POULTRY BREEDING,

IN

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW,

AS CARRIED OUT BY THE NATIONAL POULTRY COMPANY
(LIMITED), BROMLEY, KENT.

NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL HATCHING,
REARING AND FATTENING,

ON ENTIRELY NEW AND SCIENTIFIC PRINCIPLES,

WITH

AIL THE NECESSARY PLANS, ELEVATIONS, SECTIONS, AND DETAILS,

AND A NOTICE OF THE

POULTRY ESTABLISHMENTS IN PEANCE,

BY

GEO. KENNEDY jGEYELIN, C.E.

WITH A PREFACE

BY

CHARLES L. FLINT,

SECRETARY MASSACHUSETTS STATE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE.

AUTHOR "MILCH cows AND DAIRY FARMING," "GRASSES AND FORAGE PLANTS.'

WITH TWENTY-SEVEN ILLUSTRATIONS.

BOSTON:
A. WILLIAMS & CO., 100 WASHINGTON ST.

1867.

Gs

Entered, according to Act 6t Congre&, in the^year 1867, by

A. WILLIAMS & Co.,
In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of Massachusetts.

Stereotyped at the Boston Stereotype Foundry,
No. 4 Spring Lane.

PREFACE

TO THE AMERICAN EDITION

MOST of the experiments in keeping poultry on a
large scale have either failed entirely or only partially
succeeded. What is the cause of failure in such cases?
Is it to be found in any inherent difficulty in the system
itself, or does it arise from the want of the application
of rational principles ? Why should not poultry keeping
as a business succeed as well in proportion to the num-
ber kept as poultry keeping on a small scale? Why
may not an individual succeed as well with a thousand
inmates of his poultry yard as with fifty or a hundred,
provided he gives the proper attention to the individual
wants and requirements of each?

This little work attempts to answer these questions,
and it appears to do so satisfactorily. It has attracted
a great deal of attention, not only in England, where
poultry keeping is followed with enthusiasm, but also
in this country, where, if it is followed on a smaller
scale, it is very generally pursued as a necessary con-
comitant of every farmyard. No work on the subject

(3)

668421

4 PREFACE TO THE AMERICAN EDITION.

has treated of poultry in a commercial point of view,
— that is, the keeping of poultry in large numbers,
as a business operation, — so fully or so completely as
this of Geyelin ; and hence it may be said to be the
only truly valuable work on the subject.

Poultry will not bear over-crowding any better than
other stock. It must have space enough for pure air
and ventilation. It is not essential that it should have
free and unlimited range. Some breeds of domestic
fowl bear confinement well. Some are not disposed
to wander far from their headquarters even if they
have their liberty, while others are never easy unless
they have full freedom to go wherever they please. It
is probable that too little attention has been paid to
this point in the attempts made to keep them on a
large scale, where they must, of course, be subjected
to more or less confinement.

Again, so far as we know, most of the attempts made
in this direction appear to have had the production of
poultry for market as a leading object, while it is a
question whether, commercially speaking, it is desirable
to grow fowls mainly for meat. There is more profit
in eggs as the leading pursuit, leaving the production
of meat as secondary or incidental to the primary object.

No doubt the soil of any location has an important
influence on the health of poultry. A cold, heavy, un-
drained locality is quite unsuited to the poultry yard.
The soil should be warm, dry, and sunny, one that is
good for grass. If plenty of fish offal were accessible,
it should furnish a considerable part of the food. As
to breed, it might be any of those commonly known as

PREFACE TO THE AMERICAN EDITION. 5

" everlasting layers," of which, perhaps, the Leghorn,
sometimes called the White Spanish, or Andalusian, is
as desirable as any. To meet with eminent success on
a large scale, it would be necessary to resort to artificial
hatching and rearing, both of which are perfectly feasi-
ble ; for no one could afford to rely upon hens for this
purpose where the primary object was to obtain the
largest number of eggs. Suppose, then, the chickens
were hatched from the first of April to the middle of
May. At five weeks old they could be turned out and
treated according to one of the following systems : —

i st. Enclose grass land in quarter-acre lots, with a
small poultry house in each, or a quadruple house in
the centre of four lots, with accommodations for fifty
hens — never more. Young chickens might do well in
somewhat larger numbers through the summer, but it
would be safer, as a general rule, to limit the number
to fifty.

zd. Build coops of lath or thin boards, about ten feet
long, four feet wide, and two feet high, — four feet in
length at one end to be a tight house, or coop of boards,
with floor and feeding conveniences, water, &c., — the
latticed portion to be bottomless. Arrange handles at
each end, so that two men could lift and move the whole.
Set these coops upon grass ground, and move them their
length or. width daily, thus affording a fresh grass run.
Twelve chickens should do well in each. As soon as
they can be distinguished, separate the cocks from the
pullets, and never allow them together except for breed-
ing purposes afterwards. As soon as the cocks are
marketable, sell them, reserving only the best individuals

6 PREFACE TO THE AMERICAN EDITION.

as breeders, with little, if any, regard to consanguinity.
Keep an unlimited supply of cracked corn before them
until they are large enough to eat it whole, when it may
be given them uncracked. This, with grass, is their
main diet. Give also some variety with a little animal
food. The pullets should begin to lay early in October,
when they should have a plenty of fish waste, and lime
in some form, in addition to the grain. In twelve
months from the time they begin to lay they should
produce one hundred and fifty eggs each, and if prop-
erly cared for they might do more. As soon as the
hens stop laying and begin to moult, kill and sell them.
The white Leghorns are always ready for the table.

I do not know that this movable coop has been
tried on a large scale ; but there seems to be no reason
why it should not prove successful. Grass will grow
wonderfully under it ; and this could be used either for
soiling or for hay. Some other conveniences would,
of course, be necessary in winter.

A coop of the above-mentioned size would accom-
modate twelve laying hens ; and four of them, with forty-
eight hens, would probably do better than the same
number in the enclosure plan, and avoid the necessary
investment for fences and repairs. Some say poultry
in such confinement, when all their wants are supplied,
will pay better than when running at liberty, . either in
growth, fat, or eggs ; and it is probably true.

Now, if one coop will succeed, or if one enclosure
like that described will succeed, what conceivable rea-
son is there why any number should not? We all know
that success in anything depends as much upon details

PREFACE TO THE AMERICAN EDITION. 7

as upon plan. Without attention to either, failure is
certain. With only one, success can be but partial.

These are only suggestions to those who are interested
in the subject. This little treatise is full of suggestions
of a practical character, valuable even for those who
are keeping poultry only upon a small scale. If I suc-
ceed in placing it within the reach of those who have
sought in vain to procure a copy, I shall have accom-
plished my object.

CHARLES L. FLINT,
Sec'y Mass. State Board of Agriculture.

BOSTON, May 8, 1867.

PREFACE

TO THE ENGLISH EDITION

IN writing this essay on poultry breeding, I have
endeavored to avoid all technical expressions and the
usual verbiage to swell a book. Neither have I touched
upon topics which have no immediate concern with the
subject matter, but I have confined myself exclusively
to giving publicity to such facts as I have proved by
actual experience; and I firmly believe that this treatise
on poultry breeding, in a purely commercial point of
view, is the only one ever published, in this or any
other country, from which the public can learn how to
enter upon a highly profitable and pleasing undertaking,
and this without having to pay the usual heavy penal-
ties of experimenting. I must, however, caution the
reader not to be startled by the novel plan of hatching,
rearing, and fattening poultry which I advocate, and
of which they cannot find corroboration in any other
book ; and I advise them, before criticising the prin-
ciples herein put forth, to well weigh all that is stated,
when I doubt not that every one will admit that the
principles are logical and based upon sound sanitary

(9)

IO PREFACE.

and scientific laws. To increase the size of this pub-
lication, I might, like others, have copied and annexed
chapters on diseases and their remedies ; on races and
their peculiar distinguishing features ; on artificial in-
cubation from the ancient Egyptians and Chinese to
the present day ; on the history of domestic fowls from
the Assyrians to 1865 ; but to publish a voluminous
book is not my object.

My desire is to impart to the public in general, in as
few words as possible, with the assistance of comprehen-
sive sketches, and even then leaving them ample lati-
tude to engross, certain general rules and matters as-
certained by experience on profitable poultry breeding.

Should I be fortunate enough to accomplish this
object to the satisfaction of the public, my task will
bear its own reward by a rapid development of poultry
breeding in England, as well as in other countries,
which will add materially to the wealth and comfort
of nations.

From the last Trade Returns it appears that up-
wards of three hundred million of eggs are now im-
ported annually into England ! Can anything show
more forcibly the immense and profitable field that
lies open to English enterprise in poultry breeding?

G. K. G.

BELGRAVE HOUSE,

ARGYLE SQUARE, W. C.

CONTENTS.

Page

CONSIDERATIONS ON THE NECESSARY APPLIANCES TO SUC-
CESSFUL POULTRY BREEDING 13

A Poultry Home. The Open Run 16

The Glass-covered Run. The Roosting and Laying-Room. 18

The Hatching-Room. 20

Reference to Plan and Perspective Section of the Poultry

Home and Vinery 20

GENERAL RULES TO BE OBSERVED IN POULTRY BREEDING. 24

The Laying of Eggs. 26

The Ovarium. 27

Natural Hatching 28

General Observations on Poultry Food and Drink. . . 31

The Drink for Poultry.- 31

Food for Young Chickens 32

The Food for the Breeding and Laying Stock. . . -32

The Food for the Fattening Stock 33

Preparation of the Fattening Food. Poultry Manure. . . 34

The Feathers of Fowls. The Moulting of Fowls. . . 35

Diseases in Poultry . -35

Various Races of Poultry. . . . . . . . 36

Killing and Dressing Poultry for the Market 37

Machinery, Implements, and Utensils. .... 38

Artificial Hatching. 38

The Artificial Hatching-Room. 43

Portable Artificial Hen for Hatching 45

Artificial Poultry Hens for Rearing Chickens. ... 48

Reference to Perspective Section of- Artificial Hen. . . 50

Artificial Rearing Home. . . . . . . . 51

Reference to Perspective Section of Artificial Rearing Home. 52
Artificial Vermin Nursery. . ... . . -53

Improved Fattening Pens for Cramming Poultry. . . 55

Preservation of Eggs. 56

Whitewash. Lime Water. . ... . . . 58

Oxide and Sulphate of Iron. General Plan of Buildings. . 59

12 CONTENTS.

Bird's-Eye View and Section of a Poultry-Breeding Estab-
lishment. 60

The Patent Vermin Attraction Trap 66

ESTIMATE OF REVENUE AND EXPENSES FOR A POULTRY-
BREEDING ESTABLISHMENT OF 3000 STOCK FOWLS. 68-70
THE LAWS OF NATURE IN RELATION TO POULTRY KEEPING. 71

Egg Preserving. 71

Patent Pneumatic Self-indicating Air-tight Jars. 75

Packing the Eggs. 76

Why Eggs should be packed with the Small End upwards. . 77

Warming Poultry Homes. 77

Our System of selling Poultry 78

EXTRACTS FROM THE "JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND

COTTAGE GARDENER." 83

Home Supply of Poultry and Eggs. 83

Poultry and Egg-preserving Company. .... 85
Home Supply of Eggs and Poultry. . . . .86

Poultry Keeping from a Commercial Point of View. . . 88

Poultry and Egg Company 91

Poultry Keeping from a Commercial Point of View. . . 93

REPORT OF MR. GEYELIN, MAY 17, 1865 96

Poultry Breeding 97

Vegetable Growing or Market Gardening 98

Poultry Breeding and Vegetable Growing 99

Estimate of Revenue and Expenses 99

Proposed Stock. . 100

Working 101

REPORT OF MR. GEYELIN ON THE POULTRY ESTABLISH-
MENTS IN FRANCE, JULY 10, 1865 103

The Object of the Voyage 104

Natural and Artificial Incubation. ...... 107

The Rearing of Poultry. 1 1 1

Feeding and Fattening 113

Killing and Dressing 116

Utilizing the Waste Products 118

The System of Selling 119

The Distinct Breeds . . .121

Caponage and Virgin Cocks. 124

Opinions on my System of Poultry Breeding and Rural

Economy. 124

Analysis of my Observations 125

POULTRY BREEDING.

CONSIDERATIONS ON THE NECESSARY APPLIANCES TO
SUCCESSFUL POULTRY BREEDING.

A UNIVERSAL notion prevails that poultry cannot pos-
sibly be bred with profit except on farms, and then only
when bred in large quantities. This is a most mis-
taken idea, as a few heads of poultry will yield pro-
portionately as much profit as any larger numbers. For
instance, whereas in large establishments heavy expenses
are incurred for buildings, rent, machinery, and labor,
these charges do not occur with the amateur breeder
who attends on his own poultry personally. It is true
that large establishments can buy their cereals cheaper,
and grow their own vegetables ; but this, again, is com-
pensated with the amateur who obtains a better price
for his eggs and poultry, even if used for his own con-
sumption, than the large breeder, who is obliged to sell
his produce through a salesman at wholesale prices.

However, to obtain such satisfactory results, it is abso-
lutely necessary to observe certain sanitary laws in the
construction of the poultry home, and to see that the

(13)

14 POULTRY BREEDING IN

dietary sca'le is conformable to the confined state, and,
in fact, providing poultry with an equivalent of such
food as they could pick up when in a free state. The
poultry home I suggest is applicable alike to amateurs
and large breeders, and is intended for the accommoda-
tion of one cock and six hens for breeding, or twelve
hens for laying, and twenty-four to thirty half-grown
chickens ; and as the same principle must be carried
out, whether in small or large establishments, it follows
that where it requires only one* home for seven, twelve,
or thirty birds, it will require one hundred homes for
seven hundred, twelve hundred, or three thousand birds,
and so on in proportion to the magnitude of the breeding
establishment. This plan has, moreover, the advantage
of keeping the races and sexes separate, of affording
an easy inspection, and of extending and multiplying
the homes gradually with the growth of the establish-
ment, besides facilitating the labor in feeding and hatch-
ing, and the sanitary requirements. Another erroneous
idea entertained is, that poultry will never thrive well
in a confined state ; whilst, in fact, they will thrive much
better, and be much more productive than when left
roaming about in all weathers in search of food, pro-
vided the directions given hereafter are implicitly fol-
lowed : however, it is so far true, that poultry confined
in a damp and ill-ventilated place, and having a deficient
and ill-adapted diet to their confined state, can never
thrive; but whose fault is this? Why, it might as well
be said that a person cannot thrive during solitary con-
finement, when it is well known that prisoners with a
regular diet, comfortable cells, and appropriate labor,

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 15

soon become very sleek and healthful in appearance,
and that in proportion there are less disease and fewer
deaths in prisons than among the free population who
are compelled to seek a precarious living in all kinds
of weather, and whose homes are wretched hovels, de-
ficient of all sanitary requirements.

Moreover, farmers have now for a number of years
carried on successfully the rearing and fattening of cattle
in confined spaces (which are called stall-fed cattle),
and which system, although nominally more expensive,
is yet far more profitable than the ordinary rearing of
cattle ; and why should the same system not be extended
to poultry?

In general, the management of poultry is considered
of too little importance, and is left pretty well to chance :
it is true that of late years the poultry exhibitions have
created a taste for poultry breeding ; but this is confined
solely to amateurs and what may be called fancy poultry
breeding. Yet, amongst all domestic animals, the fowl
is in proportion to its cost or keep the most profitable
and useful ; and hereafter I will prove by figures ob-
tained by actual experience that poultry can be reared
and sold at the rate of four pence per pound, and leave
a handsome profit. Now, such results — particularly
when butchers' meat is at ten pence and one shilling
per pound, and moreover daily rising in price on ac-
count of the increase of population and the decrease of
pasturage — ought to prove a sufficient stimulant to the
public at large to give a little more attention and con-
sideration to an increased production of such valuable
animal food, which, by proper management, would,

1 6 POULTRY BREEDING IN

within a very few years, become as much the food
of the poor as it forms now a delicacy for the rich
only.

A POULTRY HOME

Ought to consist of four separate compartments, exclu-
sive of the glass-covered passage which runs the whole
length of the building, to facilitate the service at all
times and weather.

i st. A roosting and laying compartment.

2d. A glass-covered run, in which they can be con-
fined in wet weather.

3d. A hatching-room.

4th. An open run.

THE OPEN RUN.

Starting with the well-ascertained fact that poultry
cannot possibly thrive or be kept in good health on
damp ground, it becomes necessary, where there is no
surface gravel land, to make an artificial dry run: this
is best accomplished with concrete, which, besides being
cheaper than flag-stones or bricks, does not absorb the
moisture, and is much warmer to the feet.

This run should be formed slightly concave, as shown
by Fig. 9, and have an incline towards its end, where
the rain-water can be discharged into a drain com-
municating with the duck pond.

During summer a few inches deep of gravel, and
in winter about nine inches deep of horse manure, ought
to cover the floor of this run, which will afford the fowls
ample exercise by scratching and running. The gravel

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW.

and horse manure should be turned over at least once
a week, and renewed whenever they become too much
impregnated with the fowls' droppings. This will pre-
vent the diseases which a tainted ground gives rise to
among poultry. The sides and top should be formed
of galvanized iron-wire netting of about one and a half
inch meshes for full-grown poultry, and one inch meshes
for chickens. In fine weather the food should be thrown
broadcast on this run ; but in wet weather the poultry
ought to be fed from feeding-vessels placed in the roost-
ing-room, and near to the door of the covered run.

Fig. 1

Fig. 2.

Fig. 3.

Drinking Fountain.

Feeding Trough.

Feeding Fountain.

The above fountains are constructed on the principle
that when placed with their opening towards, and about
one foot from, the wall, the poultry will be unable to
scratch any dirt in, nor can the droppings from the
perches fall in.

Some persons advise boarding the sides of the run to
the height of two feet, to prevent the cocks of the ad-
jacent run from fighting together ; this, however, in so
narrow a run, would partially exclude the sun, which
is not desirable ; besides, cocks after a few days' ac-
quaintance become very neighborly.

1 8 POULTRY BREEDING IN

THE GLASS-COVERED RUN.

The floor of this compartment should be composed
of at least six inches deep of finely-sifted gritty stuff,
such as road dust, ashes, and sand, and on this it would
be well to sprinkle occasionally some flour of sulphur,
which would prevent vermin breeding on the fowls.
It is the universal belief that fowls powder themselves
to get rid of vermin on their bodies ; but such is not
exactly the case. The fact is, fowls, like all other
feathered tribes, perspire freely, particularly so during
night time : this perspiration clogs their feathers ; con-
sequently they perform their ablution in gritty dust on
the same principle that human beings do in water, to
get rid of the dried perspiration and to expand their
feathers. The -same can be seen performed by the
birds of the air, which, on a dry, hot summer day,
make their ablutions in the dust of the roads.

