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awry Bureau 13-723

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American
oultry Book.

aining descriptions of all the Different Varieties of Fowls,
vith complete instructions for raising all kinds of Poultry,
Curing Diseases, Artificial Incubation, etc., etc.

W. L. ALLISON, Publisher

216-218 William St. — 18-20 Rosk St.,
NEW York.

I

No. 3.
APRIL,
1899.

The Chiswick Library

of

Popular Books.

Subscription $3.00

per year-
Issued Monthly

THE STANDARD

American Poultry Book,

CONTAINING ALL THE DIFFERENT

Varieties of Fowls,

Their Points of Beauty, their Merits as Layers or Sitters;
WITH COMPLETE INSTEUOTIONS

ON RAISING ALL KINDS OF POULTRY— THE BEST SOILS ON WHICH TO KEEP THEM

— HOW TO FEED— MANAGEMENT OF LAYERS AND SITTERS— DICTIONARY

OF POULTRY TERMS— INCUBATION — MANAGEMENT OF THE MOTHER—

HOW TO REAR THE CHICKS — IMPROVED MANNER OF

CURING ALL DISEASES.

Together with minute Instructions on

ARTIFICIAL INCUBATION,

The Be3t Incubators— How to work them, etc.,

Copyrighted 1899 by The Chiswick Publishing Co.

NEW YORK :

W. L. ALLISON, Publisher.

Entered at the Post Office, New York, N. Y., as second-class matter,
January, 1899.

636, S"
StJL

,iul

DOMESTIC POULTRY.

VARIETIES; THEIR CHOICE AND
MANAGEMENT.

In the choice of fowls, no inconsiderable amount of know-
ledge of the characters of the different varieties is necessary to
insure success to the breeder. From my own experience, and
that of the most eminent poultry-keepers, I have attempted to
jot down such information as may be found useful in the selec-
tion and management of these really useful and elegant birds.
I shall first introduce to the reader's notice the largest and one
of the most important breeds in our country.

THE RRAHMA FOWLS

Are divided into two classes, the light and dark; as a rule the
dark are preferable, although either are good enough for any
farm yard. They are now almost universally cultivated through-
out America, and a most valuable variety — so hardy, so beauti-
ful, and so excellent in all the relations of poultry life.

The hens are the best of mothers, and lay fine large eggs during
the winter. Even when the ground is covered with snow, they
lay regularly, and in fact at all times when not employed in sit-

A, BRAHMA FOWL.

ting or renewing their plumage. The pullets attain full size at
an early age, and are in their prime when eight months old.

Brahmas are doubtless the largest of all the varieties of domes-
tic fowls; some have been known to weigh seventeen pounds,
which exceeds the weight of any other breed.

LIGHT BRAHMA, COCK AND HEN.

The dark Brahmas have steadily progressed in favor since their
first introduction; their gigantic size, great weight, hardihood
and prolificacy, and the ease with which they can be kept in
confined ranges, all tend to render them much esteemed. To
sum up their merits, as good, useful, hardy fowls, they are un-
surpassed. They are good layers of good sized eggs, good fora-
gers and good sitters; as mothers they cannot be excelled, no
fowls being more careful not to step on their chickens, brooding
them better, or searching more diligently for food. The chick-
ens grow fast and are exceedingly hardy; old and young take

BRAHMA FOWL.

good care of themselves, and often recover from ailments that
would carry off any of a less hardy sort. They are very good
for the table, putting on flesh readily; they are also small eaters.

DARK BRAHMA HEN.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DARK BRAHMA.

The head of the dark Brahma cock should have a pea comb,
that is a triple comb; this should be small, low in front, and
firmly set in the head without falling over on either side, dis-
tinctly divided, so as to have the appearance of three small combs
joined together in the lower part and back, the largest being in
the middle, and each part slightly and evenly serrated.

The upper part of the body is silvery white striped with black;
\he breast, under part of body and thighs either pure black or

6 BRAHMA *0WL.

slightly mottled with white. The feathers that cover the based
df the quill-feathers of the wings are of a lustrous green black,
and form a broad well-marked bar across the wings. The flight-
feathers are white on the outer and black on the inner webs. The
secondary quills have a broad, dark, green black spot at the end
of each feather. The tail is black. The shank should be of a
yellow color, and well clothed with dark feathers slightly mot-
tled with white.

The hens have a grey head; neck-hackle silvery white, striped
with black. The comb is the same only of a smaller size. The
remainder of the plumage should be dull white, and closely pen-
cilled with dark steel grey so as almost to cover the ground color
and reaching well up the front of the neck. The hen is not so
upright in carriage as the cock, and it is much shorter in the
tegs.

LIGHT BRAHMA3.

LIGHT BBAHMA HE3.

BRAHMA FOWL. 7

In color, the light Brahmas are characterized by the general
white color of the body, breast and thighs. The neck-hackle
should be marked with a distinct black stripe down the centre
of each feather; there is a tendency in the cock to come light or
cloudy in the hackle — defects which very greatly detract from
their beauty. The saddle-feathers in the cock are white or light-
ly striped with black, those of the hen being white. The first
ten flight-feathers are black, but the secondary quills, which
alone are visible when the wing is closed, are white on the outer
web, consequently the dark color of the wing is not visible when
folded. In the cock the tail is black, the tail-coverts being beau-
tifully glossed with green, the lower ones being margined with

LIGHT BRAHMA COCK.

silver, as are the t w o highest tail-feathers in the hen. The shanks
in this variety should be bright yellow, well closed with white
fathers slightly mottled with black.

5 COCHINS.

In conclusion I would state that I do not believe, all things
considered, that there is any better market fowl than the Brahma;
some other breeds are doubtlessly superior table fowls, but they
are more tender and harder to rear.

Give your Brahmas large roomy quarters in winter, and if
possible plenty of range for exercise; feed well, and they -will
give you winter-eggs, and those are the kind that bring money.

COCHINS.

BUFF COCHINS.

The Cochins were first introduced into this country under the
name of Shanghaes; they originally come from Shanghae, and

COCHINS. 9

are to this day found in great numbers there. " But the Shanghaes,
as originally introduced and widely grown in this country, were
gigantic muscular birds of great activity and wonderful powers
of storing away food, which was absorbed into muscle and bone,
but made comparatively little juicy flesh. The consequence was,
they got a bad reputation, and the term was finally one of re-
proach; but upon the vast improvement which was made in them
by careful breeding, the name of Cochins, as designated by
cinnamon or white or buff or partridge, rapidly superseded the
old term, and the despised but vastly improved Shanghae sailed
under a new name, and are now raised as profitable birds all over
the United States.

They are first-class layers, and in season when new-laid eggs
are rare, and from their scarcity of so much increased value, this
species often proves a source from whence we can obtain supplies.
They also make capital mothers, and are quiet when sitting.

In many places where space is limited, the Cochins are found
convenient guests; they can put up with worse accommodation,
and require less space than almost any other race. I do not
mean to say that they will thrive the better for confinement,
neither that fowls in general will pine and die if kept in a narrow
range; all fowls are better for having ample space; but in cases
where" their liberties are necessarily abridged and more careful
tending is required to counterbalance want of field-room, the
Cochin can bear captivity better than any other fowl.

The roosting- poles for Cochins and in fact all bulky fowls
should be near the ground; they should be large in diameter in
order that the claws may maintain a firm clutch and perfect
equilibrium without inconvenience or effort.

VARIETIES OF THE COCHIN.

The Cochin fowl is a large heavy bird, very broad and clumsy

10 SPANISH FOWL.

looking. The tail is very short and nearly destitute of feathers*
but the remainder of its body is abundantly covered. The legs
are short, stout, and well feathered; the head should be small,
with a single straight comb; the beak short and strong; the wat-
tles small, and the ear-lobes red and fine as to texture. There
are many varieties of the Cochin viz — Buffs; this is the true
type of the colored birds, and for utility, I think the best.

Partridge Cochins. — Very heavy; full round plump forms
and a majestic carriage.

White Cochins. — These should be pure white all over. In city
yards amid the smoke and dust the White Cochin do not appear
to advantage but in the country no variety looks more pleasing,
as the beauty of their p?umage depends on its clean and unsullied
condition.

If well selected, properly taken care of, and well fed, they
make a first-class table bird; they are hardy, do not require much
space, and I should recommend them to any person who only
wants to keep a few birds.

SPANISH FOWLS.

The Spanish fowls have long been known and highly esteemed
in the United States for their great laying and non-sitting pro-
pensities.

All fowls are better for being hatched in a warm season, and
the Spanish are no exception to this. Though of a sound consti-
tution, no fowl is more injured by cold wet weather. Their

"v^-.

12 SPANISH FOWL.

roosting-places therefore should face the south, and be well-pro-
tected from cold winds, especially as they are subject to long and
protracted moultings. The cold affects their comb also, which
is sometimes frost-bitten, with a liability to mortification.

The flesh of the Spanish Black fowl is juicy and of good flavor,
but not equal to that of the * ' Dorking. ' ' The flesh of the White
Spanish is not considered so fine in flavor, as that of the Black,
yet it is not bad, especially if young.

As layers they are among the best, but are seldom inclined to
sit ; they generally produce two eggs consecutively and then miss
a day.

As to healthiness, they are less liable to roup than lighter-
colored birds; in fact, the Spanish fowl is less subject to disease
than are most of the common black varieties.

In general they are rather quarrelsome, and are very averse to
strange fowls, and if separated from each other even for two or
three days, the hens will disagree seriously upon being reunited.

In case of a strange hen being tormented by her companions
for any length of time, so that she is afraid to come and feed with
them, or of the cock displaying his protracted dislike to her, it
will be right to remove her, or she may be reduced to so low a
condition as to render her unable to escape their persecutions, and
avoid death from their violence.

The Spanish pullets commence laying when six or seven months
old, and occasionally sooner, though some of them commence
at a later period, according to feeding and treatment. But pre-
mature fertility is not to be wished for, as it will frequently hap-
pen that pullets which commence very early, seldom lay when
fully grown so large an egg as those produce which do not lay
before they are eight months old. Indeed the debilitating effects
of either premature, or continual laying in ripe age, as respects
the Spanish breed are now and then manifested by the loss of the

SPANISH FOWL. 13

body feathers in moulting, besides the usual falling off of the
neck, and wing, and tail feathers; and when thus stripped, the
poor birds look very miserable in bad weather.

In sitting Spanish eggs, nine of them are sufficient for hens of
ordinary size, as they are much larger than the generality of
fowls eggs.

It will be unwise, with any breed, to select the first dozen of
a pullet's eggs for hatching; they being comparatively immature
and small, it is not likely that large and strong chicks will be
the issue. Besides, pullets occasionally do not enter into tender
union with their male companions until they have laid five or
six eggs.

The color of the Spanish chick, when first hatched, is a shining
black, with a blotch of white sometimes on the breast, and a
little white also around the bill and the eyes. They do not until
nearly grown, get their full feathers, and therefore they should
be hatched at a favorable season of the year, to be well feathered
before it grows cold in the Fall.

Spanish hens seldom exhibit a disposition to undertake the
task of incubation, and if it be attempted, they will in the gen-
erality of cases forsake the nest long before the chicks would be
hatched. Sometimes, however, they will perseveringly perform
the maternal duties; but it is against their general character.
They are exceedingly long in the leg, consequently are subject
to cramp; this partly accounts for their being so averse to such
sedentary occupation. Since, therefore, they will not undertake
the office of mothers, we must impose it upon some other class
of fowl, that will not only accept the task, but will joyfully hatch
and rear the young of even another species until they are able to
take care of themselves. It is by this means the Spanish breed
is still preserved and multiplied.

14 SPANISH FOWL.

VARIETIES AND DESCRIPTION OF THE SPANISH FOWL.

A full grown black Spanish cock weighs seven pounds; the hen,
about six pounds. The principal features, and those which form
the most striking contrasts to those of other fowls, are, its com-
plete suit of glossy black, large face, and ear-lobe of white;
enlivened by comb and gills of excessive development. The
peculiarities of these contrasts induce me to describe them in
detail. The plumage is of a rich satin, black, reflecting their
shades of bluish, greenish purple, when exposed to the sun's rays;
the feathers of the breast, belly, and thighs, are black, of the
most decided hue. The hens are of a similar feather, but less
brilliant. The face and ear-lobes especially the latter, are of
pearly whiteness; the face should extend above the eye, encircle
it, and meet the comb; it still increases as the bird grows older,
continuing to enlarge in size, especially with hens, which seldom
have a really good show of face until two years of age, even
beyond the time of their full growth; and the more face and ear-
lobe, the more valuable either the cock or hen. The comb of
the cock should be erect and serrated, almost extending to the
nostrils, and of bright scarlet; it should be fine in texture, and
exhibit no sign of excrescences. In hens this uprightness of
comb cannot be obtained, owing to its abundant size and thin-
ness of base. The wattles are long, pendulous, of high color,
and well folded. The head is long, and there should be no top-
knot behind the comb, nor muff round the neck . The beak is
long, and generally black, it should be slightly curved, and thick
at the base. The eyes are very full, bright and of a rich chest-
nut color: they are somewhat prominent. The neck is rather
long, but strong and thick towards the base, the neck hackle
being a glossy black; the chest and body are broad and black,
the former being particularly dark; the wings are of a moderate
size, whilst the coverts are beautifully shaded, and of a bluish

SPANISH FOWL. 15

black. The thighs are neat but long, as also is the shank, which
is of a leaden or dark blue color, and sometimes of a pale blue-
white. The soles of the feet are of a dingy flesh-color; the tail
is rather erect and well balanced, presenting if well plumed (as
it should be) a very elegant green hued shade.

White Spanish. — These birds are not so hardy, but the""
inherit the usual qualities of the black; the general feathers, like
the face being perfectly white.

The Ancona. — There is seldom much white about the face
of this variety, and in many cases none; the ear-lobes is, however,
of that color, though not so long and full as in the Black. They
possess the general characteristics of the Spanish class, and are
excellent layers. They are of a very unsettled color, spotted
<vith white but far from regularly marked; they also present many
ther shades and colors.

Minorcas. — These are very similar to the last named variety,
wanting the white face of the Black tribe; the shank is not so
.ong as in the true Black. They are good layers, but bad sitters
and mothers.

Andalusian. — When carefully selected, the chicks throw
black and white and if those most resembling the originals are
bred together, a neat grey bird may be obtained. They are good
layers, and far better sitters and mothers than the Blacks, and
have shorter shanks; whilst their principal peculiarity consists in
a tail standing very erect, the feathers of which in many spe-
cimens nearly touch the hackle-feathers of the neck. They are
a very hardy fowl, and possess a fair share of the Black's good
qualities.

There are many other sub-varieties, or rather strains, that
have crossed with the Spanish stock, but they neither deserve
nor possess a distinct name.

16 DORKING FOWL.

The superiority of the Spanish generally, as egg producers, is so
decided, that any oross from them meriting the character of
everlasting layers, is worth encouragement. It is to be recol-
lected that the Hamburgh or Dutch is not the only sort from which
everlasting layers have sprung. Any hens which with warmth
and good feeding will lay eggs continuously, and especially
through the winter, are to be welcomed. And though the debil-
itating effects of continued laying must tell upon the constitution,
yet where stock is not desired for a mere gratification of the eye,
but kept on economical principles, it cannot be inexpedient to
stimulate the prolific powers of hens to the utmost. If good
layers which have not the presumption to compete for the prizes
of birth or beauty, can by clever management, be induced to lay
within two years the entire compliment of eggs which in the
ordinary course of nature would not be yielded by them in less
than three years, there is an actual saving gained of at least one-
third of food, if these effete layers be then fattened and killed.
No breed would be better if this plan is strictly applied, than
that of the common Blacks of Spanish blood, or some of their
sub-varieties.

THE DORKING FOWL.

Of distinct English breeds the Dorkings are the most celebra-
ted. For those who wish to stock their poultry-yard with fowls
of the most desirable shape and size, clothed in rich and varie-
gated plumage, and not expecting perfection are willing to over-
look one or two other points, the speckled Dorkings are the
breed to be at once selected. The hens, in addition to their gay

DORKING FOWL.

»7

GRAY ENGLISH DORKINGS.

colors, have a large vertically flat comb, which, when they are
in high health, adds very much to their brilliant appearance.
The cocks are magnificent; the most gorgeous hues are frequently
lavished upon them, which their great size and peculiarly square-
built form displays to great advantage. The breeder, and the
farmer's wife, behold with delight their broad breast, the small
proportion of offal, and the large quantity of profitable flesh.

18 DOKKING FOWL.

The Cockerels may be brought to considerable weight, and the
flavor and appearance of the meat arc inferior to none. They
are only fair layers, but at due and convenient intervals mani-
fest the desire of sitting. Having short, compact legs, they are
well formed for incubation. The Dorkings are not well suited for
damp soils, by reason of the shortness of their legs. They are
also distinguished for breadth of body, the somewhat partridge
form, and also, in the poultry phraze, for being clean headed.
Though they possess great similarity of form, there is much vari-
ety of color; but they are generally distinguished as white, grey
or speckled, and also by the character of the comb — viz, as single
and double, or rose combed; and classed accordingly at the poul-
try shows.
The fifth or supernumerarytoe is the peculiar mark distinctive of
ie whole breed under consideration. Though the Creator has
.ot designed anything without its appropriative purpose, this
additional member must rather be deemed a distinctive than a
useful one, just as the absence of a tail, or the color and size of
a comb may distinguish an individual race of fowls. These over-
furnished claws have been denounced as sources of danger and
annoyance to young chicks when first issuing from the shell,
rendering the mother's movements hazardous to them. I have
never seen them do so, and even if they did how is the hen to be
employed when the sitting fit comes on, for they are persevering
sitters, and as neither worrying, nor whipping, nor fettering, nor
physicking, or the cold shower bath, will subdue their natural
instinct to set, they should be allowed to follow their instinct,
and incubate in peace.

The Dorkings are a very heavy fowl when fat, as their frame
work is not of that lengthy, incompact structure which it is so
difficult to fill up with flesh and fat; they much sooner become
tempting figures for trussing and skewering than other fowls.
They have a great aptitude for fattening when rendered capons.

DORKING FOWL. 19

VARIETIES AND DESCRIPTION.

White Dorkings. — This variety seldom produces more than
two broods a year, because they require more favorable seasons,
and greater warmth than the colored.

The white is not so large as the colored, and, as a general rule,
whiteness in animal physiology is indicative of constitutional
delicacy. Their average weight is less than that of the colored,
and like all white feathered poultry, the flesh has a tendency to
yellowness.

The white cock and hen are perfectly white in the plumage,
bills, and legs; both should have a double or rose-comb of bright
red, though a single one is frequent, but this is considered a sign
of degeneracy. The cock is very upright and spirited in his
appearance, and his spurs are usually lower than those in other
species. The fifth toe should be well defined. The hen has no
individualities.

The Grey or Speckled Dorking Cock. — The head round,
and furnished with double or single comb, of bright red; wattles,
large and pendent; the ear-lobes almost white; hackles, a cream
white, and the feathers of the hackles dark along the centre; the
back, grey of different shades, interspersed with black; saddle
feathers, same as hackles in color; wing feathers, white, mixed
with black; the larger wing coverts, black; the lesser, brown and
yellow, shaded with white; breast and thighs, black or dark
brown; tail feathers, very dark, with a metallic lustre.

The Gre-x or Colored Hen. — Face, lighter colored than
that of the cocks; hackles, black and white; back, dark grey;
saddle and wing, grey, tipped with black; tail, almost black.
Five claws and white legs characterize both sexes.

20 POLAND FOWL.

POLAND FOWLS.

WHITE CRESTED BLACK POLISH COCK AND HEH.

The Polands are excellent layers of perfectly white and mod-
erately-sized eggs, much pointed at the smaller end. They seem
to be less inclined to sit than any other breed, and it is judicious
to put their eggs under other nurses. The chicks of both sexes,
which are hardly distinguishable for many weeks, are very or-
namental. The male bird is first distinguished by the tail remain-
ing depressed, awaiting the growth of the sickle feathers, whereas
the female carries it uprightly from the first* also, the top-knot
in the cockerels hangs more backward than in the pullets.

Their nesh is excellent, being white, tender and juicy.

During three or four years the cocks in particular increase in
size, hardihood, and beauty, different in this from fowls gener-
ally, which advance much more rapidly to their highest points

POLAND FOWL. 21

of perfection, but from which they fall away with corresponding
rapidity.

The Polands are extremely tender, and so difficult to rear, that
the eggs should not be set before the middle of May, as dampness
is fatal to them while very young; but, if they live to be adults,
no fowls are more hardy, or profitable as layers, or more delicious
for the table.

Their demerits are few, and of no serious importance. They
are not at all suited to dirty farmyards, becoming blind and
miserable with dirt. They do not lay quite so early in the year
as other tribes, and are not suited for the office of mothers and
nurses, from their great disposition to lay; and when they do sit,
they are rather unsteady and perverse. Now these objections
may be dismissed, because there is nothing to prevent the sub-
stitution of hens of other tribes for hatching, and if the Polish
hens and pullets themselves in the mean time lay eggs, there is
no loss in an economical point of view.

We have good practical authority for stating that the critical
period of their lives is from the second to the sixth month.

DESCRIPTION AND VARIETIES.

The crest of the cock is composed of straight feathers, some-
thing like those of a hackle or saddle; they grow from the centre
of the crown and fall over outside, forming a circular crest. That
of the hen is made up of feathers growing out and turning in at
the extremities, till they form a large top-knot, which should in
shape resemble a cauliflower. The comb of the cock is peculiar,
inasmuch as it is very small, scarcely any on the top of the head,
and having in front two small spirals or fleshy horns. The car-
riage is upright, and the breast more protuberant than in any
other fowl, save the Sebright bantam. The body is very round
and full, slightly tapering to the tail, which is carried erect, and

22

POLAND FOWL.

which is ample, spreading towards the extremity in the hen, and
having well defined sickle feathers in the cock. The legs should
be lead color or black, and rather short than otherwise.

The varieties among us are the Black; White; the Golden Span-
gled; and the Silver Spangled.

Black Polands. — Cock; body, neck, and tail, black, with
metallic tints of green; crest, white, with a few black feathers
at the base of the bill; comb, very small, consisting only of ^*«

ST7LTAN FOWL. 2d

or three spikes; large wattles, bright red; ear-lobe, white; the
skull, instead of being flat as in other varieties, has a fleshy pro-
tuberance or round knob.

Hen; the same colors; wattles smaller than those of the cock;
in other points the same.

"White Polands. — These should be pure white all over with
the exception of the legs which are of a blue or slate color.

Golden Spangled. — Cock; ground color, very bright ochre
yellow, black spangles, which, in a particular light, have a beau-
tiful greenish tint; crest, chestnut, with a few white feathers,
black beard; comb and wattles small; hackle and saddle feathers,
golden yellow; thigh, generally black, but some specimens have
them spangled; sickle feathers, dark brown and very large, the
smaller side ones lighter in the colors, and beautifully faced with
alack; legs, slate color.

Hens; — general colors the same; breast, neck, and back, span-
gled; tail and wing feathers, laced.

Silver Spangled. — The only difference between this variety
and the preceding one is in the ground, which is a beautiful
silver white.

The Polands very often have crooked backs; when buying
them the best mode for detecting the deformity is to lay the palm
of the right hand flat on the bird's back, by which any irregu-
larity of either hip, or a curve in the back bone from the hips to
the tail will be detected.

THE SULTAN FOWL.

The Sultans, or Feather- footed White Polish, are a very ele-
gant and pleasing variety, and were imported from Constanti-
nople. They partake of the character of the Polish in their chief

24 SULTAN FOWL.

characteristics, in compactness of form and good laying qualities.

In general habits they are brisk and happy tempered. They
are very good layers of large white eggs, but are non-sitters and
small eaters.

As adults they are very hardy, with the exception of the ten-
dency to cold, to which all crested birds are subject when ex-
posed; but the chickens, from their rapid and early feathering,
are difficult to rear, evidently suffering severely from the extra
strain oh their young constitutions.

DESCRIPTION.

In form they are .very plump, full crested, short-legged and
compact; the plumage pure and unsullied white throughout and
very abundant; their tails are ample, and carried erect; their
thighs are short, and furnished with feathers which project
beyond the joint, or vulture hocked. Their legs are short, white,
and profusely feathered to the feet, which are five toed. The
comb consists of two small spikes situated at the base of a full-
sized globular Polish crest; the wattles are small and red, wrin-
kled, both sexes being amply bearded. No fowls are more abun-
dantly decorated — full tail of sickle-feathers, abundant furnish-
ing, boots, vulture-hocks, beards, whiskers, and full round Polish
crests, formed of closely-set, silky, arched feathers, not conceal-
ing the eyes, but leaving them unobscured.

The legs, as old age approaches, are apt to get red, swollen and
inflamed, perhaps from the spur growing in a curved form and
producing irritation.

All the varieties of the Polish if kept in a damp situation are
liable to a cold, apt to degenerate into roup, and if they are too
closely bred, liable to tuberculous diseases and deformity of the
spine, causing humpback, they are also very subject to vermin

Ml/.vAY FOWL. 25

unless supplied with a sand bath; vermin, however, may bs
readily destroyed by dusting flour of sulpher under the feathers
with a common flour-dredger.

THE MALAY FOWL.

The Malay is a large heavy fowl, with close fitting plumage;
it stands very high, and has an upright carriage; height is con-
sidered a great point in this breed; the head is small for the size
of the bird, with considerable fulness over the eye, which should
be pearl, and the hawk bill should be quite free from stain. Like
the game fowl, the Malays are most pugnacious and determined
fighters, and therefore not suitable for small yards. If they can
get no other enemy they will even fight their own shadows.

The chickens fledge late, and have for a long while a bare,
wretched appearance. They require a dry, warm temperature,
as in youth, before being fully feathered, they are very delicate
and highly susceptible of cold and wet.

The Malays are good layers and sitters and after they are full
grown, ean be kept most anywhere, but on account of their
vindictive cruel nature they are by no means desirable to have
and my advice is, to have nothing to do with them.

GAME FOWL,

GAME FOWLS.

BLACK BREASTED RED GAME FOWLS.

This noble race has relationship, though now of remote gener-
ations, with the Malays. Before we had any of this breed, the
inhabitants of several portions of the Malay or Malacca peninsula,
and various parts of the East, possessed them, and used them
chiefly for the purpose of cock-fighting.

A thorough-bred Game cock of high degree never fails in
courage when opposed to one of his own order. And the Game
fowl is the only bird put to the test of combat to prove whether
he be genuine or not.

GAME FOWL. 27

There is a generally recognized standard foi* form and figure,
which must not be departed from, whatever variety of color the
birds may present. In weight they vary; four pounds eight or
ten ounces was the weight aimed at by the breeders for the cock-
pit, but six pounds is often reached, when two years old; but
beyond this weight impurity of blood may be suspected.

The carriage and form of the Game cock are certainly more
beautiful than that of any other variety of domestic fowl. The
neck is long, strong and gracefully curved; the hackle short and
very close; the breast broad; the back short, broad across the
shoulders; the whole body very firm and hard, with a perfectly
straight breast and back, the latter tapering toward the tail; the
wings large and powerful, and carried closely pressed into the
sides; the thighs strong, muscular and short, tightly clothed with
feathers, and well set forward on the body, so as to be available
for fighting; the shanks rather long, strong but not coarse, cov-
ered with fine scales; the feet flat and thin, the toes long and
spreading, so as to give a good hold on the ground; the hind toe
must be set low down, so as to rest flatly on the ground, and not
merely touch with the point — a defect which is known as "duck-
footed," and renders the bird unsteady when pushed backward
by his opponent. 0

The plumage is compact, hard and mail-like to a remarkable
degree, and possesses a brilliant glossiness that cannot be sur-
passed. The tail in the cock is rather long, the sickle feathers
gracefully arched and carried closely together, the whole tail
curved backward and not brought forward over the back — a
defect called squirrel-tailed.

The head is extremely beautiful, being thin and long, like that
of a greyhound; the beak massive at its root, strong, and well
curved; the eye large, very full, and brilliant in lustre; the ear-
lobe and face of a bright scarlet, and the comb in undubbed
birds single, erect, and thin. The spur, which is exceedingly

•imc vowl.

dense and sharp, should be set low on the leg, increasing its
power; spurs are frequently on the hens.
In the hen, the form, making due allowance for the difference

of sex and alteration of plumage, resembles that of the cock.
The head is neater, the face lean and thin. The small thin comb
should be low in front, evenly serrated, and perfectly erect.

GAME FOWL. *»

The deaf-ear and wattles should be small. The neck, from the
absence of hackle feathers, looks longer and more slender than
that of her mate. The tail feathers should be held closely
together, and not spread out like a fan. The plumage should be
so close that the form of the wing should be distinctly visible,
the outline not being hidden by the feathers of the body.

As the Game fowl is impatient of restraint, a good grass run
is essential to keep it in good condition. In breeding great? care
must be taken in matching, as regards form, feather and the
color of the beak and legs. Much depends upon the purity of
the hens, for a good Game hen, with a dunghill cock, will breed
good fighting birds, but the best Game cock, with a dunghill
hen, will not breed a bird good for anything. It is not desirable
to mate old birds; a stag, or last year's bird placed with hens
two or three years old, will produce finer chickens than when
an old cock is mated with last season's hens. For great excel-
lence, four hens with one cock is sufficient.

The hens are good layers and as sitters have no superiors.
Quiet on their eggs, regular in coming off, and confident, in their
fearlessness, of repelling intruders, they rarely fail to rear good
broods, and defend them from violent attacks.

The newly-hatched chickens are very attractive; those of the
darker breeds are light brown, with a dark brown stripe down
the back and a narrower line over the eye. The duck- wings,
grays and blues have proportionally paler hues, but the stripe is
seldom absent.

The chickens feather rapidly, and with good care and liberal,
varied diet, such as cottage cheese, chopped egg, with a portion
of onions, bread crumbs, grits, boiled oatmeal, barley and wheat,
with some milk in the earlier stages of their growth, are reared
with less difficulty than other fowls.

As Game fowls will fight, and as they are frequently trained
for fighting, it is argued that their combs, ear-lobes and wattle*

fcOMI&iQUBi FOWL.

/nouid be removed, or "dubbed." This bad best be entrusted
to the skilled professional.

VARIETIES.

The recognized varieties of Game fowls are — the Black; Black
breasted Red; White; White Pile; Blue; Brown-red; Red Pile;
Gray; Spangled; Ginger-red; Silver Duck-wing; Yellow Duck-
wing.

DOMINIQUE FOWL,

BANTAMS. 31

THE DOMINIQUE FOWL.

This seems to be a tolerable distinct and permanent variety,
about the size of the common Dunghill Fowl. Their name is
taken from the island of Dominica, from which they are reported
to have been imported. Take all in all, they are one of the very
best breeds of fowl which we have; and although they do not
come in to laying so young as the Spanish, they are far better
sitters and nursers. Their combs are generally double, and the
wattles are quite small. Their plumage presents, all over, a sort
of greenish appearance, from a peculiar arrangement of blue and
white feathers, which is the chief characteristic of the variety;
although in some specimens, the plumage is gray in both cock
and hen. They are very hardy, healthy, excellent layers and
capital sitters. No fowl have better stood the tests of mixing
without deteriorating than the pure Dominique.

SEBRIGHT BANTAM.

82 HAMBURG FOWL.

THE BANTAMS.

Bantams are generally kept more for show and amusement
chan anything else, although, even as profitable poultry they are
not destitute of merit; in proportion to the food they consume,
they furnish a fair supply of eggs. As table fowls, the hardy
little Game Bantams are excellent, plump, full chested and
meaty. As useful and ornamental pets, I know of no birds that
are superior. The Sebright Bantams are the most esteemed by
fanciers. The cocks should not weigh more than twenty-seven
ounces; hens about twenty-three, but the lighter in weight the
more they are appreciated.

The chicks of the Bantams generally should be hatched in fine
weather, and kept for some time in a cozy place.
VARIETIES.

Golden Sebright; Silver Sebright; Game; Rose-combed Black;
Rose-combed White; Japanese; Pekin; Booted White; and White-
crested White Polish.

GOLDEN SPANGLED HAMBURG COCK AND HSW-

HAMBURG FOWL.

THE HAMBURG FOWL.

These fowls are "Everlasting layers" and are seldom inclined
to sit. They are too small in size to rear for table, and I think
too delicate when young to rear at all; only they are such won-
derfully good layers, that one dislikes to dispense with them,
They are also known as Chittaprats, Bolton Greys, Pencilled
Dutch, Silver Hamburgs, Creole, Bolton Bays, Golden Ham-
burgs. They are a very noisy fowl, and if the hen-roost should
be disturbed at night, nothing but death or liberty will induce
„hem to hold the peace.

SILVER SPAITGLBD HAMBURGS.

DESCRIPTION AND VARIETIES.

The Hamburgs have a graceful and upright carriage. The
head in the cock is small; beak of a dark color, medium in size;
rose comb of a deep red color not inclining to droop on either

34 PLYMOUTH BOCKS.

side, the top covered with small points and ending in a spike;
ear-lobes, white of medium size; wattles, red; neck curved;
hackle, large and flowing; body, round; breast, very full; plu-
mage close and glossy; legs rather short. The varieties are —
Black; White; Golden Pencilled; Silver Pencilled; Golden
Spangled; Silver Spangled.

PLYMOUTH ROCKS.

"If there is a better breed for the farmer, or for those who
desire both eggs and chickens, we have failed to find it : although
many have been tried and 'found wanting.' "

^The great popularity that the Plymouth Rock fowl has attained
in so short a time, is without a parallel in the annals of gallina-
culture, and no other breed is so highly esteemed in America
to-day. It has attained this popularity, too, entirely on its own
intrinsic merit, without the eclat of foreign origin, or the outlay
of large sums of money in "puffing." As table fowls, they have
no equal in America; being exceedingly sweet, juicy, fine-grained,
tender, and delicate. As spring chickens, they are the very best
breed, for, added to the excellence of their flesh, they feather
early, and mature with remarkable rapidity. As market fowls,
they are unsurpassed, being large (cocks weigh 9 to 11 pounds,
hens 7 to 9), and very plump bod;es, with full breasts, clean,
bright yellow legs, and yellow skin; they always command the
highest price. As egg-producers, they are only excelled by the
Leghorn class, and lay more eggs than any other breed that

frLYMOtltll ROCKS. 35

hatches and rears its own young, and can be depended upon for
eggs all the year round. Their eggs are also of large size, very rich,

and fine-flavored, from white to redish-brown in color. In
hardiness, both as chicks and mature fowls, they are also

36 21YM0TJT H K06Ki.

unequaled, and being out-and-out an American breed, they adapt
themselves to all climates and situations better than any other
breed. Their combs and wattles being of moderate size, are not
liable to freeze, and they have no feathers on the lower part of
their legs to drabble in the snow and mud, and thereby chill
them. In plumage, they are bluish-gray, each feather distinctly
penciled across with bars of a darker color, hence are very
admirable, and not likely to become soiled by the smoke and
dust of the city. Added to their fine plumage, their symmetrical
form and upright and pleasing carriage enable them to vie with
most breeds, either upon the lawn, in the yard of the fancier, or
in the exhibition hall. As mothers, they are excellent, being
neither non-sitters nor persistent sitters, are kind and gentle,
and good foragers. In disposition, they are quiet, gentle, and
cheerful, bear confinement well, and are easily confined, their
wings being too small, and bodies too large to admit to much
progress in fight. If given range, they will find their own living,
and if confined, need a remarkably small amount of food for
such large fowls. In fine, this comparatively new breed com-
bines all the sturdy and excellent qualities of the ideal fowl to a
wonderful degree, (the merits of the large flesh-producing and
small egg-producing breeds,) filling a place long sought for, but
never before attained, and is a golden mean. It is pre-eminently
the farmer's and mechanics' fowl — in fact the best fowl for all
who have facilities for keeping but one variety, and desire that
one to be a "general purpose" breed.

