ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. We must say we rejoiced to see the hand writing of ESAU. He should have done that which he hinted at. Why will he indulge in that "sad pavanent" good intentions! TOHO will see we have availed ourselves of his kindness. We should be glad to see the painting to which he alludes, for without "a view" we cannot judge as to the value of it to us. The paper of H. D. P. we have mutilated for use. Will he forgive us for saying, he writes prose with a Shenstone-ear. We have cut out his epithets,— and thank him for his attention. Piscator, who objects to the Poaching nature of the Willowdale Hall Code, is one of those curiosities in this world,—an angry fisherman! He is a foolish, as well as (or perhaps because) a threatening man! If Piscator had thought, before he wrote to us, which he did not; or could think, after he wrote to us, which perhaps he cannot, the truth would soon appear to him, that poaching is never promoted by exposure. But our angry Correspondent, seeing one eel the less at some mill-tail, or one perch the less in a pauperized hole, is wild about night-lines and nets! He now knows something of killing and its arts, and ought to be grateful, instead of ferocious! Mr. Ford's Pictures of the Steeple Chase at Liverpool necessarily came late. It is a pity these illustrations have not something of the originality of Mrs. Brulgruddery's Spirit of Prophecy in them; and, in a way, "foretell a thing after it has happened!" J. A.'s offer as to Nimrod's latin has amused us, and we think it is worth his and our attention. It improves an old, not a new light. Will he say where a line can reach him. The account, by Cockney, of the run at Ponder's End "and that country," is well intended, but not alive enough. It is said that Mr. Radcliffe's late hounds are coming to Newington Butts, to be nearer home. To the very reasonable complaint of "A Subscriber from No.1," we can only say that at present we think the point on which he requests information, appears to us worthy of a more extended notice than can be given in this department of the Magazine. Should we not take up the subject more fully, we will reply to him as he desires. S.W., Fido, and Tally-ho are received. BEAUTY, ONE OF HER MAJESTY'S STATE BLACK HORSES. BEAUTY was bred at the stables in Hanover, at that time belonging to He was much admired for his extraordinary mane, it being, seven or eight years ago, forty-five inches in length. At the coronations of William the Fourth, and our present Queen, he was led, splendidly caparisoned, by two grooms, in the procession from the Palace to Westminster Abbey, and attracted great attention. Within these few years old age began to show itself by his mane becoming thinner, while his handsome form got much fatter, in consequence of the little work he did, and also by a few white hairs showing themselves in a coat as glossy and as soft as satin. He was killed the latter end of April last, in consequence of a diseased foot, which was incurable. In height, he was about sixteen hands, and in age twenty-four years. The painting from which the plate was engraved, was taken last June. He was a true Hanoverian horse. Mr. DELME RADCLIFFE,-and Mr. NIMROD. THIS Periodical takes as much time to die as an eel;~when we think from the feeble contortions, and faint spasms of the last number,—that the desired silence and rest are arrived at,—the lingering liver, like the fiddler in the Rejected Addresses, "gives, half-ashamed, a tiny flourish still!" So long as life remains, it is our duty, as it is our pleasure, to catch its little whisperings, and cherish its still small wanderings;—yet, when the Editors pester no more-and the Proprietors no longer endure; that is, not to speak it profanely, "When the wicked cease from troubling, and the weary are at rest; we shall-" no longer seek their merits to disclose!" The last number is rich in Hertfordshire hounds, and "that country;"-and never was Mr. Delme Radcliffe so much himself, and so completety ours,―as in his home contributions on the "noble science" near London :-But we are informed that he is quitting these suburban hounds,-that his health is really af fected, and that he is not so addicted to the Craven-venture, as to persevere in printing trifles, which hours of pain or lassitude must have inspired. Mr. Radcliffe, therefore, is, for his past offence, “fined a shilling and discharged." Craven's Turf-History still wo'n't go on. There must be some accident to the machinery, The cessation of the work will find a safety valve. But Nimrod is beautiful. The poor duke of Beaufort !-how sincerely we pity the return for weakly placed kindness and flattered condescension! How minute-how familiar!-how vain!