In this run the fowls ought to be kept close during
wet weather, as wet feathers are most injurious to their
health, particularly when in a confined state.

THE ROOSTING AND LAYING ROOM

Should be kept scrupulously clean, Swept out daily, and
occasionally thoroughly whitewashed, the floor slightly
sanded over daily.

The nests, in a sanitary point of view, ought to be
made of earthen ware, partly filled with fine sand or
cocoa-nut refuse, and slightly sprinkled over with flour

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 19

of sulphur. The roosting perches should be formed of
hot-water pipes, as they are of the utmost importance
to keep the poultry warm during the cold nights, and
cool during hot nights, arid which will induce a con-
tinuous laying of eggs during a time when they are
most scarce either for hatching or consumption.

Most persons must have observed that even the
heaviest fowls will seek to perch nearest to the ceiling,
and that when roosting their feathers are ruffled or
open. This is easily explained by all persons con-
versant with the aerostatic laws ; namely, that heated
air being lighter than cold air it will ascend ; consequent-
ly the warmest place in a room will be nearest to the
ceiling ; therefore fowls open their feathers when roost-
ing to admit the warm, ascending air. Another impor-
tant point in the construction of this room is the creation
of a perfect ventilation without causing any draught.
Different gases, varying in their specific gravity, are
formed in this room, namely, carbonic acid, which is
a heavy gas and hangs near the floor, the ammoniacal
gas from the excrements of fowls, and carburetted hy-
drogen gas from the exhalation of the fowls, both of
which gases are light, and consequently rise to the ceil-
ing. It becomes, therefore, necessary to adopt a princi-
ple of ventilation by which both the heavy and light
gases can be got rid of without causing a draught,
which would be prejudicial to the health of the fowls.
This is accomplished by two pieces of perforated zinc,
one opposite to the other, near the floor, and the same
near the ceiling, and at least twelve inches above the
roosting perches.

2O POULTRY BREEDING IN

THE HATCHING-ROOM,

In my plan, is situated immediately above the roosting-
room, and composed of two compartments — the one
in which the hen sits, the other where she has a sup-
ply of gritty dust to perform her ablutions.

REFERENCE TO PLAN AND PERSPECTIVE SECTION OF
THE POULTRY HOME AND VINERY.

A is a glass-covered passage running the whole length
of the building, and from which communication is ob-
tained by means of doors to all the compartments of
the homes bn either side. This passage ought to be
about six feet wide and eight feet high to the rise of
the roof.

a is a flue formed of bricks and covered with paving-
tiles, with ventilation at certain distances. This flue
runs the whole length of the building, and ought to
be about nine inches wide and fifteen inches deep : it
serves for warming the building by means of hot air,
steam, or hot-water pipes, and the admission of heat is
regulated by means of the ventilators.

The floor should be formed of concrete, the sides of
whitewashed boards, and the roof of glass with mov-
able frames at certain distances to allow of ventilation.
This passage can be turned to a profitable account by
being used as a vinery or conservatory without extra cost.

B is the roosting-room, about three feet square and
six feet high. The floor should be made of concrete,

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW.

21

22

POULTRY BREEDING IN

the sides and ceiling of whitewashed boards ; the parti-
tions of the nest should also be made of whitewashed
boards, and the nest of earthen ware ; but the top board
covering the nest should project a few inches to prevent
the droppings falling in.

c is a door communicating with the passage, and
d with the covered run. In this door an opening ought
to be made provided with a glazed slide for the egress
and ingress of the fowls. In this compartment fowls
should be fed in wet weather, and the drinking foun-
tain ought also to be placed here. The perches of
cast-iron pipes should be about three inches in diam-
eter, and placed respectively three and four feet from
the floor.

5. Hatching-Room.

Fig. 6.

C, the hatching-room, is composed of two compart-
ments— one for the gritty dust, and the other for the
nest, which should be of earthen ware, the same as for
the laying nests. The floor, sides, and ceiling are of
whitewashed boards. The compartments are eighteen
inches square by two feet high, the door glazed, and
with perforated zinc above for ventilation ; the roof
covered with asphalted felt.

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW.

/}, the glass-covered run, should not be less than six
feet long, three feet wide, four feet high to the rise, and
six feet to the apex on top of the glass frame, which
ought to be movable to admit of ventilation. The sides
should be formed of whitewashed boards. A perch
can also be fixed with advantage in this compartment.

Fig 7.

Fig. 8.

E, the open run, should be not less than twelve feet
long, three feet wide, and three feet high. The plan
I recommend for the construction of open runs consists
of separate wooden frames six feet by three feet (see
Fig. 6), on which the wire netting is fixed, and grooved

Fig. 9.

uprights, in which these frames are slid. (See Figs. 7> 8.)
The frames forming the top can be joined together by

24 POULTRY BREEDING IN

hinges. By adopting this plan, the whole run can be
removed in a few minutes, or any part can be taken
away for repair without interfering with the others, or
some spare frames might even be kept in stock to re-
place those that want repairing.

r

GENERAL RULES TO BE OBSERVED IN POULTRY
BREEDING.

The Breeding Stock.

i st. The hens selected to breed from should be kept
apart from the cock until they are at least twelve
months old ; and the cock should not be less than
eighteen months old before he is put with hens, as a
too early call on nature degenerates the breed.

2d. Whatever races are selected, they should be the
most perfect specimens that can be obtained, as the
first outlay will repay itself.

3d. That the distinct races be kept strictly separate
except where it is intended to obtain a cross breed ; and
for this the finest specimens of both races and sexes
should be selected.

4th. Not more than six hens should be allotted to
a cock.

5th. After the third breeding year it is advisable
either to sell the stock or to fatten them for the market,
as they become less fecund, and their progeny are apt
to degenerate.

6th. The eggs should be collected at least three times
a day, as in a fecundated egg, when set upon for a few
hours, the germ very soon gets developed, and the egg
is afterwards unfit for hatching/

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 25

7th. The stock must be fed regularly at sunrise and
the afternoon an hour before going to roost.

The Laying Stock.

. i st. When it is intended to sell the eggs for consump-
tion it is advisable to pen hens up without a cock to
prevent the eggs being fecundated, as they will then
keep fresh much longer; this system of keeping hens
by themselves has another great advantage, as they will
lay a great many more eggs during the year.

2d. About twelve to eighteen hens can be kept to-
gether in a home, as shown by Fig. 4.

3d. The eggs should be collected twice a day.

4th. For feeding, the same rule applies as above ; and
the reason for selecting sunrise and afternoon for feed-
ing time is, that it is before and after the laying time,
during which the hens on their nest would get no food.

The Chickens.

ist. From the time they are hatched to the time
when they begin to roost, not more than twelve chickens
ought to be kept in one compartment, as they will hud-
dle together, and the weak ones either get crushed or
suffocated.

2d. The place where the young chickens retire to
ought to have a dry floor-, and be kept scrupulously
clean ; and as the floor is the coldest part of a room,
their roosting-box ought not to be more than twelve
inches high, and to be slanting, which will keep the
warm air in the roost. (See Fig. 14.)

26 POULTRY BREEDING IN

3d. As soon as they begin to roost on perches, they
can be removed to a poultry-home, say about thirty to
each home.

4th. When the cockerels can be distinguished from
the pullets, they should be penned up separate. From
this stock the breeding and laying stock will be selected
to replace old ones.

5th. The feeding of chickens ought to take place not
less than three times a day, and be of a liberal kind,
with plenty of finely-chopped green vegetables, and an
occasional supply from the vermin nursery, but no
meat should be given.

6th. Occasionally a little flour of sulphur and oxide
of iron mixed with their food will keep them in good
health, also sulphate of iron and lime water in their
drink. The same is applicable for all kinds of poultry.

THE LAYING OF EGGS

Takes place in the morning during the summer
months, and gradually later in the day as the winter
approaches, until moulting time arrives, when the hens
cease laying till they have their new feathers, which
takes about two months.

Although a hen can only lay a determined number
Of' eggs during her lifetime, yet her laying may be
stimulated by an appropriate diet (see Food), as also
by a genial temperature kept in the poultry-home.

It has been satisfactorily proved that under such cir-
cumstances a hen will lay at least thirty eggs more
during the winter months, a time when they are most

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 2j

valuable both for artificial hatching and consumption ;
and taking an establishment with two thousand laying
and one thousand breeding hens, the extra profit will
be as follows : Three thousand hens at thirty extra eggs
equal ninety thousand at 155. per hundred, £675, to be
ascribed solely to a warm temperature and appropriate
diet ; but this is not the only advantage derived from a
genial temperature during the winter months ; it may j
save, perhaps, hundreds of pounds in the loss of poultry
from diseases caused by exposure to damp and colds.

As the laying can be forced by artificial means, so
can it also be retarded ; and when it is intended to
keep some hens for laying during the time that others
are moulting, which generally begins in September, it
is only necessary to pull out the feathers of such hens,
and thus produce an artificial moulting about two
months sooner, say early in July, when they will cease
laying until their feathers have grown again.

THE OVARIUM.

It has been ascertained that the ovarium of a fowl is
composed of six hundred ovulas or eggs ; therefore a hen,
during the whole of her life, cannot possibly lay more
eggs than six hundred, which in a natural course are dis
tributed over nine years in the following proportion : —

First year after birth, . . . . 15 to 20

Second " " 100 " 120

Third " " 120 " 135

Fourth " " 100 " 115

Fifth " " .... 60 u So

28 POULTRY BREEDING IN

Sixth year after birth, 50 to 60

Seventh " " 35 " 40

Eighth " " 15 " 20

Ninth " " i " 10

It follows that it would not be profitable to keep
hens after their fourth year, as their produce would not
pay for their keep, except when they are of a valuable
or scarce breed.

NATURAL HATCHING.

The hens of all kinds of gallinaceous fowls sit for
twenty-one days; ducks of the usual kind, such as
Aylesbury, Rouen, and others, twenty-eight days ; Mus-
covy ducks, thirty to thirty-five days ; geese, thirty to
thirty-five days; Guinea fowls, twenty-eight to thirty-
days ; turkeys, twenty-eight days ; pea hens, twenty-
eight to thirty days. With a view of obtaining more
eggs in a given time from a fowl, many writers suggest
to prevent the hen from sitting by cooping her up in
a dark place on a low diet. Nothing can be more
cruel than to force nature without giving that neces-
sary rest which overwork requires. Already the do-
mesticated fowls lay many more eggs than wild ones
between their hatchings, and by a judicious housing
and feeding, can be made to lay still more ; but then
it is absolutely necessary to allow her to recruit her
strength by a rest of twenty-one days on her nest, and
a liberal poultaceous diet, as the laying of eggs, and
more particularly of large ones, is attended with con-
siderable pain, as is evidenced by the difference of
sound hens utter before and after their laying, and

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 29

also from their uneasiness whilst on their nest. Besides,
domesticated fowls are naturally of a sociable disposition,
and to separate a hen from her companions, and to keep
her on a low diet when she requires rest and nourishing
food to recruit her strength after she has become exhausted
from the pain of laying and the drain on her constitution
by the rapid formation of eggs, is the height of cruelty,
and would surely not be practised were breeders aware
of the injury they do the health of their hens. I do not
say that hens should be permitted to rear their brood, as
that would be waste of time, and most hard work to a
kind mother, who will but ill feed herself to provide as
much as possible for her young ; she has rest neither day
nor night, as she is compelled to remain in an unnatural
position to cover her young ones. The rearing can be
performed with greater success by artificial mothers, as
will be explained hereafter ; but what I do advise those
persons who have a regard for the health of their fowls,
and their own interest into the bargain, is tp allow Nature
her own way by giving a hen her twenty-one days' rest,
and the while a quiet place and nourishing poultaceous
food ; after which time she can be returned to her own
home, when in a few days she will recommence laying.

When a hen wants to sit she utters a peculiar cluck,
ruffles her feathers, and wanders about, searches dark
corners, and is evidently ill at ease ; she is feverishly hot,
and resolutely takes to a nest in which there are eggs,
whether of her own production or not matters little to
her ; at this time a hen will allow herself to be separated
from her companions, and placed in solitary confinement,
without fretting, provided she has a nest and eggs to sit

30 POULTRY BREEDING IN

upon. It is not advisable to allow a hen to hatch in her
ordinary home, and amidst her companions, who are fond
of usurping the nest, and laying fresh eggs in it."

A warm moisture being necessary to the hatching of
strong and healthy chickens, as evidenced by wild birds
and hens that sometimes unobserved will hatch a brood
under a hedge in the fields, I recommend the sitting nest
to be made of earthen ware, the same as for laying, with
this difference, that a fresh-cut piece of turf should be
placed on the sand, and on which the eggs are put ; the
heat of the hen will soon generate steam, but whenever
the turf gets too dry, some water may be poured on the
sand underneath.

The number of eggs to be placed under a hen must
necessarily depend on her size. A Dorking, Cochin
China, or Bramah Pootra, or other large breed, can with
every certainty hatch at least fifteen eggs ; and as regards
the selection of eggs, all I can advise is to select fresh and
good-sized ones.

Some persons pretend to be able to tell whether an egg
is fecundated, and whether it will produce a male or
female bird ; but these assertions have as yet not been
satisfactorily proved.

Fig. 10.

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 31

GENERAL OBSERVATIONS ON POULTRY FOOD AND
DRINK.

When poultry is kept in a confined state its food must
be appropriate. A fowl kept in a free state on a farm
can with advantage be fed all the year round with barley
or oats only, as she will supplement her meals with ani-
mal and vegetable matters of her own finding ; therefore
an equivalent should be given to penned-up poultry ; but
again, as they have not so much bodily exercise as when
in a free state, their digestive powers are weakened, con-
sequently they are subject to inflammation of the bowels
when fed on whole grain only. After this explanation,
my readers will understand the reason why I advocate all
grains to be ground, and the meat and vegetables to be
minced ; but apart from the sanitary consideration, it be-
comes an important economical fact in a large breeding
establishment, as it is well known that poultaceous food
made of pounded grain, and which calls little on the
digestive organs, has far greater feeding and fattening
qualities than the whole grains.

There is another point connected with the feeding to
which I wish to allude. The diet should be varied almost
daily, but green vegetables finely minced ought to form
part of every meal, and occasionally some oxide of iron,
and at other times flour of sulphur, mixed with their food
will greatly tend to keep poultry in good health.

THE DRINK FOR POULTRY.

The water should be changed daily, and occasionally
clear lime-water, and at other times sulphate of iron
mixed with it.

32 POULTRY BREEDING IN

FOOD FOR YOUNG CHICKENS.

Indian and barley meal, boiled rice, mashed potatoes,
bread crumbs, &c., steeped in milk and water ; any of
the above, separate or mixed together, will do well.

Finely-chopped green vegetables daily, and occasionally
hard-boiled eggs chopped fine, with a supply from the
vermin nursery. The water should be supplied between
two saucers (see fig. n) to prevent wetting themselves,

Fig. 11.

Fig. 12.

or to scrape the food out. The inner saucers can be
partly filled with coarse sand.

Clean water and a plentiful supply of food given about
four times a day, and with the comfort of the artificial
mothers, chickens will keep in better condition than when
left to roam in search of food with a hen.

THE FOOD FOR THE BREEDING AND LAYING STOCK

Can be composed of a mixture of the various cereals,
coarsely ground, and made into a stiff paste. This food
should be put in the feeding fountains, where it can-
not be wasted or dirtied. Occasionally, in fine weather,
whole grain can be thrown broadcast in the open run.

Finely-chopped vegetables, such as the waste of the
kitchen garden, mangold-wurzel, swedes, &c., in a green

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 33

state, mashed boiled potatoes, and rice ; minced boiled
meat mixed into a paste with the liquor from the meat,
and seasoned with salt, pepper, finely powdered oyster
shells, or a little chalk, forms a genial condiment. The
broken victuals from hotels, large establishments, &c.,
can also be used with great advantage for the food of
poultry.

Powdered charcoal, oxide of iron, and flour of sulphur,
mixed alternately at certain intervals with their food, will
keep them in perfect health.

THE FOOD FOR THE FATTENING STOCK.

*

As they are still more closely confined, they require a
poultaceous diet of a highly fattening nature and of easy
digestion. When once poultry is penned up for fattening
the diet ought not to be varied.

There are three different ways adopted in feeding poul-
try for fattening : —

i st. A free feeding, consisting of supplying a fowl with
food and water ad libitum. This takes much longer
time, is more expensive, and less satisfactory in the
flesh.

zd. Forced dry feeding, which consists of cramming
the fowl with pills of poultaceous food twice or three
times a day, and giving water ad libitum.

3d. Forced liquid feeding consists of reducing the
poultaceous food to a liquid state with milk and water,
then to pour it down the fowl's gullet, by means of a fun-
nel, three times a da#, and not to supply them with any
water.

3

34 POULTRY BREEDING IN

PREPARATION OF THE FATTENING FOOD.

Barley meal, or mixed in equal quantity with Indian
meal, made into a stiff paste with milk and water, and
seasoned with bay salt.

This paste is then either made liquid, for liquid feeding,
or into pills, which should be dipped into milk and water
before they are given, so as to facilitate the swallowing.

Experiments have proved that the seasoning poultry
food with bay salt produces the following advantages : —

1. To render the fattening of shorter duration.

2. To produce, with the same quantity of food, more
flesh and fat.

3. To give the flesh greater firmness and flavor, and to
the fat more compactness and a finer grain.

Molasses or sugar mixed with the meal has also good
fattening qualities. The duration of fattening must much
depend on the condition, age, and health of the fowl, and
in this, the same as in administering the food, actual ex-
perience is the best teacher, as no rules can well be laid
down.

POULTRY MANURE OR GUANO.

With the ordinary way of breeding poultry, their valu-
able manure is lost, and we actually send ships to the
Pacific, and all over the world, to fetch those very drop-
pings of fowls which we despise to collect at home. Yet,
on a large breeding establishment, the collection of this
manure, so much sought by florists, will yield a consider-
able extra profit, which can safely be calculated at the
rate of fifty pounds per thousand fowls annually; but

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 35

as vegetable growing, the refuse of which is good food
for poultry, is almost a necessary adjunct to .a large
breeding establishment, this manure would be still more
valuable to the proprietor on his own land.

THE FEATHERS OF FOWLS

Are another source of profit in large establishments,
where they can be sorted and dried, as they will then fetch
a much higher price, and may be computed at ten pounds
per thousand heads.