LANGSHANS.

St

LANGSHANS,

LANGSHAN FOWL.

The Langshan is the latest acquisition to our poultry yards
from Asia, and, judging from our experience with other Asiatic
breeds, their origin certainly augers well for their future in this
country. They are natives of northern China, and consequently
accustomed to its rugged climate.

The discoverer of this variety in China was a scientist in the
employ of the British government, and not a "chicken fancier,"
particularly. Eight years ago, he wrote thus to his English
friends: "I send you some fine fowls by the steamer Archilles,
of Hall & Holt's line. They are clear black, and are called Lang-
ahcm$% Look out for their arrival and send for them without

88 LANGSgAtfS.

delay.' * * * * A second letter stated that "the fowls 1 aril
sending you are very fine. Their plumage is of a bright glossy
black. I have never seen any like them before, and I am told
their flesh is excellent. The Chinese say they are allied to the
wild turkey; they are very valuable birds. You must be very
careful of them, and get them acclimated by degrees."

These birds we sent to Major A. C. Croad, Durington Worth-
ing, England, from his nephew, who was, a few years ago, upon
an exploring expedition under orders from the English govern-
ment, in the north of China, where he discovered this fine variety
of fowls, in the province of Langshan, and sent home the first
that were ever seen in England.

Upon the arrival of the Archilles, in England, Major Croad
lost no time in sending for his birds ; and the messenger, on his
return, informed him that the new arrivals had received quite an
ovation in the docks, people crowding to have a look at them,
asking what breed they were, and whether they were for sale,
etc. The captain of the steamer told him that, although he had
been several times to china, he had never met with any fowls
like these before.

The Langshan s were publicly exhibited the next year at the
Crystal Palace and other leading shows, and were bred success-
fully for three or four years, the stock being kept under the
supervision of the agents of the original importer.

They were of late years imported to America, and our Ameri-
can fanciers speak well of them ; in fact they are the best birds
that were ever imported from China. Langshans have straight
red combs, somewhat larger than those of Cochins. Their
breast is full, broad and round, and carried well forward, being
well meated, similar to the Dorkings. Their body is round and
deep like the Brahmas. The universal color of the plumage is a
rich metallic black. The tail is long, full feathered, and of the
same color as the body. The color of their legs is a blue black,

WTANDOTTEi. W

with a purplish tint between the toes. The average weight of a
cockerel, at seven or eight months, when fattened, is about ten
pounds; and a pullet about eight pounds. Their carriage is sty-
lish and stately.

The good qualities claimed for the Langshans are the follow-
ing: They are hardy, withstanding readily even severest weather.
They attain maturity quite as early as any of the large breeds.
They lay large, rich eggs all the year round, and are not inveter -
ate sitters. Being of large size, with white flesh and skin, thejr?
make an excellent table fowl; more especially so on account o'f
the delicacy of the flavor which the flesh possesses. To brieflj'
summarize, I may then say that this breed is worth the attention
of all. Firstly, because they come from a part of the world
which has given us many of our most excellent breeds; and
secondly, because their popularity is in the ascendency, and they
seem to combine in themselves nearly all the valuable charac-
teristics that go to make up a practically useful fowl.

1 give in connection with this article a wood-cut of a pair of
Langshans, believing that a faithful illustration will do more
to give an accurate idea than even an extended description. It
will be observed that, apparently, they are more like the Black
Cochin than any other breed with which we are familiar, but
in reality they differ very essentially from them.

WYANDOTTES.

This new breed have so many points to recommend them, both
to the fancier and farmer, that they will surely becotae v*rf

40 WTANDOTTES.

popular. 'Kiiir plumage is white, heavily laced, with black*
the tail alone being solid black; the lacing on the breast
is peculiarly handsome. They have a small rose comb, close-

THE WTANDOTTES.

fitting; face and ear lobes bright red. Their legs are
free from feathers and are of a rich yellow color.* In shape
they bear more resemblance to the Dorkings than any other

LEGHORN FOWL. 41

breed. Hens weigh 8 to 9 pounds, cocks 9 to 10 pounds, when
full grown. They are very hardy, mature early, and are ready
to market at any age. Their flesh is very fine flavored and close
grained, which, with their yellow skin, model shape and fine,
plump appearance, particularly adapts them for market. They
are extraordinary layers, surprising every breeder at the quan-
tity of eggs they produce. If allowed to sit they make most
careful mothers, are content anywhere, and will not attempt to
fly over a fence four feet high. Their great beauty and good
qualities will make for them a host of friends wherever the breed
is introduced.

THE LEGHORN FOWL.

ROSE COMB BROWN LEGHORN.

42

LEGHORN FOWL.

This abmirable breed of fowls has become widely disseminated
in the United States. They are valued for their many good
qualities, among which are beauty and constant laying propensi-
ties.

BROWN LEGHORN COCK.

They are very hardy fowls, possessing all the advantages of
the Spanish without their drawbacks. Their legs are bright
yellow, and perfectly free from feathering on the shanks. The
faces are red, the ear lobes only being white. The comb in the
cock is thin, erect and evenly serrated. In the hen it falls over
like that of a Spanish hen. The tail in the cock is exceedingly
well furnished with side sickle-feathers, and in both sexes is
carried perfectly erect. The birds are active, good foragers,

LEGHORN FOWL. 43

jnd have a very handsome and sprightly carriage. They are
abundant layers of full sized eggs, the hens rarely showing any
inclination to sit, but laying the whole year round, except during
the annual month. The chickens are very hardy; they feather
quickly and mature rapidly, thus having the advantage over the
Spanish.

BROWN LEGHORN HEN.

These fowls are exceedingly useful as well as ornamental
addition to our stock of poultry; they are more valuable to egg-
farmers than breeders of table fowls, as they are but small eaters
and so do not put on flesh quickly. To people, however, who
depend on their poultry bringing them a constant supply of eggs,
they are invaluable.

44 French breeds,

LEGHORN VARIETIES.

Black; White; Brown, and Dominique**

LEGHORN FOWL.

THE FRENCH BREEDS.

Crevecceurs. — These birds are generally supposed to be of
Norman origin, and to owe their name to the little village of
Crevecceurs, not far from Lisieux. They are fine, well plumaged

FRENCH BREEDS. 45

black birds, with large crests on their heads, in the front of which
are situated the two horns, or spikes, which arise from the
bifurcation of the comb. They give the bird a very curious
look, and make his head resemble the pictures of that of his
Satanic majesty. The birds are well shaped, with rather large
legs of a leaden grey color. The hens lay large white eggs,
but are not good sitters. The pullets mature early, and as they
lay soon, put on fat readily, and are of a good shape for table ;
they are, in dry warm localities, profitable fowls to keep; they
bear confinement well, but are rather difficult to rear, and have
a decided tendency to "roup.,' If crossed with Brahmas or
Leghorns they might probably become more hardy.

LA FLECHE FOWLS.

These birds may be considered, I think, the best of the
French fowls for table ; they are also more hardy than the
Crevecceurs, and have more size and more style, being
handsome, upstanding birds, in color jet black, with rich, me-
tallic plumage; their ear lobes are large and perfectly white,
their faces bright red and free from feathers. The comb in
good well-bred birds does not vary with the sex, and is in the
shape of a pair of straight horns; the leg-scales are lead color,
hard and firm. The cocks are tall without being at all leggy;
the hens have large and rather long bodies, longish necks, and
thin clean legs. The best specimens come from the North of
France, though they are not even there easy to procure, as the
French do not go in for keeping the different breeds of fowls
distinct, so it is hard to obtain really pure-bred birds.

46 FRENCH BREEDS.

HOUDANS.

HOUDAN COCK AND HEN.

These are considered the best French fowls, and of late years

have become great favorites with poultry-fanciers. They have,

like the Dorkings, five claws on each foot ; their plumage is black

and white, shaded with violet and green ; they are crested birds,

the crest turning backwards over the neck ; their cheeks are well

feathered, and wattles well developed. They differ from other

species by several remarkable traits, the head forms a very

obtuse angle with the neck, so that the beak is depressed and

t
viewed from above appears like a nose. The flat square comb

looks like a fleshy forehead; the cheeks are surrounded with

curling feathers which resemble whiskers; the reversed corners

of the beak have the appearance of a mouth. The crest looks

like a head of hair, and the entire visage instantly reminds the

spectator of a man's face.

DOMESTIC TURKEY. 47

Houdans are hardy, not difficult to rear good steady layers,
but non-sitters ; they put on fat readily, and are very good table
fowls, flesh excellent and shapely in form.

THE DOMESTIC TURKEY.

DOMESTIC TURKEY.

The domestic turkey can scarcely be said to be divided, like
the common fowl, into distinct breeds ; although there is consi-
derable variation in color, as well as in size. The finest and

48 DOMESTIC TURKEY.

strongest birds are those of a bronzed-black ; these are not oMj
reared the most easily, but are generally the largest, and fatten
the most rapidly. Some turkeys are of a coppery tint, some of a
delicate fawn-color, while others are parti-colored, grey, and
white, and some few of a pure snow white. All of the latter
are regarded as inferior to the black, their color indicating some-
thing like degeneracy of constitution.

To describe the domestic turkey is superfluous; the voice of
the male; the changing colors of the skin of the head and neck;
his proud strut, with expanded tail and lowered wings, jarring
on the ground; his irascibility, which is readily excited by red
or scarlet colors, are points with which all who d*rell in the
country are conversant.

The adult turkey, is extremely hardy, and bears the rigors of
winter with impunity even in the open air; for during the
severest weather, flocks will frequently roost at night upon the
roof of a barn, or the branches of tall trees, preferring such an
accommodation to an indoor roost. The impatience of restraint
and restlessness of the turkey, render it unfit company for fowls
in their domitory; in fact the fowl house is altogether an im-
proper place for these large birds, which require open sheds and
high perches, and altogether as much freedom as is consistent
with their safety.

Although, turkeys will roost even during the winter months
on trees, it is by no means recommended that this should be
allowed, as the feet of these birds are apt to become frostbitten
from such exposure to the air on the sudden decline of the tem-
perature far below the freezing point.

Turkeys are fond of wandering about pastures, and the borders
of fields; or in fact any place where they can find insects, snails,
slugs, etc., which they greedily devour. In the morning, they
should have a good supply of grain, and after their rerurn from
their peregrinations another feed; by this plan, not only wiil the

DOMESTIC TUHKET 49

due return home of the flock be insured, but the birds will be
kept in good condition, and ready at any time to be put upon
fattening diet. Never let them be in poor condition — this is an
axiom in the treatment of all poultry — it is difficult, and takes a
long time, to bring a bird into proper condition, which has been
previously poorly fed or half starved.

The turkey hen is a steady sitter ; nothing will induce her to
leave the nest; indeed, she often requires to be removed to her
food, so overpowering is her instinctive affection; she must be
freely supplied with water within her reach; should she lay any
eggs after she has commenced incubation, these should be
removed — it is proper, therefore, to mark those which were
given to her to sit upon. The hen should now on no account, be
rashly disturbed; no one except the person to whom she is accus-
tomed, and from whom she receives her food, should be allowed
to go near her, and the eggs, unless circumstances imperatively
require it, should not be meddled with.

The hen usually sits twice in the year, after laying from a
dozen to fifteen or more eggs, on alternate days, or two days in
succession, with the interval of one day afterwards, before each
breeding. She commences her first laying in March; and if a
second early laying is desired, after she has hatched her brood,
it is economical to transfer the chicks immediately after they
leave the shell to another turkey-hen which had begun to incu-
bate contemporaneously with her, and will now take willing
charge of the two young families. This, however, cannot be
viewed as a benevolent proceeding; and much less so if the
mother be deprived of her offspring, and the consequent pleas-
ure of rearing them, for the purpose of putting a fresh set of
eggs under her, which 'she will steadily hatch for three or four
weeks more. In this case, however, fowls' eggs are usually
given, from merciful consideration to abridge the period of incu-
bation from thirty-one to twenty-one days.

50 DOMESTIC TURKEY.

According to the size of the hen, the season, and the range
local temperature, the number of eggs for each hatch may be
stated at from eleven to seventeen; thirteen is a fair average
number. As the hen lays them, her eggs should be immedi-
ately removed, and kept apart until the time for sitting them;
else the awkward bird might break them in the nest, as she
goes in or out of it. While she is incubating, the cock bird
should not be permitted to approach it, lest he should mischiev-
ously break the eggs or disturb the hen.

On about the thirtieth day, the chicks leave the eggs; the
little ones for some hours will be in no hurry to eat; but when
they do begin, supply them constantly and abundantly with
chopped eggs, shreds of meat and fat, curd, boiled rice, mixed
with lettuce, and the green of onions. Melted mutton suet
poured over barley or Indian-meal dough, and cut up when cold
is an excellent thing. Little turkeys do not like their food to be
minced much smaller than they can swallow it; indolently pre-
ferring to make a meal at three or four mouthfuls to troubling
themselves with the incessant pecking and scratching in which
chickens so much delight. But at any rate, the quantity con-
sumed costs but little ; the attention to supply it is everything.

As in the case of young fowls, the turkey chicks do not require
food for several hours after they have emerged from their shells.

It is useless to cram tnem as some do, fearing lest they should
starve; and besides, the beak is as yet so tender that it runs a
chance of being injured by the process. There is no occasion
for alarm if, for thirty hours, they content themselves with the
warmth of their parent and enjoy her care. When the chicks
feel an inclination for food, it will soon become apparent to you
by their actions, then feed them as I have before directed.

FATTENING.

▲bout the middle of September or the first of October, it will

DOMESTIC TUKKET. 5*

be time to begin to think of fattening some of the earliest broods,
in order to supply the markets. A hen will be four or five weeks
in -fatting; a large cock two months or longer, in reaching his
sill weight. The best diet is barley or Indian meal, mixed with
water, given in troughs that have a flat board over them, to keep
dirt from falling in. A turnip with the leaves attached, or a
hearted cabbage, may now and then be thrown down to amuse
them. When they have arrived at the desired degree of fatness,
those which are not wanted for immediate use must have no
more food given them than is just sufficient to keep them in
that state; otherwise the flesh will become red and inflamed,
and of course less palatable and wholesome. But with the very
best management, after having attained their acme of fattening,
they will frequently descend again, and that so quickly, and
without apparent cause, as to become quite thin. Turkeys fatten
faster, and with less expense, by caponizing them, which, also,
produces better and sweeter flesh.

Ml

THE GUINEA FOWL.

THE GUINEA FOTTL.

Of all known birds, this, perhaps is the most prolific of eggs.
Week after week and month after month see little or no inter-
mission of the daily deposit. Even the process of moulting is
sometimes insufficient to draw off the nutriment the creature
takes to make feathers instead of eggs. From their great apti-
tude for laying, and also from the very little disposition they show
to sit, it is believed, that these birds in their native country,
(Africa) do not sit at all on their eggs, , but leave them to be
hatched by the sun.

It is not every one who knows a cock from a hen of this
species. An unerring rule is, that the hen alone uses the call
note "come back,'.' "come back," accenting the gecond syllable

©TJTWEA FOWL. 08

•trongly. The cock has only the harsh shrill cry of alarm,
which, however, is also common to the female.

There is one circumstance, in regard to the hahits of the guinea
cock, that is, he pairs only with his mate in most cases, like a
partridge or a pigeon. In the case where a guinea cock and two
hens are kept, it will be found, on close observation, that though
the three keep together so as to form one pack, yet that the cock
and one hen will be unkind and stingy to the other unfortunate
female, keep her at a certain distance, merely suffering her
society. The neglected hen will lay eggs, in appearance, like
those of the other, in the same nest. If they are to be eaten, all
well and good; but if a brood is wanted and the eggs of the
despised one chance to be taken for the purpose of hatching, the
result is disappointment and addled eggs.

It is best to hatch the eggs of the guinea fowl under a hen of
some other species; a Bantam hen makes a first class mother,
being lighter, and less likely to injure the eggs by treading on
them than a full sized fowl. She will well cover nine eggs, and
incubation will last about a month.

Feed the chicks frequently, five or six times a day is not too
often, they have such extraordinary powers of digestion, and
their growth is so rapid, that they require food every two hours.
A check once received can never be recovered. In such cases
they do not mope and pine, for a day or two, like young turkeys
under similar circumstances and then die ; but in half an hour after,
being in apparent health, they fall on their backs, give a convul-
sive kick or two, and fall victims to starvation. Hard-boiled
egg, chopped fine, small worms, bread crumbs, chopped meat,
or suet, whatever, in short, is most nutritious, is their most
appropriate food,

64

DOMESTIC GOOSE.

THE DOMESTIC GOOSE.

THE DOMESTIC GOOSE.

With respect to the range and accommodation of geese, they
require a house apart from other fowls, and a green pasture,
with* a convenient pond or stream of water attached. The house
must he situated in a dry place, for geese at all times, are fond
of a clean, dry place to sleep in, however much they may like to
swim in water. It is not a good method to keep geese with other
poultry; for when confined in the poultry-yard, they hecom every
pugnacious, and will very much harrass the hens and turkeys.

In allowing geese to range at large, it is well to know that they
are very destructive to all garden and farm crops, as well as to

DOMESTIC GOOSE. 55

young trees, and must, therefore, be carefully excluded from
orchards and cultivated fieldsi It is usual to prevent them get-
ting through the gaps in fences, by hanging a stick or "yoke"
across their breast.

Those who breed geese, generally assign one gander to four or
five females. When well fed, in a mild climate, geese will lay
twice or three times a year, from five to twelve eggs each time,
and some more, that is, when they are left to their own way; but
if the eggs be carefully removed as soon as laid, they may be
made, by abundant feeding,' to lay from twenty to fifty eggs
without intermitting. They begin to lay early in the spring,
usually in March, and it may be known when an individual is
about to lay, by her carrying about straws to form her nest with;
but, sometimes, she will only throw them about.

When a goose is observed to keep her nest longer than usual,
after laying an egg, it is a pretty sure indication that she is
desirous of sitting. The nest for hatching should be made of
clean straw, lined with hay, and from fourteen to eighteen eggs
will be as many as a large goose can conveniently cover. She sits
about one month, and requires to have food and water placed
near her, that she may not be so long absent as to allow the eggs
to cool. The most economical way of getting a great number of
goslings, is to employ turkey hens to hatch, and keeping the
goose well fed she will continue laying.

Goslings must be kept from cold and rain as much as pos-
sible. Feed them on barley or Indian meal or crusts of bread
soaked in milk.

VARIETIES.

African; Toulouse; Embden; Egyptian; White Chinese; Brown
Chinese.

PUCK.

THE DUCK.

MUSCOVY DUCK.

It is not in all situations that Ducks can be kept with advan-
tage; they require water much more, even, than the goose; they
are no grazers, yet they are hearty feeders. Nothing comes
amiss to them in the way of food: green vegatable*; kitchen
scraps; meal of all sorts made into a paste; grains; bread; worms;
insects; all are accepted with eagerness. Their appetite is not at
all fastidious; in fact they eat most everything, and eat all they
oan. They never need cramming, give them enough, and they
will cram themselves; but remember, confinement will not do
for them; they must have room, and plenty of it, also a large

DUCK. 5fr

pond or stream, if you have these requirements they can be kept
at little expense.

Where they have much extent of water or shrubbery to roam
over, they should be looked after and driven home at night, and
provided with proper houses or pens; otherwise they are liable
to lay and sit abroad. As they usually lay either at night, or
very early in the morning, it is a good way to secure their eggs,
to confine them during the period when they must lay, a circum-
stance easily ascertained by feeling the vent.

COMMON DUCK.

The duck is not naturally disposed to incubate, but in order
to induce her to do so, you may, towards the end of the laying,
leave two or three eggs in the nest, taking care every morning
to take away the oldest laid, that they may not be spoiled.
When she shows a desire to sit, from eight to ten eggs may ba

58 DUCK.

given according to the size of the duck, and her ability to oover
them. The duck requires some care when she sits; for as she
cannot go to her food, attention must be paid to place it before
her; and she will be content with it, whatever be its quality; it
has been remarked that when ducks are too well fed, they will not
«it well. The period of incubation is about thirty days.

WILD DUCK.

The duck is apt to let her eggs get cold, when she hatches
and many thereby are lost, this together with the fact of her
often leading the ducklings into the water immediately after
they are excluded from the shell and thus losing many if the
weather is cold, often induces poultry keepers to have duck eggs
hatched by hens or turkey hens; and being more assiduous than
ducks, these borrowed mothers take an affection for the young,
to watch over, which requires great attention because as these
are unable to accompany them on the water, for which they show
the greatest propensity as soon as they are excluded, they follow
the mother hen on dry land, and get a little hardy before they
are allowed to take to the water without any guide.

The best mode of rearing ducklings depends very much upon
the situation in which they are hatched. For the first month,

&trcx. *■ 6§

the confinement of their mother, under a coop is better than too
much liberty. All kinds of sopped food, buckwheat flour, Indian
or barley meal and water mixed thin, worms, &c, suit them.

"When ducklings have been hatched under a common hen, or
a turkey hen and have at last been allowed to go into the water,
it is necessary, to prevent accidents, to take care that such duck-
lings come regularly home every evening; but precautions must
be taken before they are permitted to mingle with the old ducks
lest the latter ill-treat and kill them, though ducks are by no
means so pugnacious and jealous of new-comers as common fowls
uniformly are.

VARIETIES.

Rouen Ducks. — The flesh is abundant and of good flavor; good
specimens will dress from five to seven pounds each.

Aylesbury Ducks. — These are considered the most valuable
of the English breeds and is well thought of in this country.
They are good layers, but do not weigh quite as much as the
Rouen breed.

Cayuga Ducks — These are the finest of the American breeds,
they are also the largest and most valuable of the duck family.
They weigh generally from eight to ten pounds, are good layers,
and easily raised.

The other varieties are the Mandarin; Carolina; Muscovy; Call
Duck; Black East India.

The duck is peculiarly the poor man's bird (its hardihood ren-
ders it so entirely independant of that care which fowls perpet-
ually require) ; and indeed of all those classes of persons in humble
life, who have sloppy offal of some sort left from their meals,
and who do not keep a pig to consume it. Ducks are the best
save-waste for them; even the refuse of potatoes, or any other
vegetables will satisfy a duck, which thankfully accepts, and
with a degree of good virtue which it is pleasant to contemplate,

60 bVCK.

swallows whatever is presented to it, and very rarely occasions*
trouble. Though fowls must be provided with a roof and a
decent habitation, and supplied with corn, which is costly, the
cottage garden waste, and the snails and slugs which are gener-
ated there, with the kitchen scraps and offal, furnish the hardy
ducks with the means of subsistence. And at night they require
no better lodgings than a nook in an open shed; if a house be
expressly made for them, it need not necessarily be more than
a few feet in height, nor of better materials than rough boards
and clay mortar, a door being useless, unless to secure them
from thieves.

m m m»

POINTS OF POULTE?.

POINTS OF POULTRY.

A— Neck hackle. 5— Saddle hackle. C— Tail. D— Breast.
1& — Upper "Wing coverts. F— Lower Wing coverts. O — Pri-
mary quills. i£— Thighs. J— Legs. K— Comb. L — Wattles.
Jf— Ear-lobe.

MCTiQNAK*.

Dictionary of Poultry Terms.

Beard. — A bunch of feathers under the throat of some breeds,
as Houdans or Polish.

Breed. — Any variety of fowl presenting distinct characteris-
tics.

Brood. — The number of birds hatched at once; a family of
young chickens.

Broody. — "When the hen desires to sit she is said to be
broody.

Carriage. — The upright attitude or bearing of a fowl.

Carunculated. — Having a fleshy excrescence or protuber-
ances, as on the neck of a turkey-cock.

Chick. — A very young fowl.

Chicken. — A name applied to fowls until they are full grown.

Clutch. — The eggs placed under a sitting hen, also the brood
hatched therefrom.

Cockerel. — A young cock.

Cock. — The full grown male bird.

Comb. — The crest or red fleshy tuft growing on top of a
fowl's head.

Crest. — A top-knot of feathers, as on the head of the Polands.

Crop. — The first stomach of a fowl, through which the food
must pass before the process of digestion begins.

Deaf-ears. — Folds of skin hanging from the true ears, vary
ing in color.

Dubbing. — To cut off the comb, wattles, &c, leaving the head
smooth.

Ear Lobes. — Folds of skin hanging from the ears.

DICTIONARY. 83

Face.— The bare skin extending from the top of the bill
around the eyes.

Flight-feathers. — The primary wing feathers, used in
flying.

Fluffs. — The downy feathers around the thighs.

Gills. — A term sometimes applied to the wattles; the flap
that hangs below the beak.

Hackles. — The peculiar narrow feathers on a fowl's neck.

Hen-feathered. — A cock, which owing to the absence of
sickle feathers resembles a hen ,

Henny. — The same as hen-feathered.

Hock.— The elbow joint of the leg.

Keel. — The breast bone.

Leo. — The shank.

Leo-feathers. — Feathers growing on the outside of the
shank.

Mossy. — Uncertain marking.

Pea-comb. — A tripple comb.

Penciling. — Small stripes running over a feather.

Poult. — A young turkey.

Primaries. — The same as flight-feathers.

Pullet.— A young hen.

Rooster. — A word used in the United States to designate the
male fowl; generally called cock.

Saddle. — The posterior of the back, the feathers that cover it
are termed saddle-feathers.

Secondaries. — The quill-feathers of the wing, which show
when the fowl is at rest.
Shank. — The leg.

Sickle-feathers. — The upward curving feathers of a cock's
tail.

Spangled. — Spots on each feather of a different color from
that of the ground color of the feather.

64 DICTIONARY.

Spur.— A sharp bone protruding from the heel of a cock.

Strain.— A race of fowls that has been bred for years un-
mixed with other breeds.

Tail-coverts. — The curved feathers at the sides of the bottom
of the tail.

Tail-feathers.— The straight feathers of the tail.

Thighs. — The upper part of the shanks.

Top-knot. — The same meaning as crest.

Trio. — One cock and two hens.

Vulture-hock. — Stiff projecting feathers at the hock-joint.

Wattles. — The red fleshy excrescence that grows under the
throat of a cock or a turkey.

Wing-bar. — A dark line across the middle of the wing.

Wing-coverts. — The feathers covering the roots of the second*
ary quills.

POULTRY-KEEPING.

POULTRY-KEEPING.

Any person who takes up poultry-keeping should have some
end in view; should either keep fowls for showing and prize-
taking, or for laying and fattening. Fowls for domestic use and
fowls for exhibition are two totally different things, and call for
entirely different methods of treatment.

In this small book I wish to adhere as much as possible to the
business of poultry-keeping on a small scale within the means
of all people living in the country, and having a little ground of
their own.

If there is a farm-yard to fall back on, and the birds are not
kept by themselves, but are allowed to run with the other in-
mates of that yard, having a hen-house in which to roost, lay,
and sit, then your cares are reduced to a minimum. As all who
might and should keep poultry, have, however, no farm, but only
a garden and a plot of ground, I will not say any more about
the old farmyard system, but suppose that the fowls have to be
kept on a small scale without the foregoing advantages. Much
depends on the purpose for which fowls are kept, if for show
and prize-taking, or merely for domestic uses, for table and for

If for show, then the different breeds must be kept thoroughly
pure, entirely distinct, and great attention given to points
generally. A higher class of fowl must be purchased in the
first instance; the diet must be more generous, size being a great
point with judges; and the whole business of poultry-keeping is

(J6 POULTRY-KEEPING.

placed on a more costly footing, and becomes an expensive and
but rarely a remunerative amusement; whereas in merely keep-
ing a small stock of fowls for table use — the first and original
outlay of purchase and house-building overcome — you should,
and can easily, have, with a little trouble, a small profit each
month after the necessary food is paid for.

I have done both myself: kept fowls for general use — ordinary
common birds, mostly cross-bred — and kept purely-bred birds to
show, and I have no hesitation in saying that the former is the
best plan, unless, of course, you are a poultry fancier and have
money enough to allow you to indulge your mania for prize birds;
then, with highly-bred stock, you may look to the sale of eggs
and the taking of prizes to, in a measure, recoup you for your
outlay. I was fairly successful with the high-class birds I
purchased, and got good prices for the sitting of eggs I sold, as
also for the birds themselves when I parted with them; but I
cannot honestly say I consider the keeping up of select and dis-
tinct sorts is worth the trouble it entails — that is, if you do the
work of looking after them yourself. Mine, I know — I
could not afford to keep a poultry-man — led me a sad
dance. I was always in trouble with them; they had separate
houses and runs, but unless I was near while the different sorts
were having their outing there was sure to be some disturbance*
a fight between the cocks through the bars and netting, and this
very likely occurred just before I wanted to show one of them,
when featherless heads and wounded bleeding combs would be
the result; and the hens too were nearly as pugilistic. Some one
will probably remark, " Mismanagement." Possibly; but I had
not all the proper arrangements a regular prize poultry-breeder
would have, and even in the very best regulated poultry-yards
accidents will, we know, occur, and so these creatures were a
perpetual torment to me.

POULTRY-KEEPING. 67

And when, after an interval of some years, I began poultry-
keeping again, I started on an entirely different plan and on a
very small scale. It is from my experience then gained that I
offer the following hints to those living in the country who wish
to keep poultry and yet do not mean to incur much expense in
so doing.

For general use I would say do not keep entirely to pure-bred
birds, but mix them with others; a good cross-breed is often
more desirable than a really pure breed; not only are the fowls
resulting from the cross stronger and less likely to become sickly
and degenerate, but you can, by a judicious selection in the cross
you allow, counteract many of the qualities you do not consider
quite desirable.

BEST BREEDS FOR MARKET.

I do not believe there are any better market fowl, all things
considered than the Langshans, next comes the Brahmas. The
Dorkings are a superior table fowl, but are tender and hard to
rear.

EGG PRODUCERS.

The Black Spanish; Polands; Houdans and Hamburgs i* tJl
inveterate layers; but the Black Spanish and Hamburg* are

68 POULTRY-KEEPING.

rather tender, and more fit for the fancier than for the practical
man. For a desirable "all round" breed, I should recommend
the Plymouth Rocks. At any rate I have described the different
breeds, given you their good and bad points, and you may take
your choice.

SORTS FOR SMALL YARDS.

If you have only a limited space to allow for your birds, do not
keep too many at first. Possibly, as you find your poultry
answer, you may wish to considerably increase your stock, and
so will have to enlarge your premises, which by that time you
may be able to do; besides, you will have gained experience
during the time you have been looking after a limited number,
and will have learned many things respecting the nature of fowls,
their habits, diseases, constitutions, and general characteristics,
of which before you were entirely ignorant.

My own opinion is, I own, entirely against a very large poultry-
farm. I should always prefer having a small one under my own
immediate eye to possessing a quantity of birds and being obliged
to keep a man or woman to look after them.

If people want to lose money by poultry let them mass them in
numbers, and they will soon gain the desired result. If, on the
contrary, they will be content with modest profits, and patiently
turn over pennies instead of expecting to turn over dollars, then
let them keep poultry on a small scale, attend to them themselevs,

POULTRY-KEEPING. 69

spare no pains or trouble in looking after and thoroughly under-
standing the requirements of their stock, and they need not
fear but that the result will be satisfactory.

To buy pens, nests, rent land, pay a man to look after the
stock, waste money in sundries and expensive food, buy useless
items, and hand over all trouble to subordinates, is not the way
to make poultry pay.

"While, on the other hand, to look after a little poultry-yard
yourself, to vary the food by economising all kitchen refuse,
buying up cargo rice and second-class grain — which is really
quite good enough for fowls, and better suited to them than very
good barley, oats, or wheat — never to allow food to be wasted,
nor to keep an old and useless stv,ck, is the way to insure certain
small profits, if those will content you.

In trying to grasp too much you stand a chance of losing even
more than the original outlay. A great many people, who have
now little plots of ground suitable for fowls, but standing empty,
are deterred from keeping poultry by the idea that it is so expen-
sive a proceeding, and that they will eventually be out of pocket
by it. So they will, certainly, if they commence on too large a
scale; but if they began with a dozen or two dozen fowls, and
and kept the original stock down to that number, only allowing
the chickens for killing during the season, and pullets for laying
to swell the numbers each year, then we should hear less about
poultry expenses, and more about eggs and chickens.

Now with regard to commencing operations. Brahmas, Leg-
horns, Plymouth Rocks and Langshans are the fowls I should
keep. Brahmas as winter layers, good sitters, and good mothers;
Plymouth Rocks as good all round, and Langshans are especially
for table.

The number of hens I would allow to each cock would be;
Leghorns, twelve hens to each cock; Brahmas, eight hens to one
cock; Plymouth Rocks, six hens to one cock; Langshans, six
hens to one cock.

?0 KRST OtPKA*.

THE FIRST OUTLAY.

If you have an adaptable outhouse, which can, with a little
contrivance and a little money spent on it, be turned into a fowl-
house, you are indeed lucky, for you will then for a few dollars,
say fifteen at the outside, be able to fit it with perches and nests,
and see to the flooring, roofing and ventilation.

Your nests, of strong wickerwork or straw, will not cost you
more than 25 cents each. You should have twelve at first.
You can easily have more if you want them for sitting purposes,
but you certainly will not require a nest for each hen. An old
saucepan for cooking the food your kitchen will probably sup-
ply. Your water-pans should be of common strong yellow
stoneware.

If you have no run, you must inclose one with wire, and this
will be rather expensive; but your fowls, if they are to be kept
in a certain degree of confinement, must have exercise, so a run'
or yard is an absolute necessity.

You should have a door in the run, at one of the ends adjoin-
ing the house, and a door besides in the house itself, with an
opening in it, closed by a slide, for the fowls to go in and out as
they like.

In the run must b» the sheltered place for the dust-bath and
ior tne "birds to run under in case of rain. {See "Houses am*

FIRST OUTLAY. 71

Yards.") This inclosure I should not have covered at the top.

The height of three rows of wire, one on top of the other — i.
«., 72 inches — will be quite high enough to prevent heavy birds
getting out over; and the Hamburghs, who are by nature great
roamers, must have their wings clipped; it will not improve their
appearance, but, as they are not kept for showing, that will not
much matter. The wire netting you will be able to fix yourself
with a little help, unless you are lone women in the house, in
which case you will have to get some man who is clever at doing
odds and ends of work to help you.

It is a fatal error to cramp fowls. Better far to have a small
healthy family of poultry than a large sickly one. If a few birds
are well locked after and made comfortable they will be more
likely to pay than a number badly kept and allowed too little
room.

