to the Preston Committee I did not state 
that Mr. Hewitt and yourself were in ‘ partnership ; ’ I must, 
therefore, hope that your mis-statement is not wilful. What 
I did assert (and now repeat) was, that an exhibitor at tbe 
Prescot Show openly charged Mr. Hewitt with such com¬ 
munity of interests, and that he did not contradict the 
assertion; and as this charge was against Mr. H., and did 
not at all affect your moral position, I must refer you to 
him, as I have already given up my authorities for the 
statement. I notice all your assertions as to your slight 
acquaintance with Mr. Hewitt, but my opinion being con - 
firmed by assurances received at Prescot, Wigan, Birming¬ 
ham, and Preston, I regret that I cannot so readily resign 
it, especially as, after the Wellington Show, I was informed 
by a letter from a gentleman that the Golden-pencilled 
fowls with which you won the Cup there were bought either 
from Mr. H. or by him for you at 12s. each. Allow me to 
remark, however, that if you have subsequently exhibited 
them at Windsor, Prescot, Birmingham, or Preston, they 
are not worth the money. I could repeat to you several 
amusing statements which have been made about your 
purchases, through the advice of Mr. Hewitt, of fowls whose 
subsequent performances under his sole arbitration have 
confirmed the prudence of his selection; but I sincerely 
hope they are not correct. 
* * * * * * 
“ In conclusion, allow me to remark, that I am accus¬ 
tomed to more polite language, and less strong expressions 
than those contained in your letter; and that as to Mr. 
Hewitt’s destruction of his enemies, there is one weapon 
only with which he might crush them all. 
“ I am, &c." 
Mr. Chune to Mr. W. C. Worrall. 
“ Your note came duly to hand this morning. I am sorry 
that my communication did not please you, but that is not 
tbe point. However, I will not underline this letter. 
“I»am aware that you have given up the name of your 
authority for circulating the report mentioned in my last; but, 
unfortunately for you, your authority, in strong words, denies 
‘ ever making such an assertion, ever hearing any one else 
do so, or ever having heard the slightest hint at anything of 
the kind.’ You say that you were informed, ‘by a letter 
from a gentleman,’ that the pen of Golden-pencilled fowls 
with which I won the Wellington Cup were purchased from 
Mr. Hewitt, or bought by Mr. Hewitt for me, at 12s. each, a 
sum, you say, they were not worth. This remark, like the 
others, is most false and unjust. I declare most solemnly 
that, to my knowledge, Mr. Hewitt had never seen the hens 
when I purchased them, neither have I ever had a fowl 
through Mr. Hewitt either as a gift or purchase; nor did I \ 
ever know Mr. Hewitt kept Golden-pencilled Hamburghs; ; 
neither do I believe Mr. Hewitt ever bought a pen of j 
Golden-pencilled Hamburghs for anyone; but a note ad- ! 
dressed to tbe Secretaries of Shows that have been held will j 
soon prove that. I do not believe Mr. Hewitt ever had a 
Golden-pencilled Hamburgh in his possession. I never J 
knew that he kept anything besides Laced Bantams. The ! 
hens alluded to I purchased at the Birmingham Show (1855), I 
pen-, then belonging to the Rev.-. The pen was 
ruined by having a wretchedly bad cockerel in it. I should 
certainly have asked Mr. Hewitt his opinion about them, but 
could not meet with him, and subsequently had the advice of I 
Mr. W. Tyler, of Friday Bridge, Birmingham, who considered 
them very first-rate. When they won at Wellington I 
recollect telling Mr. M‘Cann, of Malvern, what I gave for 
them, and he said, in the presence of several whose names I 
can mention if necessary, that he thought them the best hens 
he had ever seen, and particularly wished to have some eggs; 