THE MOULTING OF FOWLS

Is classed by many writers on poultry under the head
of diseases, which it is not ; but is only a natural process
with most animals in changing their summer coat for a
winter one : nevertheless, it is a great drain on their con-
stitution, and fowls, during moulting time, ought to be
kept warm, and liberally dieted with warm and stimu-
lating food, such as boiled oatmeal seasoned with salt and
pepper, chopped onions, mashed potatoes, and occasion-
ally bread crumbs soaked in strong ale or weak gin.
Oxide of iron, lime water, and sulphate of iron can also
be given with advantage. This diet will accelerate the
moulting, and produce a speedier resumption of laying.

DISEASES IN POULTRY.

Most books on poultry contain a more or less lengthy
description of the various diseases fowls are subject to,
and prescribe certain remedies ; all of which help to swell

36 POULTRY BREEDING IN

a book, but are perfectly useless for all practical purposes.
We might as well try to doctor ourselves for diseases of
which we know nothing.

The diseases in fowls may chiefly be ascribed to our
variable climate, to dampness and cold, to injudicious
feeding, and to ill-ventilated roosting-places.

A diseased fowl, as will have been observed by many,
is never kindly treated by its healthy companions, and, in
my opinion, the best and most economical cure for a dis-
eased fowl is to kill her before she gets too far gone, and
whilst yet fit for the market ; and if not fit for the market,
she will, when hacked up, make good food for the pigs.

I acknowledge myself ignorant of the diseases in fowls,
consequently of their proper treatment ; and as I have no
wish to teach the public that which I do not understand
myself by simply copying from other books, I shall only
state that, with judicious feeding and housing, according
to my plan, there ought not to be one diseased fowl in a
thousand.

VARIOUS RACES OF POULTRY.

On this subject I would refer the reader for the desired
information to some special publication, as it does not
exactly enter into the considerations of poultry breeding
in a commercial point of view.

All that is necessary to know of the different races is to
be able to distinguish those that are the best layers, the
best setters, and the best table fowls, and never mind
about the particular points or feathers, the distinguishing
characteristics of a fine breed.

Now, where eggs are the sole object, some small breeds

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 37

lay larger and more eggs than larger fowls ; for this,
Hamburgh, Spanish, and some cross breeds may be kept
with advantage. As for fowls that will give credit to the
breeder for their weight after being fattened, Dorkings,
Bramah Pootras, and Cochin Chinas, and their crosses
should be selected.

KILLING AND DRESSING POULTRY FOR THE MARKET.

Almost every locality has its own system, but I may
advert to a few facts on this subject : Poultry, when bled
to death, is much whiter in the flesh. I should advise the
following plan as the very best, causing instant death
without pain or disfigurement : —

Open the beak of the fowl, then with a pointed and
narrow knife make an incision at the back of the roof,
which will divide the vertebras, and cause immediate
death : after which hang the fowl up by the legs till the
bleeding ceases ; then rinse the beak out with vinegar and
water. Fowls killed in this manner keep longer and do
not present the unsightly external marks as those killed
by the ordinary system of wringing the neck. When the
entrails are drawn immediately after death, and the fowl
stuffed, as they do in France, with paper shavings or
short cocoa-nut fibres to preserve their shape, they will
keep much longer fresh. Some breeders cram their
Poultry before killing to make them appear heavy ; this
is a most injudicious plan, as the undigested food soon
enters into fermentation, and putrefaction takes place, as
is evidenced by the quantity of greenish putrid-looking
fowls that are seen in the markets.

38 POULTRY BREEDING IN

MACHINERY, IMPLEMENTS, AND UTENSILS.

Without desiring to recommend any particular plan for
the saving of labor, it is yet desirable to state that in any
establishment of magnitude the expense of labor forms a
prominent item, and that it will therefore be to the inter-
est of the proprietor to invest a certain capital in the
purchase of such machines and utensils as will not only
economize labor, but also perform the work much better
than it could be done by manual labor.

The principal machines required are a grinding mill
for the grain, a pug mill for mixing the poultaceous food,
a mincing machine for the meat and vegetables, a potato-
mashing machine with wooden rollers, a sifting machine
for sand and vegetables, a weighing machine, scales, and
sundry smaller machines.

Also a steam-boiling apparatus, a heating apparatus,
and in fact such appliances as will not only economize
labor but also materials, and particularly fuel.

The manual labor itself ought to be subdivided in such
a manner that each person has a particular branch to
attend to, by which every one will very soon become so
expert in the special duty, that the work will be performed
much better and in less than half the time.

ARTIFICIAL HATCHING.

Let it be well understood from the onset that I do not
advocate artificial hatching and rearing in exclusion of
the natural method, but solely as an absolutely necessary
accessory in any large breeding establishment. Take,

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 39

for instance, one thousand breeding fowls ; they will lay
about one hundred and fifty thousand eggs per annum
under ordinary circumstances. Now, supposing a fowl
to sit twice in the course of the year, she could, there-
fore, not rear, allowing for casualties, more than twenty
chickens : this would give only twenty thousand chickens
per annum ; whereas, with the assistance of artificial
means, the remaining one hundred and thirty thousand
eggs could also be hatched, and in lieu of twenty thou-
sand there could be produced at least one hundred and
thirty thousand chickens, allowing also for casualties.
What a result from science applied to practical pur-
poses !

Sceptics will of course say it looks very well on paper,
but it will never do — it has been tried before and failed.
Now, for such reasoning there are endless facts that have
forced themselves upon public consideration under similar
circumstances ; to my own recollection I have heard man-
ufacturers say that they should never give up hand-looms
for power-looms, that the goods turned out did not come
up to hand-woven : I have seen those who refused to fol-
low the current of improvements swept away from the
list of once notabilities.

Up to this very day many object to gas, and will not
allow it to be a great improvement on our old oil-lamps ;
yet were gas ceased to be manufactured to-morrow, what
would be the general feeling? For railways and steam-
boats to cease running, and to have to revert to our old
stage-coaches and sailing-ships, would be not only intoler-
able, but perfectly impossible.

I might adduce hundreds more parallels, with a view

40 POULTRY BREEDING IN

to prove to sceptics that improvements are not only abso-
lutely necessary in all that relates to our comfort, particu-
larly towards an increase in our food, but also that they
are perfectly unavoidable, as many farmers who at first
resisted the improvements in farming by drainage, ma-
chinery, and applied chemistry, have found to their cost.
Therefore, in adopting the expression of artificial means,
as more readily understood, I do not mean to convey that
it is an entirely distinct mode of breeding poultry, but
solely an addition to the mode already adopted, and with-
out which poultry breeding can neither be carried on to a
large extent nor with great profit.

My intention at first was to divide this treatise in two
parts — the first to rearing poultry in a natural way, the
second by artificial means — with a view to please those
of my readers who object to any artificial means ; but in
vain have I endeavored to draw a line where natural
means end and artificial means begin. The fact is, the
domesticated fowl's life is as much artificial as our own
mode of living. In truth, with the progress of civilization
we insensibly and gradually create for ourselves artificial
wants, which by degrees become absolute necessaries,
and amongst a thousand others I may mention tea, coffee,
potatoes, sugar, tobacco, &c. ; and for the cheap produc-
tion of such necessaries we create artificial labor (ma-
chines), steam-power, and artificial manure. Yet with
all this evidence of steady progress and improvements
before them, and in the current of which they are drawn
and carried onwards without knowing it, there are num-
bers of even well-informed persons who ridicule anything
new as preposterous — a sure failure, not wanted ; the

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 41

old thing is the best after all ; and yet these very persons
are a living evidence against their assertions. True they
will never be found among the pioneers of progress,
which, if their shallow minds could possibly arrest or
hinder, they would too gladly do ; but they can no more
help themselves being dragged in the wake of progress
than they can stop the revolutions of our earth or the
tides of the sea. From such persons we should never
have had steam-power, railways, telegraphs, machinery,
&c., to economize and multiply labor, to annihilate space
and time ; and yet these persons share in the benefit
such improvements have created with the greatest com-
posure, taking them as fails accomplis, never giving a
moment's thought that but a short time ago they were
what they choose to call new-fangled things ; they forget
that the very clothes they wear, the food they eat, and the
beverages they drink are mostly obtained in their superior
and cheap form by artificial means ; that, in fact, chemi-
cal and mechanical results are combinations of artificial
means. For the raw materials we must, of course, de-
pend on Nature ; but even those we can in some measure
improve by art.

Therefore, when I speak of breeding poultry by arti-
ficial means, I do not wish to convey that eggs (the raw
material) can be produced without a hen ; but, when we
have eggs, to produce chickens, and from chickens fowls,
by a wise appliance of such laws and combinations as
science teaches us, as superior to brute care as much as
artificial labor by machinery is superior to manual labor,
as hot-house-grown fruits and flowers excel those grown
in the open air, and as stall-fed cattle are superior to those
from the pasturage.

42 POULTRY BREEDING IN

There is nothing absolutely new under the sun ;
even hatching chickens by artificial means has been car-
ried on in Egypt, China, and other Eastern countries from
the remotest ages to the present day : yet in England it
has hitherto proved a failure in a commercial point of
view. It is true that in Egypt, where they hatch many
millions of poultry annually, artificial hatching is a trade
of itself, carried on by many hundred proprietors of
ovens ; and their successful hatching will be apparent
when it is stated that they sell one hundred newly-hatched
chickens for about three shillings, or that they will return
sixty chickens for every hundred eggs intrusted to them
for hatching, free of charge. It is also true that the
climate and soil in Egypt are more favorable than in
England to the rearing of poultry ; but then why should
we not appeal to science to assist us in overcoming the
drawbacks of our soil and climate ? No doubt we shall
never be able to produce poultry as cheap as in Egypt,
where climate, soil, labor, and cost of land are eminently
favorable to a cheap production ; but in compensation we
can get far higher and in proportion more remunerative
prices for our poultry, their feathers and manure. It is.
an acknowledged fact that the artificial hatching of eggs
in England, although carried out on principles not in
strict harmony with natural incubation, has yet proved
far more successful than the artificial rearing of chickens.
This, of course, is ascribable solely to the improvident
way chickens are treated before they have their natural
protection, their feathers, in a climate where the sudden
changes in the temperature of the atmosphere, and the
almost everlasting humidity of the soil, act prejudicially

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW.

43

on young animal life ; but surely these are difficulties
which can easily be overcome ? Do we not produce in
England, by artificial means, as splendid tropical fruits
as any tropical climate can produce? And why not sur-
pass Egypt in rearing poultry — if not in cost, at least in
quality and in scientific feeding and fattening, for which
far more remunerative prices are obtained? Well, all
this can now be accomplished in England by any person
who will follow my plan of hatching, rearing, and fatten-
ing poultry by artificial means.

This plan must necessarily be modified according to the
importance of the breeding establishment, and the number
of eggs to be hatched daily from one to a thousand ; but
the main principles of a successful artificial breeding of
poultry will under any circumstances remain the same.

THE ARTIFICIAL HATCHING-ROOM.

Fig. 13. Perspective Section.

44 POULTRY BREEDING IN

The floor of this room should be of concrete, the sides
of movable glazed frames, and the roof of boards covered
with asphalted felt, slates, or zinc. The interior ought to
be fitted along the sides with movable shelves, which
can be drawn out for cleaning ; these shelves will be
divided into separate compartments three feet long, two
feet wide, and one foot high ; the sides should be made
of galvanized iron wire ; so also the front, which forms
a door. In each compartment ought to be a frame
lined underneath with long fleece, the same as in the
portable artificial mothers. In these compartments the
chickens are placed from their birth up to a week or
ten days old, after which they are put under the care of an
artificial movable hen, in small establishments, or in the
rearing home in large establishments. (See fig. 17.)
These compartments ought to be covered with felt carpet,
which must, however, be kept well cleaned, and occasion-
ally dipped in boiling water.

Fig. 14.

The best way to supply food and water to so young
chickens is by means of two saucers, one within the other,
between which the food or water is put. This will pre-
vent their wetting themselves or scratching the food about.
(See fig. u.)

This hatching-room will require no heating apparatus,
as the heat from the hatching apparatus, which is kept in

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW.

45

the middle of this room, will keep the temperature suffi-
ciently high during winter.

Near the ridge of the roof ventilating frames should
be fixed, and near the floor one or two sliding doors
should be provided to allow of the admission of cold air.

Chickens hatched in a dry atmosphere will never be
so strong and healthy as those hatched in a moist temper-
ature, as is evidenced by the difference in the appearance
of a brood hatched in a loft and one hatched in a field ;
and as a moist temperature is highly desirable it should
be provided for in artificial hatching.

PORTABLE ARTIFICIAL HEN FOR HATCHING.
The apparatus represented by fig. 15, although only

Fig. 15. Perspective Elevation of Artificial Hen for Hatching.

46

POULTRY BREEDING IN

calculated to hatch one egg per day, combines the same
advantages as one capable of hatching a thousand eggs
per day, and will answer all the requirements of an
amateur breeder ; besides, it is so portable and convenient
in its construction that it can be placed in a bed-room,
which, while hatching, it will keep warm day and night,
at an equal temperature, and the light from the gas or
lamp will serve as a night-light.

Fig. 16. Transverse Section.

From the above perspective elevation and section it
will be seen that the hatching apparatus consists of
separate parts.

1 . A glass-covered box.

2. A water-tank.

3. A floating vessel.

4. A gas or oil lamp.

The glass-covered box is made of japanned tin ; it has
a glass door through which the light can be seen ; the
bottom of this box is perforated in the centre for the
admission of air to the lamp, and the other part is car-

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 47

peted to receive the chickens as they leave their shells.
About twelve inches from the bottom are four brackets,
to receive the water tank ; the lid has a perforated border
for the escape of the vitiated air and steam from the
water. The sides are provided with handles for carrying
the box from one place to another, and it stands on four
knobs to allow a free passage of air underneath.

The water-tank is made of tin, and a little smaller than
the box, so as to allow about half an inch free passage of
air all round.

The floating vessel is also made of tin, and is a trifle
smaller than the water-tank, so as to allow of its floating
in it. The centre of this vessel has an oval opening, in
which a registering thermometer is kept to show at all
times the temperature of the water. The bottom of this
vessel is covered about one inch deep with silver sand, on
which the eggs are placed. By means of the central
opening, and that between the tank, the temperature is
kept in a constant moist state. The lamp can be for oil
or gas, but gas is certainly preferable.

The management of the apparatus is so simple that it
can be attended to by a child, and only a very few direc-
tions will be necessary : - —

1 . Fill the tank with hot water till the floating vessel
reaches the top level, then see that the water has a tem-
perature of about one hundred and twelve degrees, after
which light the lamp, and should the heat of the water
increase, reduce the flame ; but if the temperature rises or
decreases but slowly, it can be regulated by admitting
more or less air through the door of the box.

2. The principal point, however, is, that the tempera-

48 POULTRY BREEDING IN

ture on the sand should not vary much from one hundred
and five degrees, and it will be found that with water-heat
of one hundred and twelve degrees, the sand will be one
hundred and five, and on the eggs ninety-eight degrees.
For beginners, however, it is always best to put the ap-
paratus in action a day or two before placing eggs in it.

3. Turn the eggs once or twice a day, and keep the
water replenished as it evaporates.

ARTIFICIAL POULTRY HENS FOR REARING CHICKENS.

Where poultry breeding is carried on as a commercial
undertaking, and where it is intended to rear the great-
est number of chickens with the least number of hens,
and this without interfering with their laying, artificial
mothers are of the utmost importance.

The functions of a hen towards her chickens consist of
forming a covering to prevent the natural heat of their
unfledged bodies from cooling ; also to break into small
pieces any food that is too large for them ; and lastly, to
protect them against danger. Now, my artificial hens not
only do all this, but they perform the duties a great deal
better, and with less casualties to the chickens.

Most writers on poultry do not believe in artificial
hatching or rearing ; yet might they as well doubt grow-
ing tropical fruits and plants in England.

Chickens do neither require artificial heat nor that of
their mother ; all that is necessary is to provide them with
a suitable covering of their bodies until they are full
fledged, to preserve their natural heat, the same as with
infants. During cold weather, however, their homes

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW.

49

<r 2 jt- .•»

5<3 POULTRY BREEDING IN

must be warmed the same as for full-grown poultry ; then
a good ventilation without draught, a dry floor, sun light,
and a small run.

The portable artificial mother, particularly recom-
mended to breeders and amateurs, is shown by fig. 17.
She performs her duties towards her chickens with far
greater success than a hen possibly could do.

REFERENCE TO PERSPECTIVE SECTION OF ARTIFICIAL

HEN.

A is a glass-covered frame three feet long, fifteen inches
wide, two feet high at the apex, and twelve inches at the
rise of the glass frame. This forms a dry run in wet and
cold weather, c is an air-flue across the frame for the
necessary ventilation, and formed of perforated zinc. At
each end of this flue a ventilator is fixed, by which the
admission of air can be regulated according to the tem-
perature of the atmosphere. It will be apparent that
chickens are not exposed to draught by this arrangement
of ventilation, d is a frame lined with long fleece, under
which the chickens will roost the same as under the
wings of a hen, and will even prefer the artificial mother,
as I have ascertained by experience, e is about one inch
deep of ashes, which may be sprinkled over with flour of
sulphur : they make a dry and warm footing, and retain
the heat ; but they should be renewed or sifted once a
week, y, the floor, should be slightly covered with sand
and renewed every day. g is a small door, communicat-
ing with the open run. h is a glass frame, made to open
by means of a slide or by hinges.

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 51

B is the movable open run, six feet long, fifteen inches
wide, and twelve inches high. It is made of galvanized
iron wire, which not only keeps the chickens from dan-
ger, but also prevents them from roaming. The artificial
mother being portable should be taken in-doors every
afternoon during the cold weather, and in the daytime
should be placed on grass or dry land. However, for
large breeding establishments, the arrangements would
be different, and are explained in the " Artificial Rearing
Home."

ARTIFICIAL REARING HOME.

In poultry breeding establishments of any magnitude
the portable artificial mother could not well be used with
advantage ; its cost, and the labor that would be required
for a proper attendance on the chickens, are obstacles
which cannot be overlooked without loss to the breeder ;
in fact, as I have stated before, in any large establishment
a judicious arrangement for saving labor and for per-
forming the work systematically by subdivision of labor,
becomes of the utmost importance in a commercial point
of view. Although the principles of the portable mother
are strictly retained in the arrangement .of the rearing
home, yet it will be seen that where many thousand
chickens have to be attended to in separate compartments
containing not more than twelve each, the building, as
shown by fig. 18, must necessarily facilitate the work of
cleaning, feeding, warming, and general supervision.

52 '

POULTRY BREEDING IN

Fig. 18. Artificial Rearing Home— Perspective Section.

REFERENCE TO PERSPECTIVE SECTION OF ARTIFICIAL
REARING HOME.