If from want of space or want of money you can only keep a
few fowls, do not be discouraged. A cock and a couple or three
or four hens will not eat much, but on the principle of " every
little helps" the eggs and two or three broods of chickens from
them in the year will be something; they will give you amusement
in looking after them, and if you do not sell but merely eat the
eggs and the chickens, they will help out the household bills and
pay for the extra food you will require ; for with only three or
four birds, household scraps, if carefully economised, and a little
grain daily, will be quite enough to keep them healthy.

There are a great number of poultry-books, and very excellent
ones too; but most of them are written with the object of instruc-
ting would-be poultry-keepers in the method of keeping a large
number of fowls, but few hints being given to people who can
only afford to keep a few, and those not for exhibition and show,
but really for use. It is, however just these small poultry-keep-
ers we want to see multiplied in America, for until poultry-
keeping becomes a national industry — which it cannot unless

72 FIRST OUTLAY.

taken up by the million — so long will the money which should
be kept in the country be sent out of it for eggs and chickens,
more particularly for the former articles.

Poultry-farming on a large scale has been tried often in America,
of late years more especially, but hitherto it has not proved very
successful; it does not do so, though, in other countries. When
fowls are massed they become unhealthy; this has been proved
very frequently. It is not poultry-farming on an extensive plan,
however, that I advocate, but general fowl-keeping. I would
wish to see every laborer with his few fowls, making a little
extra money by the eggs and chickens they produce. To do this,
however, profitably there must be thrift, and in this valuable
quality I fear the Americans as a nation are found wanting. Our
cooking is by no means good or economical; this is a well-known
fact. "Where a French peasant's wife will set her husband down
to appetising food, be it only a tasty potage, an American mecha-
nic's wife will put before hers ill-cooked food costing far more, but
less nourishing from the fact of its being so badly dressed. Here
is a decided want of thrift. So in poultry-keeping, peasants in
France keep a cock and a few hens as a matter of course, but
feed them very economically on household and garden scraps,
various odds and ends, and so make them not only pay their
way, but help in the housekeeping besides. Unfortunately we
as a nation do not care to trouble over small matters, or attend
to the merest details, as the French do ; yet it is just this atten-
tion to trifles which makes poultry-keeping on a small scale pay.

It is far better to attend to everything yourself — in fact, unless
you have plenty of money and can have an experienced man or
woman to look after your stock, you must do so. Leave nothing
undone for the comfort of your birds, and go through your daily
work in your poultry-yard regularly and methodically.

BOUSES AND YARD*.

HOUSES AND YARDS.

If you have to build a fowl-house it need not be in any way
an expensive erection. Let it be, if possible, built on to an
outside wall of the house, say with its back to the kitchen or
greenhouse, in such a position as to insure some degree of
warmth to the inmates. Let the floor be dry, the roof weather-
tight, and the ventilation good, and your fowls will be sure to
do well in it. The cheapest material to make it of would be
rough oocvrds. The roof can also be boarded, only in that case it
should be covered with felt. The holes for ventilation should be
so placed that the birds feel no cold air on them while roosting.
Such a house should measure at least eight feet square, and the
roof should. slope from about seven to five feet. The door should
lock, and a trap-door should be made in it for the hens to go in
and out at will: this trap-door should be a sliding one, and easily
closed when required, at night being always kept shut for fear
of foxes, cats, &c.

Perches should be round poles, not less than four or five inches
in diameter, and should not be set too high up — an error into
which many people fall. Three feet from the ground is quite
high enough for the most elevated perch, and there should be
others lower, two and a half feet and two feet from the ground

If perches are too high, heavy fowls cannot fly up to them with
ease, and in descending are certain in time to injure themselves,
bending or breaking the breastbone and injuring their feet.

The floor should not be of brick, stone, or wood, but of beaten

74 HOUSES AND YARDS.

earth well battened down until it presents a perfectly smooth,
hard surface, which should be swept out carefully daily and
sanded or sprinkled with fine sifted ashes. If, however, you
have to build a house for your birds, there being no outhouse
you can turn into a fowl-house, then you might prepare a floor
of either chalk battened down until quite hard, the ground being
dug out to the depth of a foot and filled in with the chalk, over
which should be spread sifted ashes or sand ; or else fill in the
space dug out with burnt clay, also thoroughly rammed down
and spread over with a wet mass of cinders, fine gravel, quick-
lime, and water; this when dry forms a very good floor.

The nests should be arranged so that they are screened from
view and darkened, not placed high up for the same reason as
before given with regard to the perches, and they should have a
ledge in front of them for the hen to step on before going into
her nest or on leaving it, else in flying down eggs are frequently
dragged out and broken in the fall; and if chickens are hatched
high up they are liable to creep out of the nest, fall down, and
die. Soft straw is the best lining for nests, as it does not harbor
insects so much as hay. It should he frequently changed unless
hens are sitting, and then it is best not to disturb the hen, or she
may forsake her nest. Nest-eggs of stone or china are easily
procured, and should be kept. Many hens will not lay in a nest
unless there is an egg already in it, and will forsake a nest they
have been laying in if all the eggs are removed. Some people
leave in the nest an ordinary egg, but this plan is most objection-
able; it imparts to the nest a musty smell, and gives also a taste
of must to those fresh eggs which are laid in it, and which,
though really fresh in themselves, have thus a disagreeable odor
and taste, quite leading one to suppose that they were stale.
This is the reason why so many eggs brought to table have this
defect; people will not take the trouble to change the straw jn
the nest often enough. Besides all this there is the danger of

HOUSES AND YARDS. 75

the stale nest egg breaking, which if it does, the nest, and even
the whole hen-house, will become offensive. A stone nest-egg
can always be kept in a nest, and if a hen wants to sit, a few
placed under her form a good trial of her steady sitting powers,
and settle her on her nest before the real eggs she has to hatch
out are placed under her.

If you keep more than one sort of fowl you must have divisions
in your houses. If it is built either against the kitchen wall, or
back to some room in which there is in winter constantly a fire,
the effect of the warmth will be apparent in the greater number
of eggs your hens will lay during the cold weather. Or the hen-
house could be built on to a greenhouse wall which is kept
heated in the winter. The nests should be resting against the
warm back wall, and the birds roosting on the perches will also
feel the benefit of the heat. It is astonishing how much fowls
enjoy warmth. This is the reason why cottager's fowls lay
often very much earlier than those kept by amateurs, because
they are generally kept in a lean-to outhouse built against the
cottage wall close to the fireplace. The fowls by this means get
the warmth of the fire, and in some cases they actually roost in
the kitchen. All poultry-keepers could have their fowl-houses
run up outside some fireplace or flue, which would keep the birds
warm without the expense of an extra fire.

Yard or Run. — If fowls are not allowed free range, which is
not always possible on account of gardens or neighbors, a space
should be* inclosed for them, either fenced off with wooden
pailings or wire netting. In this run should be a plot of grass,
and if possible a shrub or two for the birds to pick insects off.
If the space allows of it there should be a small covered shed in
one corner for the fowls to run under during the rain, as fowls
cannot endure damp, and under this shed should be the dust-bath.
It is a downright necessity for all birds to roll or bathe in the dust.

76 FOOD.

They are very particular about their toilets. This may sound to
some absurd, but it is most important. No fowls will keep in
health unless they are clean, and by rolling in fine dust and ashes,
and covering themselves with them, they clean themselves and
get rid of the fleas and parasites with which they are always more
or less infested. Fowls that are allowed their entire freedom
always make dust-heaps for themselves, and retire to them
daily.

If it is possible to have a little running stream conducted
through this yard then you may indeed consider yourself fortu-
nate, but most likely you will have to content yourself with pots
and pans for water. Let these be shallow, and change the water
frequently. The question of coops for chickens I have considered
in the chapter on Hatching, but I may mention here that the
shed in the yard would be a very good place for mother hen and
her family when the weather was damp. A shed need not be an
expensive building. A few rough poles, with a felt roof, could
be easily made by any one, and it is a very great boon to fowls.
It need not be of any great size or height, only the roof should
have a considerable slope for the rain to run oflv

FOOD.

Overfeeding is as great a mistake as underfeeding. Three
times a day is quite enough to feed old fowls: a good meal in
the early morning, another before going to roost, and a midday
feed. Many people, however, only feed twice; this, if the fowls

FOOD. 77

have a farmyard to dig and forage about in, is enough, but in
limited space I should certainly feed three times, giving grain
for the last meal as more sustaining and stimulating. Chickens,
of course, require food much more frequently.

Before I describe the various sorts of food suitable for poultry,
a few general directions will be advisable.

Feed regularly — that is, at stated hours — and do not get into
the habit of giving handfuls of grain in and out in the course of
the day; if you do so you will spoil the birds' digestion.

A supply of pure fresh water is another absolute necessity.
Every day in winter the pans should be washed out and filled
with fresh water, twice a day in summer if the weather is very
hot.

All poultry like a change of diet, and should on no account be
fed day after day with the same food; as fowls are not fastidious,
but will eat nearly any food, there is no possible reason why a
variety of food should not be given them, and it is certain they
will thrive and do better when their tastes are consulted a
little.

Rice is a cheap food, but is not very nutritious, therefore
should be given mixed with other foods; it may, however, be
considered as an excellent food for fowls which are not kept up
for show purposes, and if poultry are suffering at all from diarr-
hoea should be at once given instead of their ordinary food. Rice,
whenever given, should be cooked as the raw grain is most inju-
rious, and by swelling in the crop after it has been swallowed
often makes the fowl "crop-bound. " It should be prepared
thus: — Boiled until the grains are completely separated, not in
hard lumps, but easy for the birds to pick up when scattered
about in the yard; a piece of dripping dissolved in the water in
which the rice is boiled has a wonderfully softening effect on it.
In winter I always mix a little coarse black pepper with the
cooked rice. Fowls in cold weather need stimulants; and

?8 FOOD. '

pepper, when given in sparing quantities, is very good for them.
Rice can often be purchased very cheaply; many grocers sell
what they term "f owl-rice," but if you are tolerably near a sea-
port you can very often get the chance of buying damaged
"cargo" rice, which, though possibly just a little injured by sea-
water, is still excellent food for poultry. I have ranked rice
first because of its cheapness. Of the different sorts of corn
barley is the least expensive, but it is too heating to feed fowls
on it alone; it should be ground into meal, mixed with water
and fine bran or scraps, and given in a crumbly state, not too
moist nor yet too lumpy.

Cooked or prepared food is good for all live stock of all de-
scriptions, for experience proves it to be more nutritious from
the changes effected, and therefore more readily digested. One
writer advises the following mixture: —

One peck of fine middlings and half a peck of barley-meal
placed in a coarse earthenware pan and baked for one hour, then
boiled water is poured in and the whole stirred together until it
becomes a crumbly mass — or the baked middlings can be mixed
with rice, previously boiled — two meals of this mixture might be
given each day, and one meal of grain.

Oats are good for laying hens, but to my mind are best ground;
it is not at first a favorite food with poultry, but they soon ac-
quire the taste, and it is even more nourishing than barley, but
also more expensive. Oatmeal is considered wonderfully good
and fattening diet, and in Ireland is generally used for poultry —
that is, when they are kept up for market, the meal is mixed
with milk and mashed potatoes. In oats there is as great an
amount of starch as in barley, more flesh-forming substance, and
more fat-producing matter.

Light Wheat is the grain I prefer for poultry-food; but, alas! it
is not easy to procure, though it is cheap as far as price goes.
If you have a farmer living near you he may perhaps let you have

FOOD. 79

some as a favor; but, as a rule, farmers keep it for feeding their
own poultry, and do not care to sell it at all.

Buckwheat and Hempseed are very good, the latter to be given
during moulting, but they are too expensive to be given fre-
quently.

Indian Com is good and economical food, but too fattening to
be used much; as a change, though, it is desirable; its usual
cheapness, compared with the price of our home-grown grains,
commends it in some places; it should not however, be given
whole, but ground into meal and mixed with water or milk.

Linseed is chiefly given to prize fowls and those intended for
exhibition; it increases the secretion of oil, and makes their
plumage shine and look glossy.

Potatoes steamed and mashed are very nourishing, but rather
expensive.

Bullock's Liver boiled and cut up into small pieces may be
given with much advantage once or twice a week to birds kept
in small inclosures.

Malt is one of the best things for poultry, but not very easy to
procure; if, however, you are near a brewery you will not have
so much difficulty in obtaining it. It induces early and contin-
ued laying; should be given sparingly, either bruised or whole,
about two handfuls for every six fowls; it can be mixed with the
ordinary food. For chickens also it is desirable, about one
handful to every six; if they are fledging it assists them in
putting on feathers, and at all times helps their growth.

Milk should be constantly given— that is, where a cow or cows
are kept, otherwise perhaps it would be rather an expensive
addition to the cost of poultry-keeping; but if the food is wetted
with fresh milk, or a little warm milk stirred into the rice or
various meals in use, it is astonishing how very much farther
the food goes, for it gives a satisfying property to it, and is most

nourishing, especially for the younger members of your fowt
family.

Green food* are all good, and should be given daily: chopped
cabbage, clover-heads, turnip-tops, lettuce, turnips, boiled or
steamed, form also a good change of diet, and grass fresh cut
from lawns, or a handful plucked and thrown into the yard now
and then, will be much appreciated. Fowls, as I said before,
are by no means fastidious in their tastes; grain, soft, animal,
and green foods all come alike to them; worms, maggots, and
slugs are also delicacies, but not very often procurable, though
French poultry-keepers and others take the trouble to form
Jieaps of earth, manure, dead leaves, and so on, on purpose to
generate supplies of worms with which to feed their fowls.

To those who would keep fowls economically, and yet profi-
tably, I say save all table and house scraps. If you do not keep
a pig you will have plenty for the fowls: crusts of bread, stale
pieces, scraps of meat, fish, vegetables, bones broken up, soup
bones, after they have been used and their goodness extracted b;
boiling down for stock, yet contain no small share of nourish
ment; broken and pounded till small, they are almost necessities
for fowls kept in partial confinement.

If you feed fowls on grains and expensive meals you cannot
expect a profit from them; but if, on the contrary, you utilize
house-scraps — which would otherwise be wasted — and give green
food, you will be a considerable gainer; if you have to buy all
the food, of course you will find poultry-keeping rather an ex-
pensive amusement instead of a paying one.

My poultry family I feed in this fashion — that is, the stock
birds— the chickens, of course, have more delicate food, and that
more frequently given: —

Firrt meal, given about 7 a. m. — fowls are early risers— is of
grain, inferior barley, or wheat-tailings, or meal in a crumbly
state.

FOOD. 81

Second meat, midday, of soft food, pickings, such as bread,
sops, meat and fish scraps, with either barley, oats, or Indian
meal mixed with it, or else boiled rice, peppered in winter.

Third meal, before going to roost, grain. I vary the food as
much as possible, sometimes giving two meals of grain and one
of soft food, at other times two meals of soil; mixture and one
of grain, and at least once a week give chopped liver, well boiled
but fresh— not in the horrible putrid state some people suggest.
I could not fancy eating a fowl fed on carrion myself, though I
know it is frequently done; but the flesh on fowls so fed must,
one would naturally think, be gross and rank-tasting.

Water should be plentifully supplied fresh and pure and the
pans refilled frequently in summer; in winter all water-pans
should be emptied out at night, as, if the water freezes in them
they often crack or break.

Lime and mortar rubbish or broken oyster shells should be freely
scattered about the yards, also gravel and small stones. Fowls
like to pick such things up; besides, it is necessary that they eat
some shell-forming material or their eggs will be soft, which is
very often the case if such substances are not provided. I do
not believe in cooking or grinding all the grain foods, and should
certainly give wheat-tailings or inferior small barley in its
natural'state. If the birds could not digest it they would not
have been provided by Nature with an elaborate apparatus for
softening and grinding it. If we feed entirely on moist food
even fowls in confinement, we must weaken the action of the
gizzard by not giving it enough work to do. The two extremes
of feeding entirely on cooked and moistened food, or entirely on
grain or hard food, are both mistakes; vary the food, and allow
only one meal of solid grain, which should be given either as
the first or last meal, but do not so completely interfere with
Nature's laws, as to weaken an organ which is purposely pro-
Tided to render the natural food wholesome. By allowing

to FOOD.

plenty of lime and mortar rubbish in your yards, small stones,
and so on, your fowls, even in confinement, will be able to
digest a small portion of grain each day. I am well aware that
many poultry-fanciers say cook all food, but I am certain that too
much moistened food is not altogether good. I can only speak
from my own experience, and I never found the creatures under
my care suffer from eating small whole uncooked grain once a
day.

The gizzard is a most powerful grinding-mill, being composed
of very thick muscles, and lined with a tough insensible coria-
ceous membrane. The two largest muscles which form the
grinding apparatus are placed opposite each other, face to face,
just like two millstones, and they working on each other grind
to a pulp the food which is subjected to their action and break
it down until it is in a fit state to be acted upon by the gastric
juice, which softens the grain. Until, however, it has gone
through Nature's grinding-mill the gastric juices have no power
upon it to render it solvent. By giving food constantly which
does not require the action of this apparatus upon it to render it
wholesome we run the risk of injuring it by inaction : this surely
stands to reason. In the case of chickens even a little very
small grain should be given, that while the gizzard is growing
it may have something to act upon, and no grain is so good for
this purpose as the tailings of wheat before-mentioned.

It is a bad practice to underfeed poultry, or, in fact, any
young stock ; but, on the contrary, do not waste food ; scatter it
for them, and when they cease to run after it stop feeding them,
is a fairly good rule to go by. It is said that one full-grown
bird will eat half-a-pint of grain each day, because, though it
may not positively consume that amount of grain — what with
meal-scraps, green stuff, &c. — it consumes food to about that
vftlu*.

INCUBATIOJf.

INCUBATION.

Op artificial incubation I may as well say at once I have had
no experience; therefore it is a subject of which I do not presume
to write; but I cannot think that it is at all adapted to very small
poultry-yards, for it must entail primary outlay, endless trouble
and considerable expense. On large farms it may answer, or
with persons who are bitten with the poultry mania, love trying
everything new that they hear of, and have more money than
they know what to do with unless they indulge in some hobby
or hobbies to help them in making away with it. The invention
of the artificial incubator cannot be considered, however, as a
new invention, for as early as 1848 Mr. Cantelo, manager of the
Model Poultry Farm at Chiswick, brought out the "Cantelonian
Hydro-Incubator," and shortly afterwards Mr. Rouillier inven-
ted another — an improvement on the one named. Since then
their name has been Legion.

The old natural method of allowing the hen to sit on her eggs
and hatch out her small family is the only plan of which I have
had practical experience, and as being an entirely natural process
I cannot but think it the best, especially for poultry-keepers on
a small scale.

There are very many little matters connected with eggs, and
hatching them out, which can only be learnt by much practice
and long experience of domestic fowls, their manners and habits,

84 INCUBATION.

This can only be gained by being constantly -with them and
carefully watching them through all the various stages of their
lives.

It is never very difficult to procure a broody hen . Your Brahma
hens will most likely be quite willing to sit, probably more often
than you wish them to. Be careful, however, not to put
under her at once the eggs which ydU have selected for your:
sitting. She should be moved in at night, placed on a
sitting of china eggs, and allowed to sit on them for at least
two days before you entrust her with real eggs.

Now about the eggs themselves. Probably you have, out of
your family of hens, some that are better than the others, either
in shape and form, or more.handsomely marked, or better layers,
or there is something or other about them, some distinguishing
point, which leads you to wish to perpetuate their stock. Their
eggs should, therefore, be saved; but do not keep eggs certainly
beyond a fortnight; the fresher the eggs the better, I believe.
Those you set apart for a sitting remove directly they are laid
and place them in bran, small end downwards, dating them in
ink, and adding the name of the hen. Does this sound absurd?
Possibly to people who know little and care less about fowls it
may, but those who keep a limited number I venture to say
would have their original family of birds named, either by names
caused by some distinguishing mark about the bird, or in groups
adhering to one initial letter.

When you have collected, say, thirteen eggs, which is quite
enough to put under any hen, though people do advise fifteen
for a large ben — too many really for a hen, though a turkey
would cover them comfortably — thirteen for a large Brahma hen,
and eleven for a smaller hen are the number I usually place
under the hen, and find them quite enough. If a nest is too
full of eggs there is sure to be an accident: some eggs get broken
and the aes-gets foul and sickly; besides, the hen covers a «obu

11CCTTBATI0N. W

pact nest of eggs much better, and they all get an equal share of
heat.

All the eggs placed under the hen should be marked with
their proper dates. Have the eggs as near as possible in date, so
that the chicks may hatch out close together. A great advan-
tage of marking the eggs is, that should the hen lay any -when
first beginning to sit, or should other hens gain access to the nest,
the fresh eggs laid can be removed. Mr. James Long, a great
authority on poultry, advises that at the end often days the eggs
should be tested. This should be done in the evening by the
light of a lamp, holding the egg betwixt the thumb and forefin-
ger of the right hand in front of the flame, and shading the large
end with the base of the left hand, the air-chamber is discovered;
this is apparently opaque, the rest of the egg being dark and
heavy, the two portions being divided by a clear black line — that is,
if the egg is fertile. If, on the other hand, the egg is light and
opaque throughout, or, in other words, exactly like a new-laid
egg when held before the same light, it is not fertile. This little
test is so simple that every one should adopt it, and use the eggs
found unfertile, not returning them to the nest. They are just
as edible and as wholesome as eggs laid on the same day but not
placed under a hen, and can always be used in the kitchen, being
quite as good if not better than the so-called "cooking eggs."
Sometimes, however, these unfertile eggs are not clear and edible,
but rotten; this can generally be detected. If the egg, on being
tested in the manner described, is found neither clean nor fertile
with the dark line at the top, but without the dark line and dull
throughout, especially in the centre, the whole mass within the
shell being in a movable state, its condition may be reasonably
suspected and it can be thrown away. This state may arise from
one or more causes; it is fancied that it arises from the fertiliza-
tion being incomplete or weak, wanting sufficient strength to
break into positive life, but yet enough to affect the rest of the

S0 mcm/L*id%.

egg, which, as in all cases in which any life has existed, <lecom»
poses, and in time engenders gas. Such eggs should be buried,
not thrown where they can be picked at by other birds.

It is a good plan to sit two or more hens at the same time; on
the tenth day you can test the eggs, and remove from both nests
the unfertile ones giving one hen all the other eggs and resitting
the other on a fresh lot of eggs. Besides, if two hens sit at once,
one hen when they batch out can take both broods, so you econ-
omise your stock of hens. I would never advise, as some people
do, that hen No. 2 should be given a fresh set of eggs and have to
sit another three weeks, for no hen could sit six weeks without
taxing her strength too much; this proceeding I look upon as a
downright cruel one.

Short-legged hens are the best for sitting, therefore Brahmas
and Dorkings make very good "broody" hens. Three weeks is
the usual time it takes for hens' eggs to hatch, but they may
either be a day or two before or a day or two after the twenty-
one days.

If possible have a sitting-house, or arrange that your sitting
hens are kept in a quiet, rather dark place, away from the other
birds, else you will have endless trouble; for if kept in the same
house in which the other hens lay, they will be constantly inter-
fering with the sitting hens, trying to lay in the same nests, and
eggs are sure to be broken in the scuffle. Your sitter may prove
a little restless in a fresh place at first, but employ china eggs
for her to sit on until she is disposed to sit steadily, and she will
soon settle down, you will find, in her new nest, especially if she
be really * 'broody' ' or ' 'cluck. ' ' And here it may be as well, per-
haps, to say a few words about "broody" hens. Sometimes they
are most tiresome, and very often this strong desire to sit, which
is termed storge, is so strong that no means you can try will abate
it. In such a case I should be tempted, even if I did not want
th» chickens, to let the poor hen gratify her desire, and do as

Hf CUBATIOK. W

the French acowoewrs do. They only provide broods, but do not
rear them, selling their chickens at twenty-four hours old, and
sending them to the fermiere who has ordered them packed up
warmly in flannel in a small flat basket. Chickens, curiously
enough, travel very well at that early age, better even than when
they are older, because Nature provides them with nourishment
when they first hatch out, and they really need nothing till the
next day but to be kept snug and warm. When they reach their
destination, which must, of course, be within reasonable distance,
they are given at night to a hen who has a brood of chickens of
about the same age, who will, as a rule, welcome the addition
to her family with pleasure, seeming rather to delight in this
mysterious increase to her family. A hen is always very proud
of a large brood, and I have often noticed will apparently, in hen
language, crow over a less fortunate mother with only a few to
take care of.

I once had a hen who had only one chick. She got shut away
from her nest by accident, and was kept out so long that the
eggs were spoiled all but three, and from these were hatched
very weakly chicks. Two died in the act of being liberated
from their shells, and the result of the sitting of thirteen eggs
was one chick, and that took a considerable amount of cosseting
and nursing before it became quite strong. It was most absurd
to see the mother, the fuss she made over her one bantling. It
was a late sitting, and I had no other chicks ready to enlarge
her family. When the chick was a few days old, her favorite
mode of carrying it was on her back, and there the little creature
sat quite contentedly while the hen marched about. This went
on for months, until really the single scion of the house of "Raca"
was as strong as his mother. But the affection between the two
was too funny. Even when he was a fine handsome cockerel,
about to be promoted to reign in the room of his father "Raca"
asRacall., or over another harem, his mother would insist on

88 INCUBATION.

presenting him with scraps and dainties she had picked tip. I
never knew a case in which the tie of relationship betwixt hen
and chick lasted so long.

To return to the subject of ' 'broody' ' hens. I certainly wonder
why here in America we do not adopt French methods with
regard to rearing poultry. We spend days, weeks, in trying to
cure a hen of wishing to sit, a perfectly natural inclination, very
often starving and really cruelly teasing the poor thing, while
all that time she might be fulfilling her end in life, and sitting
on a nest full of eggs. She does not cost more while she is sit-
ting, and, indeed, it is far more economical to employ her than
to chase the poor wretch off the nests, shut her up, give her physic,
or otherwise torment her. You may argue, "Oh, but my hen
would lay again soon if I prevented her from sitting !" Pardon
me, but the hen certainly would not lay under a month, and pro-
bably not for six weeks, as she will pine at first and lose flesh from
the feverish anxiety of her state, will be some time before she gets
in condition again, and very often two or three months will elapse
before she will lay ; whereas, after sitting, even if her chickens
are removed from her or she is only left with one — perhaps you
feel inclined to allow her one or two after her trouble of sitting
so long — she will begin to lay again sooner than she would were
she laboring under the storge. If it is very late in the season you
might get ducks' eggs and sit your '"broody" hen on them. Ducks
do better in cold, inclement weather than chickens> and when
sold bring in a good price. They cost more to fat, though, as
they are such ravenous feeders.

Sitting hens should have a daily run. Do not remove them
forcibly from their nests, but let the door be open every day at
a certain hour for a certain time while you are about. Perhaps
for the first day or two you may have to take them gently off
their nests and deposit them on the ground outside the door.
They will soou, however, learn the habit, and come out when

INCUBATIOW. 89

the door is open, eat, drink, have a dust-bath, and return to
their nests. That this should be a daily performance is quite
necessary to their health and well-being. It is a very old and
mistaken notion to fancy that the chicks hatch out better if the
hen sits close and never leaves her nest, because it is not so; air,
food, exercise, and a roll in the dust are necessary to the hen's
health, and the eggs will not come to any harm.

Some people, while hens are off their nests, damp the eggs
with lukewarm water. Moisture, they say, is necessary, and the
chicks gain strength by the process. This may be correct, and,
in very dry weather, perhaps necessary. Myself I never fancied
it did much good, though I have tried the experiment; but I
consider it is a mistake to meddle too much with nest or eggs;
the hen is only made restless and dissatisfied by so doing, and
the result is not such a very decidedly good one as to be worth
the extra trouble. "While the eggs are hatching out do not
touch the nests; it is very foolish to fuss the old bird and make
her angry, as she treads on the eggs in her fury, and crushes the
chicks when they are in the most delicate state of hatching —
i.e., when they are half in and half out of the shell, when a
heavy tread on the part of the old bird is nearly certain to kill
them.

Picking off the shell to help the imprisoned chick is always a
more or less hazardous proceeding, and should never be had
recourse to unless the egg has been what is termed * 'billed"
for a long time, in which case the chick is probably a weakly
one and may need a little help, which must be given with the
greatest caution, in order that the tender membranes of the skin
shall not be lacerated. A little help should be given at a time,
every two or three hours; but if any blood is perceived stop at
once, as it is a proof that the chick is not quite ready to be lib-
erated. If, on the contrary, the minute bloodvessels which are
gpread all over the interior of the shell are bloodless, then you

90 INCUBATION.

may be sure the chick is in some way stuck to the shell by its
feathers, or is too weakly to get out of its prison-house.

The old egg shells should be removed from under the hen,
but do not take away her chicks from her one by one as they
hatch out, as is very often advised, for it only makes her very
uneasy, and the natural warmth of her body is far better for
them at that stage than artificial heat.

Should only a few chicks have been hatched out of the sitting,
and the other remaining eggs show no signs of life when exam-
ined, no sounds of the little birds inside, then the water test
should be tried. Get a basin of warm water, not really hot,
and put those eggs about which you do not feel certain into it.
If they contain the chicks they will float on top, if they move
or dance the chicks are alive, but if they float without movement
the inmates will most likely be dead. If they (the eggs) are rot-
ten they will sink to the bottom. Put the floating ones back
under the hen, and if, on carefully breaking the others, you find
the test is correct (one puncture will be sufficient to tell you this),
bury them at once.

Chickens should never be set free from their shells in a hurry,
because it is necessary for their well-being that they should have
taken in all the yolk, for that serves them for food for twenty-
four hours after they see the light, so no apprehension need be
felt if they do not eat during that period, if they seem quite strong,
gain their feet, and their little downy plumage spreads out and
dries properly. Their best place is under the hen for the time
named, then they may be fed in the manner described under th«
head of " Management of Chickens,"

MANAGEMENT OF CHICKENS.

MANAGEMENT OP CHICKENS.

Chickens will, as I hare already said, do without food for the
first day and night; but as soon as they begin to feed they should
be very well fed, and constantly. We all know the old saying,
that "Children and chicken are always picking." At first their
food should be crumbs of bread, sometimes dry, sometimes
soaked in milk, and the yolk of hard-boiled eggs crumbled up
and mixed with bread-crumbs. This is quite enough for the
first week. Afterwards small grain may be given, chicken
wheat, or tailings of wheat, groats, canary-seed, a very little
hempseed, bits of underdone meat minced small, a little finely-
chopped green food, macaroni boiled in milk and cut into small
bits, and so on. They should be fed very often, but only given
a little at a time. I feed mine eyery two hours for the first three
weeks or so, taking care that they only have just as much as
they can eat at a time, so that the food is not wasted. Hemp-
seed mast be given with caution; but if the weather is cold and
damp it is very good for warming the chicks, and they are very
fond of it. Soft food mixed dry should be given them after the
first week, macaroni, barley-meal, or middlings. This mixture
should be made with milk, or, if no milk is given, then scalded
water, but on no account should any food for chickens be mixed
with water which has not been boiled or scaldtd. The food
should not be mixed in a v?et, sloppy mass, but of such a con-
sistency that when thrown on the ground it will crumble
readily.

$3 MANAGEMENT OF CHICKENS.

The old hen should be supplied with grain (wheat), some of the
meal, or any other food suitable for her when her little ones are
fed, bjit not oats. All water which is given to the chickens
should be boiled first, or else it is very apt to give them diarr-
hoea. A very good drinking-pan can be made for the small birds
by inverting an ordinary flowerpot in its saucer, and filling the
latter with water. In this they cannot drown themselves, as
they might in a deeper pan or ordinary drinking-trough. Many
people give skim-milk instead of water at first.

- All the time chickens are growing they should be well fed. It
is the very greatest mistake to stint any young stock; and chick-
ens, if you wish to bring them on quickly for market, must" be
well and generously fed at all ages, not neglected when three-
parts grown, as is too often done. They should be constantly
supplied with fresh water.

It is certainly best to confine the hen under a coop for the first
month or so. If she is allowed her liberty she will wander about
with her brood in search of insects, and so may expose her family
to the attacks of hawks, weasels, or other vermin. And, besides
this, though you wish to feed your hen well while with her brood,
it would be rather foolish to allow her to satisfy her appetite on
the dainties prepared for them, which she naturally will do un-
less you give them their meal where she cannot reach it, but
giving her under her coop at the same time coarser food. Econ-
omy points out that delicate and expensive food, such as groats,
boiled eggs, and crumbs of bread, should be reserved for the
chicks, while the hen has wheat or ordinary food. I should not
feel inclined to give her oats or barley unbruised for this reason:
she will, of course, call her little ones joyfully to her to partake
of the food given her, and they might choke themselves with
iarge whole grain, such as oats or barley. Rice will not hurt
them (boiled, of course), nor wheat, which is a much smaller

MANAGEMENT OF CHICKENS. 93

0Tain, especially in tailings, than the other cereals mentioned,
and cannot injure her little family, even if she does give them
a grain or two.

For the first week or two the coop should be placed in a warm
sheltered spot, but taken into a safe place at night. As the
chicks gain strength it should be moved on to a grass plat. The
ordinary-shaped coop, with a sloping roof and barred front, is as
good a one as any, only I should advise handles, strong wooden
ones, being fixed to each side to facilitate movement. Boarded
bottomed coops are not desirable — it is far better to place a bot-
tomless coop on the ground — else you might have small wheels
to your coops to push them along when changing their place.
In a case of emergency, or if the expensr of a coop cannot be
incurred, an old cask or beer-barrel makes a very fair coop.
Knock out one end and put laths across, leaving one to draw in
or out, and take out the staves which rest on the ground. The
barrel should be propped on each side to prevent its moving, and
a tarpaulin must be provided to throw over it at night to prevent
any rain soaking in the knocked-out end, and will serve as a
cover for the opening, which must be closed, for fear of cats,
foxes, rats, and such creatures. Holes for ventilation must be
drilled in this cover. I have reared many a healthy small brood
in a barrel in this way. It is easily rolled, too, into a fresh place,
and if you have not coops enough, and do not know where to
stow your small families, barrels or boxes must be turned to
account.

The chicks when about a week old should be allowed a little
liberty. The old hen might be turned out with them for an
hour or so during the warm part of the day, only she must be
watched in order that she does not lead them into mischief.
About this time, too, their food should be changed; less soaked
food and more small grain be given instead — grits, boiled barley,
and other articles of diet before advised.

94 MANAGEMENT OF CHICKENS.

Chickens should never be let out too early in the morning
even when they are three weeks or a month old, as it is certainly
bad for them to be about while the dew is on the grass.

The coops should be constantly changed about from place to
place, but never allowed to stand on wet, moist ground. One
of the great secrets in rearing chickens is always to keep them dry.
If they are allowed to be out in the wet, or kept on damp ground,
they will soon become delicate. "Gapes,'* that fatal malady
will attack them, or diarrhcaa, or some other ailment, and they
will soon die off.

