47 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, Apeil 20, 1858. 
there is not room to swing a cat in it. Just what “ a successful 
exhibitor in 1857 ” says of his poultry shed. Acting on our 
suggestion, he built a shed for them in his yard. It was a 
perfect model; about twelve feet in depth, lofty in the front, 
thatched down to the ground behind, an artificial bank at the 
back, the ground covered with loose dust and sand ; a very 
Elysium for young chickens in cold or wet weather. We saw 
four rips in it last year, at regular distances one from the other, 
each containing a hen, and each hen with a brood of chickens. 
Our friend went to Liverpool; he saw the Single Game Cock 
class, and those marvellous Silver Cups, and he took to Game. 
A short time since he complained of his bad luck—he had no 
chickens. Now he has so many, and the Game mothers are 
so spiteful to a stray Silver Hamburgh, if it only looks through 
the bars of the coop, that he knows not what to do with his 
chickens—he has not room. Put the oldest out, choose a dry 
spot, and cover the rip at night and during the cold winds ; 
do not let the hen have her liberty, and feed generously. 
“ Mr. Rumble, sir,” said the aforementioned pauper to the 
great parochial dignity, “ the brick and stone floors and pas¬ 
sages punishes w T e old people frightful. I declare, my feet 
when 1 goes to bed are like blocks of ice, and they gives me 
cramps and rlieumatiz and every thing as is bad; and I am 
sure my heart bleeds for the poor children, their toes is covered 
with chilblains. They sets and cries, for they aint courage to 
walk and run and warm tliesselves, and it’s quite bad to see 
’em all huddling up for warmth.” 
“ True,” said that great man ; “ I knows it, and has men¬ 
tioned it, but it’s no use; they sends the children to the 
1 Infirmary, they find fault with us and the inferior officers, but 
I they don’t remove the cause.” 
Tyro says, all his chickens pine and die; he has noticed 
their toes and knees swell. They get together in a heap, and 
stand first on one foot, then on the other. He cannot find out 
the cause. They are with the hen in a washhouse with a brick 
floor, but he has the precaution to put an old piece of carpet 
on the spot where the coop stands, and he keeps a fire con¬ 
stantly in the place. 
“ Move them out, sir; give them fresh earth and fresh air. 
Your old piece of carpet, on a damp brick floor, becomes even 
| colder and damper than the bricks themselves; and your 
| chickens die—or rather perish—of cold and cramp.” 
Poor old Jack Falstaff! We are always disposed to thank 
Dr. Doran, for putting his character in a favourable light, but 
we hardly know what he has to do with poultry. We believe 
he liked a good fat capon, washed down with sack, and 
Shakespeare’s Justice was with “ good capon linedand this 
paper was histrionic in its beginning, and we promised the 
Earce of “ Eggs and no Chickens.” 
Look at the bill; eight eggs bought, and only three chickens. 
Monstrous ! all this sack to one pennyworth of bread. Rut 
I those that do hatch are good for nothing ; nay, not good for 
nothing. Well, then, they are not prize birds. Hear ! Hear! 
Only fancy the bay colt by the brown horse that won the 
silver-rimmed spectacles in a shagreen case, at the Little Ped- 
lington Races, and whose dam won the sweepstakes of two 
shillings each at Eatansevill, only ran third for the new silk 
umbrella at Podger’s Lane. 
“ Something wrong, sirs; who will back any horse again?” 
G. R., in a great passion, said to the clerk of the course and 
the umpire, “ Who can I trust ? ” The answer was in the 
most polite tone, “ That seeing all the horses were descended 
; from winners on both sides ; next, that though twelve ran, 
there was but one prize, and could be but one winner.” Rad 
as buying eggs from prize birds. 
Rut people are sometimes unaccommodating. A friend of 
ours, ay ho sells eggs, sliOAved us an application from an amateur 
for some eggs, to be sent a long distance into the country, and 
“ as the season Avas late he wished them to be Avithin four 
clays of hatching .” Our friend refused. Too bad. 