A is a sunk passage lined by brick walls, the floor
formed of concrete, with a provision for drainage ; along
the whole length of this passage hot-water pipes should
be fixed immediately under the roosting-place a. A door
communicates with the covered run <$, and wire netting is
fixed over the door c for ventilation. The roof of this
passage can either be glazed or formed of boards covered
with asphalted felt, but provision must be made for an
efficient ventilation. This passage should be about five
feet wide between walls, and six feet high.

B is the glass-covered run ; it differs from the portable
hen only in this, that here the sides are formed of galva-
nized iron wire, and only the front is made of boards ; the

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 53

floor is made of concrete, covered with gritty dust. This
run can also with advantage be made a little larger, say
four feet long, eighteen inches wide, and two feet six
inches high.

C is the open run ; the floor can be formed of concrete
or gravel, with an incline towards a gutter for quick
drainage. The sides and top can be made of galvanized
iron wire, and on the same plan as shown in the poultry
home (fig. 6).

ARTIFICIAL VERMIN NURSERY.

This is a most useful department in a poultry breeding
establishment, as it will supply the poor prisoners with
those dainty little morsels which in their free state they
will never tire to look after.

It is well known that from the chicken to the old hen
they prefer insects and worms to any grain — in fact, fowls
are omnivorous, but their carnivorous appetite predomi-
nates, and they would very soon become unfit for human
food were they indulged in their predilection ; only in a
free state they have to perform hard work in their search
of insects and worms, of which, after all, they find but a
scanty supply ; it would, therefore, not be advisable to
give fowls in a confined state too much of animal food,
but only in such quantities as will prove a stimulant with-
out injury to their health.

The effect on a fowl fed too freely on animal food be-
comes soon perceptible ; she will pull out her feathers, and
even peck her flesh until the whole of her upper body is
one mass of raw flesh.

54

POULTRY BREEDING IN

Fig. 19. Section of Vermin Pit.

It is not intended that vermin should replace the mince
meat in the food for poultry, but it should occasionally
be given in addition as dainty morsels in wet or cold
weather.

The vermin nursery is formed of a succession of pits
with concrete bottoms and brick-lined sides ; the top is
covered with a trap, to prevent the rain entering, which
might kill the vermin. (See fig. 19.)

To propagate vermin, put in alternate layers of mould
and vegetable and animal matter, such as horse dung,
garden refuse, entrails of animals, dead animals, blood,
&c., until the pit is filled. In a short time fermentation
will commence, and the mixture will soon be converted
into a living mass of vermin. If the fermentation take
too long, it may be hastened by watering. In winter it is
well to cover the mixture with horse manure, which will
keep the vermin warm and alive.

This process of obtaining vermin is inexpensive, and it
will be found very serviceable in winter for young chick-
ens, and for stimulating the fowls to lay.

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW.

55

IMPROVED FATTENING PENS FOR CRAMMING POULTRY.

These fattening pens are so constructed that they can
be placed in the open air, forming a building of them-
selves.

Fig. 20. Perspective Elevation of Improved Fattening Pens for Cramming Poultry.

56 POULTRY BREEDING IN

Each fowl has her own compartment, and is thus placed
in solitary confinement, and without being able to see
other fowls, which accelerates considerably the fattening.

The floors of the cells should be drawn out daily, and
cleaned and whitewashed ; they must then be returned
with the dry underside uppermost, and some sand
sprinkled on. The cells should also be whitewashed
for every fresh occupant.

The doors are solid boards, with a piece of perforated
zinc for ventilation at the top, and a drinking-cup at the
bottom. These pens combine all the sanitary require-
ments for the speedy fattening of fowls.

PRESERVATION OF EGGS.

Much has been written about the preservation of eggs,
and many are the suggestions, but none have as yet given
satisfaction, and for the sole reason that the structure of
the egg is not considered in relation to the physical and
chemical laws which govern evaporation, permeation,
and putrefaction. The shell of the egg being porous,
to admit air to the chicken during the process of incu-
bation, allows also part of the liquid to evaporate, and
the air to permeate when they are not used soon after
being laid, and the air acting on the animal matter
produces early decomposition and putrefaction, particu-
larly so in a fecundated egg, in which the germ is first
decomposed. Clear eggs, the produce of hens who have
not been with a cock, keep fresh much longer. This can
easily be exemplified by putting an old fecundated egg
and an old clear egg under a hen whilst sitting, when it

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 57

will be found that after the twenty-first day the fecundated
egg is putrid, and the clear egg fit for use. To exclude
the air from the egg, and to prevent the evaporation of its
liquid, it has been proposed by some writers to pack the
eggs in salt, lime, bran, saw-dust, &c., by others to keep
the eggs immersed in lime-water, in salt water, or both
combined ; others, again, suggest to varnish or oil the
eggs, and some even to parboil them.

There can be no doubt that, were the object to be
accomplished solely to preserve the eggs from getting
putrid, some of these suggestions might be employed to
advantage ; but there is more required than simply to
preserve the egg from putrefaction ; for instance, for
kitchen use, and the breakfast table, eggs ought not
only to be preserved fresh, but also free from any foreign
flavor, such as lime, salt, bran, saw-dust, varnish, and oil
must necessarily impart to the egg through its porous
shell ; and as for breeding from such preserved eggs, it
is out of the question. Who has ever seen any chickens
hatched from salted or mouldy eggs, or from such as
have been varnished or oiled, which latter process stops
up the pores through which the air, so indispensable to
the formation and development of the chicken, must be
admitted ?

Now, the most effective, simple, and economical plan
for truly preserving eggs, and without imparting to them
any foreign flavor, or rendering them unfit for hatching
purposes, is to use the patent stoppered glass jars, with
vulcanized India-rubber joints (see fig. 21), and proceed
thus : —

Immediately after collecting the eggs, put the jar in hot

58 POULTRY BREEDING IN

water, and when thoroughly warm, so as to rarefy the air,
place the eggs in the jar, the pointed end uppermost, and
pack and line with paper shavings or cocoa fibres to
prevent them from breaking ; then close the jar before
taking it out of the water, and it will be found that eggs
preserved by this method will be fit for hatching twelve
months after, and that those intended for the breakfast
table will be as fresh as on the day when laid.

oooo
ooooo
oooooo
oooooo
oooooo
jooooo

Fig. 21.

WHITEWASH.

A large quantity of whitewash will necessarily be re-
quired for sanitary purposes, but if prepared as follows,
it will possess the advantages of preventing the wood
from taking fire or from decaying.

Dissolve in warm water sulphate of alumina (alum),
sulphate of copper (blue vitriol), and mix with the
whitewash.

LIME WATER

Is most beneficial for an occasional drink to fowls ; it is
a preventive of many diseases, and assists the formation
of bone and eggs. Prepare as follows : —

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 59

Pour over quicklime some warm water, and when the
lime is slaked and settled, draw the clear water off, which
can be kept for a considerable time. The lime will be
useful for whitewash.

OXIDE AND SULPHATE OF IRON.

Both these can be purchased cheap from any drysalter,
but they are so easily prepared that they may as well be
manufactured on the establishment.

The oxide of iron (or rust) is most useful for making
and improving the blood ; and the sulphate of iron, a
weak solution containing a large quantity of oxygen, will
keep fowls lively and assist digestion. Prepare as fol-
lows : —

Take a quantity of old nails or small pieces of iron, put
them in an earthen-ware vessel, then pour over them sul-
phuric acid diluted with water. The liquid will take up
a certain quantity of iron, and form sulphate of iron or
green vitriol. The rust (the oxide of iron) is obtained by
mixing some diluted soda (carbonate of commerce) with
the sulphate of iron. The oxide will then be precipitated,
and the liquid forms sulphate of soda, which is a good
liquid manure, which mix with the food or drink, as
given under the heading of Food, pages 31-33.

GENERAL PLAN OF BUILDINGS.

A breeding establishment on the above scale will re-
quire about four acres of land for the buildings. Six
buildings, each three hundred feet long, will contain

6o

POULTRY BREEDING IN

< SQ(I FEET

V

•>n

n rcrcT

Fig. 22. General Plan of Buildings.

twelve hundred homes for poultry. (See fig. 22.) Then a
building on each end, joining the six buildings, and which
will be used for artificial hatching, stores, and all neces-
sary offices. The cost of the whole will be about three
thousand pounds. An uninterrupted covered communi-
cation is thus had with every part of the establishment,
and the whole forms a quadrangle.

BIRD'S-EYE VIEW AND SECTION OF A POULTRY-
BREEDING ESTABLISHMENT.

In giving a description of the above plan for a poultry-
breeding establishment, I feel compelled to notice certain
observations on my system which appeared in a sporting
paper. From beginning to end I clearly stated that I do
not consider it possible to breed poultry profitably in
large numbers on the present system, whatever care
might be taken in a sanitary point of view ; also that arti-
ficial hatching is quite of a secondary consideration, only

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 6 1

to be resorted to during the time when hens are not
broody, as I fully explained under the head of Natural
Hatching, page 28.

From the above sketch it will be seen that a glass-
covered passage, six feet wide, which can serve as a
vinery, communicates with the poultry homes on each
side. These homes consist of two runs, each twelve feet
long by three feet wide ; one is a closed run with gravel
floor, the other an open run with horse manure. Above
these two runs are two similar runs for chickens. These
runs are enclosed with wire-work next to the passage and
next to the field ; the partition between the runs is close-
boarded, so as to keep the inner run warm during winter.
Efficient ventilation is provided along the whole length
of the glass-covered passage immediately above the runs.

The glass-covered passage will form an excellent vinery,
and this without any extra expense for building or warm-
ing ; and the vines will necessarily absorb a large quan-
tity of carbonic gas, and assist in keeping the air pure,
and the soil will generate a genial, moist temperature, so
essential to animal life.

The above system of keeping poultry has, moreover,
many other advantages, such as —

Slow-feeding and weak fowls will be able to get suffi-
cient food, which they cannot when a great number are
fed together. The food can be supplied in the required
quantity and quality to each breed or class, as it must be
evident that the breeding and laying stock require a dif-
ferent diet to chickens or poultry intended for the market.

Each cock having only a certain number of hens allotted,
they will be served better.

62 POULTRY BREEDING IN

The means of collecting and profitably using the poul-
try manure.

The constant renewal of the ground will prevent it
getting tainted from the fowls' droppings.

The temperature should be kept equal, and cold and
dampness prevented.

Preventing diseases from exposure to cold, and wet,
and contagion.

Economy in food, as poultry will eat much less when
warmly housed, and deprived of roaming about.

Keeping breeds and sexes separate.

Enabling precise statistics to be obtained as to the com-
parative productiveness of the various breeds, and also in
ascertaining what hens have ceased laying.

The early detection of hens wanting to sit.

Obtaining a larger number of eggs, and in seasons
when most scarce.

A genial temperature will induce the hens to sit, not-
withstanding cold weather.

This system, however, like all new systems, must be
extended gradually, as old birds which have been accus-
tomed to roam will fret and lose in appearance the first
few months, but the young that are reared and fed on this
system will thrive much better, and at less expense for
food, than under the present mode.

The annexed sketches, one for an improved self-supply-
ing drinking fountain, and the other for supplying poul-
taceous food without possibility of waste, are particularly
recommended as most efficient : —

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW.

Fig. 23. Improved Drinking Fountain.

^

Fig. 24. Improved Feeding Trough for Poultaceous Food.

The following will be found a useful form for keeping
correct statistics of a poultry-breeding establishment : —

64

POULTRY BREEDING IN

Laying Stock.
Home No. 50 (cost price, each, 35. 6d/.), 12 Spanish, 42 weeks old.

£

Number of
Eggs.

.C

fee

0

Hens
Hatching, j

1

M

jcj

1

I

1 Cost of Food
| per Pint.

General Remarks.

Ib. oz.

Pints.

d.

I

10

I 8

—

—

—

12

4

2

3

4

5

6

\

9

10

ii

12

13

H

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

31

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW.

Thirty Chickens.
Home No 60 (cost price, each, 3</.)> Bramahs, 10 weeks old.

May.

Food.

Cost
Pint.

Died.

111.

Sold.

Cocks

Hens.

General Remarks.

I

Pints.
15

d.

—

—

16

H

2

3

4

5

6

9

10

ii

12

13

15

16

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

s

29

30

31

66

POULTRY BREEDING IN

THE PATENT VERMIN ATTRACTION TRAP.

Poultry and chickens in farm-yards are exposed to great
dangers from the number of vermin which are ever ready
to pounce upon them in their unprotected condition ; the
rat, weasel, marten, wildcat, and fox are equally de-
structive ; therefore a trap to secure these pests, irrespec-
tive of size, has long been felt a desideratum.

Fig. 25. Patent Vermin Attraction Trap.

From the above sketch it will be observed that the trap
consists of an oblong box, the end of which draws out,
and is provided with a looking-glass in the internal side,
which attracts the vermin on looking in.

The entrance of the trap is formed of two spring doors
made of wire, which allow the vermin to enter with the
least pressure. These doors have sharp points where
they meet, which, although not felt by the vermin on
entering, will prevent it from withdrawing after having
once introduced its head. Near to the looking-glass a
bait is suspended, and a cage is also fixed with a chicken
to serve as a decoy. These traps are self-setting, simple,
inexpensive, fit for all sizes of vermin, and safe for the
house, farm-yard, or game preserve.

C/}

W

C/}

jz;

&
PH
x
w

C/2

O)

-;

2

§

0

CO

w

g „ K S
£ o EG *

g * 3 ^

s?

O "§

>H ^

£ ^

H

M

o o
o o

O 0

o o

S* g |

-d §

o S

oo

00
O 00

0) 0 M

CU cJ u

£

r
ve
fo

ivi
is

O

PL,

'A O 0 0

0 0 O

O 0 O 0 0

3 0

T3

« 0 0 0

O O O

O O O O O

3 0

<* §>!§

S>£ 8

VO ^'i M

STl- M VO M
M t>» IH M J

vo VO 00 rf rt- NJ

If .

M C^

M I-T rf

•^ t^ c

c*t

^ o>

.

• O

O J^
VM o '

'o

^

• ^

rt .

'-S

K

_r^ cu

, u

• •

* ^

O

X

s

^0

S «

! e

T3 ^ co"
co cu 43

• ^

HH *

2 -6
w ^°

^

•o s S ' "

G ^0 •§ 0
« «u | S

• i

& ^ *

w 7

o

^ «S

trj y%

1 s t

J* '

- oo

203
CU

3* — •

C/5 -M

^ 1 111

C^ ^^ * ^

i M

^ 1

c^ 2
w

Jill! '

ao *S'*4 T3

gg^a^-

j 5

r

§ to ^" ~

<a <u *> *<

"*•» 5-i TD O
fee, <L> 0 X!

O § £ £ j

ftl 1

II

S3! -*

Illf i

o c ,° ^

VD HH H-CH H^

O

A

g *' -d ° '

DO 0 „ ^5
CO QJ

o o o

o -|

O ^ co 0 (

DO O U) *Z

ooo

0 J3

H §

«^ ****

• pi

w fi « 81

^* OO <

3 8 8 g 4

O M M Vj ^v^

8,<8 Jt

f^ CN vO

M .£

O •$

^ , ^S

t* c/T

SI

. .. w fc 1

erf bo

p ^ §« §

• • s •§

<u

< ^ ^ ^ M-

tJ <° 1 N

^^ (1) *•*

; • 8 5

'• "• S ^

1

0 |

CO

C9

W *"* CH *^

*

T3

J2J f/1^ *^ O

• E |

V

g h ^ CO

3 ^

* .-H

"§

^O

W ° T? g

C </>

* C ^

• 2

?

^ S "O °

: 2 1

^ T3

flj

•C} CS 2 *

5 8. |

CO M

2 5

s

CJ ^ <si

J "o -S

bJo

« ^C! "

4 e3 Co

^ ••-' tj

CD

o cu ^^*

a?'™ JS

M

2 8 °^

s S

S g s

t^t O ^

8

£j M T3

/J ^_)

° «£j 2

O

-•-> O

3 c«

*^H f II

M

co c3 o

-C CO

O *-> O

«P B .

i 3

§^ 3

3 O

C C

-*J r^

0 G 5 '

U c!

^ Cl J5

(69)

•6 °

x 0

o o Q *3

Q «J

o o o

O *o j_> >-,

^ 1 s

revenue will

-600

« 0 0
ON J>»

Q^ Tt- ON

cT

0 0
0 0

$ ?

0 0 C
O 0 C

8N <X
\O t
10 O C
»-T to «

) 0
5 0

* °h

o, o

0)

a -S

<Q

3

o *

,4j

> x

o >^

ci

CO

^ s

• •

• •

5

03

"3 »

c >^

C

> 0

HATCHING.
EXPENSE
At id. per egg,

Net profit, . .

tnong 50,000 per annum may saf
navy, clubs, hotels, and familu

3 has been made for expenses, a
proportion to the capital emplo

UE AND EXPENSES.

o

<%

to
£ T3

<u o

Ifi

S-i

0 ^
[XH

" Labor,1
44 Artificial hatching, . . .

" 60,000 eggs, and hatching,

Or o nfl.f rM-nfif

iff of at least thirty hands, young and old,

RTIFICIAL
£ s. d.

0 »|

s *°

CO T3 "Os

crt .^o,

o 3
« W

g.S

g£
1 2

C3 ^^

^ SD

G 3

W

w

&H
0

-600
o5 0 0

io O
, , t>. vo

C« v£> •^~

CO

0 O

0 0

xo O
t^ to

CO M

vd"

000
000

00 O Q

I ,OOO O O

:i3,74o o o

t of an efficient st<

c

o <u

CJ b-^

H

'o "5

g

T3

•^ u

5 >.

n

"*"* rt

2

*

Si

0 a

C <u

£^

Js

(D "y

<u ^

P-I

^

C3 f*

« S

w

5 «>

(U — '

: «

§ d

,C O

^ Z3

>

*J O

— 4J

§0

a ^

s s

'^ -S

J

— c$

p p

^ C

. bo

0

1

hicken class, . . . .

The entire profit f
The extra profit fi

vn at £1000.
From the above i
ir disappointment a

>m eggs,
' Natural hatchin

4 Artificial ditto,
4 Chickens, . . .

' Manure, . . . .
* Feathers, . . . .
' Choice birds, .

4 Contracts, . .
i The sum

-r

0

o S

f ~

(70)

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW.

THE LAWS OF NATURE

fn Relation to Poultry-keeping from a Commercial Point
of View; and Answers to Questions.