When they begin to feather the very greatest care should be
taken of them, as this is a very critical period. Hempseed and
bread soaked should be given, and iron in their water. At six
months they should be in full plumage, and in seven or eight
months the pullets, if they have been well fed up to this time,
will commence laying. ''Tailings" (wheat) are really the best
grain food for chickens up to four months. After they first
begin to eat grain many people advise barley, but if you can get
wheat — which is not, however, always easy to procure — I infi-
nitely prefer it. If you must give barley, then let it be bruised.

I am no friend to keeping chicks indoors, as some people advise,
for I am convinced it makes them weakly. Find a sheltered
corner for the coop, and move them into it even in cold weather,
only put the coop under shelter at night. Confining them in-
doors, even in a barn or a stable, appears to produce cramp and
weakness of the legs, which when turned out is not the case, for
the best and surest preventive for cramp and leg-weakness is to
let the birds so affected have their liberty in the air, where they
can get the exercise they really require.

With regard to the time for chickens to be hatched out, I rear
young chickens most months in the year, but then my fowl-
house is in a sheltered place and on good dry soil. If you sit

MANAGEMENT OF CHICKENS. 95

late in the autumn, say in October or November, it is an advan-
tage— that is, if you are in a fairly-sheltered, warm, dry spot —
for chickens hatched in December and January bring in a hand-
some profit in the shape of "spring chickens." There is, of
course, a good deal of risk, and immense care must be taken of
the young birds during the cold weather, but if the situation is
good it is well worth a trial.

By the end of June, or early in July, pullets hatched in Decem-
ber should, if they have been really well fed, be commencing to
lay. Your early chickens will not, perhaps, be as strong as those
hatched two months after, say in February and March. This is
one reason why they should be reared for table. In any case I
should not breed from birds hatched in the coldest winter months;
but in the case of pullets, if I did not kill them all off as "spring
chicks," fatten and kill them when they had finished laying, and
before they began to moult; for birds hatched, say in March or
April, would be really much stronger, and "selected" ones for
keeping out of such broods be more to be depended on to supply
the place of some of the old stock if you mean to kill any of
them off.

If you wish to fatten "spring chickens" quickly for market,
when they are about two months old confine them in coops and
feed chiefly with moist food. In my opinion a fowl allowed its
liberty has a better flavor than one confined and fed up in a coop,
but it certainly does not put on flesh so quickly nor yet get so
thoroughly plump and tempting-looking when trussed ready for
market, therefore I should advise that those chickens fattened
for sale should be kept in coops and fed up, while those for home
use should be allowed their liberty until they were really wanted
by the cook.

With regard to foxes, rats, and such vermin, your best safe-
guard against them is to house all your stock at night, and see
yourself that their numbers are all right.

06 MANAGEMENT OP CHICKENS.

Rats must be waged war against. They are the greatest ene-
mies to young ducklings, also chickens. Keep steel traps
prepared, putting them down when the fowls are shut up for
the night in the runs outside, and baiting them with cheese or
bits of meat, only drop a little oil of rodium on the bait. In
time, if you will persevere, you will either frighten them away or
else catch them; but you must of course, keep your traps out of
the way of the fowls themselves. Boiling coal tar poured down
the holes, and followed by a deluge of water, is said to be very
effectual in making rats desert a yard. I am averse to poison,
because, if it is used in a fowl-house or yard, it is next to im-
possible to prevent an accident sooner or later. Ferreting every
now and then will do good, unless your houses are adjoining
barns or extensive outhouses, in which case you are more likely
to lose your ferrets than destroy the vermin. The holes should
be carefully stopped with a mixture of ground glass, bits of glass
broken up, and ordinary plaster. Rats will not often attack
glass mixed in this way. If you do use poison you must nail it
up somewhere out of reach of the birds. This you can do by
getting a small bit of meat, soaking it with the poison, and nailing
it on to a bit o| wood, nailing that again to the wall. -Myself I
should be afraid of the rat, in his efforts to get off the meat,
dropping little bits of it on the floor, when of course the fowls
would be the sufferers.

Cats are enemies also. Dogs one has not much reason to
fear, but in the vicinity of a town cats of all ages and sizes will
sooner or later visit you, and if there is one delicacy they prefer
to another it is a young chick or duckling. They are so cunning
too, it is hard to catch them.

Traps are not much good. Poisoned fish put down near where
you fancy they get into the run is the only thing; but of course
it must be taken away without fail before you let your fowls
out of the house, and it should also be nailed to apiece of wood,

FATTENING. 97

which might be smeared with oil of valerian — of which some cats
are so fond — to make it even more attractive. I never lost any
chicks by cats, I am bound to say, and therefore should be loath
to set poison down for them. I dread poison too, as I have
already said, in a fowl-yard. One cat I had who took a fancy
to a young duckling, but was discovered before she had eaten it,
so poor ducky was tied to her neck in such a position that she
could not get rid of it, and this effectually cured her of killing
ducklings or chicks. A good hungry half-starved town cat,
however, one could not cure by such means; it would be a case
of "first catch your cat." But still cats I look on in a light of
friends, unless I suffered too severely from their attacks I
should not like to demolish them by such a cruel method a»

FATTENING.

In feeding fowls for table, or rather for market — for I should
never coop chickens to fat merely for home use, as I have before
said — much depends on circumstances.

Spring chickens should be penned for fattening directly the
hen shows a desire to leave them, when they are, say, five weeks
old. They will not then have lost their first plump condition,
and will soon, if well fed, increase rapidly in weight. They
are not required to be very large; indeed, if fatted too long buy-
ers would fancy they were not really "spring chickens,' ' which
frequently make their appearance at table not much larger than

$6 FATTENING.

blackbirds, and are then considered all the greater delicacy.

If your chickens were hatched out in December, early in Feb-
ruary you can put them up to fat." Their coops or cages should
be placed in a warm dark sheltered place. There are a variety
of different coops or pens recommended by different authorities
on poultry to fat chickens. I do not remember to have seen one,
however, which is, to my mind so suited to the purpose as this
of which I give a description.

As far as the general conformation of the coop goes, it is made
on the same plan as many others; but the adaptable shelf which
is its chief feature is entirely my own idea, and if adopted would,
I feel sure, give general satisfaction.

The coop itself is made of boards, sides, back, and ends of
front; centre of front is barred, with the two middle bars mov-
able. It stands on legs between two and three feet in height,
the roof sloped sufficient to allow the rain to run easily off.
To hold four chickens at the same time the coop should be
about five feet in length, four in breadth, and three in height—
that is, above the legs on which it stands. If the birds are kept
in separate divisions then a little more length will have to be
allowed for the partitions. This will give ample room for the
birds without uncomfortably cramping them.

The bars in front of the coop should be wide enough apart to
allow the birds to get their heads through easily to get at
their food, which should be given them on a shelf or board.
The shelf, when not in use, being fixed on hinges, would fold
down in front of the coop. This is a much better plan than
having a trough for food fixed outside, as so many coops have,
the objection to it being that the food soon gets sour — I mean
what is left after the birds have fed— sticking to the sides of the
trough, which, if it is a box-like fixture, it is next to impossible
to clean properly.

The shelf should have an upright lath nailed to it to prevent

FATTENING. Of

the chickens pushing the food beyond their reach in efforts to
get at it, but the ledge should not be so deep as to interfere with
the shelf closing against the front of tho coop. Between this
ledge and the coop should fit a zinc trough, the width of the
division, for water.

When food is put down this water-trough should be slipped out,
to be replaced when the meal is over. Two small wooden sup-
ports would prop up this miniature table; on the same plan an
extra shelf is made to enlarge an ordinary table. A further use
of this flat board would be to close up the front of the coop at
night. It should not close entirely the barred space, room being
left at the top for ventilation. Water not being required at
night, the zinc trough should be removed to allow of the shelf
being closed, while the wooden buttons would keep it firmly in
its place, the small holes at the side of the coop supplying the
extra ventilation necessary.

With regard to sanitary arrangements, before the birds are
put into the coop it should be thoroughly washed with a mix-
ture of lime and size, to destroy all vermin. This dries quite
hard and does not rub off. If a white wash is objected to in a
feeding-pen, then it could be darkened by the admixture of color,
only see that there is no lead in the color mixed with the wash
to procure the darker shade. The partially-boarded front will
prevent the coop being too light.

The floor should be first of all of flat bars placed length- wise —
fixtures these — and over them should slip in, from the back of
the coop, a movable board, which should be drawn out every
day and thoroughly scraped and sanded, but not washed, because
if not thoroughly dry when put in the birds would get a chill, and
very likely suffer from diarrhoea in consequence.

If after a meal there is any food remaining, let down the shelf
and brush it off, giving it to the other fowls in order not to
waste it. Food should never be allowed to remain in the sight

100 FATTKNIHG.

of fattening fowls, or they will lose appetite. If they are only
fed at stated times, and when they have eaten as much as they
require the board is carefully cleaned and the water-trough
replaced in the niche, the birds will feed again, when the time
comes round for their food, with eagerness, which will not be the
case if the food is left there for them to peck at.

I have had plenty of experience with fowls, having reared them
for show, for eggs, and for table, and have therefore no hesita-
tion in recommending my "adaptable shelf," as I feel certain it
is an addition of the greatest use to an ordinary feeding-coop.
It adds very little to the expense, is so simple that any carpenter
could easily make it from a plain drawing, avoids waste of food,
and insures cleanliness. As soft food is mostly used in fatting
chickens, it is all the more necessary that none of it should be
allowed to remain after the meal to turn sour, disagree with the
birds, and take away their appetite. In a trough it is hardly
possible to prevent a little lodging in the corners and sides, as if
the trough is a fixture it cannot be removed to be washed; on a
shelf remains of food need never be left, as the application of a
hard brush for a few minutes would remove every particle, a
little sand being afterwards sprinkled lightly over the board
to render it perfectly sweet before the water-trough is slipped
in.

Water should be constantly changed, and boiled water should
be always used instead of that just pumped or drawn from a
well or spring, as this will prevent the chickens getting diarr-
hoea.

You should have some plan of darkening your pens, either
by letting down a tarpaulin over the top or having sliding
boards to run in and out, so that the light can be regulated at
will.

Some people keep their chickens separately, having their pens
divided. I do not think this is really necessary if you choose

FATTENING. 101

shickens of the same brood to fat together. Four are enough
to fat at a time; but never allow your coop, if you have only
one, to remain empty; as you kill off one lot of chickens you
should have another batch ready to put in. Cramming I am
entirely averse to. It is a needlessly cruel and disgusting
custom, though very frequently practiced, especially in
France.

Now comes the grand question of food. It should always be
pultaceous; the birds cannot pick up pebbles and little stones
when shut up, so cannot, digest grain of any sort. Feed them
on bread and milk, oatmeal and milk, rice well boiled with a
little pepper mixed with it, barley-meal, Indian com meal, pota-
toes steamed and mixed with barley-meal, chopped green food,
&c. Very many breeders give a large amount of suet mixed
with the food, but unless people are fond of greasy fat on their
poultry, which to me is an abomination, I should not advise it,
as it makes the flesh so gross. Vary the diet as much as possibU,
dd never give it in a sloppy state, but crumbly. Three weeks
|r a month at the outside is enough to keep fowls up for fatting: if
kept longer the confinement begins to tell on them. Some peo-
ple mix treacle or sugar with their food. Saccharine matter is
no doubt conducive to fat, and oatmeal, or Indian corn ground
into meal and mixed with treacle until it is in a crumbling state,
is a food all chickens are fond of, but should only be given to
those you wish to feed; it would not do for those pullets you
wish to bring on to lay quickly, as it would develop interior fat,
which is always fatal to constant laying.

Guard against waste of food. Only experience will cause you
to know how much to supply at once; and until you learn this,
directly you see the chickens begin to pick daintily at their food
remove it, give to the other fowls then what is left, but on no
account allow it to stay in the trough for the fatting chickens t*
eat, when, as the old women say, "they've a mind to." If tbtf

102 FATTENING.

do not constantly see food before them they will eat it far more
readily when it is given. This is only common-sense treatment,
and, believe me, in dealing with fowls you must often draw
largely on this very desirable commodity.

Four meals a day should be the allowance for penned-up chick-
ens, letting them eat, each time you feed, as much as they will
with appetite. At night they will roost on the board. Some
people put down clean straw, but if you close up the pen so that
the birds are not cold it is not really necessary, and it only har-
bours insects. Perches you might have if you've room in your
pen — sufficient height I mean. Before the birds are put in have
the coop well cleaned, white-washed, and sprinkled with car-
bolic acid. This should be done two or three times during the
time the chicks are fattening.

Fowls should of course be killed in the most merciful way.
It makes one shudder to read of the manner in which the poor
things are sometimes tortured, allowed to bleed slowly to death,
pins run into their brains, and horrors too dreadful to name.
Poultry dealers generally kill them in the quickest manner by
breaking their necks, and so quickly do they perform their
work that one man will often kill and pick a dozen, or more
in an hour. One of the easiest ways of killing is to hit the bird
a sharp blow on the back of the head with a heavy blunt stick;
death is almost instantaneous. Then pluck at once while the
bird is warm, as the process can then be accomplished much
more rapidly than if the bird is allowed to hang until cold.
"When all the feathers are off the fowl will still be warm. It
should then be carefully singed, floured, and trussed, and placed
between two boards with a weight, on the topmost; not too heavy
a weight, of course, to spoil its shape, but just enough to keep
the breast down and in good shape.

Capons of course fetch much better prices, and their flesh
remains tender up to the age of two years, whereas a cock at

FATTENIHG. 108

that age is only eatable in a stew, or pie. Chickens converted
into capons increase in size to a wonderful extent; the birds will
in a year be nearly treble the size it would have been if left
alone, and double the market value.

In conclusion I may observe that I can most sincerely, from my
own practical experience, advise all ladies, as well as gentlemen,
who have a little room to spare in their back gardens, to set up
poultry-keeping on a small scale. Many more people keep
fowls now than used to years ago, I know, but still not half
people enough. Many who have room to spare for a family of
fowls let that room remain unoccupied, either from a mistaken
idea that poultry-keeping is too expensive or will entail too much
trouble on them. With regard to the latter idea, it is, no doubt,
a partially true one. Fowls do cause trouble, and if they are to be
made to pay their way cannot fail to do so. But whatever trouble
they cause they are worth it, and no undertaking or pursuit that I
ever heard of nourished without some amount of trouble. In
return they give fresh eggs — that you are sure of, and can offer
a guest without any inward misgivings — plump chickens, a littUi
pocket-money, and a great deal of interest.

PART II.

» ♦»

Diseases of Poultry.
ARTIFICIAL INCUBATION.

Miscellaneous Poultry Receipts.

DISEASES OF POULTRY.

There are very many diseases which attack domestic fowls,
the chief being

Roup, or Glanders.

Cholera.

Diarrhoea.

Indigestion.

Leg-weakness.

Gapes.

Gout.

Asthma.

Megrims.

Apoplexy.

Bad feathering.

Moulting.

While among the less frequent ailments may be classed the
following :

Crop-bound .

Egg-bound.

Mange.

Oon-lush, or soft eggs.

Dropsy.

4 DISEASES.

Torpid-Gizzard.

Pip.

Influenza.

Inflammation of mucous membrane.

Paralysis.

Phthisis.

Rheumatism.

Cramp.
And besides all these ills to which fowl-flesh is heir must be
named the various accidents to which birds are liable, and ex-
ternal ailments ; for example : —

Bruises.

Fractures.

Obstruction of rump-gland.

Corns.

Uloers.

Elephantiasis.

Bumble-foot.

White comb.

Vermin.

A sufficiently long catalogue certainly; but happily, though
this list of diseases, &c, may seem formidable, if fowls are
really well attended to and have their general health decently
cared for they do not often develop disease, and there is always
the one best remedy for a sickly fowl, which is, to kill it. In
writing thus, I trust I shall not be thought cruel. In reality it
is far more human to kill a bird at once that is severely injured
or develops an incurable disease. In the former case the 'poor
thing is put quickly out of its misery and suffering ; in the
latter the other fowls run the risk of catching the disease, and
as many fowl diseases are infectious or contagious, this is a
matter for consideration.

Myself I never keep fowls — that is, ordinary birds — if they

DISEASES. 5

seem sickly, but hare them killed at once. If they are valuable
prize or stock birds, then I try physic. Unless in the case of
really valuable birds, it is very poor economy to keep unhealthy
ones.

Chickens should never be reared from weakly parent birds for
it only causes disappointment, degenerates the breeds, and lessens
the gain on poultry-keeping. Take care, therefore, to have your
stock healthy, and raise chickens only from really strong well-
formed birds, free even from accidental blemishes. Feed judi-
ciously both young and old birds. Keep your houses and yards
perfectly clean. Sometimes change the run on to grass if possi-
ble, if fowls are not at liberty, or turn them into a field or mea-
dow for a few hours every now and then. Let them have
plenty of gravel and lime, dust baths, and perfectly fresh water
every day, in the summer twice. Do not have too many chickens
at once, or you will not be able to attend to them properly. Al-
ways keep your stock of old birds up to a certain number, as it
simplifies matters, and you can reckon better the amount of
food they require and what they really cost you. Never keep
birds after they have passed their prime, because if you do the
profit side of your poultry book will assuredly be an unsat-
isfactory study.

If you attend to these various necessary precautions, which I
give as the result of my own personal experience, you will not
be very likely to require to doctor your birds. A knowledge,
however, of the symptoms of the various diseases and the best
accepted method of treating them is necessary, even should you
not require to practice that knowledge, therefore I have enum-
erated the different maladies, and as far as possible their proper
treatment.

KOUP.

ROUP.

Roup is contagious. Symptoms: Hoarseness and catching the
breath. If very bad, a discharge from eyes and nostrils. Treat-
ment: Give a tablespoonful of castor-oil on perceiving the very
first appearance of the disease; take the scale off the tongue
with your nail; give soft food only and doses of castor-oil.
Wash each morning and evening the eyes, nostrils, and inside of
the mouth with vinegar, and give sulphate of iron either in pills
mixed with cayenne pepper and butter or else put the powder in
the water they drink. Keep the bird or birds so affected away
from the other fowls, or you will have the disease communicated
to your whole stock.

The very first symptoms are swollen eyes, then a discharge
from the nostrils, first clear, but soon changing to thick, offen-
sive matter. Water also is discharged from the mouth. Di-
rectly you preceive any such symptoms remove the bird from
the others into a warm but well- ventilated place, and then treat
as I have advised. Ducks and geese also suffer from roup, and
frequently die off very rapidly from it,

Mr. James Long, in his excellent and valuable book on poul-
try, says that a "solution of chlorinated soda or carbolic acid,
the latter in the proportion of 1 to 60," should be used to clear
the mouth, eyes, and nostrils of birds suffering from roup. "In
bad cases," he writes, "I have found that an injection of the
soda through the slit in the palate has proved most advantageous,
this being the only solution I know that will really dissolve the

CHICKEN CHOLERA. 7

pus. The injector must suitable may be purchased at any che-
mist's, where it is sold under the form of ca cure for toothache .'
It is a small glass tube bent at the small end, the large end be-
ing fitted with an india-rubber bag which contains the nostrum.
This should be squeezed out and the soda drawn in as often as
required by the suction of the empty bag." The following re-
ceipt for roup is a very good one: — " Sweet oil 1 oz., camphor
1 drachm, carbolic acid YZ drops. Pulverize the camphor in a
mortar with a little ether. Applying with the glass tube twice
daily, injecting the mixture into the nostrils, mouth, and through
the roof. During the illness cod-liver oil capsules will be found
strengthening."

CHICKEN CHOLERA.

This disease is much to be dreaded by all who keep poultry.
The causes of it are uncertain, although the crowding of fowls in
a small space, unwholesome or irregular food and keeping them
on swampy land is supposed to originate the epidemic.

Symptoms: The fowl droops, is weak and much prostrated,
and the feathers present a rumpled appearance. Diarrhoea at
first very light, increasing in severity and of a green color. Food
is refused, and if the disease is not promptly arrested, it spreads
among the flock and death ensues on all sides.

Remedy: Fresh green food daily; powdered alum mixed with
meal about one teaspoonful to a quart of meal. If an improve-
ment is not noticeable in a short time give each fowl a half tea-
spoonful of castor-oil and ten drops of laudanum.

8 £>IAiUtH<BA.

After the disease has been arrested spade up the grounds, dis-
infect with carbolic acid, whitewash and let lime lay around
the yards and runs, prevent the fowls from drinking anything
but pure clean water and feed on green and wholesome food.

If the bird shows no signs of recovery after the daily doses of
castor-oil, together with special feeding and frequent washing
of the head and face with injection of the soda, have been per-
severingly tried for some time, then it is far better to kill it, even
if a valuable bird, as it will only linger on and die a miserable
death; besides, the longer you keep it the greater risk you run
of your other birds catching it, as they may do this by accident,
however careful you may be in separating the diseased bird.

DIARBHCEA

Is generally caused by too much soft food. The diet should be
changed directly the symptoms of this malady are perceived.
Chalk given in the water, and dry food, such as barley, rice
boiled, but the grains distinct, neither watery nor sodden, with
cayenne pepper mixed with it, will generally check the disease.
If, however, such treatment does not succeed, then try this; five
grains of chalk, two grains of cayenne pepper, and five grains of
powder rhubarb, made into butter pills. If, however, this even
does not succeed in checking the diarrhoea, then give half a grain
of opium and half a grain of ipecacuanha every six hours.
Keep the bird in a separate place, and warm, as a chill would
probably finish it, or being in a damp, cold place.

INDIGESTION. 9

Chlorodyne I have myself tried with great success, but only
when the malady had reached a severe stage. Six drops in a
teaspoonful of warm water would be the dose for a full-grown
bird, from two to four for a chick according to age. There can
be no harm in trying the remedy, because if it does not cure it
generally induces sleep, and relieves the suffering bird in that
way.

With diarrhoea the best thing is to check it at once; if allowed
to go on it often proves fatal, but by prompt and judicious early
treatment it can generally be fought against. The bird will,
however, even when cured, have to be taken care of with regard
to food for some time, and should have some sort of tonic given
it, in the water it drinks.

INDIGESTION.

Indigestion is an ailing to which highly-fed fowls kept in
confinement are very often subject. It is caused from failure of
macerating power in the gizzard. A teaspoonful of castor-oil may
be given, if the disease is suspected, every other day, and the
bird fed on different food. Lime-water has been tried with
advantage, and old mortar pounded and mixed with meal may
be given instead of their ordinary diet. Sulphur and cayenne
pepper in the ratio of, six parts of sulphur and one-sixth of the
pepper, and mixed with barley-meal. The birds should also be
allowed more exercise, a run on the grass or in a walk where
can pick up gravel and grit, for it is very often the difficulty of
procuring such rubbish which makes fowls kept in confinement
suffer, the gizzard being weakened in its action by want of its
proper natural food.

10 LEG-WEAKNESS, GAPES,

LEG-WEAKNESS.

The bird's legs should be bathed frequently in cold water, and
tied up in wet rags, the rags kept wet. Iron tonic should be
given with its food, and three teaspoonfuls of castor-oil at roost-
time twice or three times a week, alternately with oatmeal pills
mixed with port wine. This prescription was given me by a
great fowl-fancier.

Ordinary fowls do not sutler the leg- weakness as a rule; but
fat, heavy birds that have been fed up for shows are very liable
to it, and young growing cockerels of the Brahma and Cochin
species.

GAPES.

All young chickens are subjeot to this disease, and it very
frequently proves fatal. Old birds are very rarely, if ever, at-
tacked by it. It is caused by small red worms in the throat.
Some people maintain that gapes may be called bronchitis, and
proceed from inflammation of the trachea or windpipe arising from
a derangement of the digestive organs; but whether it be called
gapes or bronchitis the presence of small worms in the throat is
what causes the suffocating feelings from which the birds suf-
fer, and will die if not relieved. They can be removed by passing
a tail-feather, stripped of feathers to within about an inch of
the end, down the windpipe. This feather should be turned

GOUT. 11

round quickly and drawn out again, when the little worms will
be found sticking to it. Some people smoke the chickens, but,
to my idea, this only tortures the poor little things, and the
introduction of the feather, if persevered in frequently during the
day, very often effects a cure. I have cured chickens myself by
this process, giving them boiled water with a little iron tonic in
it, and cod-liver oil capsules, feeding them with hard-boiled egg
and well boiled rice during the time they were under treatment,
and one teaspoonful of castor-oil — this for very young chicks;
two for those older, about six weeks — every other night.

The red worm found in the throat is now known to be the
syngamus trachealis. I have found the following preventative
to be a very good one; mix together the following compound,
lard 1 oz. flower of sulphur ^ oz. coal-oil £ oz. Anoint the head
of all chicks hatched with this ointment as they are taken from
the nest.

In some localities it is a complete epidemic, in others it does
not appear at all which would lead one to suppose that the
chicken picked up the worm, or it was found in the water; this,
too, accounts for the old idea that chickens should never be al-
lowed out in the early morning while the dew was on the grass,
for fear they should get the gapes. ' Many people, too, never
give their chickens water at all to drink, but milk, and this,
though rather expensive, is without doubt a very good plan.

GOUT.

Gout generally occurs in old birds, and is rarely cured, though
I did once patch up an old bird so troubled. The best plan to

12 ASTHMA, MEGRIMS.

pursue really, is to boil the bird down for soup, for of course
this malady does not prevent the birds being good for food.
Sulphur in pills has been recommended as a remedy, but with
small success I should fancy. I was not successful in curing or
even relieving the bird I tried it on,

ASTHMA.

Asthma is a complaint to which old birds are subject, though
some-times it effects young birds; .but this is, I fancy where there
is an hereditary predisposition to it. It is very rarely curable,
the best thing being to distroy the bird so afflicted. It arrises
from a thickening of the bronchial tubes from previous inflama-
tion, and is frequently accompanied by a positive alteration in
the structure of the cellular tissue of a portion of the lungs.
It will be easily discovered when a fowl has asthma. The
breathing is very difficult, and a wheezy, rattling sound ean be
detected with each inspiration.

MEGRIMS.

Megrims is a giddiness which causes the bird so affected with
it to stagger and fall about when walking, even to run round and
round in a circle. A Poland hen I had used to run in a small
circle in this way. She was incurable, and had eventually be
killed, though, as she was a well-bred bird, I tried different me-
thods of treatment, but without success. This malady is occa-
sioned, it is said, by too good feeding and too little exercise.
Castor-oil in tablespoonful doses is the best remedy, and if taken
in time might very much relieve the fowl for the time, but I

APOPLEXY, BAD FEATHERING. 13

question any permanent cure existing. Careful diet and warmth
are essential.

APOPLEXY.

Apoplexy also results from too high feeding and too little ex-
ercise. Fowls kept in close confinement frequently drop down
suddenly and die of this disease. A large dose of castor-oil
should be given as soon as possible, or the bird should be bled
from the axillery vein, but this is not an opperation which can
be performed by every one, and should certainly not be at-
tempted by a person ignorant of the proper method of perform-
ing it. Usually apoplexy is rapid in its effects, and the bird
drops and dies then and there when it is taken with the fit; and
it is just as well this is the case, for a recovery is extremely
doubtful and a bird once attacked by the malady ia ftiways sub-
ject to a return of it.

BAD FEATHERING.

Bad feathering in chickens should be treated with more gen<
erous diet : hempseed, bread soaked in ale, and iron given in the
water. Some sorts of fowls are, when young, much more back-
ward then others in getting their first feathers; Cochins and
Brahmas in particular suffer from this cause, and may often be
seen running about when three, four, or even six months old
with hardly a feather on them, presenting a dreadfully bare and
miserable appearance. This is more particularly the case when
they are hatched late in the year and have the cold winter months

14 MOULTING.

before them. "Warmth and good feeding is the best thing to
be done for them, nourishing food often stimulating the growth
of the feathers.

MOULTING.

Though this is a perfect natural process, it is very often at-
tended with very serious results to fowls if they are not looked
after during the time they are going through it. It is essentially
a wasting period, and the birds should be fed generously and
given extra stimulating food while they are losing and renewing
their feathers. Unless very sickly they do not lose their appe-
tites, which should be encouraged. In their natural state, or
when allowed comparative liberty, there is little or no danger,
but when kept in confinement moulting often becomes a critical
time with them, and as they increase in age so does their moult-
ing become more weakening. They want, as I said before,
more stimulating food, and should have coarse black pepper
mixed with their ordinary food, bread soaked in ale. Old nails
and bits of iron should be put in their water-pans. I give mine
sometimes, during their moulting, Douglas's Mixture, which
was recommended in the Field. It is made by dissolving half a
pound of sulphate of iron and one ounce of sulphuric acid toge-
ther, and adding two gallons of spring water, and should be
given to the birds in the proportion of one teaspoonful^to a pint
of water instead of their usual drinking-water. It is an excel-
lent mixture, and good for roup, leg-weakness, and other poultry
complaints, as it gives the fowls stamina, and should be given
not only when actual disease is present, but also in the spring
and fall of the year, when they appear drooping or lose their
appetites.

CROP-BOUND, EGG-BOUND. 15

CROP-BOUND.

In a case of this sort, which is very ' easily detected by the
abnormal swelling of the crop, the only remedy is to make a
small incision in it with a sharp penknife, remove the mass of
undigested food which causes the evil, sew up the cut with fine
silk, give castor-oil, and feed for a few days on soft food only.

EGG-BOUND,

Egg-Bound is generally caused by the white coagulating in
the oviduct and obstructing the passage. When this is the case,
the yolks of the eggs, as they become mature and fall into their
proper place, cannot pass by reason of the stoppage, which they
of course enlarge and increase , until the accumulation becomes
putrid, mortification supervenes, and the bird dies. Unfortu-
nately, for this complaint there would seem to be no remedy, for
its presence cannot be detected until the mischief is done and it
is too late to treat the bird with any benefit. Sometimes, though,
the stoppage is merely caused by general inflimation of the egg-
organs, in which case calomel and tartar emetic have been known
to do good, in the proportion of one grain of calomel to one-
twelfth grain of tartar emetic. When a hen lays soft eggs, if she
has plenty of shell-making material supplied for hor, inflamma-
tion may be suspected, and she should be carefully watched and
treated in time.

|6 SOFT EGGS, MANGE.

SOFT EGGS.

Soft eggs are often laid by hens when they have not a suffick
tnt quantity of lime and mortar rubbish supplied to them, with-
out which they cannot produce enough calcareous matter to form
shells for their eggs. If, however, this is caused by a defection
in the ovarium of the hen — and this is more often the case than
people fancy — then the following treatment should be followed:
Feed on oats instead of barley or other grain, and give the hen
a teaspoouful of prepared chalk every other morning for about
three weeks or a month. The chalk can be given dissolved in
the drinking-water. Do not feed on oats each meal, but give
two out of the three meals of coarse meal, and mix with it two
teaspoonfuls of old mortar pounded up fine. By the end of a
month's treatment your hen will probably be nearly cured; after-
wards supply her well with lime broken bones, mortar rubbish,
as, indeed, should always be done.

MANGE.

Mange is a malady which attacks fowls in the same way ii
does dogs or cattle, but is not a very usual complaint; it arise?
from uncleanliness and too little food, which induces debility.;
Fowls in good health have smooth, glossy, and fine plumage;
when the feathers, instead of having this appearance, are ruffled
and stare, in the same manner a horse's coat does, $ho,n they are
nearly sure to have some malady, very frequently some skin
disease, unless they are moulting, and then their plumage is

DKOPSY, TOBPID GIZZARD. 17

always more or less disordered and unkept-looking. A better
class of food, pure water, and the mixture before mentioned put
into it, will in such cases give relief, and most probably effect a
cure. Fowls with this complaint must be kept apart from the
others.

DROPSY.

Dropsy is a rare disease, and fowls afflicted with it had much
better be killed at once and put out of their misery, as it is an
almost hopeless complaint and one very seldom cured, though
the bird may linger on with it for a long while, and suffer very
much until death puts and end to its troubles.

TORPID GIZZARD.

Torpid gizzard is caused by feeding too much on soft food,
thereby destroying the action of the gizzard, which, having no
work to do, becomes inactive and torpid. Change the diet, al-
low the bird more exercise, and dose with castor -oil in moderate
doses at roost-time. I have before expressed my opinion that
it is a mistake to feed on too soft food, giving all grain ground
to meal, and so on. In their natural state the birds would never
have soft food, except worms and green food, and though in
confinement it is necessary to give a good deal of the food mixed
up and cooked, still grain in its natural state should never be
entirely withheld, or your birds will certainly suffer from torpid
gizzards and other ills of a like nature.

18 *IP, INFLUENZA.

PIP.

Pip is a very fatal disease; it consists of inflammation in the
tongue and throat, and is caused, it is thought, by irritation of
the mucous membrane of the alimentary canal. Chickens are
mostly attacked by it. Some people scrape the scales roughly
off the tongue; if this plan is adopted it should be done very
gently with the nail; but borax is the safest remedy; it should
be dissolved in tincture of myrrh and water, and applied with a
paint-brush several times a day. The bird should be kept in a
warm place, fed on bread and milk with green food, given plenty
of pure water, and dosed with castor-oil in doses according to its
age and strength. Pip can be detected in its early stages, be-
cause the bird frequently opens its mouth and apparently gasps
for breath, for the thickening of the membrane of the tongue
impedes respiration.

INFLUENZA.

Influenza should be treated with warmth; the eyes and nostrils,
if a discharge is observed, bath frequently with warm water.
Generous feeding should be resorted to, but not of too stimula-
ting a nature, and the bird should be kept by itself. Ordinary
cold and catarrh come under the same head.

MUCOUS MEMBRANE, PARALYSIS. 19

INFLAMMATION OF THE MUCOUS
MEMBRANE.

Inflammation of the mucous membrane is usually evinced by-
dysentery, the bird mopes, is purged, and the evacuations are
tinged with blood. If it is treated promptly directly the first
symptoms show themselves, it is possible to effect a cure by
giving small doses of castor-oil, and afterwards doses of the
Hydrargyrum cum creta, rhubarb, and laudanum in the follow-
ing proportions : —

Hydr. cum creta - - 3 grains.

Rheubard • - - - 2 or 3 grains.

Laudanum - - - - 2, 3 or 4 grains.

This dose should be carefully mixed in a teaspoonful of gruel,
and should be given every alternate day for ten days, or even
longer. The bird must be very sparingly fed, and not on too
relaxing food, and for some time after should be subjected to
constant supervision. This disease, if it is cured even, always
leaves a certain amount of delicacy behind it.

PARALYSIS.

Paralysis arises from over-feeding and too little exercise, and
should be treated in the same way as megrims. Soft food should
be given alternating with a little grain, but not to much of
either, plenty of exercise, and castor-oil in moderate doses.
There is little else to be done, as the primary cause is usually
derangement or disease of the spinal cord.

20 PHTHISIS, RHEUMATISM, CRAMP.

PHTHISIS.

Phthisis is the effect of cold and damp; change of climate ha»
been advised by some as the only remedy, but however far gone
people may be in the mania of poultry-keeping it would be hardly
worth while to pack off a bird to a warm genial climate as would
be done with a consumptive patient! Cod-liver oil might be
given in capsules in the early stage of the malady, but with me
I know it would be a case of lejeu ne vantpas la chandelle, and
the bird would be speedily be put out of the way as mercifully
as possible. For it could be of no possible use if unhealthy, es-
pecially from such a cause — no one in their senses would breed
from it and so perpetuate the disease, and therefore it would
simply be an act of folly, however valuable or well-bred a crea-
ture it might be, to cosset it back into a convalescent state and
spend time and money on it.