We have already stated avc have bought eggs, and have never 
been disappointed ; but we know it is an impossibility for all 
! chickens to be of equal merit. A good-tempered old friend of 
ours (he is an old bachelor) has a curious habit, when about 
to emit Avljat he pleases to call a “ clincher,” to button one 
button of his blue coat j to look first doAvn, then up ; then to 
close one eye, and to poke a stout fore-finger into the ribs of 
his victim. We had occasion to tell what AA r e have just stated 
: to our friend. He went through his pantomime (our ribs 
remember it), and triumphantly said, “ Tell that to the ma¬ 
rines, or find me the inferior birds among Goldfinches 'and 
Kingfishers.” We are half disposed to believe his idea, that 
he had thus settled the question, has made him a correspondent 
to The Cottage Gardener on this subject. Eggs without 
chickens may be a farce, but it is no joke to give a largo price 
for them, and to have no produce ; and it is, or ought to be, 
an admitted fact, that it is impossible any fault can be Avitli the 
purchaser. It must rest with the seller. Perhaps the hen did 
not sit close? Nothing of the sort; she only left her nest 
once for a day, and that was before she had been a week on the 
eggs. Perhaps the eggs got chilled ? It was not likely, as 
there had been no frost for the last fortnight. Perhaps,—stop, 
stop ; eggs bought at a large price ought not to be subject to 
all these contingencies. 
If the hen was too long off her nest—the eggs were bad. If 
a hard morning frost chilled them—the eggs Avere bad. If they 
were too dry, and the chickens perished in the shell—the eggs 
were bad. If they all hatched and produced good birds—so 
they ought, at the price paid for them! 
This part of our mission being ended, Avebeg to recommend 
the eggs advertised in our columns to the notice of those who 
may stand in need. Had the purchase of them proved futile, 
the practice would long since have been discontinued. The 
reverse is, however, the fact. There are more sellers and more 
buyers every year. We confidently add that, as a rule, bought 
eggs turn out well; and we could, if necessary, give some 
start lin g results from them. We know many instances where 
first and second prizes, at large Shows, have been the result of 
the outlay of a few shillings. 
MR. WORRALL’S DEFENCE. 
As long as you Avill extend to me a right of reply, I sincerely 
hope that you will publish any statements which may be sent 
to you reflecting upon my private character, or position as 
Secretary to the Liverpool Poultry Show. 
“ Riechen Cock,” in No. 497 of The Cottage Gaedenee, 
remarking upon the mention of my Game Rantams, after the 
Liverpool Show, writes—“I wonder, when Mr. Worrall read 
this, if it recalled to his memory the very unquestionable man¬ 
ner in Avhich he got possession of the two hens.” I suppose 
I have a right to consider that he has used the word “ unques¬ 
tionable ” in an invidious sense, and, therefore, reply, that I 
bought them from Mr. Martin Turner, of Preston, and paid 
for them at the time of the purchase; Mr. Turner kindly 
promising, if possible, to find me a cock to match them. He 
also asserts of my Golden-pencilled, which Avon at Liverpool, 
that “ the hens’ hackle feathers had been cut or plucked to a 
shameful, extent.” In reply to this I can only state that the 
same pair were exhibited at Rurnley and Preston, and that 
not a single feather has ever either been clipped or drawn. 
This I am prepared to substantiate, by submitting them to 
inspection at either the Sheffield or Preston Show, that 
“Riechen Cock” may choose. 
To “ Fair Play,” I reply, that Gilliver was selected as the 
most likely of the men who offered assistance to handle the 
Game cocks safely, which was done under the superintendence 
of my brother. And I may mention a circumstance which 
will, I hope, dispel the impression that, hi availing myself of 
Gilliver’s valuable services in penning these birds, I asked in 
“ favour” of my co-Secretary. My brothers and brothers-in- 
laAv had sixteen Game cocks in this class, none of which were 
successful; is it likely that I should wish to “favour” Mr. 
Moss ! “ Fair Play ” must be aware that fowls are fre¬ 
quently entered at Rirmingham, and other Shows, in the names 
of servants, and I assure him that my co-Secretary had no 
“favour” which Avould not have been Avilliugly conceded to 
himself. 
I agree with “ Rirchen Cock ” that the Mooney question 
ought to be “discussed by competent authorities f ‘ and all I 
ask is, for Mooney hens to be shown exclusively with Mooney 
cocks, and not with Yorkshire Pheasants, as they have been. 
Obtain for me this boon, and you shall have no more com¬ 
plaints ; but if you will not use your influence to rescue my 
favourites from the anomalous position they have hitherto 
occupied, I am determined to continue the discussion.— Will. 
C. Wore all. 