IN my Preface I stated that I should confine myself
exclusively to giving publicity to such facts as I have
proved by actual experience. My knowledge of the
world cautioned me not to introduce anything which
might savor of theory, particularly to a class of readers
who undoubtedly by their education are conversant with
the laws of nature, on which facts are based. I was,
therefore, but little prepared to have so many questions
to answer, which more or less compel me to do. that which
I endeavored to avoid in fear of being considered pedantic.
Though I feel flattered by the great interest my treatise
has created, and though an explanation of the laws of
nature will prove interesting to many, yet I trust that my
correspondents will not consider it a want of deference on
my part if I abridge as much as possible my explanations,
but still with a due regard to giving a satisfactory reply to
all inquirers.

EGG PRESERVING.

i . Question : Does it make any difference to preserve
eggs a few days old?

The egg comes from the hen at blood-heat, the liquid
then fills every part of the shell, gradually the egg cools,

72 POULTRY BREEDING IN

and the air contained in the egg is condensed, thus leav-
ing a vacuum. Now, as the shell is porous, and the pres-
sure of the outer air much greater, it forces itself gradually
through the pores of the shell until the equilibrium is
reestablished, thus forming the depression of the fluid
part observable in old eggs at the round end ; and as the
contact of the air with the fluid part very soon alters the
taste, and renders them unfit for hatching from, it becomes
essential that the eggs should be preserved as early as con-
venient after being laid.

2. Why should eggs be preserved better in rarefied
air than by merely packing them in air-tight jars?

The variations in the temperature of the atmosphere
from below freezing point to summer heat are important
considerations in preserving eggs. The elasticity and
expansive properties of air need not be explained here, as
they will require a full explanation under the questions in
reference to regulating heat. I will, therefore, only say,
that if an air-tight jar were closed up during cold weather
without the air within being first rarefied, it would, pro-
vided it remained air-tight, stand a good chance of burst-
ing during the summer heat, which would expand the air
in the jar, and the pressure on the eggs would be so great
that a quantity of air would be forced on the fluid through
the pores of the shell. Were it possible to preserve the
eggs immediately on being laid at the temperature of
blood-heat, and during the hottest summer days, the jars
would not require rarefying ; but as such conditions are
almost impossible to command, as the eggs must unavoid-
ably on cooling absorb a certain amount of air, and as
the atmosphere might become still warmer than on the

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. ^3

day of filling the jars, it becomes necessary to rarefy the
air in the jars even in summer, although not to such a
degree as during cold weather. The air in the jar being
thus rarefied, its permeation through the shell will not
only be prevented, but the excess of air in the egg will
actually be withdrawn until the equilibrium is reestab-
lished.

3. Are the eggs not affected by the heat whilst being
packed?

Although the jars are placed in boiling water, the in-
ternal temperature never exceeds blood-heat, and as eggs
are not affected by that temperature, which is the same
as that at which they come from the hen, it becomes
only necessary to avoid packing the eggs against the jars
without a lining of cocoa-nut refuse, which ought to be
perfectly dry, and used warm for packing.

4. HOTM can you tell when ajar is air-tight?

To ascertain whether a jar is air-tight when empty is
easy enough ; it is merely necessary to fill the jar with
boiling water, and when thoroughly warm to empty out
the water, then close the jar quickly with the air-tight
cover, and place it inverted in a tub of cold water. The
air in the jar thus rarefied will be condensed by the cold
water. If not perfectly air-tight, some water will find its
way into the jar, which can be ascertained by opening the
latter a few hours afterwards. This test, however simple,
cannot be applied to filled jars, as it would be necessary
to open the jars again. Now, this very same question I
put to several pickling firms, and obtained the unsatis-
factory reply that they consider when jars are air-tight
when empty they will be equally so when filled. This,

74 POULTRY BREEDING IN

however, cannot be depended on, as the cover may fit in
one place and not in another, or it may not be screwed
down so much at one time as another.

5. Can you at any period ascertain 'whether the jars
continue air-tight?

6. Which are the best air-tight jars, glass or stone
iv are?

These two questions I will endeavor to answer under
one head ; and to prevent my being considered to advo-
cate one principle more than another from an interested
motive, I must inform my correspondents that to most
scientific men and poultry-breeders it is well known that
egg preserving has formed the study of some of the most
eminent chemists in Europe, and that until I published,
through The Journal of Horticulture, my simple and
yet the only truly effective mode of preserving eggs for
any length of time, no satisfactory means had been dis-
covered. The intense interest this discovery has created
throughout England has induced me to ascertain which
of the professed air-tight jars are really so, in order that
the public may not lose their confidence in so important a
discovery on account of the jars not being to be depended
on. Through the kindness of an eminent firm in the
pickling trade, I have been enabled to make experiments
with the various so-called air-tight jars, few of which
really were so, and all without exception objectionable
on account of their construction. Then there came
another important consideration : how can it be ascer-
tained, when the jars are filled, whether they are air-tight,
and how long they will remain so ? This, of course, was
a perfect imoossibility with the jars as at present manu-
factured.

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW.

75

These important deficiencies in air-tight jars for pre-
serving eggs have led me to invent a jar purposely for
egg preserving, and which jar is not only perfectly air-
tight, but it will show at a glance whether it is so, and
how long it remains so, by means of its patent pneumatic
self-indicating cap. I have every reason to believe that
these jars will remain air-tight for any number of years,
and that the eggs preserved in them will remain as fresh
as on the day they were laid, and fit for hatching and the
breakfast table. Now, although such jars can also be
made of glass, which would have the advantage of show-
ing the eggs, yet when it is considered that glass is liable
to crack when put into boiling water, particularly during
cold weather, it is my opinion that glazed stone ware is
preferable.

PATENT PNEUMATIC SELF-INDICATING AIR-TIGHT JARS.

Fig. 26.

From the above sketch it will be seen that the jar has
two covers ; the inner is made of stone ware, with a ridge

76 POULTRY BREEDING IN

parallel to the neck of the jar, between which plaster of
Paris or cement is poured, which soon gets hard and
secures the lid, which prevents the eggs being jolted
during transit ; the hole in this cover is to maintain the
equilibrium of the air between the two covers and the
interior of the jar. The outer cover is formed of the best
India-rubber, with a strong ring of the same material,
which fits in a groove. The mouth of the jar is four
inches in diameter, which allows of quick packing.

PACKING THE EGGS.

Place the jars in boiling water for about ten minutes ;
then plait a layer of well-dried and warm cocoa-nut
refuse on the bottom, and pack the eggs, taking care not
to let them come in contact with the sides of the jar ; as
soon as the jar is filled, put on the inner cover, and pour
some cement or plaster of Paris between the ridge and
sides of the jar, then draw an India'-rubber cap over the
mouth of the jar, after which it should be immediately
withdrawn from the hot water and immersed in cold
water, which will condense the rarefied air in the jar,
when it will be found that the difference of the atmospheric
pressure is at least ten pounds to the square inch, which
forces the India-rubber down to the inner cover ; and as
long as it remains so it will be a sure index that the jar
remains perfectly air-tight. The inner temperature of
the jar, although placed in boiling water, will be found
not to exceed blood-heat, which being the same at which
the eggs come from the hen, they cannot be affected.

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 77

WHY EGGS SHOULD BE PACKED WITH THE SMALL
END UPWARDS.

This advice is so opposed to all published directions on
the subject, that I feel bound to give my reason for it.
Most persons will have observed that when an egg is
boiled a vacuum is observed at the round end, which is
more or less extensive according to the age of the egg ;
now, this is on that part of the egg where the shell is
most porous, and where the air is admitted most freely.
This air chamber is of the utmost importance to the
chicken whilst hatching, as it serves to equalize the
supply of the necessary air under the variations of the
outer temperature ; and it will be found that the chamber
gets enlarged as the hatching proceeds ; therefore, when
eggs are packed with the small end upwards, the liquid
presses on the most porous part of the shell ; conse-
quently, for the air to penetrate the egg, it would have
to lift the weight of the fluid.

WARMING POULTRY HOMES.

On this subject I have had many inquiries. I will
therefore endeavor to give my reasons why I prefer hot-
water pipes fixed immediately under the roosting-perches.
Where stoves or open fireplaces are used, the heat is con-
centrated ; therefore the cold air rushes from all parts to
that particular spot, which cold draughts are most inju-
rious to the health of not only poultry but all animal life ;
in fact, these cold draughts are the cause of most diseases

78 POULTRY BREEDING IN

in England, where persons sit before an open fireplace,
and right in the current of the cold air. Consumption,
and colds of all description, could be considerably averted
by a different mode of warming our houses ; but, though
the hot-water system is not applicable to our private
dwellings, it is eminently so for a poultry-house. The
heat from the pipes is equally radiated from all parts of
the building, and the pipes being immediately under the
roosting-perches, it will not require the maintenance of
so high a temperature as when the pipes are near the
floor, where not so much warmth is required, as it is
well known that whilst the body is in motion the natural
heat is sufficient to keep us warm, but that as soon as
the body is at rest or asleep, the circulation of the blood
becomes less active ; consequently it cools sooner, as is
evidenced by the fact that the clothes that keep us warm
in action are not sufficient to protect us from cold during
sleep. There is another consideration why I prefer the
pipes under the roosting-perches : it is because, being
placed at mid-height of the roosting-room, they are
between the heavy and light gases which are necessarily
generated in all places where animal life is congregated.

OUR SYSTEM OF SELLING POULTRY.

This subject is of such vast national importance that it
deserves the most serious consideration of all who take
an interest in our national welfare ; it is not only on
account of the immense sums we annually pay to for-
eigners, but also on account of the enormous destruc-
tion of poultry, which, under a different system of sale,

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 79

would become available for the people at a price to com-
pete with butchers' meat.

There is no country under the sun where obsolete
customs or protective prices have been so successfully
replaced as in England, and this against the most omi-
nous prognostications. Need I enumerate the long list of
articles, from the postage-stamp to tea?

Up to this very day we are informed that the supply is
always equal to the demand, even in poultry. Has it not
always been so since the beginning of the world? But
this is not the question. What is the result of our free-
trade principles, our improved machinery, our improved
agriculture? Why, a hundred-fold consumption of these
very articles which were then, as now, said to be sup-
plied according to demand ; a participation in the com-
forts of this life by the poorer classes ; a steadier and
more remunerative employment both of capital and labor.
True, but there are no protective duties on poultry ; it is
simply a question of price between dealer and customer.
By appearance this looks fair enough, and the manner
of sale is so old and deeply-rooted that it is accepted both
by breeder and the public as a perfectly fair way of deal-
ing ; yet who would ever purchase a leg of mutton, or
a surloin of beef, at so much apiece? Why, the very
poulterer who feels insulted if any person asks him what
the fowl weighs would no more think-of buying a joint by
guess than he would of selling a fowl by weight.

Next you will be told that poultry must always remain
a choice morsel for the upper classes only, as the poor
will never be able to afford the price ; that the production
is, after all, limited, and that the climate of England is

8o POULTRY BREEDING IN

not suitable to cheap poultry breeding. Now, these asser-
tions are based on mere narrow-minded prejudices ; there
is no climate in the world more favorable to animal life
than that of England, as is proved by our statistics ; the
very dampness of our climate prevents those extremes of
cold and heat from which more southerly countries suffer ;
and nowhere can fowls be produced to compete with ours
in size and flesh ; and all travellers will agree with me that
large-sized fowls can only be found in damp regions,
while those of dry and hot soils, such as Egypt, are com-
paratively small. As regards a limited production, I
have shown in my treatise on " Poultry-keeping from a
Commercial Point of View " that fifty thousand fowls can
be reared per annum on four acres of land, and at highly
remunerative prices, and much below that of butchers'
meat. Poulterers will, moreover, maintain that poultry
is exceptional ; that it cannot possibly be sold by weight ;
that the price must necessarily depend on age, breed,
quality, and feeding, and cannot be classed. Believe it
not. Have we not beef, mutton, pork, &c., from four-
pence to a shilling per pound, according to quality ? Is
not every produce now sold, according to its intrinsic
value, by weight or measure ? And why should poultry
form the exception? I am very much mistaken if the
public will not be able to purchase chickens at the price
of Ostend rabbits within two years. Let the public once
see tickets in shop windows, prime chickens at sixpence
per pound, or at any other price, according to quality,
and you will find the commendable wish of Henry IV. of
France realized, that every family shall be able to have a
fowl for their Sunday dinner. Why, it will create such

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 8 1

a revolution in the national production and consumption
of poultry as the world never witnessed before. People
would then begin to understand and appreciate the value
of poultry, which, up to this day, is kept either merely as
a matter of fancy or a necessary adjunct to a farm-yard,
but whose productiveness is disputed by many.

What is the result of our present system of selling
poultry? Why, that tons of poultry are annually de-
stroyed because sufficient customers cannot be found to
pay the fancy prices. This system is neither fair to the
breeder, the dealer, or the public. The first consign a
quantity of poultry to a salesman, and obtain but a poor
return ; the second's percentage is naturally in keeping
with a limited sale, and the public are obliged to pay
fancy prices, or forego an article of food which ought to
be within the reach of even the mechanic. As the first
commercial nation in the world, we ought not to purchase
food in foreign markets when we can produce it at home.
At the present time poultry is collected from all parts of
the country by higglers, who consign it to a salesman,
from whom the poulterers purchase at so much a head :
sometimes the demand is good, and fair sales are effected ;
other times the supply is too great ; then the poultry past
keeping is sold at a nominal price to costermongers
(rather than have it condemned by the market inspector),
who, in the garb of countrymen, hawk it about the
suburbs of London in a state unfit for human food.

By the immense importation of eggs and rabbits,
foreigners have shown us how to proceed to alter our
system of selling poultry. When they found that poulter-
ers would not agree to their terms, they made arrange-
6

82 POULTRY BREEDING IN

merits with cheesemongers, dairies, chandler-shops, and
others, and the result is, that in season the people can now
purchase twenty-four eggs for a shilling, rabbits at six-
pence per pound.

If, therefore, it pays the foreigners to collect these arti-
cles of food abroad, to pay carriage, freight, agency dues,
and all other expenses connected with such vast importa-
tions, does it not seem passing strange that we, as a
nation, do not even try to see what we can do for our-
selves?

Now, what I propose is this : that when once a poultry-
breeding company is formed, that the directors should
invite cooperation from poultry-breeders in general, and
establish an agency in all the principal towns for supply-
ing poultry to such shopkeepers only who will undertake
to sell it by weight ; this will now be of no great diffi-
culty, as those who sell rabbits would at once undertake
the sale of poultry.

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 83

EXTRACTS

FROM THE "JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND
COTTAGE GARDENER."

HOME SUPPLY OF POULTRY AND EGGS.

How long does it take for a question to go through all
its phases, to settle down as a recognized fact before the
public, with the certainty that it will only be disturbed now
and then, at stated periods, to be ventilated according to
some, or to have the accumulated dust of years rubbed off
according to others ? Fourteen years ago, the public one
day recognized the fact, that poultry was a pursuit, that it
was deserving of encouragement, and then some thought
it was a mania. The pursuit of the trade of a " poulter "
ie not one of yesterday. Its Guild or Company ranks
among the ancient ones of the city of London. It has in
its day lent money to the Sovereign of the United King-
dom. It still exists, and has its chartered rights ; and its
bequests and benefactions go back to the sixteenth cen-
tury. It seems now as if its claim to a share in providing
food for the vast populations in the metropolis and large
towns were about to be properly considered. We are no
longer self-supporting in the way of food. Many of us
can recollect in one of the old Anti-Gallican songs it was

said, —

They want to get our flesh and blood,

Our beef and beer.

84 POULTRY BREEDING IN

Things are altered — we get a good quantity of theirs ;
and half the continent is laid under contribution to supply
our carnivorous propensities. Good sound men of figures
prove that the supply of food decreases ; others point to
an increasing population, and the increasing price of
meat. The leading journal of the world but lately called
attention to the figures of our imports in the way of food,
and was obliged to pause at one item. " A million of
eggs imported for every working day in the year ; "
turkeys by thousands ; rabbits by the ton. These are
helps to the food necessary to feed the metropolitan mil-
lions ; but the question naturally suggests itself, Do we do
all in our power to provide more of these things at home ?

The egg trade with Scotland is becoming a very large
one. We import eggs from France, Holland, Belgium,
Switzerland, and part of Italy. Cannot we do something
towards providing ourselves with these valuable luxuries,
and thereby not only increase the number, but probably
decrease the price of them ? We have in our favor, and,
consequently, to our profit, all the expense of foreign
agents, of travelling, freight, carriage, and dues. With
eggs produced at home, nearly all this would be avoided.
If those who can keep poultry will not keep them, then
those who have the inclination without the convenience
must endeavor by association to find out the means of
carrying out their theories and ideas on the subject.

We believe we are correct in stating that plans are
now afoot which will, in all probability, result in calling
public attention to the subject, and in giving the question
a fair trial on a large scale.

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 85

POULTRY AND EGG-PRESERVING COMPANY.

Whatever differences of opinion may exist as to whether
poultry can be kept profitably in England from a strictly
commercial point of view or not, it is certain that this
subject will never be satisfactorily decided by any amount
of mere theoretical assertions pro or con ; nor will the
problem ever be solved in a national point of view by the
success of one or more private persons, whose balance-
sheet would be discredited by many sceptics, as we have
had ample evidence, in improved farming, the results of
which were published year after year by Mr. Mechi and
other pioneers. Moreover, to render poultry breeding
profitable in England, it must be evident to most persons
that the system cannot be carried on as it is now ; also
that the trial must be made on a somewhat extensive
scale to allow of growing or purchasing food at a cheap
rate, and of a subdivision of labor, and last, but not least,
for establishing a profitable outlet for the produce. Now,
there are many undertakings which cannot well be tested
on a small scale in order to prove what the result would
be on a large one, and we believe that poultry breeding
in England is one of them.

It is too much to expect that any private gentleman
would run the risk of an outlay of some thousands of
pounds to ascertain the value of a new plan of breeding
poultry in order to benefit the nation ; but as the subject
is really one of national importance, it is highly desirable
that it should command a fair trial. This can be best
accomplished by a public company, whose accounts would

86 POULTRY BREEDING IN

be audited by independent accountants, and the statistics
of which would be reliable, and, consequently, valuable
to the country at large.

In a former number it was stated that plans were afoot
which would, in all probability, result in calling public
attention to the subject, and in giving the question a fair
trial on a large scale. Since then the preliminary pros-
pectus and the plans have been issued.

Mr. Geyelin has evidently the utmost confidence in the
success of the undertaking, as he has taken on himself the
trouble and expense of bringing this subject fairly before
the public ; and he gives the free use of his inventions to
the Company, not for a cash consideration, but for shares
the value of which must entirely depend on the profitable
result of his system of poultry keeping.