RHEUMATISM.

Rheumatism is caused by cold and damp, birds in very rainy
weather in winter frequently suffering from it. It can only be
cured by moving the birds affected to dry, warm quarters, giving
them nourishing, stimulating food.

CRAMP.

Cramp very often attacks fowls; it is, no doubt, in the first

BRUISES AND FRACTURES. 21

instance attributable to damp, and to stone and brick flooring
*n fowl-houses. If your house is floored in this manner and
your birds begin to suffer, at once have it dug up, and a compo-
sition of chalk, gravel, and cinders substituted and rammed
down until hard and smooth. If, however, your floor is all you
could wish, then probably the place is damp, and there is noth-
ing for it but to seek a fresh situation. The fowls affected will
require a good nourishing diet: bread soaked in beer, a little
meat now and then, and oatmeal, with coarse black pepper or
peppercorns pounded, mixed with it.

Some birds — the large heavy kinds— often appear to be suffer-
ing from cramp when in reality their limbs are only too weak
to support their heavy bodies; this is frequently the case with
young Erahmas and Cochins, and disappears as they become
older and stronger. When they are observed to rest on their
knee-joints they should be fed with strengthening food, and
have iron in their drinking-water.

Cramp in the limbs is quite distinct from leg- weakness, and
usually arises from the causes before mentioned, though from
the birds being more subject to it in cold, wet weather, they
should be well fed and be placed in a warm sheltered place; it
is often set down to rheumatism. Sometimes cramp is caused,
though by some derangement or obstruction of the rump-
gland.

BRUISES AND FRACTURES.

Bruises and Fractures require careful attention; a broken leg
may be carefully set by any one clever with poultry, and the
bird will do well.

28 BROKEN-LEG, DROWNING, AC.

BROKEN-LEG.

The leg can be bound round with stiff leather or tightly fixed
in a cork splice bound round with wool. If placed in a shallow
basket, with linen cover sewed all round and a hole ma#e through
which the neck can move freely, this will leave the leg in perfect
quiet, and give it time to set. Food and water can be placed
within reach, and three days will suffice for repairing the injury.
Let it take exercise little by little. Ducklings spiked by a sharp
garden fork in the web of foot or bill will soon recover, as the
place heals of itself; if through the neck, bind it carefully round
with diachylon plaster.

DROWNING.

Ko water tubs or large pans of water, buckets etc., should ever
be allowed to stand about uncovered in the poultry yard, as
young birds especially are very inquisitive, and often fly or fall
in. If discovered in time, and any signs of life is left, immerse
the bird at once in warm water, dry it, and then wrap carefully
in cotten, wool, or flannel, and place near a good fire. Give from
half to a whole teaspoonful of port wine, and be careful not to
expose again too cold to suddenly.

OBSTRUCTION OF RUMP-GLAND.

Obstruction of rump-gland occasions very often an entire de-
rangement of the whole system, and is nearly always symptoma-
tic of a feverish condition; it brings on inflammation and a tu-

CORNS, ULCERS, AC. 23

mour, which should be opened by a lancet, and the matter very
gently pressed out. Afterwards the place should be fomented
with warm water and the bird put on a diet of oatmeal, green
food and have a teaspoonful of castor-oil given it at roosting-
time every third night until its system appears to have recovered
itself. If the tumour is not opened (the incision should be a
longitudinal one) the obstruction to the glandular secretion will
affect very probably the spinal cord, cause cramp and paralysis
in the legs, and end fatally.

CORNS.

Corns are very frequently caused by the birds having their
perches fixed too high from the ground; in flying down they
bruise their feet, and corns begin to form. In bad cases they
should be pared down with a penknife and lunar caustic applied.
The best thing to do, though, is to remove the primary causes,
the high perch or stone floor, for that will also develop the

ULCERS.

Ulcers do not very often give trouble; they should be opened
with a lancet and fomented with warm water frequently. I
never had a case, so cannot speak from experience of their treat-
ment.

ELEPHANTIASIS.

Elephantiasis which attacks some of the Asiatic breeds, is th«

24 BUMBLEFOOT, WHITE COMB.

work of an insect, and can easily be detected by the curious
growth of matter on the feet and legs; they should be dressed
with sulphur ointment, and the birds aifected seperated from the
others.

BTJMBLEFOOT.

Bumblefoot is a malady to which Houdans and Dorkings seem
more subject than other fowls. It is caused very often as corns
are, by high perching. The swelling in the foot may be opened
with a sharp knife and the matter removed; after this is done
the part should be burnt or cauterised. If, however, this is not
done, it should be dressed with either common salt, or diluted
carbolic acid. Sometimes the fifth toe swells up; this may be
prevented by strapping it up to the leg when the bird is about
two months old; this will cause it to settle in its proper place and
not interfere with the other toes. "When you observe your poul-
try suffering from corns or "bumblefoot" you should lower your
perches at once, unless they are already very low, in which case
there must be some other reason for these maladies — perhaps a
stone or brick floor to the house.

WHITE COMB.

White comb is common in Cochins, and is said to be catching.
Hamburgs also suffer from it. It consists of small white spots
scattered over the comb in patches; it extends in some cases to
the face, and even into the neck, causing the feathers to fall off.
It is not, really speaking, a local ailment, though generally trea-
ted with oil, carbolic acid, and such things as if it were; thefacfc

FEATHERS, TORN COMB, TERMER-. 25

being that the bird is out of health, and internal heat, caused by
too much heating and stimulating food, shows itself externally
in these white spots and patches; bad water is also said to cause
it, or uncleanliness. The bird is cured certainly after the oil,
&c, have been frequently applied; but it is generally Nature's
cure, and if no oil had been used would still have been effected.
Castor-oil, in teaspoonf ul doses, is really about the only and best
thing to be done.

PAINT AND TAR ON FEATHERS.

In case any of the fowls should get paint on their feathers, rub
carefully the way of the feathers with turpentine or benzine; for
tar, use butter or oil ; but prevention is better than cure.

TORN COMB.

Of frequent occurrence, from the fighting of cocks through
wire partitions. Should the wattles be much tofn, cut off hang-
ing and jagged parts, and cleanse with cold water and apply
cobwebs. When scabs form, zinc ointment will help to soften
them.

VERMIN.

Fowls suffer dreadfully, if not looked after, from fleas, vermin,
ticks, and other insects. Their houses should be whitewashed
at least twice a year, old straw never suffered to remain in the

26 VERMIN.

nests, and, above all, they should be provided with dust-baths of
sieved ashes; they should never be kept without a heap of fine
dust or sand in which to roll themselves. If allowed this neces-
sary contrivance they will rid themselves of their troublesome
enemies. No one who has watched a hen in a dust-bath will
fail to see how thoroughly she enjoys it, sending clouds of dust
all over her body and between the purposely ruffled-out feathers;
she works her whole body about until every portion of it has
come under the action of the bath, and she has completely dusted
every part. These baths should be renewed frequently, the best
way of doing so being to water the heaps of dust, then scrape
the mud so formed together and remove it, filling up the hollows
with fresh ashes and sand.

Chickens are very often infested with minute parasites ; they
should be dusted well with flowers of sulphur, which will gen-
erally relieve them of these torments, only it will have to be done
frequently to be of any use. Sulphur should also be mixed with
with the dust in the baths — flowers of sulphur, of course.

In spring and summer it is especially necessary to keep your
fowl-houses perfectly clean, for at those times, of the year insects
of all kinds breed and multiply with wonderful rapidity.

The houses should be well whitewashed as spring comes on,
and also sprinkled frequently with carbolic acid; size should be
mixed with whitewash, as it then fills up the crevices and minute
interstices better, and does not easily rub off. Coops should
also be washed over in the same way. The dust-baths in sum-
mer require to be changed more frequently.- In cold weather
the various fowl-parasites do not flourish so much or increase so
rapidly, and therefore the places will not want so much attention.
Fowls will never do well unless they are kept beautifully clean;
they will keep themselves so if they are only given the proper
requisites, and surely if they are profitable and useful to us we
need not mind a little trouble taken on their behalf.

BAD HABITS OF FOWLS. 97

BAD HABITS OF FOWLS.

Fowls have bad habits whicn need correcting; not so numerous,
perhaps, are their faults as those of unfeathered bipeds, but,
such as they are, by no means easy to cure.

They are quarrelsome and greedy, but then "'tis their nature
to" be both. Egg-eating and Feather-eating are two much more
serious faults, and unfortunately very difficult to break birds of
when they once acquire them.

A hen I once had, a Hamburgh, began to eat her eggs, and
though I tried everything I could think of in the way of dosing
her with eggs filled with eayenne pepper and various other messes
it made no difference; finally I had her fatted up and ate her,
which certainly put a stop to her egg-eating propensities.

In those days nests with false bottoms had not been thought
of, or, if they had, I had never heard of them. They are the
best things to have in such a case. These nests are made with
a hole in the middle of the false bottom, which is sloped all round
down to the hole.

The nest must not, of course, be lined with straw, which would
prevent the egg rolling into the hole, but padded instead, the
padding being arranged to slope into the false bottom. Straw or
hay must be put beneath the nest for the egg to drop on to
through the hole. One can imagine the disgust of the hen who
is conscious that she has laid her egg, but yet fails to find it to
make a meal on.

28 BAD HABITS OF FOWLS.

Unless, however, the hen was of a very valuable breed, it would
be hardly worth the trouble of having such a description of nest
made solely for her use. I should be more inclined to make use
of her as an addition to my larder.

Feather-eating is also a very difficult thing to cure. Salt is
very strongly advised to be given to all feather-eaters. Fowl-
breeders use the following mixture, which I consider efficacious:
"Four parts of bran, one part meal, one tablespoonful of salt
to every eight quarts, stiffly mixed and cooled; birds fed with it
twice a day."

Other people advise powdered borax to be given to feather-
eating fowls; they will feed greedily on it at first, and then by
degrees cease to care for it, or for their feathers. The habit
arises, doubtless, from some inward craving. I have known
birds in hot weather take to it when the water supply was not
sufficiently looked after.

GENERAL TREATMENT.

GENERAL TREATMENT OF FOWLS.

If you keep many or few fowls you must be prepared to keep
them with some degree of comfort to themselves — that is, if you
wish the result to be satisfactory — and to insure this three things
are necessary: good food, clenliness and warmth. You must have
a nouse for them, and a run attached to it, if they are not allowed
to roam about the farm or offices. Fowls kept in comparative
freedom naturally do far better than those which have to under-
go confinement; they are unquestionably more healthy, for pure
air; pure water, and freedom to roam at will over the home-
stead, picking up insects, worms, green food, and gravel as they
like is conducive to a thoroughly healthy state. Unless, how-
ever, you have a little land attached to your house, or you are
the happy possessor of a small farm, your birds cannot be allowed
to follow their own sweet will, and must be kept in confinement
at least some portion of the day.

My first essay at poultry-farming was on my father's farm,
where, of course, the fowls — at least, all the commoner sorts —
had their full liberty. The different special varieties I kept per-
fectly distinct on the ''Upper Farm," as it was called by courtesy;
while the commoner useful birds had the run of the farmyard,
rickyard, and nearest fields, there being there no garden to spoil.
I leave my readers to judge which lot of fowls did best, the

30 GENERAL TREATMENT.

pampered, well-bred dirds, who were looked after and allowed
their runs in the "mowhay" at certain times of the day, or the
mongrel lot who were allowed their full liberty, not being so
frequently or so well fed as the others, but having the advantages
of freedom to counterbalance these disadvantages.

When kept in confinement three meals a day is the outside
allowance for them, but see that they all get fed, and that the
strong birds do not gobble it all up and the more weakly ones
fare badly.

Fowls do fairly well in a limited space provided that you can
give them a grass run of some sort and you do not keep too
many. If only one cock bird is kept, then the hens should cer-
tainly not exceed eleven at the very most. Eight is the better
number. No cock bird should be kept more than three years.
I prefer changing them at two, and two good laying seasons is
quite as much as you can expect for a hen bird. After the third
year they do not lay so well or so regularly, and therefore, if you
keep only a limited number see that they are young and prolific.
Directly they begin to drop oft in their laying during the proper
season draft them off, Either sell or slay and eat ! Fowls live to
a considerable age. It is, however, a very great mistake to keep
on old birds or to breed from old stock, or, in fact, to keep any
fowls that are sickly or have passed their prime. Chickens
obtained from them are aiways weakly and degenerate, the eggs
slack off, and such birds are not really worth their keep, and if
economy is any object should be got rid of without delay. Keep-
ing only the limited number I have advised, you should see that
they are all in thoroughly good condition. You should manage
also to have each year pullets ooming on to lay as the older hens
begin to cease and want to sit.

Food should be regularly given and frequently changed, same-
ness of diet being by no means desirable. It is equally bad

GENERAL TREATMENT. 8l

remember, to overfeed or underfeed. Study your fowls carefully,
and try to hit the happy medium.

My next attempts were conducted on an entirely diflerent plan.
In the first case I had the run of the farm produce, had no trouble
in procuring " after- wheat, " barley, or oats, and plenty of roots
and green food. In the second I had to buy all, but the scraps
from the house. I kept an account of all incomings and outgo-
ing, in a book, entering tne fowls' food, etc., I bought on one
side, and the chickens and eggs sold on the other. This plan I
advise all poultry-keepers, whether on a large or small scale, to
adopt, as it can then be ascertained exactly how much the fowls
cost each week, month, or year.

It is impossible to lay down hard and fast rules as to the
amount of food you allow. Some days your birds will eat more
than others, at other times less, bat whatever you do never stint
them, for that is a very poor and mistaken economy, as you will
in the long ran learn to your cost.

Poultry-keepers must not mind trouble : look after the fowls
yourself. Believe me, personal supervision goes a very long way
towards success. Study your birds, their individual ways, their
appetites. See that they have all they want or that is desirable
for their comfort. Read books and articles on the subject, and
treasure up all the practical kuowledge and hints that you can
obtain from those who are experienced in the business of poultry-
tending.

32 DAILY BOUTINS.

DAILY ROUTINE.

Method must be observed in every undertaking? more partic-
ularly is it necessary in poultry-keeping. You will get through
much more work in the poultry-yard by arranging your time,
and will have, therefore, more leisure for your various other
duties, for I do not for an instant imagine the care of your fowls
to be your sole end and aim in life.

The first early meal your cook or kitchen-maid will most prob-
ably have to give your fowls, as it is not very likely that you will
be up and about at so early an hour ; she, too, will let them out
of the fowl-house for their early run — that is, if they are allowed
and can have the benefit of such a luxury.

Then will come your work.

If possible get your fowl-house swept out before breakfast. If
you leave it, till after, and you are the master or mistress of a
house, you will have that to attend to first, and you will be so
late out in your poultry-yard that it will be time for the birds'
second meal.

It is astonishing how short a time it takes to sweep out and
sand your fowl-house if you do it every morning and have every-
thing ready to hand : a hard broom, a spade, a small wooden box
made in the form of the boxes grooms use in the stable, in which
to place the sweepings and carry them away to the pit. For a

DAILY ROUTINE. 33

pit should always be provided, as, mixed with other ingredients,
the manure from poultry is most useful in the garden, but not
alone ; some people have an erroneous idea that without the mix-
ture of any other substance it is very valuable ; but this is a mis-
take. Then, when your house and yard are clean and sweet,
broomed and sanded, see to the water-pans, thoroughly cleansing
them, look to the nests if they require fresh straw, and attend to
the sitting hens if you have any. A good plan is to let them out
for their feed, drink, and dust-bath while you are cleaning and
sweeping, as you will then see that they go back properly to their
nests again.

Fattening chickens and young chickens will have been
attended to before you began your ordinary work.

About eleven or twelve o'clock the fowls should have their
second meal — of soft food this time, as grain will probably have
been given to them early ; then, unless you have young chickens,
you need trouble no more about your birds until about five
o'clock in the summer and four o'clock in the winter, when you
may, if in the former period and very hot. give fresh water in the
pans, collect the eggs laid that day and place them in their
proper box, and finally give the third and last meal before they
go to roost.

Go round yourself the last thing to lock up the house and yard,
seeing that all tho birds, young and old, are safely housed for
the night.

So much for ordinary everyday work ; an hour in the morning,
or perhaps an hour and a half if you have many small broods of
chickens, another hour or so in the afternoon, with a glance now
and then into the poultry-yard during the day, will see you well
through your daily work, unless there may be, possibly, hatch-
ing going on, or sickness, or anything more than usually im-
portant.

?,

84 DAILY ROUTINE.

As to the work being hard, that it certainly is not, for I did it
it at one time every day ; it is very healthy, and, though possibly
to a lady might be a little disagreeable until she got used to it,
to any ordinary person it is simply a pleasant outdoor amuse-
ment calculated to interest and banish ennui effectually.

If you look after your fowls like this yourself, never fear about
their succeeding — they must do so — rand the more care you take,
the more thrifty and economical you are in' your methods of man-
agement, the more you and your poultry wiil prosper, only do not
begin on too large a scale at first, and do not throw it all up in
disgust because you do not at once succeed in gaining large
profits.

Every undertaking must have a certain commencement, and
success only follows on perseverance in poultry-keeping as in
most other pursuits.

MOW TO COLLECT THE EGOS.

HOW TO COLLECT THE EGGS.

Have a series of shallow boxes (wooden) made large enough
to hold as many eggs as you are in the habki of having from your
hens every day ; these boxes should be filled with bran and the
eggs stood upright in them, the small end downwards. Place
the boxes on a shelf where you can easily ge£ at them ; say you
have seven boxes ; this seems a large numbei, but I will show
you why ; most people date their eggs, but if you have from fif-
teen to twenty a day you will find this a lengthy process, besides
going against the sale of them. If you want to k«ep the eggs of
any particular hen, then date them of course, and add the hen's
name ; but if you are mereiy collecting your eggs for table use,
or for sitting, you will find this a more simple method.

Your seven boxes should be kept in a line, or if not, oil shelves
one below the other. You start, we will say, with the first ?*ox,
in which you deposit ten, twelve, or fifteen eggs, or whatever the
number may be of that day's laying. Each box should have a
nail, on which should hang a card with the number plainly
printed on it, as many numbers as there are boxes, 1 up to 7. On
the box in which you put your first day's eggs hang label No. 1.
This will be, we will say, on Sunday. On Monday place that
days' eggs in the next box; shift the label of No. 1 to it, and put

36

HOW TO COLLECT THE EGGS.

No. 2 label on it instead ; and so go on until you have filled all
your boxes, and they are all properly labelled according to age
— one day to seven. No egg is really fit to be called a fresh egg
which is more than seven days old. If you keep them longer
you must have a store-box and remove them to it, only they
should be treated then as preserved eggs for cooking.

MOW TO PRESERVE EGGS.

HOW TO PRESERVE EGGS.

There are various plans advised by poultry-keepers, but the
most simple is really, I believe, the most effectual, at least for
two or three months' keeping. The great secret is to close the
pores of the shell, which can easily be done by rubbing them well
over with butter, oil or lard. The best way is to run down some
hog's lard in a basin, and dip the eggs one by one into it. Of
course, it must not be hot, only just warm enough to melt the
lard and allow of the egg being dipped well in. The greasy sub-
stance must then be well rubbed into the pores with the fingers.
They can then be stored in bran in your store-tub, or packed in
a barrel in hay if you wish to send to send them away. If you
keep them in bran they must be looked to from time to time to
avoid the bran becoming damp or mouldy, which would spoil the
eggs.

The following is a good method for preservation: — "Take a
couple of hot lime shells, and in an earthen dish slake them in
a good quantity of water, stirring the mixture round to let the
sediment fall to the bottom. Put it aside for some hours, and
when the superfluous water has risen to the top pour it ofl till
the thick creamy soft lime is reached, for this is the material
which, hardened round the packed eggs, preserves them effec-
tually for months to come. Then take the eggs, and in any
suitable vessel (chipped or cracked milk-dishes useless for milk

38 HOW TO PRESERVE EGGS.

answer very well) put them in, a layer all straight on end, and
with a spoon fill up with the lime till the eggs are more than
covered. Then put in another layer, and proceed as before until
the dish if filled up. Put away in a cool but not too dry place —
a cellar-floor answers well — and when required for use piok the
eggs carefully out from the lime with the point of a knife or a
sharp spoon."

Here is another recipe from a German paper: — "On 27th
March, 1879, some eggs were placed for an hour in a solution of
50 grammes of salicylic acid and a little spirits of wine diluted
with one litre of water, and afterwards were packed away in
bran. At the end of June they were in good condition and as
fresh as new-laid. Autumn-laid eggs would keep much better
lhan spring eggs.' '

The great secret of preserving eggs fresh without recourse to
more elaborate processes is to place the egg small end down-
wards and keep it in that position. This should always be the
position of an egg whether kept for sitting or use, rubbed with
grease, or preserved in lime and chemical preparations. An inch
board about a foot wide and from two to three feet long may be
procured, and holes bored in it of an inch and a half in diameter.
Strips of board or laths may be nailed round this board as a
ledge, and a cupboard in a cool place fitted up with 5 or 6 inch
boards or shelves. Then as fast as you get fresh eggs place
them in the holes in the boards small ends downwards, and
they will keep fresh for some weeks. These shelves might be
substituted for the boxes I have before named, and numbered
in the same way. A carpenter would make boards of this de-
scription for a very small sum.

Eggs can also be-preserved by being brushed all over with a
solution of gum-arabic, and then packed in dry charcoal-dust;
also by being kept in the following mixture, which was invented

HOW SO PRESERVE EGG8. 80

by a Mr. Jayne, of Sheffield: — In a tub place 1 bushel of quick-
lime, 21bs. of salt, £lb. cream of tartar, and mix all together
with sufficient water to make the composition of such consis-
tence that an egg put into it will swim with the top just above
the fluid; then put in the eggs, which, it is said, will keep good
for two years.

40 HOW TO 7 AC*.

HOW TO PACK.

Each egg should be wrapped first of all in silver paper, then
newspaper, and then placed in a box filled with hay, rough
seeds, or chaff; there is then no fear of their breaking. It may
sound troublesome, but if silver or thin paper is always savad,
and newspapers, and placed aside in a drawer or shelf devoted
to that purpose, I see little difficulty about it myself. It is
harder to procure the seeds or chaff. If these cannot be had,
then soft hay or straw must be used, but remember the secret
of good packing is tight packing; leave no crevices, or else the
eggs will shake about.

In packing sittings of valuable eggs the above is the best plan;
but, as a final precaution, the box so packed should be packed
itself into a hamper well surrounded with tightly-pressed hay or
straw. I may mention that the lid of the box ought to be
screwed on for eggs which are to be used for a sitting, as the
jar, in nailing, would very likely damage them. I generally
use hay myself for packing the wrapped-up eggs, and I never
heard of any damage occurring to them. Many people, I know,
advise chaff or seeds; but sometimes — in fact nearly always —
the shaking of the journey causes the seeds to settle down more
closely together, and then spaces may be left, though you might
fancy you had packed your box perfectly tight. With the hay
this is not at all likely to occur, especially if you put a good
layer of it in the bottom of the box, then a layer of wrapped-up
eggs, then more hay, and so on until you have filled the box.

POULTRY RECEIPTS.

MISCELLANEOUS

Poultry Receipts.

ADDLED EGGS.

Those which have been sat upon, and which have been
clear from first day, or ''unfertile." Such eggs, if taken out of
the incubator or nest on the fifth or sixth day, are fit for cooking;
if left in, they will injure those that are fertile, and eventually,
when broken, may explode and be very offensive; if incubation
is continued with a "clear" egg it will become "addled." An
egg becoming fluid shows that at some time it must have been
chilled.

AGE OF HENS AND PULLETS TO LAY.

Pullets lay at four and a half months to six and a half; their time
for laying is in the hands of the clever poultry-woman or breeder.
If hatched for egg produce only, and with intent to keep up a
succession of layers, eggs should be incubated during almost
every month : January to April being the best. If your object is
to secure eggs at the earliest moment, take care not to move the

43 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

pullets about from place to place, as it seriously delays and
checks egg production; as soon as pullets are over their fifth
month they should be mated, and, if possible, in the same quar-
ters in which they have been brought up. Chicks hatched in
September will not be so forward to lay at five months in Jan-
uary as those hatched in January are in April. Hens, if they
are old and have laid on late into the season, cannot be expected
to lay before February.

AGE TO BREED AT.
Pullets, on the contrary, meant for exhibition and prize stock
must be hatched in the months of January to March inclusive,
and it is wise to give the pullets a frequent change to prevent
laying, and so lengthen the pei?".od for growth. Pullets from
which to breed exhibition stock should be quite seven to eight
months old before they are mated, and when this is done an
adult cock should be in their run, while fc*U' cockerels should be
placed with the adult hens. Hens from 1 .70 to three years of
age are more valuable to breed from than pullets : their chickens
are stronger as a rule.

AGE TO FATTEN.
Cockerels of from four to five months are in prime order for
fattening; it is little use commencing earlier if size is an object,
but birds of this age should be ready for table if well kept with-
out special fattening.

AGE, TO JUDGE, IN POULTRY.
If for table, examine the feet and legs; the size and appearance
of the spur form an unfailing guide in hens as well as cocks.
The skin of the pullet or cockerel is smooth and fresh-looking,
the adult bird yearly grows coarser and shrivelled: place the
thumb and forefinger on either side of the back near the pope's
nose or oil receptacle, and press it; in young birds that part is
supple, in old birds it is difficult to bend. In ducks the age is

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 43

very hard to tell, even great judges find a difficulty; ducks of
two or three years' standing have, however, a deep depression
down the breast feathers, and their waddle becomes yearly more
ungainly.

AGE TO KILL.

If you are breeding for exhibition kill off any birds not fit for
show purposes, however small, unless you have special runs
for table stock into which to draft all false-feathered specimens.
It is bad economy to keep them crowding your prize birds pre-
paring for exhibition. Hens should be killed in their second
year, the moment they cease laying their summer batch of eggs;
do not let them get into moult, or you will have to keep them
through it at a disadvantage. A hen hatched, say, in March,
1878, should lay up to the end of July m 1879, and then be fat-
tened and killed; if well hung, she will be excellent eating still.
In case of prize stock the rule is different, and the moment for
killing must be decided by the value of the specimen in ques-
tion; no valuable stock bird should be discarded till the comple-
tion of her third or fourth year, as even a dozen or two of her
eggs may be invaluable for incubation.

AGE TO SHOW.

The exhibitor who wishes to be early in the field must hatch
early. Cockerels for August and September shows must be
hatched out in January and February. In from six to seven
months the plumage of the cockerel is fairly perfected, and
pullets, if kept from laying till six or seven months and then
paired, and exhibited when laying has just commenced, will be
in perfect order. Adult birds must be exhibited when over
moult, and when laying recommences; the cock bird Is not in
spirits and will mope in his pen if shown before the moult is
over, and the adult hen's comb will look dry and shrivelled up
till she lays.

44 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

AIR BUBBLE, OR AIR CELL,

In an egg, is at the round or blunt end: it contains the air which
is to supply the chick during the process of incubation — it is
known to contain a greater proportion of oxygen than the air we
breathe. As the chick increases in size the air bubble grows
larger, and when on the point of hatching it occupies one-fifth
of the whole egg. The slightest perforation of this air chamber
will prevent succes in hatching out. About the nineteenth day
of incubation the air cell is ruptured, and the chick breathes
with its lungs; it is at this date that the lively movements seen
in eggs placed in water are observable.

ALARM.

The attendant in the poultry- yard should by all means try to
make friends with his flock, and never alarm them or drive them
needlessly. He should never shout at them in an angry tone,
and should acquire a habit of calling them always in a special
manner when coming to feed them at meal hours. When laying
hens are alarmed soft eggs are the result; and if afraid of their
keeper, exhibition birds in being caught and dressed for shows
run the greatest risk of spoiling combs and plumage by knock-
ing themselves about in their fright.

ALE.

Ale may be used with advantage occasionally as a treat in
severe weather for laying stock. Should a bird's comb turn
blue, from confinement at a show in cold weather, a warm house
and bread soaked in ale once a day will effect wonders. But ale
should not be used constantly, as it is too stimulating.

ALLOWANCE OF FOOD.

(See Food.) No absolute scale can possibly be given, and yet
on the proper allowance of food being given to each fowl hangs
the question, "Does poultry pay or not?" Most fanciers' birds
are over-fed, and in this lies great danger. The various breeds

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 4fi

require more or less food according to size and character, and
the only safe rule to lay down in case of adult birds is to give
at the morning meal and supper time only as much as they will
pick up greedily, (never leave food on the ground or in the pans)
at mid-day give only a few grains, more as an occupation than as a
meal. I find a (lady' s) handful of grain to each bird is ample ; while
of soft food in the morning, about as much as would go into a gill
measure is almost too much for each bird. Green food should
be given ad lib., and should never be forgotten, but too large a
supply of fresh- mown grass given at rare intervals is injurious;
birds are apt to eat too much, and scouring is the result.

ANIMAL FQOD.

When fowls are kept without grass run or ample range, meat
is all but a necessity; the number of eggs in winter will be
greatly increased on meat diet. Bullock's liver, slightly boiled,
and chopped in chopper, peppered and mixed with pot-liquor,
and thickened with oatmeal, warm, is much relished. Scraps
and cuttings from the butcher, are well worth getting for the
same purpose. The French give horse-flesh to their poultry, in
the management of which they are notably successful. During
moult and in severe weather it is bad economy not to buy meat;
for breeding stock and early supply of fertile eggs it is essential.
It may be given chopped small and mixed with rice, meal, or
other soft food; or, for a change, a piece of meat may be nailed
or tied to the wall of the pen for the fowls to peck at on rainy
days. For chicken supply, cook the meat and chop it fine.
This may be given to chickens at three days old and upwards.
A supply of maggots is the best animal food for young chickens.
If in the country, a dead lamb or sheep, or a calf may at times
be procured, and provided that death was caused by anything
but a long and severe illness, there is no reason why these should
not be used in the poultry-yard. Attentions of this kind in x

46 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

poultry-run ward off evils, such as egg and feather eating.

ANIMAL FOOD: KINDS TO PROCURE.

Meat: Gravy-beef, slightly boiled, salted and peppered and
finely chopped, should be got.

Earth-worms are excellent, but some fowls will not eat them.

Scraps from table. — Very good; and if near a boarding-house
or school, arrangements should be made to take the remnants.

AnW Nests. — Excellent for young chickens. School or vil-
lage children may be encouraged to bring them in for a few
pence.

Meal-worms. — These for chicks are unsurpassed, and produce
wild excitement. A regular supply can be procured by expend-
ing a little trouble and thought on the matter, which is, how-
ever, not an agreeable one.

Cheap Winter Food.— Get a sheep's or cow's head; boil it
down, after chopping it small with an axe or a bone-crushing
machine. Boil in the stock, cabbage, potatoes, carrots, par-
snips, and thicken to a crumbling mass with dry boiled rice.

APPETITE.

To maintain birds in a really healthy state appetite must be
kept up, and it is good management to have the poultry in such
a state that they will fly up to meet the poultry-man, and scram-
ble for their food. Loss of appetite comes from unwise feeding
on over-spiced food.

APRJJ. WORK.

March chicks are always more in demand than later ones; but
April is the month when the birds get on best, and hatching
should be vigorously continued. If warm and dry, nests should
have very hot water poured round the outer edge of the straw —
not on the eggs; avoid doing this so that the water runs into the
nest. The eggs should not lie in the water for a in-*ne«i.--

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 47

Drench all the parts of the nest except the eggs.

Chicken feeding becomes complicated; the older broods of
January and February will be growing large and very bold. If
it has not been done already, separate them ; draft off the older
broods to open quarters as weather permits, so that younger
chicks may have a better chance. Place the food about in a
number of glazed saucers or tins, so that all may have an equal
share. Let all eat until they will eat no more, then clear away
the remains.

Continue constant disinfection of chieken boxes and coops;
eschew hay beds — they breed vermin. If a brood looks sickly,
suspect vermin — "lice" — and treat accordingly.

Show cockerels and pullets should now be penned up separ-
ately and receive especial care. Commoiice to fatten early
hatched January chicks not fit for show or stock. Feeding the
young chicks at 10 p.m. may now be abandoned, but soft sweet
food and handfuls of grain should be placed about in the even-
ing after the chicks are gone to bed, to be ready for the early
morning.

ARTIFICIAL INCUBATION. ,

Practised from the earliest times in the East chiefly in China,
India, and Egypt. In the latter country large mamaU, or ovens,
holding from 40,000 to 80,000 eggs, are still used for the pur-
pose; and the villagers bring their eggs in the expectation of
receiving after a lapse of 21 days, 200 chicks for every 300 eggs
deposited. In 1851 Cantelo exhibited a hydro-incubating ma-
chine in London, and the subject of artificial incubation has
occupied much attention in France from that time to this.
Rouillier's and Voitellier's machines have there taken the lead,
while quite recently in England the matter has been taken up
with more or less success by several competitors for publia
taror.

48 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

The chief desiderata in artificial incubation are a regular tern-
perature — from 100° to 106° Fahr. at the upper surface of the
eggs — moisture, and after the tenth day adequate ventilation
(without chilling) of the eggs. The source of heat is immaterial
so long as these essentials are secured; pratically, however, a
lamp, or gas, and boiling water are utilised for the purpose.

The choice between a gas or lamp machine and one worked
by boiling water will be probably determined by the greater or
less facility with which boiling water in quantity, say two or three
gallons, night and morning, can be obtained. Excellent results
have been secured by both systems, and 75 per cent, and up-
wards may be hatched out by either method with reasonable
care and attention to detail. The chief points to be attended to
in artificial incubation^are: —

i. Position of incubator: an out-house, conservatory, or room
on the ground floor is best, where there is an equable tempera-
ture, good ventillation, and no risk of jar.

ii. Let the eggs be as fresh as possible: allow travelled eggs
to settle for twenty-four hours before placing in the incubator.

iii. Avoid putting eggs in the drawers by twos and threes,
as far as possible; if unavoidable, warm the eggs well at 104° to
105O Fahr.

iv. Aim at a regular temperature of 103° increasing after 9th day
to 104° Fahr. ; with high-bred eggs a degree higher is an advantage
towards the close of hatching. Occasional extremes of 90° Fahr. or
even 108° Fahr. have been borne with impunity, but safety lies be-
tween 100° and 106°. Over-heating is more dangerous than
under-heating.

v. Clean the eggs well; mark them on one side with date,
&c, rather nearer the smaller end, and place the eggs date
downwards, for the first twenty-four hours; your marks will
then be preserved, when the chick is hatched.

