PIGEON PARAGRAPHS.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 41, 25 March 1914, Page 2

PIGEON PARAGRAPHS.

<By "JACOBIN.")

By this week's Sydney steamer, Messrs Ash worth and M'Kenzie are each sending a team of pigeons, for competition at the Royal Show at Sydney at Easter Time. The terribly long time that this show is on (for practically a whole week) prevents a great number more of New Zealand birds making the trip. It is only .to show some appreciation of the entry made in the Christchurch Pigeon Club 'a show each year by Sydney men that these birds are being sent. .

Th'ere is another-, strange feature about the feather section of-the schedule issued by the Royal Agricultural •Soi'lety of New South Wales, and that is that no judges are annotmced until after the entries are made. I am not at all sure that this state of things would appeal to New Zealand feathermen as a whole. We generally like to know who we are showing under, before the entries are made. At the same time, the system must save a certain amount of bickering.

Mr E. D. Rees, of the East Boat Sheds, has recently sent to Onehunga, to Mr C. Collings, a couple of pairs of Dragoons. One pair is of blue chequers, and the other pair is intended for grizzle breeding.

The full list of Maoriland Columbarian Ass6eiation 's championships for the show season of 1914 are as follow: No. 1 group, at Christchurch: Magpies, Tumblers (L.F., C.L.), Tumblers (L.F., muffled). No. 2 group, at Dunedin: Dragoons, Show Homers, Working Homers. No. 3 group, at Wellington: Pouting breeds, frilled varieties, any other variety. Thus every variety of fancy pigeon participates, and the winners of the legs in each year receive the certificate of the M.C.A., a really exquisite piece of work, designed by Mr E. J. Fallu, than whom a finer pigeon artist does not exist.

Mr von Einem, of Adelaide (South Australia), has just imported some African Owls from England. They are said to be birds of lovely, carriage, but are somewhat large, an<j their colour (they are blacks) is looked upon as none too good. They came from a good loft, and it is said that their new owner is just a wee bit disappointed with them.

The leading breeder of African owls in South Australia (Mr L. P. Smith) is contemplating giving this breed up. Included in the birds are a very nice white hen and a dun cock, winner of three cups in South Australia, and said to be v a real stormer.

Touching upon the virtues of the birds in the rival camps of magpie fanciers in England, is a neat little story tcld by Mr Furness (the late pigeon-man to Mr F. Warner). Mr Warner, as most of my readers will remember, has just lately given up the magpie fancy, and the late manager of the famous " Bellegrove' * Btud (Furness) is now in -Victoria,-where he has taken to farming.

The story is as follows: — It was at one of the big provincial shows in England, Birmingham, I fancy. Mr Lamb (secretary to the Magpie Club) was judging mags, and he came up to Furness afterwards and said, "There's a hen along here I 'd like to have a talk to you about —a very tall hen. This, 1 is the one. Do you think Mr Warner would care to sell her? I think she should make

a Tery good stock hen. She stood v.h.c. in her class.''

Purness replied that he would enquire, and asked what price Mr Lamb would be prepared to go to, and Mr Lamb replied, "Oh, I would not mind going to£10." Then Turners let the eat out, and it appears that this particular hen was the one Mr Warner had claimed at the Palace Show for the record price for magpies, £IOO. It appears from what Mr Furness says that she was exhibited several times by Warner, and generally got. no higher than v.h.c. And there "can be no doubt about it at all, that there are many capable magpie judges in England to-day who,*like a bird showing much mote quality and gracefulness than do the great majority of the "modern Mags" as produced by Messrs Bracey and Cooke. Here was a bird, Ist at the Palace in one of the "Modern. Magpie Club's" classes, aud claimed there for £IOO, and yet she, in perfect condition, comes down to v.h.c. in a class supported by the old '' Magpie Club,'' and judged by the secretary of that body. It simply goes to show how fashions differ in England.

And this of course calls to mind the terrible differences of opinion that exist in the minds of specialist judges of "Dragoons." At the last show of the Dragoon Club in England, the greatest show ever held by a Specialist Club, some of the "cracks" went right down with a big rush. There was one bird there, which had scored practically all the highest awards possible, including the Gold Cup (the best award possible to a Dragoon) and was absolutely unplaced at this Club Show. You may talk for ever about the consistency or inconsistency of judging, but that this sort of thing will happen, and Dragoon men submit to it with smiling faces, says volumes for their sense of "sport."