A Company of this description requires only half a
dozen gentlemen earnest in their efforts to carry out the
proposed system. On our part we shall watch the result
of this long-vexed question, Can poultry be bred profit-
ably in England? with great interest, for if successful,
poultry will be sold, as it ought to be, by weight, like
other articles of food.

HOME SUPPLY OF EGGS AND POULTRY.

Is there any valid reason why England should not sup-
ply her own wants in the shape of eggs, poultry, and
rabbits ? I dare say the money we pay foreign countries
for these necessaries, does not fall far, if at all, short of
five hundred thousand pounds annually. Can they not
be produced as cheaply, abundantly, and profitably at

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 87

home as in France and Belgium? Is it not time that
some efforts should be made to solve this problem? I
am aware much has been done for the last few years to
improve the breeds of our poultry, but I have never heard
of the production of eggs and poultry having been at-
tempted in a large way, as a matter of trade or business,
though I have often been told that to make this stock pay
they should be kept in such numbers as to employ the
whole time and attention of working people. M. de
Lavergne estimated the value of poultry in France at
eight million pounds, while that in England was no more
than eight hundred thousand pounds.

As a national branch of rural economy, we know
nothing in England of the breeding and management of
poultry : hence practical men never think of embarking in
a pursuit which is found so profitable in other countries.

We sadly want sound, reliable, practical information
on this subject, and if through your columns some of
your correspondents will endeavor to ventilate this ques-
tion, much public good may be the result.

If one acre of average land were cropped with the
grain, pulse, and roots, most suitable for feeding poultry,
how many heads should it maintain for one year?
Again : What might be a fair moderate profit to expect
per thousand in keeping poultry thus on a large scale,
assuming suitable houses, warmth, care, and ventilation
for such stock?

I have heard and read much on the subject of artificial
incubation, and I knew a lady who produced all her own
poultry by a most ingenious incubator of her own inven-
tion ; but I never could ascertain how far the system could

88 POULTRY BREEDING IN

be relied on in a commercial point of view, which is the
practical test of its merit. If undoubtedly a success, then
I can see no limits to the profitable production of poultry
in England. Turkeys and geese of the largest breeds
are now worth very nearly as much as a fat sheep of the
smallest breeds, and it is passing strange that you must
give two pence for a " new-laid egg," when you may buy
a quarter of wheat for thirty-two shillings. High author-
ities tell us it does not pay to feed oxen, and farmers now
say they are selling grain at prices for which it can hardly
be grown ; so I am induced to ask if the experiment of a
regular and well-managed poultry farm would be likely
to succeed ; for if so I should be very well inclined to try
if England cannot produce eggs and fowls as cheaply as
France ; and, further, if the air of our own happy land is
not fully as congenial as that of Belgium to an — OSTEND
RABBIT.

POULTRY KEEPING FROM A COMMERCIAL POINT OF
VIEW.

It is for Englishmen to determine whether England is
capable of profitably supplying eggs and poultry for her
own consumption ; but I am painfully surprised to notice
how very few seem to take an interest in the subject,
which you have been pleased to bring before your numer-
ous readers with laudable zeal and perseverance. When
I had the honor of addressing you in No. 204, I was in
total ignorance of the highly interesting discussion raised
by Mr. Geyelin, whose ability and industry entitle him to
public sympathy and support, at least to the extent of

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 89

fairly trying if it be commercially possible for England to
feed her own people. He goes very fully into figures to
show this may be profitably done. Some few, and I re-
gret to say but very few, of your numerous correspondents
seem to notice his remarks, though none can doubt their
importance. This is not very creditable to the poultry
amateurs of England, who are ever ready to discuss most
zealously and learnedly about the breeds of fowls, or the
proper colors of cocks' legs and tails, but who seem to ig-
nore such practical dry business details as the produce of
hens and the cost of feeding them.

These are mere questions of detail, and resolve them-
selves into a matter of pounds, shillings, and pence ; but
the success of Mr. Geyelin' s project depends entirely on
the amount and cost of production and the market value
of the produce.

It is not for me to interfere between Mr. Geyelin and
" C. S. J. ; ;' so I leave them to settle as they can, for it is
evident both mean well, though differing considerably in
their views. I must, however, notice two correspondents
in No. 206, one " An Old Subscriber," on the wholesale
price of eggs, the other " Barndoor," on poultry food and
annual egg produce. Both are apparently adverse to
Mr. Geyelin's figures, but in point of fact neither seems
to affect him in any way. His scheme only refers to
London prices, and to the productive powers of hens fed
and lodged, so as to stimulate the utmost powers of pro-
duction. It is but fair to Mr. Geyelin and the public to
use the utmost candor and sincerity, so as to put the case
fairly.* He fixes the produce of hens fed on his plan
at one hundred and eighty, while "Barndoor" writes,

90 POULTRY BREEDING IN

" Cochins, Bramahs, &c., should lay one hundred and
twenty eggs in a year." True, but how many more may
be reasonably expected? Does "Barndoor" give this as
the actual result of his own experience? If so, will he
say how the hens were treated, their ages, &c. ? I admit
the mere opinion of one man, or even his practical ex-
perience, can carry but very little weight; I can, how-
ever, quote some well-known authorities which fully
sustain Mr. Geyelin's calculations about the produce of
hens, while but one goes so low as one hundred and
twenty, the figure of " Barndoor," for the best known
egg-producing breeds. Cobbett says eleven hens should
give two thousand eggs and one hundred chickens, if
well fed, in one year, and allows eighteen bushels of
barley to feed them with one cock. Richardson relates
that three Polish pullets laid five hundred and twenty-four
eggs, cost sixteen shillings and six pence. Baxter records
that four hens laid seven hundred and ten eggs one year,
at a cost of one pound two shillings and a penny half-
penny, and five hundred and ninety-four the next year, at
fifteen shillings and nine pence halfpenny.

In the work called " Farming for Ladies," we read,
" Hens lay nearly all the year round, except when moult-
ing and in the depth of winter ; but generally speaking at
least ten to twelve or fourteen dozen eggs a year may be
counted on." I dare say the experience of most of your
readers will differ quite as much as that of those writers,
so much depends on the peculiar circumstances of each
case. In my opinion a fair average can be taken only by
the actual results obtained by a large number of the most
careful breeders, who keep their poultry in the best and

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 9!

cheapest way. I am in candor bound to add, that in
"Chambers' Information for the People" it is broadly
laid down that no hens will pay for their food if it is all
purchased.

This question is strictly a national one, for it is most
important to ascertain by actual experiment if eggs and
poultry may be produced by ourselves as cheaply as by
various nations immeasurably behind us in everything
relating to agriculture. If Mr. Geyelin can succeed in
teaching Englishmen that this may be done, then few
will deny his claim to be fairly considered a national
benefactor. At present his task is not an easy one. As
it is really the duty of every well-wisher of his country to
aid this noble effort by every practical means, so your
experienced readers should each contribute, as far as he
can, to simplify this question by clearing up the doubts
and difficulties that surround it. Men are naturally timid
and shy of embarking their money in any novel experi-
ment of which they have but very scanty knowledge ; and
which of us can say that he has any knowledge of thus
producing eggs and poultry commercially in England?
For the present I shall say nothing about the little animal
which is well known to be a decided commercial success
in Belgium, where many are largely engaged in breeding,
feeding, and exporting to hungry, wealthy England the —
OSTEND RABBIT.

POULTRY AND EGG COMPANY.

By nature I am a timid and cautious man, and dread
to see my opinion appear in print; I feel, however, I

t

92 POULTRY BREEDING IN

must make an exception in favor of Mr. Geyelin, whose
interesting articles on poultry-breeding, published in your
valuable journal, I have read with much pleasure and ad-
vantage. For some years past I had an idea of breeding
poultry on a large scale, but the dread of becoming the
laughing-stock of my neighbors in case of failure has
hitherto deterred me from doing so. When I saw the
advertisement in your journal for the formation of a
Poultry-breeding and Egg-preserving Company, I deter-
mined to come up to London and see Mr. Geyelin, with
a view to elicit full particulars, as I consider that such a
company would, if formed, supply me at a trifling risk
with such practical information as I could not expect from
personal experience at a much greater outlay.

Mr. Geyelin has very kindly explained to me his plans,
his mode of keeping accounts, and feeding. In fact, he
has given me such ample and satisfactory explanations
that I feel in justice bound to say that if ever a plan
appeared to me feasible it is that of Mr. Geyelin. The
solution of the problem whether poultry can be bred as
profitably in England as on the Continent is of national
importance; it behooves, therefore, all persons who take
an interest in poultry breeding to contribute to some ex-
tent towards the expense of making the experiments. I,
for one, subscribe for ten shares of five pounds each ; and
let the result prove even a failure, I shall still consider it
a good investment, as it will have been the means of ob-
taining at least some valuable information ; but should it,
on the other hand, prove a success, it will confer a great
benefit on the country. There are opportunities in life
which, if allowed to pass, may never present themselves

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 93

again under such favorable circumstances. At the pres-
ent moment there is a gentleman, not only willing, but
able, to make the experiment on scientific principles, and
whose statistics, if kept according to the plan I have seen,
will be so precise as to become most valuable to every
poultry breeder. If we lose this opportunity, shall we
ever have the like again?

Shall it be said that Englishmen are so little enterpris-
ing that we prefer to purchase in foreign markets rather
than ascertain at a trifling individual expense whether we
cannot supply our own wants in the shape of eggs, poul-
try, and rabbits ? — A SUSSEX FARMER.

POULTRY KEEPING FROM A COMMERCIAL POINT OF
VIEW.

" Nemo," the defender of " C. S. J.," has my best
thanks for his kindly lecture as to what is required to
establish the success of anything nowadays. I do not
find fault with his opinion as regards the profits poultry
breeding will yield, and in the absence of any actual
statistics of my system on a large scale, I can only reiter-
ate what I stated in my reply to " C. S. J." There are,
however, a few assertions with which I beg to differ, even
with " Nemo."

i st. Were it not for sanguine minds, few improvements
would ever be carried out ; and were even the minimum
profits given, there would still be found many persons who
would, with just as good reasoning, reduce it below zero.

3d. The artificial hatching can be entirely dispensed
with in my system, as for every one thousand hens, I can

94 POULTRY BREEDING IN

rear at least ten thousand chickens ; and under any cir-
cumstances it will only be resorted to to hatch chickens
when hens have ceased to be broody. As to whether my
system of artificial hatching is superior to that of Cantelo
or any other, I may state that I do not claim any original-
ity, but rest the success only on the well-known law of
a uniform temperature, at which there is not the slightest
difficulty to hatch chickens ; and this uniform heat can be
maintained either by manual or mechanical means, which
are well known to engineers, and which will be described
in some subsequent number of this journal, under the
laws of nature in relation to poultry keeping. The fail-
ure of Cantelo and others cannot be ascribed to the hatch-
ing, but solely to the rearing of the chickens. Now, this
is my system, and on it I rest the success of poultry
breeding ; and though I do not intend to rely on artificial
hatching, yet I shall entirely depend on artificially rearing
all the chickens, whether hatched by a hen or by an ap-
paratus.

3d. My system of breeding poultry, and its profits, can
no more be judged by the present mode than railway
travelling, when first projected, could from the old stage-
coaches. For its success it will require a staff of servants,
and a subdivision of labor, then a good disciplinarian as
superintendent ; and the whole will form a piece of mech-
anism which will work with the greatest precision, and
afford such statistics as will surprise sceptics. To carry
this out is a mere matter of money and will, whether by
a private individual or a public company ; but the idea
of an association of working partners to attend to fowls is

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 95

simply ridiculous, and I doubt whether, if they could be
found, they would long remain a united family.

4th. If "Nemo" will take the trouble to read the arti-
cle on natural hatching, No. 198, he will find that I advo-
cate natural hatching and artificial rearing. Has it ever
occurred to him, in estimating the annual profit of a hen,
to charge to her credit the hatching of one or two broods ?
which surely is more valuable than the number of eggs
she could lay in twenty-one days.

96 POULTRY BREEDING IN

REPORT OF MR. GEYELIN,
MAY 17, 1865.

GENTLEMEN :

The nation will owe you a debt of gratitude for having
by your discriminating confidence in my plan proved
yourselves the pioneers to an increase of our national
wealth and comfort.

The section of the intended building you have inspected
to-day must have convinced you that, whilst constructed
on the most economical plan, it yet combines all necessary
requirements for the health and comfort of poultry, and
the saving of labor.

We are not about to carry out any new invention in
poultry breeding, but merely a wise combination of well-
established facts ; individually the facts are well known,
but a combination of them applied to poultry breeding
has hitherto escaped the notice of rural economists. For
instance, it is well known, —

That earth is the best and cheapest deodorizer.

That poultry manure is a first-rate fertilizer.

That in moderation the gases generated by vegetables
are beneficial to animal life, and vice versa.

That poultry require vegetables, and vegetables manure.

That poultry cannot thrive on a manure-tainted ground,
which consequently requires frequent renewing.

That the earth requires manuring after each crop.

lf

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 97

V

Now, when the above well-known facts are considered
in connection with poultry breeding, it must become evi-
dent to the most superficial observer that to render it a
commercial success, we must follow more closely the great
teachings of Nature : in truth, the animal and vegetable
kingdoms are so closely allied, and so dependent the one
on the other, that to treat each as a distinct undertaking
must necessarily increase the expense of production, and
consequently decrease the profit.

I will now briefly review poultry breeding and vegeta-
ble growing as separate undertakings, in a commercial
point of view, in order to show that in sound rural econ-
omy the two ought to be combined, both for sanitary and
economical purposes.

POULTRY BREEDING.

In any establishment where large numbers of poultry
are kept, the ground must often be renewed to prevent it
getting tainted ; this requires labor and materials. Now,
there is only one material which combines all the require-
ments for the floor of a poultry home, and with which
Providence has supplied us bountifully, namely, earth.
It is composed of all the necessary materials to the an-
imal economy of the poultry ; it is of a deodorizing
nature ; and, when tainted with the manure, becomes
a valuable fertilizer ; but even earth can absorb but a
moderate amount of decaying matters without losing its
valuable properties; and, in this again, Nature teaches
us that what is beneficial in moderation becomes injurious
in excess. Then comes the question of a cheap supply
7

9 POULTRY BREEDING IN

of earth, and of the disposal of the tainted without caus-
ing a nuisance by its accumulation. In this, also, Nature
comes to our assistance : we know that by growing vege-
tables in manure-tainted land they absorb and feed on the
noxious gases, and give out in return oxygen gas, so es-
sential to the health of animal life. Thousands of tons
of manure, decaying vegetable and animal matters, are
annually buried in the earth ; and yet how sweet the air
of the fields ! Therefore, if by growing vegetables we can
convert an expensive and objectionable material into a
beneficial and profitable one, should we not be to blame
were we not to take advantage of what we are offered by
Nature ? Next comes the land necessary for the poultry
homes. In a sanitary point of view, these buildings ought
to stand at least fifty feet apart, to allow for an efficient
supply of fresh air, light, and sun ; ought we to lose the
advantage of rendering profitable land so conveniently
situated, when three fourths of the poultry food should
consist of green vegetables? The poultry homes must
also be heated by hot-water pipes in winter ; and why
should we not render them serviceable in summer for
irrigating or watering the land between the buildings?
Lastly, why should the laborers of the poultry estab-
lishment not be profitably employed in their leisure time
in attending on the adjacent land ?

VEGETABLE GROWING OR MARKET GARDENING,

I believe, is generally admitted to be highly profitable,
and that a quick succession of crops can only be obtained
from a plentiful supply of rich manure.

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 99

A market gardener is obliged to 'purchase his manure,
to pay labor, rent, and taxes ; he has no valuable use for
his waste or weeds ; the worms and slugs are destructive
to his crops, and in dry weather he is either obliged to
incur great expenses for watering, or sustain the destruc-
tion of his plants.

POULTRY BREEDING AND VEGETABLE GROWING.

Poultry breeding and vegetable growing ought, there-
fore, to be carried on conjointly, as the waste, weeds,
inferior vegetables, worms, and slugs are valuable food
for poultry ; and the profit derived from choice vegetables
ought to pay for the poultry's keep ; under any circum-
stances this plan cannot be considered mere theory, as it
must be obvious that where both branches are profitable
separately, they must be still more so carried on conjointly
and contiguously

ESTIMATE OF REVENUE AND EXPENSES

For the Tear beginning July I, 1865, and ending
Jzme i, 1866.

EXPENSES.

£ s. d.
Cost of Buildings * 500 o o

Cost of Plant and Materials . . . . . 300 o o
Cost of Stock as per annexed Details . . . . 125 o o
Food and Working Expenses . . . . . 889 10 o

Total . ... . . . . . £1,814 10 o

* As at present projected, the building will be three hundred
feet long, and contain fifty homes for fowls, and fifty for chickens ;
every home will consist of two rooms, one open and one closed,
each twelve feet long and three feet wide.

IOO

POULTRY BREEDING IN

REVENUE.

£
Value of Buildings 500

Value of Plant and Materials 300

Value of Old Stock 125

Value of Young Stock . 2,500

s. d.
o o

From Eggs

Deduct Expenses
Leaving a Net Profit of

. 416 13 4

£3,841 13 4
. 1,814 10 o

£2,027 3 4

PROPOSED STOCK.

LAYING STOCK.
Cocks. Hens.

— 400 Common Fowls, at 35. each

BREEDING STOCK.

I

6

Creve Coeur

I

6

La Fleche

i

6

Houdan

I

3

Dorkings, gray

I

3

" partridge

I

3

Cochins, buff

I

3

" partridge

I

3

Bramahs, light

I

3

dark

I

3

Spanish, black

I

3

Hamburghs, golden

I

3

" silver

I

3

Poland, black

I

3

" golden

Which will produce
about 6120 Eggs for
hatching, taken at
an average of 120
Eggs for each Hen
per annum, and al-
lowing 1 1 20 Eggs
for casualties, will
give 5000 Chickens.

60 o o

14 51 = 65 Birds, at 205. each
Total Cost of Stock ,

65 o o
£125 o o

A COMMERCIAL POINT1 CftP V?EW. JjJ '*''>'' ttHjJ

As the Company's object is to sell eggs as well as rear
poultry, the proportion of the above laying stock to the
breeding stock will be found the most economical. Tak-
ing the average of eggs from a hen to be one hundred and
twenty per annum, this gives about fifty thousand eggs
from the laying stock, besides hatching about five thou-
sand eggs from the breeding stock, allowing even only one
sitting per annum to each hen ; and as chickens begin to
lay at six months old, and making a fair allowance for
male birds, we may anticipate fifty thousand eggs from
them within the next twelve months.

WORKING.

EXPENSES.