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 40

▼1 . Keep the trays of earth or sand always moistened be-
neath the eggs, but avoid sprinkling the eggs themselves with
water.

vii. Turn the eggs slightly every twelve hours. Air them
during the first ten days for ten minutes at night and a quarter
of an hour in the morning; for the last eleven days allow twenty
minutes in the morning and fifteen minutes in the evening.

viii. Sixth day examine all eggs, and reject those which do
not show embryo and distinct veining; the clear eggs are still
fresh for cooking even for custards.

ix. After the ninth day air is required by the chicks, but
chills must be avoided, especially when nearing the last stage
of incubation.

x. When eggs at different stages of development are in the
same drawer, it may be well to reserve one portion for those
last put in, and to cover them with a flannel, whilst those in a
more advanced stage are aired more freely.

At five or six weeks, according to the weather, chicks do
better without artificial heat, and a run on grass or dry earth
beds when the sun is shining will be found most beneficial to
health.

A late vinery with earth floor Is one of the best places for
rearing early chickens. Great care, however, will be required
if many are bred, to keep the earth fresh dug. Cleanliness also
is essential, especially in the mothers, which should be well
aired daily, as well as being provided with a fresh earth floor.
A little disinfectant, such as carbolic acid or terebene, will often
be a useful addition.

ARTIFICIAL REARING.

The chick, after leaving the egg in an incubator, may be
either placed with a hen or be brought up under one of th*

50 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

many artificial mothers which have been invented for the pur-
pose. In some machines the mothers are attached to the incu-
bator. A hot water bottle suspended by flannel in an open box
forms a cheap and useful arrangement for infant broods. A
well-snstained heat of about 80° Fahr. is essential for the first
week at least, as a chill is fatal; after that time it may be ten
degrees lower." The run should not be large at first, and should
be protected, by wire or netting, from the access of older birds.
The broods should be carefully sorted under different mothers
as to size, and the greatest cleanliness insisted upon. For
twenty-four to thirty-six hours after leaving the eggs the chicks
requires no food. It may stand in the midst of plenty, but it
will not peck or do any-thing but pipe. If healthy, it will begin
to pick when hungry ; a little tapping on the floor, however, or
showering crumbs on the backs of the chicks will excite the morr
backward ones to help themselves.

The first food shculd be hard-boiled eggs, chopped fine and
milk, to which may be added fine shreds of lean meat or bread-
crumbs,

ASIATIC BREEDS.

Comprise the various kinds of Cochins, the light and dark
Brahmas, Malays, Langshans, &c. They have, as a rule, fea-
thered legs, and lay rich chocolate or yellow eggs, small as
compared with the size of the birds. They bear confinement
well, have no taste for roaming, and are of a phlegmatic nature.
They lay in winter, but the supply is limited, owing to their
constant desire to incubate. Of a contented turn of mind, they
are willing to keep within the limits marked out by a wire
fence two feet high. As mothers they are devoted, but exceed-
ingly clumsy, and woe betide the newly-hatched chick caught
beneath the weighty tread. One great advantage of their Asiatic

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 51

fowl as hatching-machines is that they harbour no lice or ver-
min; they are gentle and easy to handle. Chicks of these
breeds feather very slowly, especially if hatched late in season,
or the produce of youner pullets' eggs.

ASIATIC DISEASES.

Various liver derangements, over-feeding being the cause;
Scaly Leg; Apoplexy.

ASPECT OF RUNS AND PENS.

Build them as ' 'lean-to's" against a wall where there is a
chimney running up, constantly in use if possible; this is far
better than stove heat, and let the aspeet be south. Catch every
ray of sun. Keep the roof as high as possible in front, so as to
let in all the light; shelter by judicious use of boarding from
wind, and, above all from cold draughts.

ASPHALT.-FLOORING.

The original soil is as good as anything for the flooring of e
poultry-house. If pulverised and screened lime rubble from old
wails and buildings be thrown on the earth, and all is kept
clean, and well dug over after cleansing twice a week, it makes
a soft, dry and deep bed of the best possible dusting material;
but asphalt is also useful: it keeps out rats, and, if covered with
six inches of sand and rubble screenings mixed, forms an excel-
lent flooring; it must, however, be entirely cleaned out every
two months or so, and fresh dusting material supplied.

ATROPINE.

Used in severe cases of roup. Apply a drop to the eye if mat-
ter begins to accumulate.

AUGUST.

Many early birdg will be making their, adult plumage now,
and it will be possible to estimate which are the specimens to
gain credit in the show-pen. Proceed accordingly, and remove

53 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

such birds into the preparing pens. Each cockerel should have
one to himself, -with ample room, or if dull alone, put with him
a known companion younger than he is, but not one for show,
just to keep him company. Kill or draft out of the way all
wasters, and devote all energy to the prize birds and those which
will come for sale as stock birds.

Pullets can be kept in small flocks, as they never quarrel, but
not more than ten together, unless, the enclosed covered runs are
very extensive. Prize birds and stock must not be allowed to
scuffle and scrimmage for their food like farm-yard mongrels;
full diet is necessary, and fighting must not be tolerated when
birds are bred for feather, weight, &c.

Early cases of moult in cocks should be seen to, and the birds
isolated where hens do not worry. If sudden moult and general
loss of feathers takes place there is no cause for anxiety; it is
better then a tedious moult later in the year.

Continue weeding and killing; the more room gained the
better.

Take steps to procure ducks' eggs to hatch in October. They
are always difficult to procure at that time, and it is well to be-
speak them beforehand.

AWARDS.

The young poultry fancier should not be discouraged if he
only gets honourable mention; true, it does not help, as do prizes,
to pay the entrance fees and carriage, but it has been said, with
justice, that a run which produces specimens which win honors
wherever shown is often better than one which gains several
prizes with, it may be, the same well known bird. Let him
make up his mind to be beaten, dress his birds with care, and
send the best he can; and then, expecting a beating, victory may
come as a pleasant surprise, and defeat will not affect him other-
wise than to urge him on to "try again."

»OtTLTRY RECEIPTS. 58

AYLESBURY DUCKS.

Hardiness, great size, and early maturity are th«ir merits.
They have now formidable rivals in the "Pekin" breed which
exceeds them in apparent size, but does not beat them in solid
flesh weight.

Their plumage must be spotless white, yellow legs, and beaks
of flesh color; weight of adult birds 6 and 7 lbs. They have
been exhibited up to 20 lbs. the pair.

For breeding, running water is the best, and failing that, a
pond is indispensable. They commence laying in December.
The color of the egg varies from green to cream color.

At six weeks ducklings should be 4 lbs. each and fit for table;
the ducks should always have gritty substance put into their
water, wherewith to purify their bills and help them to digest
their food; this is of great importance. Ducklings for exhibition
may be brought up with more water to swim in than those kept
for fattening; their houses should be well bedded with clean
straw. Feed at first on chopped eggs, milk, oatmeal, warm;
then with oatmeal, varied with barley-meal, given as often as
they are willing to feed. As to green food, the supply should
be unlimited. It is not well to let food remain in the pans;
however often you feed the ducklings, remove what remains, so
that they may have an appetite when the next meal hour arrives.
It is necessary to give ducklings the means of collecting worms
and slugs; the moment they are old enough to roam for this,
their natural food, they will be the better for it. Dry bedding
is essential, and warm night shelter; otherwise ducklings will
not bear the cold of early spring days without injury.

BARLEY.

Good uninjured barley should be a staple article of diet in the
poultry-yard. Buckwheat is preferable, but not always to b©

Si f OtJlTRY tifieEi^fs.

had, and barley is a safe and favorite grain. Damaged cheap
grains must not be ventured upon. Barley warmed in a tin or
pipkin in the oven, dry, and given hot, as an evening meal in
cold weather, is very wholesome; and for a change, if with water
added and a little pepper it is baked till it swells up to twice the
original bulk, it forms a much relished dish.

BARN-DOOR FOWLS.

To the present day many amateur poultry lovers continue in
the old and popular error, that barn-door fowls "pay" better
than pure breeds, and are less trouble to rear. "Fancy" fowls
are, without a thought, voted useless, whereas many poultry-
yards fail of success owing to the mistake of starting by buying
up a lot of mongrel birds, age unknown. Every distinct breed
has some leading characteristic, for which in the past it has been
selected and bred : it is prized, and, with much care, bred for
either size or hardihood, for laying qualities, as good mothers,
or as super-excellent table fowls; while the barn-door is not re-
markable for any speciality, neither producing so many eggs as
the Andalusian or Leghorn, nor beiner so well flavored as the
Game, nor so white and full of meat as the Dorking, the Hou-
dan, or any of the table breeds, nor so content with small pens
as the Asiatics : in fact, even from a commercial point of view
they are not to be recommended, and are a mistake. For beauty
certainly no one would select them.

BEDDING FOR CHICKS.

Straw put through the chaff-cutting machine is undoubtedly
the best, but on no account give it uncut, or it will be the source
of broken legs. Care must be taken to remove the soiled straw
and to replace it with fresh every morning. A small quantity
changed daily is far better than a deep bed left uncleansed for
a day or two. Cleanliness is the first consideration; sprinkle the
bed with powdered sulphur three times a week, to keep away

f OtJLTRT RECEIPTS. 55

▼ermin. No bedding should be given to birds put up for fatten-
ing. The coop in this case should have a barred floor, so that
the dirt shall not rest upon it. Otherwise, in such a small space
the birds will quickly suffer from bad air and dirt.

BENZINE.

Good for cleaning accidental paint off the feathers, which it
will not injure.

BLACK HAMBURGHS.

Of the Hamburgh tribe the best, being larger, and laying an
egg of more useful size. They are non-sitters, being crossed
with Spanish; white face crops up, and is a difficulty in breeding.
Chicks, when hatched, are from the throat downwards to the
under part of the body white, the rest black. It is only after the
second moult that their glorious plumage of green black glossy
hue is perfected. These birds are delicate ; damp, dirt, cold,
and improper food bring on liver disease. They do not thrive
in confined pens, and it is unwise to attempt breeding them
unless you can give a grass run.

Points. — Beak black or horn; comb, face, and wattles rich red;
deaf-ears white; eyes red: legs blue lead color; plumage deep
black, brilliant gloss of metallic green or bluish purple: the
greener the better; comb double and evenly serrated.
BLACK* ROT.

A disease to which Spanish fowls are subject, but not often
seen now. The comb becomes black and the legs swell, with
general pining and loss of spirits, flesh, and gloss. Calomel and
castor-oil should first be given, and then generous diet, with
tonic and warmth, may pull the bird through.

BONE-DUST.

Very beneficial for the feeding of growing birds up to five or
six months of age, a preventive of weak legs and diarrhoea; an

56 POtJLTAT RECEIPT*.

aid also in postponing the development of young birds, while
it provides materials needful for continuous growth, and
gives strength and size to the frame. It should be about the
fineness of coarse oatmeal, and should be sifted into and with
the meals used, in the proportion of 1 quartern to the cwt. Fresh
bones chopped and pounded, or burnt bones, are not so useful
for the above purposes as they are for laying stock or for birds
of an age for exhibition.

BRAN.
A few handfuls should be mixed with soft food, as it is deei
dedly wholesome, though not a favorite poultry diet.

BREAST-BONE CROOKED OR BREAKING,
This is caused by perches being placed too high from the
ground when the roosting-place is of small size. Objections are
made to letting chickens roost early, but little harm will come
of it if the perches are at a proper height. It is the perpendi-
cular sudden flight to the ground in a confined space which in-
jures and breaks, or bends, the tender breastbone. In limited
space, and with chickens brought up in confinement, shelves,
sanded, and then littered with chopped straw, are safeguards
against this evil.

BREEDING COCKS.

Must be vigorous during December, January, and February.
Feed them extra well, and alone. They should be examined
when perching at night, and if poor must be at once fed up ;
they should not exhibited, and the breeding-pens should be
made up by Christmas time, as the cocks become attached to
their special hens, and changes affect the fertility of eggs.

BREEDING IN AND IN-

Less dangerous than a constant introduction of fresh blood
into an already-formed prize strain; but judgment must be used,

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 51

and in a tolerably large establishment, where the hens are kept
away from the cocks during moult, and re-mated in December,
arrangements can be made not to mate too nearly-related birds,
without recourse yearly to purchases from a fresh yard. It is
well to keep a spare cockerel or two in stock, and let them run
on some farm, and re-introduce them the following year into
your breding-pen, when the relationship cannot produce evil
l-csults. If only one pen or yard of poultry is kept, the results
of mating the produce from it may be most unsatisfactory, and
a fresh cock becomes a necessity.

BREEDING-PEN FOR DUCKS.
Four ducks are ample to one drake. Ducks may be bred in a
small pen, where there is merely a tank of water 4 feet by 2, and
2 feet deep. Many of the eggs, however, will be unfertile. For
success on a large scale a good-sized pool of water is essential.
The birds should have the run of a field. Care should be taken
not to overfeed breeding ducks; and if early eggs be required
meat diet must be given, and warm quarters at night.

BREEDS FOR CROSSING.

Never cross with a bird which is already the production of a
crossed breed. First crosses are the most satisfactory, and take
care that the cock chosen for th* cross is full-sized, symmetrical,
short-legged, with fine bones, p'ump breast, and strong consti-
tution. The cock of the walk should be purs-bred. "White
Dorking with light Brahma, or silver-grey with dark Brahma,
produce good large birds, and well fitted for fattening for the
table, while the Dorking improves the Cochin's laying power.
For laying purposes, the Brahma crossed with an Andalusian
cock cannot be surpassed, and a propensity .V sit is added to the
Andalusian' s laying qualities.

The Houdan crossed with Brahma or Co\hin matures early,
and becomes a prolific layer. For tab'o use thr, darl* Brahma

58 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

and Creve-cceur are good. The Creve-cceur is excellent as a
layer, and its size for table and early maturity can hardly be
surpassed; but constitution and hardihood may be added by the
Brahma or Cochin cross. The flesh of Malay and Game fowls
is said to be of super-excellent delicacy. To increase the amount
of flesh cross with grey Dorkings, when an excellent plump
table fowl will be produced, the couple weighing when fed up
from 16 lbs. to 18 lbs. The advantage of a cross is that the
produce is usually hardy and larger than the parent birds.

BROKEN BONES.

Machines may be had for breaking bones from the kitchen
into small pieces. Such fare is excellent for the growing stock,
and will encourage laying in the adult birds; but it does not
take the place of bone dust, mixed with meal, which retards
development and forms bone and framework, while fresh bones
stimulate laying powers, etc.

BROODY HENS.

When broody, i. e., wishing to sit, hens go about clucking for
several days, sit longer and longer on the nest after laying, cease
laying finally, and do not leave the nest. If a sitting hen is not
required, remove her at once to a fresh run and new companions.
Shut her out for a few days where no nests may tempt her. If,
on the other hand, she is required to incubate, encourage her by
false eggs in the nest, and partially protect the entrance to th«
nest from other prying hens. All Asiatics are much given to
sitting, and Dorkings are good mothers. No hen even crossed
with Spanish, Leghorn, Hamburgh, or Polish blood will incubate
satisfactorily. The broody hens should be fed once daily on
sound grain, some grass or lettuce, and a treat of scraps; soft
food now and again keeps her in better condition than an exclu-
sively grain diet. On no account deprive the broody hen of her
dust-bath, and if your brood is valuable, take the trouble to

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 69

dredge her under wings, legs, etc., with powdered sulphur.
BUCKWHEAT.

Buckwheat should be a staple article of corn diet. The color
is a drawback till the birds learn to recognise it as food, when
it is greedily devoured. It is not fattening like maize, but
good for stimulating egg production. This grain, as prepared
in Russia for the use of lower classes, cleared of the husk, and
split up into coarse grit, is invaluable for feeding chickens; it is
devoured greedily at three days old, and eaten in preference to
the best cutlings or grits. Baked in the oven with water, it
makes a most valuable soft food, and is much relished by old
and yonng.

BUENOS AYRES DUCKS.

Called also Black East Indian, Labrador, or Black Brazilian.
For prize- winning they must be very small, with neat round
heads, short bills, short bodies; plumage pure black, with bril-
liant lustrous sheen of green all over. This metallic green lus-
tre cannot be too great, or the size too small. The bill olive
green, the legs and feet black. Easy to breed, for if you do but
start with a good pair, the produce will be good; but the smaller
you breed them the more delicate they become, and less prolific.
They are most excellent table birds, of delicious flavor, and are
often bred for this purpose in numbers, though they are also
great favorites in the exhibition pen.

BUTTERMILK.

Buttermilk is excellent for poultry; but do not let it stand in
the sun, as it is very unwholesome if sour.

BUYING POULTRY AND EGGS.

Buy none to mate with prize strains without careful investi-
gation of the antecedents of the yard and strain. Have the
birds on approval; even if the carriage both ways costs $3. 00 it is

60 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

well spent if it saves an introduction which may bring nothing-
but trouble, and spoil the strain. Strangers to your poultry run
and your breeding plans may, without any dishonesty or unfair
dealing, send what would ruin your plans. Therefore see your
birds before you buy. Be careful how you feed newly-bought
birds; give soft food and sparingly of dry grain at first, gradu-
ally increasing the quantity; esohew maize and new wheat,
which may bring on various troubles. In buying eggs for incu-
bation early in the season, make special terms as to the date by
which eggs ordered are to be delivered.

Do not purchase eggs for incubation in the two first months
of the year without some arrangement about "clear" eggs being
replaced by others at one-half or one-third price. Many eggs
are then unfertile, and most breeders will replace at half-price
if a decent number of chicks do not hatch out. See that your
eggs, if valuable, come from known respectable breeders, re-
membering that one good shake given to the egg when bring-
ing it from the nest may ruin every hope of successful incu-
abtion.

CABBAGE.

A useful vegetable in winter for poultry. It comes fourth on
the list. Even the outer leaves and stems will be greedily
picked up if they are chopped up in a chopper. Stalks of cab-
bage should not be left about, as they give a very offensive
smell when rotting in the wet and sun. Whole cabbages nailed
or tied to the walls of the pens give amusement to poultry in
confinement; there is no better preventive for feather-eating,
which is often caused by the idleness of an imprisoned life.

CANKER.

An ulcerated state of the eyes and head ; the disease some-
times attacks the mouth and throat. It comes from neglected

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 61

cold, and damp, improper housing. No well-ordered poultry
yard should suffer from such serious ailments. They may be
relieved, however, by washing perseyeringly with chlorinated
soda diluted with four parts of water, and dabbing the throat
and tongue with the pure solution. Put sulphur in the food,
do not expect immediate cure.

CAPONS AND CAPONISING.

The weight and delicacy of birds are greatly increased by this
operation, and it is only in England that birds are fattened for
table witnout having recourse to it. The proper age for the
operation is four months; it is not considered dangerous — about
one in forty succumbs. Capons will remain tender for table up
to eighteen months of age, and may be utilised during that time
by bringing up broods of chickens, to which they become as
devoted as mothers.

CARBOLIC ACID.

One of the best. Prepare thin lime-wash, and into two gallons
put two ounces of acid crystals, with which let all be white-
washed. On a real hot summer's day, if the poultry pens are
crowded and any fear of vermin should arise, it is well to turn
the birds into the open grass run, and with a fine rose water-pot
to sprinkle the floors, nests, and perches, after thoroughly
sweeping all out, with the same mixture made of double
strength.

CARE OF EXHIBITION BIRDS AT HOME.

Protect their plumage from every risk of injury through
rough or broken wires, from high perches, from shelves too
near the wall or roof of the roosting-house; see that your trap-
doors are smooth at the bottom, and large enough to admit adult
birds without touching their sickle feathers; never let the pen
remain uncleaned even for half a day. Give plenty of clean

<J$ POULTRY RECEIPTS.

straw, and see that the dusting material is quite clean and dry.
t>o not let birds be exposed to a fierce sun, and never to rain.
Prevent any fights or sparring between neighbours in pens.
Give all the run and freedom you can in fine weather. Feed
well with the best and most nourishing food. Give meat and
green food, but beware of excess, and never leave food on the
ground. Give iron in the water, it produces brilliant combs,
and is a tonic; avoid species and condiments. Hemp now and
then, linseed boiled to a jelly and thickened with Spratt or oat-
meal three times a week for about three weeks before showing,
will add to gloss on plumage; the last two meals before showing
should be rice boiled stiff in milk, with meat chopped up in it.
Prepare your bird for the confinement of a small pen and its
trials by gradually penning him up, and getting him accustomed
to small quarters, and never send the birds off crammed with
hard grain for a long journey. Get the pair to be exhibited ac-
quainted with each other during the last twenty-four hours,
lest they should fight in the hamper and disfigure their combs;
but do not pen the exhibition pullet with the cockerel till the
last day. Rather give him any other bird as a companion, so as
to accustom him to ladies' society, and save the wear and tear
of plumage to the show pullet in a small pen.

CAROLINA DUCK.

These birds, with their brilliant plumage, bear confinement
well, and will breed satisfactorily under favorable circumstances
and when used to their home. They should be about the size of
widgeons, and when exhibited brilliance of plumage wins the
day. The drake should be red in bill, margined with black;
orange-red eyes; head bronze-green shading to violet, and a re-
markable line of intense white runs from behind and over the
eye, mixing with the long green-and- violet colored feathers of
the crest. The neck and collar white; breast claret, speckled

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 63

with white, size of specks increasing downwards. The sides
of the body under the wings are marked with black lines on
yellow, and the flanks with stripes of black shaded white; tail-
coverts black tinged with yellow. The back is a bronze with
greenish hue, while the wings are adorned with spots or marks
of blue and green. Legs and feet a reddish-yellow. The duck
is much more sombre than its mate; crest smaller; the eye-b.ir.
chin, and throat all white ; head, neck, and breast shading from
dark drab to brown, spotted white; back and wings glossy
bronze, with gold and green reflections, and less brilliant wing,
spots than the drake. All these brilliant colors and strong con»
trast become more vivid with advanced age.
CATARRH.

The moment cold in the head exhibits itself by the usual signs
of sneezing and running at the nose, the bird should be removed
to a dry, draughtless place, nostrils washed with vinegar and
water, giving every third day two teaspoonsful of caster oil;
diet — oatmeal and bread in hot beer, and plenty of grass. If not
soon cured.

CHANGE OF PLACE.

Poultry are truly domestic and love their homes. If eggs are
an object, it is most important birds should not be moved from
pen to pen, as it will delay egg production, and diminsh it
greatly. Pullets for early laying should, if possible, be brought
up in or within sight of their future laying run, or pen, if, on the
other hand, it is wished to delay the laying of a pullet, and to
encourage growth for prize purposes, her home must be changed
often. A sitting or broody hen may be best cured by removing
her to a new scene with fresh companions — a more reasonable
and humane way of checking her maternal instincts than that of
half drowning her, or shutting her up in darkness or dirt.

64 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

GENERAL TREATMENT OF CHICKENS.

During the first twenty-four hours give no food, and remove,
till all are hatched, from the hen or incubator to a box, having
ventilating holes bored in the side, and a hot water-bottle slung,
by means of coarse flannel, so that the chicks may feel the
warmth and the least pressure on their backs. When all are
hatched, cleanse the nest completely, and well dredge the hen's
body with sulphur powder; give her the chicks, and place chopped
egg and breadcrumbs within reach. The less they are disturbed
during the first two or three days the better . Warmth is essential,
and a constantly brooding hen is a better mother than one which
fusses the infant chicks about and keeps calling them to feed
Pen the hen in a coop and let the chicks have free egress. The
best place to stand the coops is under sheltered runs, guarded
from cold winds, the ground dry, and deep in sand and mortar
siftings. Further warmth is unnecessary if the mothers are. good;
and if the roof is of glass, so as to secure every ray of sun, so
much the better. Cleanliness of coops, beds, flooring, water-
vessels, and food-tins must be absolute. The oftener the chicks
are fed the better, but food must never be left; water must bt,
made safe, or death from drowning and chills may be expecter.
The moment weather permits, free range on grass for sever~
hours daily is desirable, but shelter should always be at hand.

Diet. — The longer the supply of hard-boiled eggs chopped fin,
is kept up, the better. As the birds get on, every kitchen-scrap
is invaluable, and the following mixtures may be given for
meals in turn as convenient, variety being essential for success,
1st meal: as early as possible — 6 a. m. — egg chopped, mixed
bread-crumbs. 2nd meal : Spratt and a few grains of. Scotch
groats. These can be brought at the corn-dealer's, their place be-
ing taken by pood wheat as birds get on, or by crushed barley.
3rd meal: kitchen-scraps chopped fine in a chopper, given warm,

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 65

and mixed to a crumbling mass: 4th meal: rice boiled in milk,
and dried up crumbly with Scotch oatmeal. 5th meal: barley-
meal mixed crumbly with the liquor in which meat has been
boiled. 6th meal; meat chopped fine and pollard reduced to crumbs
(not necessary daily). These preparations given in turn and with
judgment will, with occasional handfuls of small, dry grain, and
barley and buckwheat baked with water in the oven, give the
chickens all that is necessary for building up the strong frame-
work which is so essential to a finely-developed bird. The use of
bone-dust must not be omitted, and a constant supply of green
food, together with mortar, oyster-shell, gravel and all manner
of grit and dust should be ensured. Pure water, not left to
stagnate or freeze or to get hot in the sun, and, if possible, milk
occasionally, will render the diet perfect; chicks so kept, the
quantity given being increased with their size and appetite, will
be found at four months, or, at any rate, at five, to be fit for
table without the unhealthy and unpleasant process of cram-
ming; if destined for the show-pen, they will be ready to "go
in" for the further care and preparation needed for exhibition.
At this age cockerels must be divided from pullets, and the
chicken period may be considered over.

CHILLED EGGS.

The moment at which an egg is fatally chilled is not certain.
If a hen is off her nest for twenty minutes in cold February
weather the eggs will be chilled, but not to death. Endeavor
to get the hen on in ten minutes on a frosty day, or cover the
eggs with a layer of cotton-wool, flannel, or even hay. Some
hens will not be hurried, and to try it will only bring trouble.
A shorter period of chilling will destroy vitality in eggs during
the first stages of incubation than a longer period when the
chicks are nearer perfection. The first thing to do if the eggs
are chilled is not at once to force the hen on to her nest, but to

66 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

immerse the eggs in warm water at 105° or even 107°. Mean-
time get the hen back on to some false eggs; and when the
chilled ones are thoroughly warmed through, replace them
under the mother. Valuable eggs should not be despaired of
even if the hen has been off for some hours, but should be
treated as above, and next day, if examined with aid of the egg-
tester their vitality, if it is not destroyed, will be clearly seen.
CHOICE BETWEEN DEFECTS.
In breeding-pens it is at times necessary and politic to breed
from a bird which may have a marked defect as a show-bird.
If unable to procure perfection, choose a cock which is quite
free from that particular defect from which the hens may be
suffering. If, i. e. , the hens black Hamburghs or Andalusians
have red splashes on their ear-lobes or white on their faces,
choose a cockerel of very good strain and entirely free from these
evils tomate with them, even though his color, his tail, or his comb
be imperfect — rather than one perfect in all these latter points
and failing in the former. If the hens are meagre in comb,
mate with a male bird carrying a comb large to a fault. If the
cockerels' combs are coarse and large, mate with hens whose
combs are extra small, and so on, making use of defects to pro-
duce perfection.

CHOLERA.

Caused by want of fresh water and green food, and means of
sheltering from excessive sun. The symptoms are those of
aggravated diarrhoea, great weakness, and constant thirst. A
tea-spoonful of caster oil with five drops of laudanum should be
given, or 5 grs. of Gregory's powder, in place of the castor-oil,
with the same dose of laudanum, every five hours till the diar-
rhoea ceases. Soft food with cayenne pepper, fresh green food,
and as little water as possible. The bird must be sheltered from
the sun, also from damp. Such severe diseases should not arise,

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 67

they come from mismanagement and neglect.

COCKERELS.

May at a very early age be distinguished from pullets by the
incipient spur, the more developed comb, and tail-cushion. At
from eight weeks to twelve remove the cockerels from the pul-
lets, and keep them separate for six months at least. At four
months weed out into the fattening pens or yard all those birds
which do not promise for exhibition or prize stock, and treat the
fewremaining accordingly. Any very promising bird, if obser-
ved to be shy aud worried by more advanced or pugnacious
cockerels, should be given a run to himself with a few compan-
ions of whom he is not afraid. A bully in the cockerel pen is
a source of much mischief, as he prevents valuable birds from
feeding, and thus getting on well. Do not spare bone-dust,
lime, oyster-shell, green food, and meat, and unlimited range to
growing birds so as to get the frame and bone well developed;
the fat will be easily put ©n afterwards. Sound grain of wheat,
barley, buckwheat, or Scotch groats— as much as will be picked
up clean — should be given, and for soft food table scraps,
Spratt's food, oat and barley meal; these will keep birds in good
health, glossy and firm in plumage.

COCKS.

Should not be kept over their third year for breeding unless
of especial value. Early in the season adult cocks are not lively,
and the eggs from their pens are not as a rule fertile.

They should be mated with pullets, not with adult hens. During
moult remove the cocks from the hens. The former can then
live together, and will not fight if they have free range, but care
must be taken that all food is well scattered, or placed in many
pans, that all should feed well. To insure fertile eggs, cooks

68 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

must be fed apart from their hens when mated in December,
till March, as their gallantry often causes them to go on short
commons. When once the breeding pens are made up, do not
change the cocks about; they become fond of the hens, and it
is a great risk disturbing the family during the hatching season.
Some cocks are very sulky and even savage to the hens during
moulting time; if this is perceived, at once remove the bird and
give him a pen to himself ; he requires rest and good stimulating
food, and with new plumage good temper will return.

COLDS.

Generally caught by birds kept in damp and ill-ventilated
houses. First symptoms must be taken in hand at once, as an
ordinary cold neglected may turn to roup. The first sign is
sneezing and running at the nose. Isolate the bird at once,
place it in a warm draughtless place, wash the nostrils with
vinegar and water, give a tablespoonful of castor-oil to a very
large bird, less to a smaller, feed on soft food, oatmeal warmed
in beer, or bread and beer, with plenty of grass. An excellent
thing to stop the running at the nose is to fill the nostril with a
pinch of snuff. Wash the face well in warm strong
tea, and put the fowl in an exhibition basket, out of draughts.
A pinch of Epsom salts may also help. Colds are most
catching.

COLD WEATHER.

Frosty cold is less dangerous than damp; to insure success in
poultry keeping, keep houses and covered runs dry. Let the
weather be ever so frosty or wet the birds will not suffer if
allowed free run in the day for some hours, provided home
shelter be perfectly dry and free from draught. Breeds with
excessive comb development, *, e., Minorcas, Leghorns, &c,
during hard weather should have lots of straw about in the

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 99

covered run, and mats should be nailed up to shelter from keen
east winds. Do not allow birds to drink snow water, and it is
well to give prize stock warm water in their tins in severe frosts,
it keeps unfrozen longer; and is more comforting. It saves
much trouble to empty out all water vessels in severe frost at
night. Soft food should of course be given warm in winter,
and the grain at night may with advantage be warmed through
in the oven dry, without water; the birds relish it, and it is a
source of warmth and comfort through the long winter night.

Hampers for exhibition birds should have an extra swathe of
scrubbing flannel put round them in severe cold weather, allow-
ing, however, ventilation at the top of the hamper, or the birds
will arrive at their destination with blue combs.

Vaseline rubbed on the combs of breeds subject to frost-bite is
an excellent preventive. The food should have a dash of red
chillies, black pepper, or some of the many excellent condiments
advertised. Some stimulant in severe weather may be used to
advantage.

COMBS, THEIR VARIETIES.

Double or Rose Comb, as in White Dorkings, Black Ham-
burghs, etc., etc., a flat square comb, wide in front and narrow-
ing to a peak, pointing backwards, evenly serrated, presenting
an even surface free from hollows or elevations. Pea Comb, as
in Brahmas, a triple or ridged comb, the middle higher, longer,
and thinner than the side ridges, the whole being firm, of mod-
erate size, and firm on the head. Single and pendent Comb, a*
in Spanish, Minorcas, Andalusians, Leghorns, etc., etc. The
single comb is upright, quite straight, free from any excresoen-
ces, fine in texture, having no thumb-marks, and evenly and
regularly serrated. Pendant combs are seen in hens only of
the last-named breeds; fine smooth, evenly serrated, without side
sprigs, they must fall gracefully over the side of the head and

70 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

face, taking a slight curve to one side before falling over on the
other,

COMMON FOWLS.

If a paying poultry-yard is desired, do not run into the error
of purchasing a "few common fowls;" and if poultry are kept
"for pleasure,'' this will not be attained with barndoor mon-
grels. Should "a few common fowls for eggs" be desired, a
cock and five pullets of Andalusian, Minorca, or Hamburgh
breed are the best, and such birds can be purchased young in
July from any of the well-known breeders, pure and true to
breed, but set aside by them as not perfect enough for prize-
stock or exhibition. If time allows, get a first-class sitting of
eggs, and hatch them in March; you will then have a pen giving
pleasure to the eye, and more paying too than any barndoor
deteriorated cross-breeds. A cheap coop for the common cock
and five pullets can be made out of a very large sugar hogshead,
whitewashed inside, with split pine-tree top inserted across for
a perch, and a pot basket hung at the side on two strong hooks
for the laying nest. Cover the cask with tarred felt, coming
over the top and down the sides; it will give dryness and warmth.
If expense is no object a dry outer shelter is to be desired, and
free range.

CONCRETE.

Nothing is so good for the flooring of all houses as the original
soil over which they are built, dug up and mixed with screened
mortar rubble. If rats abound, it is advisable to concrete the
floors of roosting places, but they must then be covered deep in
screened dusting material of some sort. Birds kept on concrete
flooring without these precautions, however well swept and
cleaned, will not flourish.

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 71

CONDITION TO KEEP BIRDS IN.

Thi* depends on oonstant attention to a thousand small
details: proper diet, clean water, and perfect cleanliness, of
course; abundant sand and mortar, always pure and dry; grass
runs, which must be kept mown if for feathered-legged Asia-
tics; perches arranged so that the cocks' tails do not rub and get
injured against the walls, entry trap-doors not too low or nar-
row; covered runs available so that in wet weather the birds
have light, air, and space to scratch amongst dust and straw
without roaming out in the wet, and shelter for some breeds
from the scorching midday sun; water-tins arranged so that
they cannot upset; paint, tar, and large water-tubs kept out of
reach; ducks kept out of the poultry runs; fights and sparring
through wire partitions prevented ; cleaning of the poultry-houses
done first thing every morning, and not left till the birds have
trampled the droppings about all over the place. If birds are
to be caught for any purpose, or counted, it must be done at
night to save beating about. If necessarily done in daylight, a
piece of dark cloth drawn over the window will enable the poul-
try-man to catch the birds without injury or fright. When
whitewashing, put grease in the wash, or it will be likely to
come off and soil the plumage. Laying boxes, or hampers, and
nests of all kinds should be constantly replenished with clean
short straw, and should never be so small that the tail and
breast feathers rub as the hen turns about. All partitions and
wire-work to be kept free of jagged crooks or points. Injured
feathers cannot be replaced till yearly moult.

BEST BREEDS FOR CONFINEMENT.