-how classical! If Dukes will, for the sake of a little stable-incense, suffer their wife-her children-her ponies--their rooms-their domestic habits-the charms of their private lives-the decorations of their festivals,--the very conversation at their tables, to be "set down in a note book, conned, and learnt by rote," creamed up subsequently into a frothy detail, in print, at a few guineas per sheet; and all this by a person who hunts out in Lem priere's Classical Dictionary, or in some book of quotations, for latin allusions, with which to fawn round every chamber chair, and child of a noble family, why then," there is no help in it!" Bedmington will not very soon get wholesome, after its sad journalizing visitation. Now to a few of the delectabilities of Nimrod;-we may be accused of trailing this "mighty hunter,"-but the scent will soon be cold, and we long not to lose a chance. The following are the elegant extracts as to Badmington. We hope the Duke will read them in cool blood, as extracts. Badmington-The five Young Ladies of the House—and Menelaus. "Of the larger exotics at Badmington, a most acceptable use is made. Either one, two, or three, according to the number of the guests to be entertained on that day, are placed, embedded in moss, in racing-cups, on the dinner-table, in lieu of an epergne, and a striking effect is produced by them. Their names being apparent on labels, they likewise afford subject of conversation, interesting and instructive to such as have a taste for the pride and glory of the vegetable kingdom, as well as for the animal productions of a first-rate French cook. A sketch of this dinner-room, indeed, when the folding doors of that apartment, in which the company assemble previously to dinner being announced, are thrown open, would discredit no man's pencil, if it did not produce a scene in itself unique. And wherefore unique, I will proceed to shew. The display of flowers at an entertainment, has been the custom of all days; I believe the ancients introduced them between the courses. Liveried, and unliveried servants, suitable plate, and dazzling candelabras, will be seen at all great men's houses. But where, unless it be at Badmington, will be seen the interesting combination of five beautiful and elegantly dressed children, seated in a row, and looking, step above step, as the five little Ladies Somerset look, on one side of this dinnerroom, during the greater part of the banquet, or, rather, until their hour of rest approaches, when they take an affectionate leave of their parents? Cold must be that man's heart--animal, only, could he be-who could look upon such a scene, and remain indifferent to its effect; and, among other associations, it reminded me of the bright damsel train that added to the splendour of Menelaus's house, at the wedding of his daughter to the son of Achilles." -Mr. Wedge, the steward, and Nimrod's price currrent knowledge. "I found Mr. Wedge an extremely intelligent person in every thing relating to agriculture, and also the breeding of stock; and from the double motive of making our conversation interesting to each other, during a two hour's ride, and, likewise, of ascertaining whether I had forgotten all that I had ever known on these subjects, I requested I might be allowed to guess the price and weight of the various animals we inspected. It gratified me to find, that the only error I made, was, putting two shillings too little on the Southdown lambs, purchased at the last Weyhill fair; and I finished by guessing a hay-rick at as nearly as possible what it proved to be, on admeasurement—namely, sixty tons. Of the size of the Badmington hay-ricks I shall have a word to say hereafter." The Duchess of Beaufort's Phaeton, Ponies, and harness.— "Fancy chain-ends to the wheel traces, to fall over the roller-bolts! Who, but a coachman, would have turned out his lady in such truly classical style? The whole contents of this room, however, unless it might be the hound's-omnibus toggery, which had a plebeian appearance amid the rest, are from the house of Messrs. Whippy, of North Audley Street; and, as another proof, from my pen, of the economy of going to first-rate workmen, and paying a good price for a good article, I may state the fact, that the Duke shewed me one set of their road harness which he had had in work nineteen years, and which looked as if it would hang together another nineteen years, under Benson's care. And all this is classical. We read of Socrates complaining of the high price of some corslets, in the shop of a celebrated armourer, in Athens. If you come to Pistias for them,' said a friend, you must pay highly for them; but you will find them' cheap in the end. They are dear only because they are good.' Is it possible to read anything more slang in Ned Ward or Tom Brown; and all, too, on subjects asking for refinement and delicacy. But the dirtiest stream will run itself clear, or stagnate and be "dammed up." We have just seen the advertisement of the number of the Review for June. We really think Mr. Whitehead and Mr. Ackermann should call in a Physician! SIR, THE PIGEON LOFT. WHEN I observed the capital engraving of the carrier pigeon in your last number, it struck me that a few hints on the management of this beautiful bird, might be