£ s. d.
Keep of 465 Old Birds, at 65. per head . . . 139 10 o

Keep of 5,000 Chickens till twelve months old, at 35.

per head 75° ° o

889 10 o
REVENUE.

100,000 Eggs, at id. each 416 13 4

5,000 Chickens, at IDS. each 2,500 o o

2,916 13 4
Deduct above Expenses . . . . . 889 10 o

Leaving a Net Profit of .... £2,027 10 o

Thus taking the cost price of the parent birds at twenty
shillings each, and the young ones only at ten shillings
each, we obtain in the first year a most valuable stock,
part of which we can dispose of, as well as the stock of
common fowls.

BREEDING IN

In the foregoing I have made no allusion to artificial
hatching, which can be entirely dispensed with in an
establishment where the object is not to rear poultry
only, but also to produce eggs for the market ; and you
will perceive that the commercial success does not depend
on artificial hatching, but on a judicious system of housing,
feeding, and rearing poultry ; yet we shall avail ourselves
of artificial hatching at a period of the year when it is
highly profitable to hatch chickens, and at a time when
hens are not^ broody ; but even at the most inclement
season I anticipate that we shall have a great number
of broody hens, on account of the genial temperature we
shall be able to maintain in the building.

As regards the provisions made to rear chickens with
less casualties than by the present system, I doubt not
that they will prove as satisfactory as they are eco-
nomical.

I remain, Gentlemen,

Your obedient Servant,

GEO. K. GEYELIN.

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 103

REPORT OF MR. GEYELIN

, ON

THE POULTRY ESTABLISHMENTS IN FRANCE.

JULY 10, 1865.

GENTLEMEN :

Having at your request undertaken a journey to
France with a view to promote the interest of our
Company, I now beg to lay before you my observa-
tions on the subject, and which for more conciseness
I have arranged under the following headings: —

1. The Object of the Voyage.

2. Natural and Artificial Incubation.

3. Rearing Poultry in France.

4. Fattening and Feeding.

5. Killing and Dressing.

6. Utilizing the Waste Products.

7. The System of Selling.

8. The Distinct Breeds.

9. Caponage and Virgin Gocks.

10. Opinions on my System of Poultry Breeding and

Rural Economy.

11. Analysis of my Observations.

IO4 POULTRY BREEDING IN

i. THE OBJECT OF THE VOYAGE.

The primary object of the voyage was to ascertain
everything connected with poultry breeding in France,
which might assist in promoting the success of our
undertaking ; also to inquire into the truth of numerous
assertions in the public papers, that there existed in the
vicinity of Paris most extensive Gallinocultural estab-
lishments, which by their particular system of artificial
incubation, rearing, and feeding poultry on horseflesh,
realized in one instance, viz., in that of M. de Soras,
upwards of £40,000 per annum. I need scarcely say
that, after the most searching investigation within a
radius of forty miles of Paris, my opinion has been
fully confirmed that such establishments do not nor
can possibly exist; moreover, I can now firmly assert
that there is not one establishment in existence within
fifty miles of Paris where poultry breeding is carried
on otherwise than on the old farm system ; in fact, as
you will perceive hereafter, I have spared neither time
nor expense in this inquiry : yet, although I have been
unable to trace anything like a system in poultry breed-
ing in France at all approaching to that we are about
to carry out, it cannot be denied that I have obtained
very valuable information, which will, no doubt, prove
of great advantage to our Company : moreover, I ob-
served such startling novelties connected with poultry
breeding in France, that I deemed it to the interest of
our society that at least two of the directors should
come there also to enable them to corroborate this

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 1 05

report, which otherwise might have borne the appear-
ance of exaggeration in many respects, and perhaps
have still left a doubt in the mind of many persons
whether I really made all possible inquiries into the
truth of the reported existence of Gallinocultural estab-
lishments in France.

I will now briefly relate the steps I have taken to
inquire into this matter. At the Jardin des Plantes of
Paris, which corresponds to our Zoological Society in
Regent's Park, also at the Acclimatation Society in the
Bois de Boulogne, where the various breeds of poultry
form an important object, the existence of any such
Gallinocultural establishments in France was totally un-
known ; and they observed very justly that if any such
really were to exist, they would be the first to know
of it. Next I called three consecutive market days at
the wholesale poultry market, La Vallee, Paris, where
all the poultry, dead or alive, forwarded from the vari-
ous parts of France, is sold by auction from five till
nine o'clock in the morning. Several agents and poul-
terers made inquiries for me of poultry merchants from
the different parts of France, but with the same result.
I made further inquiries at the dead poultry market at
the Halles Centrales, also of a number of fancy poul-
try dealers, but all to no purpose ; a few days later, on
calling again at the Jardin d'Acclimatation, Monsieur
A. Geoffroy St. Hilaire, the director, told me that a
friend of his had informed him that such an establish-
ment really did exist at Mouy, near Beauvais in Pi-
cardie, and he gave me his card, and the following in
writing, adding, however, that he did not believe in it,

IO6 POULTRY BREEDING IN

and that he should feel obliged by my communicating
to him the result of my investigation : —

" They tell me that M. de Soras has at Mouy, near
to B., a large poultry-breeding establishment; but if
my inquiries are right he ought to have at Mouy 12,000
fowls, with which he supplies the Paris markets."

I then telegraphed the following: " De Soras, M.
(express) B. Have you an establishment for poultry

breeding? Reply by return of mail.

GEYELIN."

At the same time I posted a letter to the same effect,
and asking permission to visit the establishment. The
reply to the telegram was — not known; the letter as
yet has not been returned ; but to make the inquiry
triply sure, I started myself for Mouy ; arrived at Reil
Junction, I was informed that such an establishment
really did exist at Mouy, and within half a mile of the
railway station, which news delighted me, to know
that my journey was not like a wild-goose chase ; there-
fore, on arriving at Mouy, I proceeded at once to the
poultry establishment, but not of M. de Soras, whose
name is not even known to any person in that neigh-
borhood, but of M. Manoury, ^leveur a Angy pres
Mouy, to whom I briefly related the object of my call.
I was received with every courtesy, and informed that
he knew of no such name as M. de Soras, nor of any
establishment of the kind, but that he devoted his time
to rearing some five thousand heads of poultry per
annum ; he neither fed them on horseflesh nor supplied
the markets of Paris ; that he sold none but pure breeds,

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 107

and those to gentlemen and fancy poultry dealers ; never-
theless, that his system of hatching, rearing, and feeding
was so different to that adopted by others that it might
possibly have given rise to those exaggerated reports ;
after which he conducted me over his establishment,
and explained most minutely the system he has adopted,
which, however, I need not explain in this part, as I
shall have to refer to it under the several headings. I
will now conclude by adding, that I have visited all
those places in France so justly famed for their poultry,
and from which those celebrated breeds of Houdan, La
Fleche, and Creve Coeur are obtained, where, also, I
met with the utmost courtesy in my inquiries, though
I had been informed that the farmers never explained
or showed their system of poultry rearing to any one,
which possibly may be true as regards their countrymen.

2. NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL INCUBATION.

Of artificial incubation I have observed four different
systems, which, although said to answer well, are yet
far from being applicable to hatching in a commercial
point of view. It matters, indeed, very little what sys-
tem is adopted, provided the heat is maintained at an
even temperature : to obtain this, various regulators
have been invented, but none of which can as yet dis-
pense with personal care. They all say that their
regulators are perfect if the temperature of the room
can be kept at the same degree of heat during incuba-
tion ; that then they can regulate the heat of the incuba-
tor to any given degree ; but as such conditions of a

108 POULTRY BREEDING IN

uniform temperature are impossible to maintain, con-
sidering the variations in the temperature of the atmos-
phere, I consider artificial hatching too expensive for
ordinary purposes, and only to be adopted at certain
times of the year, and then only in establishments where
the heat can be maintained at a uniform temperature,
day and night, by personal care.

At the Jardin des Plantes, in Paris, the manager of
the poultry department, M. Vallee, employs an ap-
paratus of his own invention, which he has patented,
and for which he has obtained prizes at two exhibitions.
The principle consists of water heated by means of a
lamp as a medium for hatching : the temperature is
regulated by admitting more or less cold air by means
of a valve opened or closed by a mercury float.

At the Jardin d'Acclimatation two systems of artificial
incubation are in use, and although both are on the hot-
water principle, yet they differ materially : the one is
heated by means of a lamp, and the temperature regulated
by a valve admitting more or less cold air, and which
is effected by a piston acted upon by the expansion or
condensation of air under different temperatures ; the
other consists merely of a zinc box covered with non-
conducting materials. This apparatus requires neither
lamp, regulator, or thermometer; the hot water is re-
newed every twelve hours ; and it is said to answer
admirably. The eggs are placed in a drawer under-
neath the water tank, but I cannot help thinking that
with an atmospheric temperature at or below freezing,
point it would be very difficult to prevent the rapid
cooling of the water.

A COMMERCIAL POINT OP VIEW. 109

The next and last system of artificial hatching I shall
notice is that shown to me by M. Manoury at Mouy.
It consists of an ordinary wine cask lined on the inside
with plaster of Paris. In this cask several trays with
eggs are suspended, and the top of the cask is provided
with a certain number of vent-holes for admitting air,
which is regulated by means of vent-pegs : the cask is
surrounded to the top with a thickness of about four
feet of horse manure. Though I am assured that this
principle answers well, I entertain serious doubts about
it for the same reasons as before stated.

The Natural Hatching

Differs entirely from what I ever saw before, and in
some parts of France forms a special trade carried on
by persons called couveurs, or hatchers. These hatch
for farmers at all times of the year at so much per
egg, or purchase the eggs in the market, and sell the
chickens, as soon as hatched, from threepence to six-
pence each, according to the season of the year. This
system may aptly be called a living hatching machine,
and, in my opinion, it is the very best and cheapest
way of hatching, as will be seen by the following de-
scription : —

The Hatching-Room

Is kept dark, and at an even temperature in summer
and winter. In this room a number of boxes, two feet
long, one foot wide, and one foot six inches deep, are
ranged along the walls. These boxes are covered in

HO POULTRY BREEDING IN

with lattice or wire work, and serve for turkeys to hatch
any kind of eggs. Similar boxes, but of smaller dimen-
sions, are provided for broody fowls. The bed of the
boxes is formed of heather, straw, hay, or cocoa fibres ;
and the number of eggs for turkeys to hatch is two dozen,
and one dozen for hens.

At any time of the year, turkeys, whether broody or
not, are taught to hatch in the following manner : Some
addled eggs are emptied, then filled with plaster of Paris,
then placed into a nest; after which a turkey is fetched
from the yard, and placed on the eggs, and covered over
with lattice : for the first forty-eight hours she will en-
deavor to get out of her confinement, but soon becomes
reconciled to it, when fresh eggs are substituted for the
plaster of Paris ones ; they will then continue to hatch,
without intermission, from three to six months, and even
longer ; the chickens being withdrawn as soon as hatched,
and fresh eggs substituted : after the third day the eggs
are examined, and the clear eggs withdrawn, which are
then sold in the market for new laid ; but, as they may be
soiled or discolored from having been sat upon, they clean
them with water and silver-sand to restore their original
whiteness.

The turkeys are taken off their nest once a day, to feed,
and to remove their excrements from the nest ; but, after
a while, they cease self-feeding, when it is necessary to
cram them, and give them some water once a day.

Amongst some places I visited, in company with two
of your shareholders, may be mentioned the farm of
Madame La Marquise de la BrifTe, Chateau de Neuville,
Gambais, near Houdan, where we observed twelve tur-

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. Ill

keys hatching at the same time ; here, also, we witnessed
the rearing and fattening, which will be alluded to here-
after. In another place, — that of Mr. Auche, of Gambais,
a hatcher by trade, — we observed sixty turkeys hatching
at the same time. ; and we were informed that, during
winter and early spring, he had sometimes upwards of
one hundred hatching at the same time, and that each
turkey continued hatching for at least three months. At
the farm of Mr. Louis Mary, at St. Julien de Faucon,
near Lizieux, in Calvados, I saw a turkey that was then
sitting, and had been so upwards of six months ; and as I
considered it rather cruel, the hatcher, to prove the con-
trary, took her off the nest, and put her in the meadow,
and also removed the eggs ; the turkey, however, to my
surprise, returned immediately to her nest, and called in
a most plaintive voice for her eggs ; then some eggs were
placed in a corner of the box, which she instantly drew
under her with her beak, and seemed quite delighted.
Moreover, I was informed that it was of great economical
advantage to employ turkeys to hatch, as they eat very
little, and get very fat in their state of confinement, and
therefore fit for the market any day.

3. THE REARING OF POULTRY.

It seems strange that although in all countries the great
difficulty of poultry breeding is the successful rearing,
that no adequate means have ever been devised to coun-
teract the influence of climates. In France, like here, a
cold or wet spring is equivalent to a great loss in poultry,
and it seems to be admitted everywhere that cold and wet

112 POULTRY BREEDING IN

do not agree with poultry ; therefore, were it not for some
novelties I observed in the rearing, to which I shall allude
presently, I might well have said that their system is no
better than our own ; in fact, they show an utter disregard
of all sanitary considerations ; and without wishing to
particularize any establishment, whether public or private,
I may state that even the best conducted left room for
great improvement in this respect. In some parts of
France, where poultry breeding is carried on as a trade,
they seldom allow a hen to lead the chickens after being
hatched, as the hen is more valuable for laying eggs ; but
they intrust this office either to capons or turkeys, who
are said to be far better protectors to the chickens than a
hen : they require, however, a certain amount of schooling
preparatory to being intrusted with their charge, and
which consists in this : When a turkey has been hatching
for some months, and shows a disposition to leave off, a
glassful of wine is given her in the evening, and a num-
ber of chickens are substituted for the eggs ; on waking
in the morning, she kindly takes to them, and leads them
about, strutting amidst a troop of seventy to one hundred
chickens with the dignity of a drum-major. When, how-
ever, a troop leader is required that has not been hatching,
such as a capon or a turkey, then it is usual -to pluck
some of their feathers from the breasts, and to give them
a glass of wine, and, whilst in a state of inebriation, to
place some chickens under them : on getting sober the
next morning, they feel that some sudden change has
come over them ; and as the denuded part is kept warm
by the chickens, they take also kindly to them.

Another important matter in rearing poultry is their

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 113

feeding, which differs also very much with our own, but
which I shall have to notice under a subsequent heading.
In conclusion, I feel in justice bound to say that these
artificial living protectors are most efficient to shelter
chickens in the daytime, and in the evening they are
placed with their charge in a shallow box filled with hay,
from which they do not move till the door of the room is
opened next morning. I must not omit to mention that
the chickens are not intrusted to the mother, or a leader,
before they are a week old, and then only in fine weather.

4. FEEDING AND FATTENING.

The system of feeding poultry in France is far more
judicious than our own ; and I may safely assert that I
have not noticed a single instance of poultry being fed on
whole grain, as it is the case with us. On inquiring the
reason why they fed by meal made into a stiff paste, I
was informed that whole grain would be too expensive,
produce less eggs, too much fat, and cause more disease
when the fowls are fed ad libitum, so as to completely
fill their crop, which renders the digestion difficult. The
food is mostly composed of about one half bran and one
half buckwheat, barley, or oatmeal made into a stiff
paste, with which the fowls are fed twice a day, namely,
at sunrise and sunset ; this diet is given indiscriminately
to old and young. In some farms, where the poultry
have not the run of meadows, they are provided with
a certain amount of animal and vegetable food, which
system is so consonant with my own notion that I will
now describe that followed at an establishment already
8

114 POULTRY BREEDING IN

noticed. All the waste of butchers' shops are obtained
at the expense of collecting them ; these are boiled, the
fat skimmed off, which, when coagulated, is with the
waste finely minced, and mixed with the meal ; after
which the waste of the kitchen garden, such as cabbage-
stalks, are boiled in the liquid, and mixed with bran, sour
poultry food, &c., which is then given to the pigs, who
thrive admirably on it. Buckwheat is considered prefer-
able to all other grains as a stimulant to laying eggs, and
in winter a certain amount is given whole. The chickens,
for the first week after being hatched, and in winter for a
much longer time, are fed by hand on barley-meal mixed
with milk, stale bread soaked in water, and green food
finely chopped.

The Fattening of Poultry

Whilst the rearing is carried on by farmers, the fatten-
ing forms quite a special trade, and chiefly in the hands
of cottagers, who purchase the chickens either from farm-
ers or in the market ; moreover, it is the exclusive trade
of a few villages in each poultry breeding district, such as
Goussainville, de Saint Lubin, de la Haye, &c., near
Houdan, Villaine, and Boce, near La Fleche au Mans ;
also some hamlets near Saint Pierre Dive, Lizieux, Cal-
vados. In these localities the system of fattening differs,
however ; the one consists of liquid cramming with bar-
ley-meal and milk, given by means of a funnel introduced
into the throat of the fowl three times a day ; this process
is exceedingly expeditious, as one person can easily cram
at the rate of sixty fowls per hour, and the fattening lasts
from fourteen days to three weeks, according to the dis-

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 115

tt

position of the chicken to take fat ; the selection of the
fattening stock requires some judgment, as some chickens
are constitutionally too weak, and others have not the
frame to receive fat. This system of liquid cramming is
principally adopted in the neighborhood of Houdan ; and
to give an idea of the importance of this trade, I will now
give a short extract from the pamphlet I was kindly pre-
sented with from a most intelligent agriculturist, Monsieur
De la Fosse, Proprietaire a Orval, Goussainville prds
Houdan : —

" It is to. be desired that our excellent and pure breed
of Houdan should be propagated in every other country
as much as it is in our own, where the poultry trade has
taken such a development that it forms one of the princi-
pal sources of riches. A few exact statistics of this trade
in our immediate neighborhood will give a correct idea
of its importance. At the markets of Houdan, Dreux,
and Nogent le Roi, there are sold annually upwards of
six million heads of FAT poultry, namely : —

Per Week.

Per Month.

Per Year.

Houdan . .

. 40,000

l6o,000

1,920,000

Dreux . . .

. 50,000

200,000

2,400,000

Nogent le Roi

. 35,000

140,000

I,68o,000

Total 6,000,000"

This does not include the sale of chickens and poultry,
which forms a separate trade.

Monsieur De la Fosse also deprecates the use of fat for
fattening purposes, as it deteriorates the fineness and
flavor of the flesh. In the districts of Le Mans and Nor-
mandy, the fattening is performed by dry cramming, viz. :

Il6 POULTRY BREEDING IN

the meal of barley and buckwheat is made into a stiff
paste with milk and water, then formed into pills two
inches long and half an inch in diameter ; these are dipped
into water, and forced into the throat of the fowl, until
the crop is filled, twice a day ; it is, however, of impor-
tance not to cram a fowl until she has digested the pre-
vious meal, as otherwise it might produce inflammation
and death.