Decidedly Andalusians and Minorcas. They can be kept in
high condition, lay splendidly, produce fertile eggs, and win
priees in the most confined space, all conditions of health being

1% POULTRY BBCEIPM.

attendod to; but the smaller the space the greater must be the
labor and care to be expended upon it to produce any great
results. Leghorns are good, but their spirits are more depressed
than the Andalusians by penning up. Brahmas and Cochins of
all classes will be content to squat all their lives in a pen a few
feet square, but they are apt to grow fat and diseased, and lose
all gloss; and when not eating they are brooding, and neither
occupation fills the egg-basket; they are, however, most tracta-
ble, and nothing looks handsomer then a pen of Light Brahmas
confined in a villa-garden by wire two feet high strained round
a portion of lawn-grass: it will effectually keep within bounds
these models of contented domesticity. Andalusians and Mi-
norcas require wire-fencing, without woodwork at the top to rest
their feet on, at least seven feet high.

COOKING FOR POULTRY.

A little trouble in this respect will be amply repaid in the
poultry-yard. Every establishment where 100 head of poultry
are kept should have its lock-up food store-room, and if a gas-
stove can be put up its help is invaluable. House-scraps can be
regularly brought out to the food-house hot from the kitchen by
8 a. m., and with boiling (not cold) water let meals of all sorts
in turn be mixed with the scraps till it forms a crumbling mass.
All food for ducklings is better given warm than cold, chickens
also appreciate their milk and their porridge with the chill off.
Liver given raw is not palatable, but if put in water over the
gas-stove for ten minutes, and chopped, hot with Spratt, and
thrown to the birds in pellets, it is greedily devoured, and more
good is got out of it. Grain baked in the oven dry, and given
warm to the birds, is very good in the winter-time.

POULTRY RECEIPT*. 7$

CORN.

The best staple foods are, 1st, buckwheat; 2nd, wheat; Srd,
barley. Hemp may be given occasionally; and as for Indian
corn, it is bettar to give none than to give constantly, it is much
too fattening for laying or breeding stock. It is of great advan-
tage to give a change. Buckwheat promotes laying, aud is also
good if birds are poor and out of condition; for young birds it is
excellent, and being smaller and more fattening, it comes before
barley. Hemp must not be given regularly, being to heating; if
persevered with it will cause loss of feathers, but it is a neces-
sary help in preparing birds for shows. Do not be persuaded to
buy "sweepings," or "poultry mixtures," or "poultry grain;"
these preparations are simply injured grain of all sorts mixed up
together, some a little and some very seriously damaged, so as
to be unfit for food, but in the bulk it is hard to find this out.
It has another disadvantage : you cannot give your fowls change
of grain, which is most beneficial. Sound, good grain is always
economical in the end, care being taken not to leave it on the
ground, but to feed in moderation, so that not a grain is lost.
Oats are not much relished by poultry, having too much husk;
they are altogether the least profitable grain, though cheapest.

CRAMMING.

Ordinary cramming or fattening such as it is possible for the
amateur to carry out is simple. In a shady and cool outhouse
or shed, the stall of a disused stable or cow-house, or a poultry-
house, confine the birds for fattening, six or eight, according to
the size of the enclosure. Sand the floor deeply, keep clean, give
little light, and feed with soft food three times daily, with as
much as the birds will consume without leaving any behind.
In this case liquid food cannot be given, though highly thought
of. Buckwheat, maize, oatmeal, and barley-meal are all excel-

74 POULTBY KECEIPfS.

lent mixed with half-and-half milk and water, not too dry.
Birds for this purpose should be about four months old, and
they should be ready in a month at the outside. Perfect quiet
and cleanliness are needful, and as soon as fattening is com-
pleted they should after twelve hours' fast, be killed. If kept
too long after the process is complete, emaciation and sickness
set in, and the work is undone. The French process of cram-
ming by machinery is too complex and lengthy to enter upon
here, and any one intending to carry it out should study some
of the larger works on poultry.

Another simple mode of cramming consists of confining the
birds each in a coop, with floor of round bars, through which
the droppings fall and can be cleared away daily; three times a
day take them out and force pellets of milk-mixed meal dipped
in water till the crop is full. If digestion has not cleared the
crop out, a meal must be missed. Do not confine the birds
where they can see or hear their fellows. Perfect coolness, quiet,
and shade to semi-darkness is needful.

CRAMP.

No. 1. If in the legs, foment or stand the bird in hot water,
bandage with flannel strips half an inch or one inch wide, accor-
ding to size, and, put it in a dry, warm greenhouse, with a sandy,
gravel bed, and straw-chaff litter. Give tonics in the water.

No. 2. Rub the legs with hot oil, turpentine, or camphor.

No. 3. Wrap in flannel, and keep by a fire at night; give free
dry run by day, diet ample and nutritious, with meat. For a
chick three months old, opium (quarter grain) three times daily
is a help.

SITTING HEN CRAMPED.

Rheumatic or gouty hens only are subject to this; they cannot
stand when they get off the nest. Give four drops of sal-volatile

POULTRY RECEIPT8. 75

occasionally; rub legs with turpentine and oil daily.

CROOKED BREASTS.

The usual theory as to crooked breast-bones is that they are
caused by giving perches to chickens too early in life, or by the
perch being too large or too narrow. Experience shows, how-
ever, that crooked breast-bones are found if the strain is a
weakly one and wanting in constitutional vigor, or if the birds
are pampered and brought up at high pressure, in confined and
over-crowded pens, where stimulating condiments and excess
of feeding takes the place of free range, fresh air, and ample,
nutritious food. White Dorkings brought up with and treated
in all respects like their companions, Andalusians, suffered (un-
der my care) with this weakness, while the Andalusians, treble
their number, showed not a single example of this evil. High
perches in a small roosting-house, where birds have no space to
make a sweep which they would in freedom take from the high-
est tree without injury, are highly mischievous, and cannot be
condemned too strongly; but these, though they injure the
breasts and ruin the birds, do not account for the peculiar
bend in the ordinary "crooked breast-bone." Birds so formed
should not be bred from, for prize stock.

CROP-BOUND.

One of the most common of crop ailments, caused by improper
and excessive feeding, by lack of gravel, mortar, lime, and gritty
rubbish, which birds eat so greedily, and which are necessary
for digestion. The crop becomes choked up and distended with
a solid mass, often very hard ; tbe bird cannot eat, mopeR about,
and loses flesh. Pour warm water down the throat if a slight
case, and work the mass about with your hand, starve the bird
and give no water. A teaspoonful of gin now and again is goodj

76, POULTRY RKCBIPTB.

when softened give castor oil, a dessert-spoonful to an adult.
After recovery feed very little for a few days. If these measures
fail cut the crop open at upper part, and with the handle of a
teaspoon remove the contents, oil the finger, and feel that the
outlet to the stomach is free, then sew the parts up, the crop and
the skin beings sewn separately. Horsehair is better than silk,
which does well, however. The bird will soon want to feed
ravenously; give bread and milk, not too wet, and keep the bird
quiet for a few days, on short commons of sort food.

CROP SOFT OR SWELLED.

Contents feel like liquid, and the crop sways about as the bird
walks; this does not affect health or spirits. Puncture the crop
and let the fluid out, feed very slightly, with soft food, and
hardly any water. The worst months for these diseases are
August and September or October. When wheat newly thrashed
is given to poultry they eat greedily, and as new wheat swells
in the crop, the whole mass hardens, aud closes up the outlet
into stomach, bringing on a disease which must prove fatal un-
less properly treated. Exhibition birds kept for a week in a pen
eighteen inches square and overfed on whole maize, often return
with the crop overcharged; soft food only should be given if this
is the case, and a teaspoonful of gin, brandy, or port wine, to
stimulate digestion.

CROWDING POULTRY.

One of the commonest of evils, and fatal to success. Most
amateurs go in for several breeds of poultry; this, unless a park
or farm is available, is very unwise. The birds may be kept in
comparative comfort during the winter months, but in the
breeding season, when the chickens begin to come, and in
August, when pullets have to be separated from cockerels, and

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 77

these again in October kept separate from adult hens — when
these also have to be parted from their mates, and exhibition
birds require each their roomy and separate pen, it is impossible
to rear many breeds successfully, each having its perfect exhi-
bition specimens; for this, space is a matter of necessity.

DEFORMITIES.

Squirrel Tail. — This is a common fault, and difficult to breed
out. The tail projects in front of a line drawn perpendicularly
to the end of the back, sloping, in a marked way, towards the
neck.

Slipped Wing, or Turned Wing. — An accident to which some
breeds are peculiarly liable when making their adult plumage.
The primary feathers, instead of being tucked in when the wing
is closed, protrude ; appear twisted outwards and in disorder,
the inside of the feather coming outside. Where this is the case,
a cockerel has little chance in any good competition; it is incura-
ble, and, moreover, hereditary. "When the flight feathers only
hang down, as if too weak to be compactly tucked up, but not
otherwise disordered, cure is possible when taken in time.
As soon as displacement is seen, tuck the wing up every night
at roosting-time, and when the bird is more advanced the wing
should be bound near the shoulder as tight as possible. From
the outside centre of this ligature a cord must be passed round
the shoulder, and fastened to the inside centre to prevent its
slipping off. Stout whipcord may be used, or tape, and every
care taken to have each feather in exact position before tying
up. From six weeks to two months will be required to effect
the cure, and even expert hands have difficulty in putting on the
bandage satisfactorily. Night is the best time to operate, for
the sake of quietness.

Vulture Hock. — This is caused by the feathers projecting con-
siderably beyond the hock joint in a stiff, awkward manner.

tS POULTRY RECEIPTS.

Asiatic breeds are particularly subject to it, and if a bird has
this deformity strongly marked, it would be useless for breeding
or for exhibition purposes.

Wry tail. — A sign of hereditary weakness; occasionally comes
from a bird being kept in a small pen, carrying its tail habitu-
ally on one side as it walks round. If a habit only, it may be
cured by snipping out a portion of skin on the side from which
the tail inclines, and the scar in contracting draws the tail back
to its proper position.

DIARRHCEA.

Caused usually by cold and wet weather; in chickens, often
due to improper diet. First try boiled rice mixed with powdered
chalk. If the case is severe, which it should not be in a well-
ordered yard, try any of the following: — Two or three drops of
cholorodyne in water occasionally, half a teaspoonful of brandy
twice daily in water. A pill containing five grains of chalk, five
grains of rhubarb, three grains of cayenne, half a grain of
opium. For food, rice boiled in milk, only, if the case is bad.
Barley is the first grain used on recovery for hens, pearl barley for
chickens. Bone-dust is an excellent preventative; young chick-
ens should always have it. (See Bone-dust.) Ample green
food should be at hand.

DIRT AND DROPPINGS.

These left on the ground or under the roosting-places, are
most prejudicial to health. They should be collected daily, and
not swept or raked about in clearing them away, so as to become
mixed up with the soil, but carefully shovelled up separately. It
is advisable to have a large covered box or tub, into which you can
throw the droppings, without other rubbish. This manure, if
kept dry, is equal to guano, invaluable for garden and farm land.

P6tJI/PRt RECEIPTS. W

The produce of vegetables and strawberries, when it is judici-
ously used, is trebled. If earth or ashes are sprinkled over the
manure, there will be no unpleasant smell. Fifty hens are said
to produce in the roosting place about ten cwt, per annum. It
is best to use it at home when possible, as gardeners object to
pay for the rubbish which is mixed with it. In large towns
leather-dressers will give a low price for it.

^ DRAINAGE.

Where the ground i3 wet this is very important; damp is fatal
to poultry. A proper fall should be arranged in the ground, and
a small expenditure on drain pipes and the making of dry wells
will be amply repaid by freedom from disease. Drainage from
roofs may be very useful if collected in a water-tub with a tap
for washing out feeding tins and water fountains. If the roof-
ing be made of any material to which tar is applied, care must
be taken never to use the water for drinking purposes; it is most
unwholesome for poultry.

DRINK.

The feeding of poultry, though too often done in a senseless
manner, is, perhaps, not so grossly neglected as their water sup-
ply. Many poultry fanciers seem to think there is no occasion
for a regular, still less for a clean, supply. When water-tins are
refilled the remaining sediment of dirt is too often left to taint
the fresh supply. Birds are left for long hours without water,
then suplied in excess and allowed to gorge themselves, much
to their hurt. Properly, water should be supplied fresh twice
in twenty-four hours; it should be fresh spring watar, not rain
and the vessels should be emptied and rinsed well out in a
bucket. A green slime often coats vessels in which water is
continually standing; this should be scrubbed off daily. The
attendant ahould go round with a bucket of hot water in which

S(y. POULTRY RECEIPTS. ^

all fountains should be scrubbed, and care must be taken t(
stand water out of the sun, as the heat renders it unwhole.
some. On return from a show, give but a very little water o*
first returning t© the home pen; if taken in large quantities it is
apt to turn the comb to a dull blue color. A regular and pur«
supply of water is more important than is generally supposed.
If ducks are kept means must be taken to prevent their polluting
the fountains by washing in them, and if standing in a crowded
pen it a is good plan to place the water vessels on a stand, or to
have tins supplied with two hooks by which they can be hungup
on the wire partitions of the pens, out of the reach of the dust
and droppings which will otherwise be scratched into them.
Snow water is injurious, and rain also if out of tubs drained off
a tarred roof. Water in which potato parings have been boiled
is injurious, and should not be used for mixing meals. A good
water vessel for hot weather is an earthenware saucer with a
slate over it, in which a hole has been cut to allow the bird's
head to go in. A flower-pot with a cork in the drain hole, filled
with water and then reversed in a saucer, is an excellent water
vessel, keeping the water cool by refrigeration. Tonics in water
are a great help in the raising of prize poultry. Fattening
ducklings must have very little water to drink. Adult fowls
should have it at discretion. Whether chickens should have a
constant supply is a moot point. Some declare that they never
give any, and that the chicks are extra healthy, others allow it
to be always at hand. Chickens running with their mothers in
a state of nature drink when they come to a puddle, apparently
without much attention to rule or theory; but those hatched in
artificial rearers are certainly somewhat too much addicted to
drinking, and as long as water is supplied they will go on imbi-
bing. The best plan with these is to give milk once a day (in
the forenoon), a reasonable allowance, and to remove it when

N

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 81

all have had some. Water midday, and water with tonic at
night, removing these also when the thirst is quenched.

DROPPING EGGS.

This is caused by a too stimulating diet, also by want of mor-
tar, oyster-shells, or grit for shell formation, also by the hens
being too fat Feci less, give no meat for a time, vary the diet
with rice, potatoes, sharps, dari, and v^ieat. Give a dose of
castor-oil, and iron tonic in the water. § Should this not cure the
evil, give one gr. calomel, one-twelfth gr. of tartar emetic.

DUBBING.

This operation consists in the removal with a sharp knife of
the comb, ear-lobes, and wattles in game birds. In the days of
cock-fighting this was done to save the combs of the fighting
birds from injury, and to remove what afforded a good hold for
the enemy, Now it is merely a fancy point lor the show pen.
Cocks should be dubbed when getting their adult plumage and
when their combs are well formed Game and Game Bantams
are the only breeds on which this cruel operation is now prac-
toed.

EAR-LOBES.

Sometimes called "deaf-ear," a more or less pendent ornament
to the face, just below the real ear, varying from pure Jcid-like
▼hite to red and blue.

EARLY OPENING OF HOUSES.

This has much to do with health, and if birds who rise with
the sun are shut up in close, ill- ventilated roosting-places till 7
and 8 a m., no success willattend the mismanaging owner. The
roosting-house should open into a covered run which the birds

82 POULTKY RECEIPTS.

can enter at their own free will, to find a little food and to amuse
themselves till the attendant comes his rounds, which he must
do in summer at 6 a. m.

EARLY-ROOSTING.

Chickens of some breeds even two and three weeks old are
very fond of roosting. Care should be taken to remove anything
high, for the danger is great to the breast-bone if they come
down from a height when very young. But it is well to pro-
vide roosting-places, such as reversed boxes, covered with sand
or straw, or broad perches very near the ground, as the exercise
and amusement of hopping up and down is good, and if placed
in the sun, the chicks will delight to congregate upon them and
preen themselves after meals. For night roosts perches are not
desirable; shelves sanded and covered with chopped straw are
best. Under any circumstances, perches should be broad, so
that fowls can conveniently stand up and walk along their length
without any difficulty in balancing themselves, and not too
high.

EARTH DEODORISER.

A supply of sifted earth and sand should be at hand (where
the birds cannot taint it) for the purpose of deodorising and
re-earthing the floors of all artificial mothers and sleeping
shelves. Nothing destroys offensive smell better than earth,
and if freely used, with occasional dredgings of sulphur, bad air
and vermin will be avoided. The earth should be sifted or
screened. . If small chicks sleep on lumpy beds of earth, the
delicate and fragile breast-bone may be injured by the pressure
of even one night's lodging on an improperly made bed.

ECONOMY

In food may be secured by buying the best uninsured grain, and

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 83

seeing that not more than one woman's handful of grain is given
to each fowl for a meal; this is enough, and none will remain on
the ground. In building houses it is an economy to remember
that at timber yards wood is sold cheaper in short lengths than
in long, and that if the length for partitions, etc., be fixed on at
first a saving is effected by ordering all to be sawn to lengths at
the timber yard; by this labor and material are economised.
The price of boarding also varies as much as does the silk for a
lady's dress. Accurate measurements should be made, so as to
avoid cutting up to waste.

EGGS.

Addled are those which, being unfertile, get jarred or chilled,
and are then sat upon to the end of the incubation period, and
become decomposed. They exude an offensive moisture, and if
broken, explode with noise and smell. Remove such eggs as
soon as detected, as their presence in the incubator or nest is
fatal to success in hatching.

Barren or Unfertile Eggs may be taken out of the nest a week
or five days after they have been sat upon. They should be
examined with an ovoscope by the aid of a candle or lamp; those
which are barren will be found perfectly devoid of veining, and
the yolk will be seen to sway about from side to side with the
least movement of the hand; such eggs are fit for cooking, and
perfectly wholesome.

Blood-stained Eggs. — The first laid by a pullet or hen after
moulting may be slightly so, and it need not give any cause for
alarm.

Broken Eggs in the Nest. — Plunge those remaining unbroken
into warm water at 105°, and wash them clean while the straw
of the nest is replaced and all made sweet. If any of the eggs
are only cracked, at once apply sticking-plaster or gold-beater's
skin, and patch the crack up firmly to exclude air. The cnicics

Si POULTRY RECEIPTS.

will hatch out in most cases quite well.

Chilled in Hatching. — The time at which the chill becomes
fatal seems to vary according to circumstances, weather, posi"
tion, period of incubation, and so on. Twenty minutes exposure
in cold weather, and in a draughty place, will addle a sitting,
and yet chicks have come out when the hen has been absent an
hour or two and even more, and the eggs hare been quite cold.
Eggs are more liable to chill after two or three days' incubation
than towards the close. If a hen leaves her nest, and the eggs
are found chilled, place them at once in water at 105° while you
secure and settle or replace the hen, and let her sit on to the
end of her time; the ovoscope will here be useful, as it will
enable you to see if life still exists, and if not time may be saved
by resetting the hen.

Color of Ducks' Eggs. — Varies from pure white to cream color
and to bright green. Pekin and Aylesbury ducks are no
exception to this rule; it does not affect the produce in any way,
nor can it be accounted for.

Color of Hens'' Eggs. — Asiatic breeds lay eggs from deep
chocolate through every shade of coffee color, while the Spanish,
Hamburg, and Italian breeds are known for the pure white of the
eggshell. A cross, however remote, with Asiatics will cause even
the last-named breeds to lay an egg slightly tinted.

Egg-bound.— The best cure for this is a table-spoonful of warm
treacle, into which chopped groundsel is mixed, giving it
warm.

Fertility of Eggs depends on the number of hens to each cock,
on the space allowed for the run, if any, and on the age of the
male birds; all efforts to ensure it are negatived by improper and
over feeding. The eggs of very large exhibition birds, bred for
size and feather, are very often unfertile, and eggs from pens
where the birds are constantly travelling to shows are, as a rule,

POtJLTR* RECEIPTS. 85

less fertile than others. Leghorns seem to suffer less from this
than some other breeds. Changing cocks about in the midst of
the breeding season will make the eggs unfertile, though it may
be only to exchange them from one home pen to another.

Foretelling Sex of Chicks. — No rule can be laid down about
this, and the shape of the egg has nothing to do with it. Early
broods bring most cocks, late broods the pullets. This is gener-
ally the case, but no rule is reliable.

To Hatch Early. — An incubator is a great advantage for this
purpose: in November and December, January and February,
sitting hens are hardly to be got, and the incubator can be
worked independently of weather. Chills must be guarded
against, and are specially dangerous early, the fertility of the
eggs being less vigorous than it is later on, and a batch of eggs
may be easily addled. Brahma hens kept in a warm place are
the most likely to sit early. Nests should be made in a shel-
tered warm situation, as excessive cold will cause a hen to leave
her nest; and if she is comfortably housed and her food given
warm (baked grain dry) in severe weather she will be more
likely to keep steady. While the hen is off feeding pour boiling
water round the nest daily during the third week. In severe
frost a handful of dry hay cast over the eggs while the hen feeds
keeps them from to severe a chill.

Increasing Egg-production. — Mark those hens in your flock
remarkable for the size or the number of their eggs, and hatch
their eggs in preference for laying stock. Choose breeds which do
not sit. Do not over-feed or fatten, and keep laying hens in an
active hungry state; do not, however, run into extremes and
under-feed them; they must have plenty and yet always be ready
for food. Do not keep old hens, two years is the outside limit.
Birds hatched, say, in March, 1884 should, on an egg-farm, be
killed for table on the first signs of moult in autumn, 1885; they
are then quite young and fetch a good price, and will not be so

86 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

valuable in 1886. Laying hens should not have to much fatten-
ing soft food, sound grain in variety is the best diet, and plenty
of green food, oyster-shell, and mortar rubbish.

Preserving Eggs for Sitting. — If the eggs are from prize stock,
each egg should be marked with the date or number of the prize
pen; the mark should be placed on the small end of the egg,
otherwise the chick in pecking out is apt to obliterate all traces
of it. The eggs should be collected in a basket containing bran
or chaff, and afterwards placed in a box (with a lid,) in bran,
small end up; they should be entirely covered up in the bran.
Perfectly new-laid eggs must be used for incubator work , under
hens staler eggs will hatch. I have known eggs hatch when
placed under the hen at fourteen days old, but new-laid eggs are
always to be preferred.

Moistening Eggs. — In hot dry summer weather watering the
hatching nest with water at 105° from a fine rose water-pot
while the hen eats her daily meal is a good practice; in cold
weather pour boiling water round the nest. In an incubator do
not water the eggs, bnt get the moisture required from wet earth
trays.

Preserving Eggs for Winter Use. — To ensure success, whatever
the keeping medium, place the eggs into it as fast as collected
from the nest. If they lie about here and there, exposed to air
and sun and movement even for a day, the result will not be
satisfactory. The ways to preserve eggs for winter are vari-
ous:—

No. 1. Dissolve quicklime in water, and add a little cream
of tartar, put in as laid, and see that the water quite covers the

eggs.
No. 2. Rub the eggs with lard, or butter, or oil, and immerse

in bran.

No. 3. Bury the eggs in powdered unslaked lime.
No. 4. Bed in salt.

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 87

No. 5. The French method; Varnish the eggs with varnish
of linseed-oil, and beeswax.

No. 6. Smear the eggs over with linseed-oil, and place them
in dry sand.

No. 7. Rub in butter, and store the eggs in boxes well closed
down, pasting paper over the cracks so as to exclude air: keep in
a cold place.

Round and Long Eggs. — Round eggs are said to produce pul-
lets; long eggs cockerels — a fallacy, and proved to be incorrect.

To secure Eggs all year round. — Keep an incubator going; and
if your runs are on a small scale, hatch out, say twelve chickens
every month, beginning in December and continue till May.
These should provide pullets enough to keep the egg-basket full
all the year round for a small family.

Selecting Eggs for Sitting. — Very round and very pointed eggs
should be rejected, also very small and extra large ones. Dou-
ble eggs never hatch well, they produce deformities. Medium-
sized eggs are more vigorously fertile than others. Eggs that
are rough-shelled or brittle are bad, and crooked, misshapen eggs
bespeak a delicate, consumptive strain of fowls. Never place
dirty eggs in a nest: wash in tepid water with a sponge till clean.
Ducks' eggs particularly, should always be cleansed. In an
incubator, where so much depends upon the purity of the air,
this is doubly important. Water for washing should be
105O F.

Soft Eggs. — Hens often lay soft eggs, devoid of shell. This
arises from several causes, the most common being the want of
material to form shell where birds have only earth or grass or a
paved yard. Another cause is over-feeding with rich, soft,
stimulating diet. Reduce the quality and quantity ; give more
dry dari and wheat grain, less oi soft food, and add powdered
oyster-shells, mortar-gravel, grit, or the cleaning and chippings

38 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

of lime from boilers. Nests dirty and insufficient in number
will cause hens to drop their eggs prematurely; the egg gets
broken, and then not unfrequently the juicy morsel is eaten up,
and a taste for egg-eating is formed. If proper management
does not soon avert or cure the evil, try physic:

No. 1. Diet on rice and potatoes sparingly given, and a pill
of one grain of calomel, with one-twelfth of grain of tartar
emetic.

No. 2. Dose well with castor oil; put old nails or old keys in
the water-tin, or two lumps (size of filberts) of sulphate of iron
to the gallon of water.

Test of Fresh Eggs.— The fresher the egg, the smaller the air-
chamber. This can be seen at the broad end of the egg if it be
held up against a strong light in a dark room. Stale eggs have
a mottled, greyish look about them; and a new-laid egg will
always give a feeling of warmth if the tongue is pressed to the
large end.

Small Yolkless Eggs.— This, again, is a sign of over-feeding —
and most likely an exclusive diet of Indian corn, with little
exercise and no green food.

Egg-eaters. — Such hens must be sharply looked after. Where
only a few fowls are kept near the house, the evil has been over-
come by taking the eggs as soon as laid, but this is impossible
in large runs; and unless very valuable for prize breeding, the
offender should be killed at once; it is a fault easily taught to
other hens. A good plan for finding out the culprit is to put
some eggs about the yard, or run, and to let the hens out; the
offender will rush at the egg and commence breaking it, and in
a moment will swallow it down. Next, place some stone eggs
about, and one real egg, blown, and filled with mustard and
cayenne pepper; the offender will peck away at the stone eggs,
and at last seize on the hot one. This lesson is sometimes, bat

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 89

not always, successful. Nests adapted to save the eggs of egg.
eating hens are advertised in the poultry-journals, and are use-
ful should it be necessary to keep birds which have contracted
this very objectionable habit.

EPSOM SALTS.

A small quantity given occasionally, mixed into the soft food,
encourages laying, but care must be taken not to give much, as
it will produce scouring; one tablespoonful to 25 birds is
enough.

ERUPTIONS.

Scurfy heads, or scurfy scabs on the ear-lobes. This state
of things indicates want of green food, and that the birds are
kept in ill-managed dirty yards. Castor oil two or three times
at intervals of two to three days, and powdered sulphur in the
food. Turmeric and cocoanut-oil ointment may be rubbed on
the scurfy parts, and all will soon be well.

EXCESSIVE FEEDING.

One of the most common causes of disease and loss in the
poultry-yard. No food should ever be left on the ground; any
so left shows that the birds are getting more than is good for
them. A good plan for the inexperienced poultry-feeder to go
by is this: At the morning meal, which is of soft food, place it
in pans or tins, several, according to the number of the fowls,
so that all may have a fair chance of feeding without overcrowd-
ing; leave the birds for twenty minutes, after which return and
remove any remnants left, leaving none behind. The birds will have
eaten as much as they require, and over that mark there is danger of
bringing on internal disorders of the liver and stomach, loss of

90 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

feathers, laying of soft eggs, unfertile eggs, and every poultry
ailment under the sun.

FAILURES IN POULTRY KEEPING.

Chiefly due to a mistaken idea that poultry can be made profi-
table and a source of wealth or income without any outlay,
everything being expected from whilst nothing is done for the
birds. Some of the most common causes of failure seem to be
from want of cleanliness, over-feeding, and that on injudiciously
arranged diet, from trying to keep too large a stock of fowls for
the space available, and, perhaps, too many varieties. Want of
dry shelter is a common cause of disease. It is not enough for
the roosting-house to be dry; there must be a space where air
and light can enter freely, where the birds will resort on wet
days to dust and preen themselves. If poultry is kept for sale
of eggs and chickens, etc., a town or city near at hand is indis-
pensable; and the soil should be dry and sandy rather than clay,
with plenty of shelter in the way of orchards or shrubberies.
Want of knowledge as to trussing and preparing poultry for
market is one cause of the low prices paid to amateurs for their
produce, and another drawback is that so many start poultry-
woi k with old barn-door birds, of very inferior type, and poor
both as layers and fatteners.

FANCY POINTS.

It is a usual remark that fanciers * 'breeding for feather" or
for "fancy points" are really doing harm, inasmuch as the
breeds deteriorate in their hands for all economic purposes; and
yet it is very certain that the improvement in useful farm poul-
try of late years is due to the fancier, for it is from his runs that
birds kept for commercial purposes only are crossed and resus-
citated. Birds kept for table purposes, and as egg-prodwcers,

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 91

are seldom of pure breed; the first cross is sought for, and it is
out of the hundreds raised by the breeders of pure stains that
the crosses are obtained, and the race improved for economic
purposes. Had the fancier no high standard of feather, etc., to
breed to, and that difficult of attainment, there would be no
object in his hatching and feeding with such scrupulous care
the hundreds of pure birds he now produces yearly. To enable
him to pick out three or four, or even one, ideal bird, true to
fancy points and fit to win at large shows, some hundreds must
be hatched and fed extra well from the first, and it is those that
fail of perfection which give the useful first cross for economic
purposes.

FARM POULTRY.

The present system of keeping farm poultry cannot answer,
but great strides are being made towards an improved state of
things, and the subject is being thoroughly ventilated. There
is no doubt that on a farm there are special advantages for
poultry-keeping on a large scale. Barns and extensive sheds
for sheltering carts, etc., are at hand, which, without building
especially for the fowls, can be adpated to supply admirable poultry
accommodation. The ricks of hay and wheat, etc., if properly
raised from the ground to avoid harboring rats and damp, also
give shelter; and even if the farm is small it should be capable
of supplying the greater part of the corn and meal used, for
birds, with ample range and the gleanings of the farm-yard at
command, forage largely on their own account. System and
attention are wanted, and common sense, which the woman of
the farm, to whose management the poultry are left, as a rule,
do not possess. Old birds are kept year after year, from which
supply of eggs must be small, and, as a rule, the hens are fat-
tened and the chickens under fed. No pains are taken to hatch

92 POULTRY BECEIFT8.

early, and thus eggs are not to be had during those months when
they gain the highest price. Feeding is irregular, and the food
given is seldom varied, whereas we know that variety is specially
good for poultry. The farmer's wife seems unable to name any
other grains but Indian corn and wheat; whereas she should
grow, besides these, a small patch of barley, buckwheat, and
sunflowers, also oats for grinding to meal. Fresh water is
never supplied, the birds usually drinking from the drainings
of the manure-heap, and the poultry roosting-house is cleaned
out, perhaps twice a year; the manure is supposed "to keep the
fowls warm." The number of birds too, as compared with the
acres at command of grass, wheat, turnip, and other fields, is
absurdly small; and whereas the fancier with love for poultry
will within the space of seventy feet by fifty produce and rear
over 200 birds for table, egg, and show purposes, the farm poul-
try on some seventy acres will not count over 100 head, if so
much. The farmer will carefully breed from his best stock, the
best milkers, and the best fatteners, in cattle and pigs, the sheep
producing most lambs, all are carefully perpetuated, but no trouble
is taken about the progeny of the best laying hen. Mongrels
are started with, and breed in-and-in year after year; the race
deteriorates in egg-production and in size; whereas a pure breed,
or at least a first cross, should be started with, and these birds
should be mated with a pure-bred cock of another breed — fresh
blood should be introduced from time to time. With all his
blind neglect and ignorant mismanagement going on, it is no
wonder that farm poultry pay pennies only where they should
bring dollars. Many farmers consider that poultry injure the
crops. It must be said that some thirty or forty heads roaming
over a field do forage and trample on pretty freely; but the
question is whether the amount of good they do in killing
insects of all kinds, especially slugs and wire- worms, does not
compensate for the leaves they consume and destroy. It is the

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 93

opinion of many high authorities that the good they do in this
way exceeds the evil.

FARMYARD DUCK.

Here again, the farmer as a rule is content with the variest
mongrels — small ducks, shallow in breast and of narrow shape,
bearing no resemblance to the grand Rouen or Aylesbury, from
which in time gone by they possibly have sprung. It is the
rarest thing to find pure a Rouen, Aylesbury, or Pekin on any
farm, and it is a great mistake; for the young of these well
known breeds will fatten up for table to 5 lbs. or 6 lbs. weight,
without their feathers, in six or seven weeks with good manage-
ment; whereas the farm duck can seldom be induced to lay on
more than 3 lbs., and this at a larger cost of food, for the mon-
grel ducklings from a farm or elsewhere are of the greediest,
and possess a most insatiable appetite. For egg-production too,
the mongrel duck is useless. The eggs are small; and in Novem-
ber and December, when the early-hatched Aylesbury is hard
at work, the complaint at the farm is that the ducks "dont't
lay." The laying farm ducks are supposed to require no food,
and if it were not for slugs and worms and grazing would pick
up a scanty living.

FATTENING FOWLS.

This subject is described in great detail in many books and
papers. The following hints may be useful to the novice in
poultry-work. When a bird is to be put up for fattening it
must be starved for some hours till very hungry. It must be fed
during the whole fattening period very regularly at stated times ; no
food should be left after a meal; the coop must be very clean, and
kept out of the sun, in a darkish place; the bird must not be
allowed to see other birds running about, as this will make it

94 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

uneasy, and retard the fattening process ; the water must be
kept pure and fresh.

No. 1. Fattening from the shell : Give the little chicks chopped
hard-boiled eggs and bread-crumbs for the first fortnight after
which add cooked meat chopped fine, and mixed with oatmeal
and molasses. Corn steeped in milk is good later on.

No. 2. Take the birds when they have done growing ; say at
four monihs put them singly into fattening pens with barred floors
through which the droppings can fall, and feed them with any
of the following foods : — Oatmeal and chopped suet ; boiled
potatoes ; rice boiled in milk or molasses ; soft food of oatmeal
mixed with milk or pot-liquor, pig's-fat, malt and sugar ; suet
is added the last week, and the birds are kept in sheds, airy but
not cold.

ORDINARY FATTENING OF CHICKS.

For the amateur, the penning up and cramming system is not
an absolute necessity. When the birds are from three to four
months old, isolate them from all other stock in healthy quar-
ters, with a moderate, but wholesome, run. Feed them every
three hours with all the above foods in turn, and any other
kinds of food you can conooct likely to tempt the appetite. Let
them eat as much as they will, and be careful to remove what is
left. Let the tins be kept sweet and clean. Give ample green
food, fresh air and sunshine, with means of seeking shelter from
its rays as well. Birds so treated will make healthy, firm flesh,
and fatten quickly, but will not be laden with the soft fat which
is laid on in the unhealthy air of the fattening pen. (See Cram-
ming.)