interesting to some of your readers; should you think the following worth publishing, I shall hope, that, being the result of some experience they may prove useful to the young fancier. Respecting the origin of the different species of the pigeon (and of no one bird are so many varieties known to us) two opinions prevail, some naturalists deriving them from the stock dove (Columba Ænas), others from the Rock Pigeon (Columba Livia), I certainly incline towards the latter opinion, as the habits of the Rock Dove are closely allied to those of the dove house pigeon, and a cross between the dragoon and rock dove may be effected; while I believe the young of the Stock Dove has never yet been subjected to the confinement of the loft. It would be useless to attempt to assign any reason why one particular breed, out of so many species, alone should possess the peculiar knowledge and instinct of the carrier. We must content ourselves without diving too far into the hidden mysteries of nature, and ascribe that wonderful faculty to the same power that guides the swallow and other birds of passage across the waters of the Atlantic to our shores, or reconducts the wild pigeon each succeeding spring to the same coppice where for previous seasons she has reared her young. We may divide the breed of carriers into five species :-the Horseman (which is considered the genuine carrier),—the Dragoon, the Beard, the Skinnum, and the Antwerp,—a bird less known to fanciers than any of the others. Of the horseman, the chief colours are the blue, the black, and the dun. These birds are the largest of all the flyers. And their principal beauty consists in the wattle or fleshy excrescence round the eye, and at the top of the beak; and the larger and deeper the wattle, the more valuable the bird. The first property of a carrier is the length of the flight or wing feathers, and the distance or length from the base of the bill to the end, which should always taper gradually. The colour is the next, and though fanciers disagree on this point, I prefer a blue before any other, as I have generally found them hardier and swifter than the blacks and duns; but like dogs, good pigeons are to be found of all colours. The eye should be of one colour, and not bull-eyed as many dragoons and horsemen are. Firmness of feather always indicates a good constitution. The age may be guessed by the size of the wattle and the heavy appearance of the bird. The dragoons are so closely allied to the horseman, as to require but little description. They are smaller birds; better breeders; generally hardier, of rather a finer shape, though to the eye of a fancier, deficient in the leading points of the true carrier. They carry less wattle, and are of more variety in colour; the blue and the whites are my favourite colours; but a grizzle is generally a hardy colour, and a yellow is usually soft feathered. Some are, to use the language of the fancier, handkerchief backed, i. e. the feathers of the back and shoulders mottled, and rose pinioned, i. e. with the pinion feathers mottled, or marked with white, something in the form of a rose. These varieties have a very pretty appearance while flying. The skinnum as a cross between a flyer and a beard or tumbler, and will be found very useful in a loft, possessing many of the good qualities of the carrier; though none of its properties but its speed. The best cross is between a dragoon and a beard, and for a short distance, these birds are nearly equal to the horseman. The beard is a distinct species, may be among either classed the flyers or tumblers, and is an excellent bird for a short distance. They are remarkably clean made birds,-something like the dove house pigeon, short in the beak, and have no wattle. They however are generally long in the flight. The best colour is blue, with a white tail and flight ; and the more distinct the beard (or white feathers under the chin), the better. The great advantage of beards or tumblers, in a flight of pigeons, is to raise them while flying, and on a clear day they will frequently rise in the air till they are almost imperceptible to the eye. The Antwerps are a later introduction into our country, and their name bespeaks their origin. I believe little was known of them before the famous Antwerp match in July 1830, when 110 birds were tossed from the yard of a noted fancier in the Borough. The first bird reached Antwerp a distance of 186 miles in five hours and a half, and gained the gold medal: out of the 110 about 100 reached home. To the eye of any one, who has been solely accustomed to the English carrier, they possess but little recommendation, but the fancier soon detects the points of speed and beauty in the fine and lengthy shape of the bird. They carry no wattle, are more in shape like the blue rock than the horseman, and are evidently a kind of skinnum, though the cross is not known. From the shy disposition of many of these birds I think that a cross between the beard and the owl with the horseman strain |