A most ill-founded notion prevails with all fatteners —
that poultry will fatten much quicker without light or
ventilation, and without ever removing their excrements,
which makes these places most offensive and unhealthy ;
no other reason could be assigned to me than that they
were quite sure that the smell of the excrements stimu-
lated the fattening ; in this there is about as much reason
as in the notion our farmers used to entertain that pigs
could only thrive in filth. In one place, however, which
I visited in company with Monsieur Noel, proprietor of
the Lion d'Or at La Fleche, a most intelligent man, and
himself a large farmer, the cottager had provision made
for the excrements to fall through the floor of the pen ;
and on pointing out the innovation, he prided himself on
his invention, as, said he, I can now remove the manure,
and the feathers of the fowls get less dirty, and the birds
have also more air. This, surely, is a step in the right
direction.

5. KILLING AND DRESSING.

This also is a speciality, carried on by men called
Tueurs et Appreteurs; they are astonishingly expert in
their business ; and unless witnessed, as we have done, it

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 117

would appear incredible that one man can kill and pluck
at the rate of one fowl per minute, or sixty per hour : the
price paid for this work is about one farthing per head
for lean and one halfpenny for fat poultry. The system
of killing differs, however, in this, that whilst in Paris
they make a gash in the throat, in the country they stick
the poultry in the back of the roof of the beak ; but both
cause immediate death ; the latter, however, is the clean-
est and most desirable. They deprecate our system of
twisting the neck, as cruel, discoloring the flesh, and
causing early putrefaction of the coagulated blood.
When a man kills, he has three baskets near him, into
which he drops the feathers according to size ; and the
reason of plucking the fowls instantaneously after death
is the great saving in time, and the prevention of tear-
ing the skin, which latter cannot well be avoided when
the fowl once gets cold.

The Dressing.

The lean fowls are immediately emptied of their intes-
tines ; but not so with the fat stock, which contain a large
quantity of valuable fat, which is used for basting, and
to give flavor to lean poultry.

With chickens they take care to leave the down on, as
an index of their age, and in all fowls they leave about
half a dozen feathers in the rump, which gives a very
pretty appearance.

As soon as the fowl is plucked, and before cold, it is
laid on its back on a bench, and wrapped round with a
wet linen cloth to mould its shape, and to give the skin a

IlS POULTRY BREEDING IN

finer appearance ; however, they use no flour, as with us,
to give an old hen the appearance of a chicken.

The fat poultry is drawn and dressed by cooks ; they
make an incision under the leg to withdraw the intestines,
by which means the fowl is not disfigured.

6. UTILIZING THE WASTE PRODUCTS.

Poultry Manure.

In France, as well as in our own country, most eminent
chemists have proved by analysis that poultry manure is
a most valuable fertilizer ; and yet, for want of a proper
system in housing poultry, it has as yet not been rendered
available to rural economy. The celebrated Vauquelin
says that when the value of manures is considered in
relation to the amount of azote they contain, the poultry
manure is one of the most active stimulants ; and when,
as a means of comparison, the following manures are
taken in parts of 1000, it will be found that, —

Horse Manure contains .... 4.0 parts of azote.

Guano, as imported, .... 49.7 " "

Guano, when sifted of vegetables and

stones, 53.9 "

Poultry Manure, 83.0 " "

In France, as in England, the poultry manure is left to
accumulate in the poultry homes, to the loss of farmers
and to the detriment of the health of fowls.

The Feathers

Are carefully collected and sorted, and when well dried
sold to dealers.

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. Up

The Intestines

Are boiled, the fat skimmed off, which is sold separate ;
the intestines are then minced as food for poultry, and the
liquid is used for feeding pigs.

The Combs and Kidneys

Are sold to pastry-cooks — the first for decorating and
the latter for flavoring pies.

The Head, Neck, and Feet

Are sold to hotels, restaurants, &c.,for flavoring sauces,
or boiled down to make chicken jelly.

7. THE SYSTEM OF SELLING

Poultry in France is far preferable to our own, although,
in my opinion, it would be still better were poultry sold
by weight. However, a farmer or merchant who con-
signs poultry to Paris is sure to obtain a true return of
whatever they fetched, as he does not rely, as with us, on
the honesty of a dealer.

At the wholesale poultry market, La Vallee, in Paris,
where all poultry, dead or alive, is forwarded from all
parts of France, there are a number of licensed agents to
whom the poultry is consigned, and who sell it by auction
to the highest bidder ; this market is a curious scene, and
worth seeing, from four till nine in the morning, where
thousands of crates, of all descriptions of poultry, are
disposed of, and cleared out, before twelve o'clock in
the day.

I2O POULTRY BREEDING IN

fevery village has its weekly markets, where farmers
and their wives bring their produce for sale, in preference
to selling it at the farm-yard. The police regulations in
these markets are strictly enforced. The various products
are classified before the market begins. Each person is
bound to keep his assigned place, and not allowed even
to uncover his goods, and much less to sell, before the
bell rings, under a fine of five francs. At the ringing of
the bell, the bustle to uncover, the rush of buyers, and
the chattering, are worth while to witness. The dealers
and merchants take up their stand outside the market,
where they send all the products they purchase. The
seller has a ticket given him, with the purchase price on
it, and is paid on delivery of the goods at the dealer's
stand. It seems almost incredible to believe, that even
in some village markets, within two hours, such a vast
amount of business can be transacted with the greatest
order and decorum. Some merchants will purchase from
two thousand to three thousand pounds of butter ; others,
twenty thousand to thirty thousand eggs, or some thou-
sand heads of poultry, &c. ; all which are taken to their
warehouse to be sorted, packed, and perhaps forwarded
the same day either to London or Paris. I may add, that
the current price for every commodity is fixed and known
immediately after the market opens, and depends entirely
on the demand and supply. For instance, fat chickens
fetched four shillings each ; twelve eggs, sevenpence ;
butter, tenpence per pound, &c.

For the foregoing information, I am mainly indebted to
Mr. H. Lindon, Jr., a most obliging gentleman, who rep-
resents at Lizieux the Messrs. Lindon Brothers & Co. of

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 121

London, general merchants ; in his company I have vis-
ited several farms, and attended market, at which he
makes purchases of butter, grain, &c., for the London
market.

8. THE DISTINCT BREEDS.

There are three perfectly distinct breeds, all very char-
acteristic in their appearance ; and, when of pure race,
they are very true to all their points. I shall only give a
cursory description of the appearance of those we have
now at our establishment in Bromley.

Houdan Fowl.

Whatever has been said to the contrary, this breed,
when pure, is most characteristic; but it must be ad-
mitted, that most of the farmers near Houdan know as
little of the pure Houdan breed as those of La Fleche
and Crevecceur know of theirs ; and, if you were to order
some first class birds of them, irrespective of price, they
would with good conscience forward fowls of a large
size — but, from a want of knowledge, some cross breeds.
To illustrate this, I may mention that I could have pur-
chased, at the markets in those respective localities,
splendid thorough-bred specimens for about three shil-
lings, the price of common fowls, — but which , were
worth in France even one pound each. There are, how-
ever, in each locality, some persons who take an interest
in their pure breeds, particularly since they have been
encouraged by the award of prizes from poultry exhibi-
tions.

122 POULTRY BREEDING IN

The Houdan fowl has a very bulky appearance, its
plumage invariably black and white spangled — a crest
of the same color ; comb, triple, the outsides opening like
two leaves of a book, and the centre having the appear-
ance of an ill-shaped long strawberry. With the cock
the comb is very large, whilst with the hen it ought to be
scarcely perceptible. The legs are strong, and of a lead
color, with five claws, the two hind ones one above the
other. Strongly-developed whiskers and beards both in
cocks and hens. This is one of the finest races of fowls,
but its qualities surpass even its beauty ; besides the
smallness of their bones, the fineness of their flesh, they
are of an extraordinary precocity and fecundity ; they lay
large and white eggs, and the chickens are fit for the
table at four months old. It is, however, observed that
they are very indifferent for hatching. The weight of
adults is from seven to eight pounds, in which the bones
figure for one eighth. The chicken, when four months
old, weighs, without the intestines, about four and a half
pounds.

The Crevecceur Race,

In outward appearance, resembles closely the Houdan,
but its crest, whiskers, and beard are still more developed ;
the crest is only double, and projects like two horns with
the cock, but with the hen it is very small ; the whole
plumage ought to be perfectly black, although there are
some white, also blue varieties, which are, however, only
a degeneration ; legs black ; the claws, four in number,
are stronger and longer than those of the Houdan. This
breed is said to be superior, in all respects, even to

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 123

Houdan fowls, and justly esteemed as the most preco-
cious and finest in the world, as the chickens are fit for
the table at three months old, and at six months old
weigh from seven to eight pounds when fattened ; the
eggs also are larger, and of a beautiful white.

La Fleche Race.

This breed differs entirely with the two preceding ones.
In appearance they resemble the Spanish ; the plumage,
which is jet black, fits close to the body, and gives an
idea of less bulk than those of Houdan and Crevecoeur,
although they actually are heavier fowls. They are very
long in coming to maturity, but which happens generally
at the season when poultry is most scarce, on account of
which, coupled with the exquisite flavor of the flesh,
they fetch fabulous prices ; and even at the time I was at
La Fleche, the beginning of July, the fat chickens sold in
the market at five shillings each. Skin white, fine, trans-
parent, and very elastic, which enables them to take an
extraordinary amount of fat. The weight of adults is
from eight to ten pounds, and the bones less than one
eighth of the weight ; when standing erect they measure
twenty-two inches in height and twenty-three inches in
circumference, taken from under the wings. The legs,
and four claws, of a lead color, are strong ; the comb in
appearance like two horns, like those of Crevecceurs,
with a little crest behind ; the face white, like the Span-
ish, and a horn on the beak like that of the rhinoceros,
form the principal characteristics of this fine race. It
is said they begin to lay early in the year; but their
eggs, though abundant, are smaller than those of other

124 POULTRY BREEDING IN

French breeds, and as regards sitters they are considered
as bad as the Spanish.

9. CAPONAGE AND VIRGIN COCKS.

There seems to exist a considerable difference of opinion
in various parts of France as to the necessity of castrat-
ing young cocks for fattening purposes. In some locali-
ties they pretend that when cocks are not allowed to
associate with the opposite sex, they will attain, when
fattened, a greater weight, and be much finer as regards
flavor of flesh ; others again say that when a cock is cas-
trated, it can be kept till a more mature age without
deteriorating its quality, and by this attain an extraordi-
nary weight when fattened, besides making them useful
as troop leaders of chickens, as before described. I can-
not decide which of the two systems is the best or most
advantageous, any more than I can decide about the two
systems of cramming, without making experiments ; this
much, however, I have noticed, that virgin cocks fatten
very readily, and fetch prices as high as capons.

10. OPINIONS ON MY SYSTEM OF POULTRY BREED-
ING AND RURAL ECONOMY.

Wherever I went and whenever I had an opportunity,
I promulgated my system of poultry breeding in connec-
tion with rural economy with a view to elicit opinions,
having been taught by experience that diversity of opinion
is the greatest stimulant to improvement and progress.
Without naming any individual opinion, I may state that,

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 125

without exception, all were favorable as regards the
practicability of the undertaking when carried out on an
extensive scale, as then the working expenses would be
at their minimum and the returns at the maximum ; that
they do not consider it difficult to rear chickens in-doors,
as their winter and spring chickens are all reared in out-
houses. Some, however, hold it to be beneficial for
fowls to get wet, with which I differ, as they are not
amphibious, and require only dry dust to clean them-
selves. The separation system is much approved of, as
it enables the races to be kept pure, in which they find
the greatest difficulties in farm-yards : the arrangement
for nests, feeding, warming, and ventilation are likewise
commended — in fact I was told several times, " Ah, you
Englishmen, when you do anything you do it well and on
a grand scale."

ii. ANALYSIS OF MY OBSERVATIONS.

Fiction, when well told and supported by imaginary
statistics, bears often more semblance to truth than reality
itself; this fact was never better illustrated than by the
interesting account given by some ingenious and inven-
tive mind of certain Gallinocultural establishments, whose
illusive existence was stated to be in the vicinity of
Paris, and where the exclusive diet of the fowls was
horseflesh. The story seemed so plausible, and the
details so minute, that it was accepted as a fact, and in
due course published in numerous scientific and other
papers of this and other countries ; indeed, the fact that
fowls are omnivorous, and that they have a predilection

126 POULTRY BREEDING IN

for animal food, is so well known, that had it not been
explicitly stated that their exclusive diet was horseflesh,
I should have credited it myself; my doubts did, how-
ever, not arise on account of the use of horseflesh, —
which is just as good, and perhaps better, than many
other animals' flesh for the food of poultry, — but solely
on account of its pretended exclusive use. I have been
informed at the Jardin des Plantes and at the Jardin
d'Acclimatation, in Paris, that this subject has created
as much interest and deception in other countries as our
own, as persons from Russia, America, and other parts
of the world, had come on purpose to Paris to visit those
imaginary establishments. Whether on account of the
daily increasing price of animal food the public mind was
prepared to believe in the existence of such Gallinocultu-
ral establishments, where they slaughter fifty horses per
diem for the food of poultry, or whether the publication
of such fictions does more harm than good, I will not ven-
ture to discuss ; nor can I ' say wrhether the persons who
were disappointed in the object of their journey were com-
pensated by learning some profitable matters not included
in their programme of inquiry ; but what I can assert, and
which I believe will be fully borne out by the preceding
report, is, that my journey to France will prove in many
respects most beneficial to the interest of our Company.
In support of this assertion I cannot do better than quote
what I stated in my first report, viz., —

"We are not about to carry out any new invention
in poultry breeding, but merely a wise combination of
well-established facts : individually, the facts are well
known ; but a combination of them applied to poultry

A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. I2/

breeding has hitherto escaped the notice of rural econo-
mists."

Such is, in fact, the case in the undertaking we are
about to carry out ; namely, a combination and adoption
of all the most successful systems in poultry breeding,
whether of this or any other country ; and it must be as
satisfactory to you to know, — after having honored me
with your confidence, — as it was pleasing to me to see,
that the system of poultry breeding we are carrying out
at Bromley, in Kent, combines every element of success.

With the exception of hatching by the aid of turkeys,
rearing by turkeys and capons, and some other novelties
connected with poultry breeding, and which we shall
adopt, the soundness of my system is now proved by the
successful working of its several parts in various places
of France.

I can now with every confidence congratulate you for
having founded the first Gallinocultural establishment in
the world, and one that will prove as beneficial to you as
it will be a boon to the nation at large ; and which soon
must become the national nursery for all pure races of
poultry from whence farmers and others can be supplied
with first class breeding stocks at moderate prices ; an
establishment, it is to be trusted, that will not only prove
the foundation to an increase of animal food and the ame-
lioration of poultry breeds, but also prove the means of
poultry becoming cheaper and of more general use than
it now is.

LATE PUBLICATIONS.

Chemistry of the Farm and the Sea. By JAS. R. NICHOLS,
M. D., Editor " Boston Journal of Chemistry and Pharmacy." In
1 vol., 12mo., elegantly bound in cloth. Price $1.25.

These popular Essays, under the titles of " Chemistry of the Farm,"
" Chemistry of a Kernel of Corn," " Chemistry of a Bowl of Milk," " Food
and Health," " The Chemistry of the Dwelling," *' Chemistry of the Sun,"
" Chemistry of the Sea," etc., originally appeared in the " Boston Journal of
Chemistry and Pharmacy," where they have been read by thousands of readers,
and by their clear, plain, and convincing style, adaptation to all classes by the
new and glowing facts brought to light, that the publishers have been induced
to have them collected, some new subjects added, and the whole carefully
revised and published in book form.

Geyelin Poultry-Breeding in a Commercial Point of
View. With a Preface by CHARLES L. FLINT, Secretary Mass.
State Board of Agriculture. 1 vol., 12mo., with 27 illustrations.
Price $1.25.

As carried out by the National Poultry Company, (Limited), Bromley, Kent :
Natural and Artificial Hatchery, Hearing and Fattening on entirely new and
scientific principles, with all the necessary Plans, Elevations, Sections, and
Details, and a notice of the Poultry establishments in France, by GEORGE
KENNEDY, C. E.

High Farming without Manure. By M. GEORGE VILLE,
Professor of Vegetable Physiology at the Museum of Natural
History, Paris. 1 vol. 108 pages. Price 35 cents.

Six Lectures on Agriculture, delivered at the Experimental Farm at Vin-
cennes.

Quincy on the Soiling of Cattle. Illustrated from experience ;
and an Address containing Suggestions which may be useful to
Farmers, by HON. JOSIAH QUINCY ; with a Memoir of the Author,
by EDMUND QUINCY. 1 vol. 12mo. 101 pages. Price $1.25.

«' The practice of ' Soiling of Cattle,' as it is called, or keeping them all the
year round in their stables, with only a daily and short liberty of yard, having
been a frequent subject of attention, and an object of proffered premium by the
Board of Trustees of the Massachusetts Society for Promoting Agriculture,
the author, in conformity with their request, was led to communicate his own
practice and experience on that mode of managing stock."

Sold by all Booksellers, and mailed, post paid, by the
Publishers,

A. WILLIAMS & CO., BOSTON.

The Great New England Newspaper!

g&ftjjnstils 1

AND

NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURE.

(The Official Organ of the New England Agricultural Society.)

ENLARGED TO THIRTY-SIX COLUMNS!

DEVOTED TO

Agriculture, Choice Literature,

Horticulture, General News,

Sheep Husbandry, Wool Markets,

Stock-Raising, Produce Markets,

Domestic Economy, Cattle Markets, &c.

CONTRIBUTORS.

C. L. FLINT, \

E. W. BULL,

SANKL M

E. A. SAMUELS — Natural History Department.

ALL THE MARKETS- CATTLE, PRODUCE, WOOL,

REPORTED EXPRESSLY FOR THE PLOUGHMAN.
JKg" Specimen Copies sent everywhere on application.

TEKMS : $2.50 per Year, in Advance.

GEORGE NOYES, Publisher,

Nos. 51 and 52 North Market Street, Boston.

STAMPED BELOW

AN INITIAL FINE OF 25 CENTS

WILL BE ASSESSED FOR FAILURE TO RETURN
THIS BOOK ON THE DATE DUE. THE PENALTY
WILL INCREASE TO 5O CENTS ON THE FOURTH
DAY AND TO $I.OO ON THE SEVENTH DAY
OVERDUE.

JAN 2!

LD 21-50m-8,-32

a*-

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY