October 7, 1905. 
THE QA VDENING WORLD . 
789 
would soon become foul and sour, and disease 
would quickly make its appearance. Four 
hens would be quite enough for such a space. 
The house should be six feet by four, and the 
remainder of the space could be given to the 
run. Both house and run should be about six 
feet high. (3) You are “wrong in assuming 
Bantam eggs are very little use for eating.” 
Bantams’ eggs, weight for weight, are quite as 
good as those of any large fowl, whilst very 
often they contain more nourishment than do 
those of larger birds. Most certainly Bantams 
are suitable for table birds, but no one would 
think of breeding Bantams for table purposes. 
A Game Bantam properly roasted and served 
up like Partridge or Pheasant is indeed a dish 
fit for a king. Try it, and you will agree 
with me. 
. . USEEUL . . 
Garden Devices. 
TOOL FOR MAKING DRILLS. 
As a time-saver I have the accompanying 
in constant use. hen seed-beds 3 ft. broad 
are to be sown with five rows 6 in. apart, it 
is simply drawn down once, leaving the five 
drills. When three rows 12 in. apart are 
required the second tooth from each end is 
taken away. Then by taking out the centre 
tooth rows are makable 2 ft. apart. 
<■ Z > 
< 12 ." * 12 " ' > 
^ 6 ^ 6x6 x6x (3^ x > 
By unscrewing the screw-nails represented 
by dots at B B the handle is detached, when 
the headpiece can be used to mark circles 
on borders and beds. It can be used as a 
i jaidstick also. The handle should be ash, 
o ft. long ; the headpiece seasoned ash, 3 ft. 
2 m. by 1 in., cleaned down, and holes made 
with 2 -in auger to receive ^-in. bolts. The 
u is as shown at A 1 are g in. diameter and 
sciewed 1 2 m. from top, then hammered to 
a point 4 in. lung. The figure has one nut 
1 on rea fy to pass through a hole when another 
nut A 2 is screwed home on the upper side ; 
are best ‘ Hexky H. Gibsox. 
Belfast. 
Axothek device of the Canadian Govern¬ 
ment for bringing before the British public 
the enormous resources of the Dominion of 
Canada, and for the purpose of attracting 
emigrants to the colony, is the issue of a 
senes of picture postcards. They are beauti¬ 
fully coloured, giving representations of town¬ 
ships, farmsteads, wheat growing, cattle 
raising, threshing corn, flour mills, and various 
incidents connected with farm life, and they 
depict m a vivid manner the possibilities 
placed before the emigrant by the Canadian 
Government. A series will be forwarded to 
anyone on application to Mr. W. T. R 
Preston, the Canadian Commissioner of Emi¬ 
gration, 11-12, Charing °ross, London, S.W. 
® SOCIETY DOINGS.© 
The EdUor will be pleased to receive particulars of the Fixtures 
Horticultural Societys. Secretaries or Members willing to send us brief 
invited to for waul name and address to the Editor, who will gladly send 
contributors' slips. 
Meetings, Lectures . Ur., of 
notes of general interest are 
supply of sta mped addressed 
Conference on Early Chrysanthemums. 
At the conference meeting to be held at the 
Crystal Palace in connection with the National 
Chrysanthemum Society’s October Show, and 
to which the public will be admitted free of 
charge, papers will be read by Mr. D. B. 
Crane on “ Garden Chrysanthemums,” Mr. 
C. Harman Payne on “ The History of Early- 
flowering Chrysanthemums,” Mr. J. W. Moor¬ 
man and Mr. E. F. Hawes on “ Early Chry¬ 
santhemums for Town Gardens,” Mr. George 
Gordon, Y.M.H., on “Decorative Value of 
Early Chrysanthemums,” and Mr. E. F. Such 
on “ Early Chrysanthemums for the Market.” 
Chas. H. Curtis, Hon. Sec. Conference Committee. 
Slandering the Judges. 
Some malicious busybodies have been sug¬ 
gesting that the committee of the Audlem 
(Cheshire) Floral and H. S. have in the past 
influenced the judges in the adjudication of 
awards at the society’s flower shows. At the 
exhibition held recently, Mr. John Hobson 
(chairman of committee), in proposing a vote 
of thanks to Lady Broughton for opening the 
show, referred to this matter. “ I can" tell 
you,” he declared emphatically, “that the 
Audlem Show is worked on absolutely straight 
lines. The judges do their work without the 
•slightest influence from the committee, and I 
will give £5 to any charitable institution if 
anyone can mention a committeeman who haa 
erred in this respect. I cannot let the occa¬ 
sion pass without endeavouring to remove the 
stigma that- has been cast on our society.” 
Loud applause greeted this statement. There 
are folks who would credit such a slander, 
otherwise malice of the kind were better 
ignored. But the proverb is perhaps largely 
true which declares that “ one half of the 
world takes delight in slander, and the other 
half in believing it.” As to the reputation of 
our horticultural judges, however, for strict 
integrity in the task of awarding prizes at 
flower shows, to all but gullible or evil-dis- 
positioned people (who are probably found 
among some disappointed exhibitors) it is 
above suspicion. 
hibitions has been truly wondrous, and their 
name is legion, but we do not think there will 
be any diminution in the numbers, though 
possibly there may be a decrease of large and 
ambitious shows, which cannot be supported 
without considerable outside assistance. 
?TY in > President of the Blox- 
wich (Staffs) H.S., speaking at the opening 
oi the society’s recent show, said “complaints 
ha\e been made that there are too many local 
shows, and it has been suggested they should 
be amalgamated into one big show for the 
whole of the. district. I do not, however” 
continued the Doctor, “agree with that, 
because whilst we welcome entries in our open 
classes, the main object of such shows is to 
encourage the love of flowers and gardening 
amongst the working classes ; whilst working 
men will work for and compete ill tlieii own 
local show they feel that they have no share 
oi interest in a larger show further from their 
own homes. This is a very good answer to 
the objection that such shows are too numer¬ 
ous, though other sound arguments could be 
advanced, m support of the same view. Go- 
a fie ad secretaries and committees of horticul¬ 
tural societies frequently err on the side of 
being too ambitious ; they want to make a 
noise in the world instead of doing good in 
a small and unostentatious manner, and this 
striving after effect and big results is often the 
rock upon which societies founder. 
Wargrave and District Gardeners’ Asso¬ 
ciation. 
The first meeting of the winter season of 
tins society took place on September 13tli 
but owing to the bad weather the attendance 
was small. The lion, secretary, Mr. H. 
Coleby, gave a lantern lecture on “The Agri¬ 
cultural and Horticultural Prospects of West 
Australia, illustrated by a large number of 
slides, - kindly placed at his disposal bv the 
Agent-General of the Colonv. Mr. W Pope 
exhibited a splendid lot of Begonia blooms, 
cut from outdoor plants, which were the 
admiration of all. 
Are Flower Shows too Numerous 1 
Some people consider there is an over¬ 
abundance of flower shows, and there are 
newspapers which maintain a like opinion, 
but this view of the matter is certainly 
confined to the minority both of papers 
and people. A north country journal 
declares that “ flower shows have reached 
receding point. Of that there does not 
seem to be the slightest doubt.” Our 
contemporary adds : “ There were previous 
indications that their pojiularity was on the 
wane, but the recent disastrous weather has 
made the position more acute and critical.” 
The unprecedented wet summers of 1903 and 
1905 had unquestionably the effect of reducing 
the number of such shows, and the rains and 
gales which terminated the extraordinary 
summer of the present year were dishearten¬ 
ing, and may induce some societies to suspend 
operations in 1906. The multiplicity of ex- 
Mrs. H. Hobson Finch, of Goff's Hill, Craw 
ie.rt Sussex, is of opinion that cottagers could 
not better employ their leisure hours than in 
cultivating vegetables. But she and Mr. 
Hobson Finch do not preach and theorise 
merely, for they have backed up their opinion 
in a thoroughly practical manner by offering to 
the cottagers allotment-ground at the rental of 
6d. per rod per year, so that for £1 thev can 
secure 40 rods or poles, upon which an ahuu- 
ctant supply of vegetables can be grown 
I urthermore, to encourage the neighbouring 
cottagers to take up land for this purpose" 
Mrs. Hobson Finch has offered to give a tea¬ 
pot clock, or anything similarly useful for 
the house. Encouragement such as this is 
good to hear about, and this fostering of a 
ove of gardening will prove of incalculable 
benefit to the villagers. It may he added that 
on the i4tn nit. the Crawley and District 