FATTENING A LA BRESSE

The birds are kept on dry gravel, and fattened on buckwheat
and maize meals ground fine as flour, and made into light por-
ridge with milk.

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 95

Chicks should be ready without special feeding at four months
old to kill, at from 3 lbs. to 4 lbs. weight.

FATTENING GEESE.

No amount of good food will fatten birds originally of a mon-
grel type. The quickest and best to lay on sound flesh are the
produce of Embden geese crossed by a Toulouse gander. Dc
not proceed to fatten too suddenly. After giving free range of
stubble and grass fields, confine gradually and at last wholly in
a paitially dark place. Wheat and barley grain and barley-meal
with brewers' grains fatten well. Goslings may be put up to
fatten at five or six weeks ; seven weeks should bring them to
perfection, Maize is also good, and turnip tops are greatly rel-
ished. Ponds are not required, but large troughs of water
should stand about in the shade.

FEATHERS

are very valuable and where over a hundred head of poultry are
kept, should be looked after as a source of income.

FEATHER-EATING.

A horrid practice, one might almost call it a disease, to which
fowls brought up in confinement are liable. Malays and Hou-
dans seem peculiarly apt to contract this habit, which dirt and
crowding encourages. Idleness is one cause ; poultry are often
kept in a pen where they have no means of scratching about or
amusing themselves. The earth should be forked up, thrown
into heaps, and straw scattered over it ; this will give occupa-
tion and tend to arrest the evil. "Want of fresh water is another
source of the disease ; the water should be replenished often,
and kept in the shade. Cabbages tied up whole and tightly to
the walls of pens will amuse and serve to pass the time, and a
pieee of meat hung just within reach will be useful. Should
any birds be so injured as to have the stumps of feathers bleed-

96 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

ing these must be pulled out by the roots, and the tender places
anointed with a salve of vaseline mixed with carbolic acid, lOgrs.
to the ounce. This will be healing, and at the same time un-
palatable to the offending birds. Lettuce in large quantities
should be given. If the case is desperate give daily £ to ^ gr.
of acetate of morphia. The offending bird should be removed
from the run.

LOSS OF FEATHERS.

Probably proceeds from deficient or unclean dusting arrange*
ments. Fowls must have dust baths and one pound of black
sulphur now and then, mixed with the rubble or sand, is excel-
lent for keeping feathers in good order. A few grains of carbon-
ate of potass in water twice daily and the application of petro-
leum ointment will produce a cure. Proper food is necessary
for the preservation of plumage. Food without husk, such as
Indian corn, soaked bread, if given exclusively, will bring on
loss of feather; barley, buckwheat and barley-meal. If the
skin is bare and shows no growth of feather, rub in oil and tur-
pentine in proportion of three to one till the feathers break
through.

FEATHERING OF THE LEGS AND FEET.

Perfection in this is no mystery, as amateurs imagine ; it is
merely a matter of extreme care. A bird to be shown with per-
fect foot-feathering must not once get into damp or mud, must
not walk on stubble or rough earth, if not kept on a lawn it
must have soft straw to walk on in the pen.

FELT.

Tarred is useful for covering roofs and buildings made of
wood ; it effectually keeps out wet and if tarred and sanded
over now and then lasts a considerable time.

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 97

FENCING WIRE.

When putting up houses the lowest piece of wire should be of
smaller mesh than the upper, so as to confine small chicks if
necessary, and to exclude rats. Care should be taken not to
nail the upper part of wire fencing to strips of wood ; though
neater to the eye it is better avoided, as the wooden strip, how-
ever light, gives the birds a foot rest; and they will attempt to
fly on to it, which they will not do if it is merely strained wire
at top. Asiatics will be kept in by a two foot wire, other breeds
require it from five to seven feet high.

FLEAS.

A not infrequent but most unnecessary and disgraceful pest
of the poultry yard. Whitewash three to four times a year,
keep the places daily well cleaned, and such a visitation will sel-
dom occur.

To destroy them, in an empty pen, paste up all cracks and
holes, and burn a pound or two of broken sulphur in an iron
vessel supported over water ; let the fumes remain to do their
work in the hen house all day, water the floor with carbolic acid
solution; a wineglassful to the gallon, or pour turpentine in bad
places.

Fleas get about the nests and building, rather than in the
birds.

FLESH.

A decided aid to egg production, and during the winter
months especially necessary, as there is no insect life. Scraps
from the butcher without bone can be procured, these parboiled
and chopped fine make an excellent dish. An exclusively meat
diet on horseflesh, and the tainted carcases of animals unfit for
human food, cannot improve the flavor of the eggs, and must be
prejudicial to the health of birds. The French use horseflesh
and a meat diet very largely.

98 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

FLOORS.

Boards are not good, especially if chickens are to be brought
up upon them as they produce cramp. Concrete or brick is
better, but nothing is so good as deep, well pulverized, dry soil,
which is also less expensive.

FOOD AFTER EXHIBITION.

When the show birds return from their journey, place them
in their own pen and give soft food only, warm — Spratt or bread
and milk with very little water, as the birds; (being possibly
feverish from long confinex^znt) are apt to drink without meas-
ure and to a dangerous extent. Should the crop be overcharged
with whole Indian corn or fresh wheat, a teaspoonful of gin will
perhaps save an illness.

FOOD DURING MOULT.

Same as for ordinary adult laying stock, only a little more
generous, and given warm ; meat, ale, milk, and a little pepper,
(red chillies are cheapest and best) may be added.

FOUNTAINS.

One of the cheapest and best home-made fountains is an ordi-
nary flower-pot, reversed in a glazed saucer ; fit a cork into a
hole of the pot, fill it with water and reverse it. For adult
fowls, tins which will hook on to the wire are excellent, as the
water keeps clean in them.

FRESH BLOOD.

If birds are bred in and in to any great extent many evils will
<*nsue — loss of size, fewer eggs will be laid, and a general want
*i stamina will be observable. It is well therefore, occasionally
to purchase a cock from one of the best yards, and if it is for
prize purposes, ascertain the pedigree, and, if possible, see the
pen from which he was hatched. It is the easiest thing in the

LANGSHANS.

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 9f

world to \ \***Jws*< a glaring defect into your flock, and one of
the most difficult t<- breed a fault out. Where birds are kept in
separate runs snd pens, the produce for the following year or
two will not be so nearly related as to require invigorating by
fresh blood ; in fact any large breeder of a well-known strain
will be very shy of introducing new stock for any purpose. By
a wise system of crossing and separation, thoroughly unrelated
birds should be kept ready to hand for the mating season.

FRIGHT.

Sudden fright or much hunting about is the frequent cause of
soft eggs. With prize birds it must be avoided, as beating
about may cause irreparable mischief.
FROST-BITE.

Spanish, Andalusians, Minorcas, Leghorns and all large-
combed breeds are specially subject to this. To prevent it, rub
oil or vaseline over the comb with a sponge ; but any fairly kept
birds should not be subject to this danger. Rub, if frozen,
with snow or cold water, and apply zinc ointment or vaseline.

GAPES.

Caused by pale, reddish worms, lodged in the windpipe, from
two to twelve in number, and about half an inch long ; each
worm has a parasite worm attached to it. They kill the chick
by at last crowding the windpipe till breathing is impossible.
Dirt and damp is, as usual, the cause of this, as of most other
diseases. If cleanliness and carbolic acid disinfection is freely
carried out, gapes will be unknown. If cases occur, at once
put fluid carbolate, camphor or lime, in the water. If there are
many cases, place the chicks in a cold pit (garden frame) and
fumigate with vapor of carbolic acjd till they are nearly suffo-
cated by its fumes. Care must be taken to liberate the chicks
at the right moment or death will ensue, but if well done this is
an effectual cure.

100 POTJLTBY BECEITTt.

No. 2. Introduce an oiled feather into the windpipe, turn it
twice and draw it out, when the worms will sometimes come
with it.

No. 3. Give 1 gr. calomel, or 2 to 3 grs. of Plummer's pill,
make the food hot with sulphur and ginger and wash the mouth
out with chloride of lime.

GIDDINESS.

Produced usually by over-feeding ; reduce diet and give
aperient.

GRASS.

If free range in grass fields is an impossibility, arrangements
must be made with some country children to bring in supplies,
as it is very necessary for health and egg-production, not to
mention that on its abundance depends the metallic lustre or
gloss and firmness of . feather which bespeak robust health and
successful poultry management.

GRASS RUN

It is a good plan to combine hay-making with poultry-keep-
ing. For six weeks before cutting, the birds must be removed
to another field, or put up in other quarters. This gives time
for the run to rest and be purified, aud the birds so kept will be
in more robust health than if kept from year's end to year's end
on the same ground where only a limited space of grass is avail-
able, and several pens open out upon it. Each pen of birds
must be let out in succession for a few hours' run, but at some
period of the year the grass must have perfect rest. Grass runs
are a luxury — not an essential — but the less grass the more care
and work will be required to produce prize stock.
GRAVEL

A lime gravel is the best, and it should be screened to remove
any large pebbles which prevent the birds from dusting with

POULTRY BBCEIPT8. 101

comfort. Every load of gravel should be mixed with fine sand
or with fine mortar screenings.

GREEN FOOD

The best is grass, cut fresh daily ; 2nd, lettuce ; 3rd, spinach ;
4th, cabbage, chopped in a chopper, or tied up to the wall or to
a post for the birds tc peck at. Every kind of green food refuse
from the kitchen garden is invaluable, and a daily supply must
be found. If on a free run of turf poultry will be seen to graze,
like a flock of sheep. Hay refuse — out of a hay-loft, full of seeds
— gives much amusement in winter time and is a good substitute
when green stuff is low. Chickens should have grass, lettuce,
and hay seeds in preference to other green stuff.

CLEANLINESS OF GROUND

Fowls will never touch food, if they can help it, which lies
near any droppings or on an unclean place. Special care should
be taken, therefore, to cleanse the ground of all pens and runs
daily. The smaller the runs the greater must be the cleanliness
add labor spent upon it.

GUINEA FOWLS

Are usually grey, having white spots on the grey ground;
they are also pure white (more rare). If hatched on the land
they will remain and roost with the poultry or on neighboring
trees ; but adult birds should never be bought, as they will inev-
itably fly away. The hens lay 100 eggs per annum, are very
spiteful to the other poultry, and noisy early in the morning.
They sit about August, and therefore it is wise to raise the
chicks by artificial incubation, or by setting the eggs under a
hen. Good chicken diet will suit the young ones but more meat
is necessary. The hens like concealed nests, which should be
provided, or they will lay away. They are quarrelsome, and it
is only when an extensive range is available, that keeping the
Galena is found to answer.

103 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

HANDLING FOWLS.

If yon catch a bird leaving its wings free a desperate struggle
will ensue, likely to injure the exhibition plumage or to distract
the broody hen from her vocation. Approach the bird from be-
hind, place both hands firmly and quickly right over the wing-
joints, then slip the right hand down and secure the legs firmly.
All fluttering will thus be avoided, and the bird, held by the
legs, with the left hand under the breast, will not offer resis-
tance. All catching and handling of birds should be done at
night, or after first making the pen dark, if this is feasible.

HARD FEATHER.

means the close, firm, appearance of a well-kept Game bird. To
produce, feed on more grain than meal, and give plenty of run
and green food.

HARDINESS.

Hamburghs and Dorkings are supposed to be delicate, and
perhaps are rather more so than others ; but with due care and
shelter, most breeds will do well. Prevent overcrowding, damp
lodgings and the necessity of standing about in mud and rain
without shelter, and no breed need be considered too delicate.
Leghorns and Andalusions seem very robust, and fear nothing,
except frost so severe as to nip their large combs.
HARM TO CROPS.

Mechi, who speaks with some authority on farming, considers
that poultry do no harm to growing crops on farm-land, that,
at any rate, the damage to roots and seeds is trifling in propor-
tion to the good they effect in destroying insect life, and the
wire worm especially.

HAY.

Must aofc be used for poultry^ ao it generates vermin more
readily than straw.

FOULTRT RECEIPTS. 103

HEAT.

More dangerous in roosting places than cold ; if artificial heat
is given, it must be with thorough ventilation, or consumption
will ensue, roup and loss of stamina. Heating of artificial
mothers is much overdone, and too little ventilation given. The
heat should not rise above 75 degrees when all are asleep, or suf-
focation will cause losses; for the first three days, however,
chicks must be kept very warm, and will repay particular care
in this respect. If birds are kept in confined pens, facing south,
some shelter from the sun must be rigged up, tiffany or mats
hung up for the midday hours; and the pen should be syringed
with water; the fowls dust at once in the cool, sprinkled earth.

HEMP.

A great treat to all poultry, but if used too freely causes loss
of feathers. A useful addition if the bird is out of condition,
and where feeding up is required preparatory to showing.

HEREDITARY DISEASES OF FOWLS.

Consumption is the disease most carefully to be guarded
against. A consumptive strain will be a constant source of
care and disappointment. Squirrel tail is sure to be reproduced
in many of the young birds. Wry tail is also hereditary.
Crooked breasts. Thumb marks on combs, and any peculiarity
in the spikes of the comb. White face, where red is the proper
color is dangerously hereditary. Ear-lobes splashed or marked
with red where pure white is a point. Vulture hock. All these
defects will be reproduced. Birds with malformations, or any-
thing missing, such as being short of one toe, or having any
peculiarities should not be used for breeding.

HOARSENESS.

Birds occasionally, during a wet or hard winter, beoouae hoarse
the throat is evidently rough. Warm weather will remove this.

4 POULTRY RECEIPTS

Glycerine and nitric acid in the drinking water will be bene-
ficial.

HOSPITAL.

Every poultry-yard, in which, say, even 100 birds are reared
yearly, should be provided with a place specially devoted for
penning sick birds, where an invalid c<*n be at once isolated and
properly doctored if need be. This place must be open to the
sun, screened from the east wind, dust dry, freely ventilated,
yet free from draught, and warm. The hospital should be
whitewashed with hot lime frequently, and perfect cleanliness
maintained.

IN-BREEDING

Means mating the birds of one pen together, and these again
with the cockerels and pullets produced by their eggs. This
must be avoided, or the fertility of the eggs will be unsatisfac-
tory, the produce will diminish in size, and the health of the
strain will suffer. To avoid it, a cockerel or two should be
bought yearly from other yards, or some pens mnst be kept so
thoroughly apart that relationships will not be too close.

INDIAN CORN.

A favorite grain with all poultry but not good food unless the
birds are on a wide range, being too fattening.
INDIGESTION

Shows itself by the birds going about moping, and disliking
plain food. Give 5 or 6 grs. of rhubarb, and once or twice a
grain of calomel ; feed on cooked soft food, and let the bird
walk about free, in a garden if possible, where it will pick up
what is wholesome for itself.

INFLAMMATION OF THE LUNGS.

A sudden chill is the usual cause of this dangsrous malady,
and it is especially necessary to guard against it with artificially

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 105

reared chicks very early in the season. Going out early in cold
March winds after having nestled very warm (it may be too
warm) under a hot water mother is most productive of this
well-nigh incurable illness. A healthy strain will not be subject
to this disease unless unduly exposed.

INSECT FOOD.

Wood-lice, w©rms, ants' nests, and maggots are excellent
food for young chickens. Ants' nests can be procured by coun-
try children; and for a supply of maggots place some meal-
worms in an open shed in a box with part of an old mealbag;
Jai in a dead bird now and then, and a regular supply can be
kept up.

BREWERS1 GRAINS.

Thrown in a heap and a dead bird or rat buried in them will
also produce a supply of maggots.

JALAP.

One tablespoonful to twenty-five birds, in the food, promotes
laying.

JOURNEYS

If long, are best accomplished by night. The darkness con-
duces to sleep and quiet, and an extra day of confinement and
loss of food is not incurred. Twenty-four hours before the bird
starts it is well to write a line to advise the recipient of the fact
as delay is thus prevented.

KILLING FOR TABLE.

This is done in various ways, but whatever be the manner
let the birds fast for at least fourteen hours before death. One
of the most humane methods is to tie up the legs and bind the
cord twice or thrice round the wings, and then with a v«ry

10$ POULTRY RECEIPTS.

sharp axe to chop off the head on a wooden block. Draw the
skin at once over the stump after the bird has been hung up by
the heels to bleed thoroughly. Another way is to cut the jug-
ular vein and bleed well.

LACED FEATHERS

Have a narrow border round the edge different in color 01
shade from the ground color. __

LAMENESS.

Examine the feet and if no cause can be discovered then con-
sider whether there are too few hens to each cock. This will
produce a lame or feeble way of walking, which should at once
be prevented by the addition of more hens to the pen.

TO SECURE EARLY LAYING.

Hatch early, and do not move pullets about to various runt
while they are maturing. Do not depend on old hens, but on
March pullets, kept in warm quarters fed on meat and plenty of
green food, besides grain; occasional treats of bread soaked in
ale, hot, and a few pounded chillies mixed in the food, and
given hot at daybreak will hasten the filling of the winter egg
basket.

LAYING MIXTURES.

There are many mixtures and condiments advertised in the
poultry journals daily, which have the effect of* stimulating the
hen's laying powers if desired, but few will be needed and many
are prejudicial ; and if the above diet is kept to, the birds must
lay; if they do not, either suspect and look out for rats, or egg
eating hens in the flock, or a need for padlocks to the laying
pens. A very effective egg-producing mixture is one oz. of
Glauber salts given in a meal of potatoes three or four days run-
ning, 1 oz. to ten fowls ; but this must only be tried on com-

POULTRY RECEIPTS 10?

mon laying stock. It is effective, but dangerous, and must be
used rarely and with caution.

TO PREVENT LAYING.

Birds for show have at times to be kept back. They are in
show form just when they begin to lay, and never look so well
after. If you are early and wish to delay the laying and to pro-
long the period of growth move the pullets about from one run
to another.

LEG-WEAKNESS.

Chickens brought up on boarded floors, without a free run or
exercise, are subject to this; or if kept in heated places or on too
stimulating diet. To prevent it from a week old give free range
with beds at night of dry, sandy earth to sleep upon. Feed
with bone-dust mixed in meal, and give chemical food in the
drinking water or thirty drops twice daily, of the syrup of hypo-
phosphite of soda.

LIGHT-COLORED YOLKS.

These show an insufficiency of iron and sulphur in tjie food,
also absence of green food.

LIME.

An absolute necessity in the formation of the egg-shell, and
for the proper action of the digestive organs. No fowls should
be left without it. Any builder will supply old mortar and rub-
ble for the cost of carting. This must be screened and placed
in dry covered runs.

LIMIT TO NUMBERS.

It is pretty well ascertained that fowls do not succeed if kept
in too large flocks, however extensive the range may be. If kept
in separate flocks of fifty or less they pay and answer better.

108 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

LIST OF FOODS.

Grains.— Barley, buckwheat, hemp, linseed, millet, maize,
oats, Scotch groats, wheat.
Meals. — Barley-meal, Indian corn meal, linseed, oatmeal.

AIDS IN FEEDING.

Bone-dust, Spratt's Food, rice, oyster shell, salt, meat, house-
scraps, bones, liver, fat, fish, hay seeds, sun-flower seeds, red
chillies, etc., green food of all sorts.

If feeding is carried out with judgment, and changes are rung
upon the foods above named, the poultry will be kept in health,
and will produce chicks with good, vigorous constitutions.

LIVER DISEASE.

Indigestion is often disregarded until it develops into disease
of the liver. The birds mope about, show an irregular appetite
and a bilious yellow hue appears in place of the coral-red which
a thoroughly healthy bird should show in face, comb and wat-
tles. Doses of aperient medicine, preceded by a grain or two
grains of calomel, will at times effect a cure if the case is not of
long standing.

LOBES, OR DEAF EARS.

Are the folds of skin, either pure white or red, cream color or
blue, according to breed, which hang from the true ear, large
Jn some races as the Spanish, small in others, as in Dorkings.
Whiteness is best preserved by keeping the birds out of strong
sunshine. Fighting may produce an unsightly scar, of the lobe
if cocks get together. Oxide of zinc in powder dusted over the
lobe will preserve it from the effects of hard weather, and zinc
ointment, (benzoated) will be found useful in softening and
preserving the texture in show birds. Should red ticks or spots
appear, give less exposure. If brown spots appear on lobes

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 109

originally pure white, they may be from too rich feeding. Re-
duce the diet, and doctor the lobes with glycerine and carbolic
acid (5 grains to the ounce), or with sulphurous acid in water,
2£ drachms to the ounce.

LOSS OF APPETITE.

When this occurs suddenly, give half a teaspoonful of Epsom
salts ; this will often start laying.

MANURE.

Poultry manure should always be saved ; it is most valuable
if kept dry. A water-tight tub with a cover should stand at the
door of each block of poultry-houses, into which the droppings
can be thrown as free from sand and extraneous matter as pos-
sible. A little earth or ashes sprinkled over it will effectually
deodorise, and do no harm.

MARCH, WORK FOR.

Hatching must now be in full swing, as it is important to get
the bulk of all valuable stock out before the 31st. Stock
for table may be hatched throughout the year. Allow chicks
all the freedom possible ; do not shut up in small places, or cramp
will result ; the more they run the better. Eschew board floors.
Give plenty of milk. Chicks are much helped by warm food.
It is of more importance to give food warm, sweet, fresh, and
very frequently, than to pamper the appetite with condiments
and luxuries. Stock pens should be let out in the grass runs
whenever the weather is not bad. Stimulants should be dropped
by degrees if they have been resorted to ; but the clever poultry-
keeper's account for these will be small. Preserve eggs from
frost if for hatching. Put false eggs into the nests to encourage

110 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

laying and sitting. Birds must be put under restraint in wet
and severe cold ; our climate will not allow of free range in win-
ter. The birds will not really range, but will stand about and
get chilled and wet ; hence much of the failure in poultry-farms.
Supply large covered runs, open to air and sun-gleams, but dry.

MARKING CHICKENS*

It is possible with the hot point of aneedle to perforate the wing
membrane with one, two, three, or more holes, marking the
various hatches or strains. Colored cotton round the leg answers,
but must be changed as the size of the leg increases, or it will
lame the chick by growing into the flesh.

MATING.

If early chickens are wanted, mating should be arranged by
the end of November. Pullets and hens over their moult will
begin laying about a month after mating. Any great faults in
the hen must be counteracted by the influence of the cock, or the
fault will be exaggerated in the progeny. All birds with marked
defects must be excluded, and only the best bred from. When
once mated the pens should not be disturbed, as any change may
be the cause of unfertile eggs.

MAY, WORK FOR.

Hatch on still for late shows, and for supplying successional
pullets. Do not spare the sulphur dredger, and water the nests
with hot water frequently if the weather is dry. Elder broods
should all be sorted, cockerels to one run, pullets to another;
and more air should be given at night, while rain and wet grass
by day are not so likely to hurt the chicks as the weather grows
warmer. Plumage of last year's show birds will now grow brit-

POULTRY RECEIPTS. Ill

tie ; guard birds intended for show from storms, mud, and strong
sunshine. Dust heaps and baths should be cleansed, thoroughly-
renewed, and well mixed with sulphur powder. Unlimited green
food should, as usual, be given to old and young stock. The
food for Turkey chicks should be frequent and plentiful.
Potatoes, barley, wheat, oatmeal, turnips, Spratt, milk, rice
boiled; soft food mixed with plenty of lime and brick-dust
will fatten and keep them in health. They are very susceptible
to damp during the first week, and should be protected from
showers.

MEALS.

Number in the day for adult birds three. At daybreak in
winter, at 6 a. m. in summer ; at midday ; and at 5 p. m.

MEAT PRODUCERS.

For delicacy only, Game is the first. For delicacy and size,
Dorking, La Fleche, Crevecceur, Houdan, Langshan, Malay,
and Brahma-Dorking with their crosses.

MILK FOR CHICKENS.

Boiled milk given warm is decidedly good for chickens, and
prevents diarrhoea. It is indispensable for prize-bred chickens,
and should be given at least every night and morning. Nothing
is worse than allowing milk to stand about and get sour. All
milk pans should be scrubbed twice daily with hot water.

TO HASTEN MOULT.

Pen up cocks apart from hens in a warm place, with deep
sand and mortar siftings. Keep them very warm at night ; the
older the bird the warmer it should be kept. The process of

112 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

moulting takes about two months, but at times much less. Food
should be given warm, very little at a time, and not stimulating
when first penned up ; then generous diet, with a touch of red
chillies in it ; and in the gallon of drinking water put sulphate
of iron the size of two filberts, and ten drops of sulphuric acid.
Non-sitting hens can be hurried on by taking away all stimula-
ting food and placing them in a fresh house. As soon as moult
begins feed well. Should birds moult too slowly, and look ail-
ing, give two or three one-grain doses of calomel, a dose of jalap,
soft food, and meat. If the weather is cold, a pill now and again
of two or three grains of cayenne is useful. The Spanish tribes
moult late and hard ; birds with shabby feathers in July cannot
be ready in time for September exhibition. If required early
they must be preserved from injury, for moult cannot be hurried
on so early in the season. Meat, green food, a little pepper, and
ale, with warm housing at night, will bring all birds comfortably
through the moulting season. If the shaft of the new feathers
seems to stick on for a long time, not splitting open freely, more
stimulating diet should be allowed ; meat, linseed, and hemp.

NEST EGGS.

Should be of china or painted wood. It is a very slovenly and
bad plan to put addled eggs about as nest eggs ; if broken they
will pollute the nest and hen's feathers also, and render her other-
wise than sweet and wholesome for the next valuable eggs she
may be required to incubate.

NESTS FOR LAYING.

Hens like to be secluded when they lay and sit ; nests afford-
ing shelter from the vulgar gaze will therefore be preferred.
The nest should not be so formed that the hen must jump into

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 118

it ; this shakes the eggs at times so violently as to break them.
A box with the bottom and one side taken out will form a snug
nest, if put next a wall and kept well supplied with fresh straw
chopped in short lengths. If rats abound raise the nests from
the floor. The wire basket nests sold in various sizes suited to
the different breeds are excellent. These are hung on the walls
of the house, but if put high a board must be fixed to the wall
hard by the basket, so that the hen can get quietly into the nest
without jumping in. Change the straw or whatever be the
material often — hens appreciate cleanliness — but do not change
the position of the nest, as it gives offence to laying hens, and
they may punish you by laying no eggs for a day or two.

NIGHT ACCOMMODATION FOR CHICKS

Musfr be dry, warm, ventilated, and secure from rats, very
clean, and supplied with broad, low perches or shelves, not
touching a wall, covered with straw.

NUMBER OF HENS TO COCK.

Five to one cock if the eggs are being sold for prize stock at
prize stock price ; but if for ordinary farm purposes, eight, or
even ten on a free range.

NUMBER OF DUCKS TO DRAKE.

If there are twelve ducks three drakes would be advisable,
and so on in proportion ; but the eggs are more fertile if a drake
and four or five ducks are kept in separate flocks, for in a large
flock the drakes are apt to be quarrelsome and interfering.

OATMEAL.

Scotch is the best ; though expensive it pays for prize poultry;
the birds get on wonderfully wheu fed upon it as a staple article

114 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

of diet, mixed dry with rice boiled in milk till it crumbles
into a fragile matt.

OATS.

Too much husk to be a favorite grain with poultry, but very
good in change with other corn.

OLD CHICKS.

The first brood of the season is sure to get especial and indi-
vidual attention in the way of constant feeding, delicate diet,
replenished hot-water mothers, and various delicate attentions.
Care should be taken as the numbers increase that the interest
does not flag, and that younger chicks are not left on short
commons in the way of food, tit-bits, warmth, and all the care
without which they will not be a success.

OLD FOWLS FOR TABLE.

Nothing is more trying than a tough old hen for dinner. The
poultry papers give invaluable receipts for rendering old mem-
bers of the poultry yard as tender as the young ones. For this
very long and gentle stewing is necessary. An old hen stuffed
with mustard, salt, and pepper, is excellent.

For an old stager of four years the following is advised. Kill
her, pick, and wrap while warm in vine leaves, then bury her,
and let her lie for twenty-four hours in sweet earth. Lastly, boil
very gently in good stock, and the result is tenderness as of a
chicken.

ONIONS.

Almost all green food is valuable for poultry, and should be
collected carefully and thrown to the birds fresh daily, but

POULTRY RECEIPTS, 115

onion-tops and onions must be carefully excluded, as hens are
fond of them, and the eggs will taste very strong and unpleas-
ant after they have eaten them.

ORCHARD.

Orchards are far preferable to open fields for poultry farm pur-
poses ; the shelter of leaves in summer is very beneficial. Cank-
erworms and caterpillars falling from the trees are consumed,
windfalls are made use of instead of harboring vermin, which
again creep up and destroy good fruit.

OVER-FATTENING.

Care must be taken not to keep the birds penned up for cram-
ming a day after the process is complete, for after a oertain
time disease and emaciation will set in.

PACKING EGGS FOR HATCHING.

Sudden or sharp jerks and jars are to be warded off by the
packing medium. For thirteen eggs, get a box, inside measure
about 12 by 6 inches. Sew a strong piece of canvas to the edges
of the bottom of the box, leaving the canvas loose, so that it
can be filled up with hay pad. Wrap each egg in paper, then
pass round it a wisp of hay. Proceed to bed the eggs in, small
end uppermost, with hay between, and as you pack fill up all
spaces with chaff; lastly, put a layer of hay at the top, and
screw the lid on the box. The address should be clearly writ-
ten, with — "Eggs for hatching." "Not to be shaken."
"Immediate."

116 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

PAINTING FEATHERS, LEGS, ETC.

An elaborate species of deception practised by some dishonest
exhibitors. Leghorns' legs have been found to be painted or
dyed of a bright yellow color.

PARALYSIS

May be complete, or only of the legs. In either case it is
impossible to cure thoroughly, and the bird will always have a
lame or awkward gait. Unless a peculiarly valuable prize bird,
it will be best to kill it. Daily faradization might be useful,
and might be carried out on a valuable bird, with the aid of gen-
tle doses of strychnia when the case is partially recovering.

PARASITES.

Parasites should not exist, and their presence in any number
shows great want of cleanliness. If whitewash, dust baths,
sulphur, and Persian powder, etc., fail, apply petroleum oint-
ment under the wings', about head and inner part of thighs, but
this is a very severe measure. Syringe the house with hot water,
in which carbolic acid is dissolved, a wine-glassful to the gallon.

A tobacco leaf in the nest will drive off insects, and keep lay-
ing nests free of these pests. A few insects may collect under
the wings and under the thighs of birds, especially those which
are a little out of condition and chickens reared by broody hens,
which are collected haphazard from neighboring farms, but they
ought quickly to be got rid of by the clever poultry keeper, and
should be the exception, not the rule. There is nothing better
than Persian powder mixed with sulphur, used out of a dredger,
for powdering chickens ; a dash of it over the head and neck,

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 11?

another between the legs and under each wing, will clean the
chick in a day. It is very necessary to pen the chicks in a bare
pen devoid of straw for an hour or two after the operation, and
then when let out boiling water should be poured over the
ground where the insects have fallen ; this prevents their recov-
ery and cleanses the place.

PARSNIPS,

Boiled, are good for poultry-food, and assist laying.

PEA COMB.

Such as is seen in both varieties of Brahama ; the comb is in
three ridges, the centre one rising above the outside ones, all
distinct, and all firm, and compact, rising from the front and
arching back.

PEKIN DUCKS.

The largest ducks known. Chief characteristics ; brilliant
orange bills and feet ; white plumage, with the under parts of
canary hue ; boat-shaped bodies, and a strikingly erect, penguin-
like carriage. They do not seem to reach such heavy weights
as the Aylesbury or Rouen, though larger to look at. The first
prize pair at Birmingham, 1879, scaled under 14 lbs., while
Aylesbury and Rouen reached a weight of over 22 lbs. in 1878.
They fatten quickly, and are a contented and quiet breed. It is
possible to keep them in confinement, and to get plenty of eggs
with a fair percentage of ducklings, even though the parents
have no more water than is supplied by a rain tank sunk in the
ground four feet by six. This can be done, but free range with
ponds or a brook is, of course, better still for breeding stock.
Pekins are not fanciful as to iood, take willingly all that is given
them, and the ducklings fatten quickly to a large size.

118 K>ttLTRY BECBtPTS.

PEN FOR BREEDING STOCK.

Should have a grass run attached besides the covered run,
where the birds may be left in peace to go in and out as they
like. The less they are fussed the more fertile will be the eggs.
For sale of prize eggs at high prices put four hens to the cock ;
for farm work, or for house supply of eggs and chickens, eight
to one cock. If only for egg production, not hatching, any
number to one cock.

PENCILLED FEATHERS.

Have no moon, no border, but dark bars in parallel lines
across lighter ground.

PERCH.

Allow six inches for each fowl. The best is a pole sawn in
half, with the knots cut off smooth, the bark left on. The perch
should not be placed high when there is no space for the birds
to fly down with a gradual swoop, as is natural to them when
roosting in the open ; three feet from the ground in confined
placejs is high enough, the perch should be far enough from the
back wall to keep the tail plumage clear ; carelessness in this
causes much mischief. Broad, low perches should be erected
in sunny spots about the run ; fowls delight in perching to preen
themselves after meals.

PIP.

A name given to a dry scaly substance on the tongue of sick
birds ; it comes when the breathing is obstructed through the
nostril, and if the bird's health is restored the pip will vanish.
The mouth may be cleaned with Condy or chlorinated soda.

POUI/TRT RECEIPTS. 119

PLUCKING

Should be done while the bird is warm. An excellent plan in
small establishments, where there is small accommodation for
feathers, is to have newspaper bags made and when a fowl is
plucked let the feathers be put into it. These can be at once
baked in the oven, which will destroy any live stock, and the
store of feathers may be put by, in a compact, cleanly way, for
sale when the season is over ; a collection of dirty feathers in
any other way is very objectionable. Pekin and Aylesbury
Ducks' feathers are very valuable, as also is goose down, which
fetches the highest price.

PLUMAGE.

The thing to be aimed at is a close, firm, plumage, with a
brilliant gloss upon it ; grass runs will give this. To attain it
in confinement exceeding care, extreme cleanliness, and clever
management in feeding, are necessary. Hemp and sunflower
seeds are excellent for imparting a glossy appearance ; too much
must not be given, or feathers will drop off.

PRECOCIOUS CHICKENS.

None are more so than the Andalusian, Minorca, and Leg-
horn. Cockerels of these breeds will crow at two months, and
call the other chickens to feed, giving up to them delicate mor-
sels like gallant old birds. It is well in such cases to separate
the cockerels from the pullets.

PREVENT HEN SITTING.

Put the hen into a new run of poultry ; the change of cock
and companions may have good results, and the loss of the

120 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

favorite nest at the same time completes the cure. Dipping
hens in water and putting them into solitary confinement on
short commons is cruel and unnecessary.

PRIZE BIRDS, THEIR TREATMENT.

Hatched in the three first months of the year, they must be
well fed and well housed, never chilled, and yet allowed perfect
freedom on the grass runs whenever fine and dry. Soft food
should have bone-dust mixed with it, and the meals should be
ample and frequent, but never so large as to remain uneaten
and to get sour ; meat and green food should be given in plenty ;
at from three to four months the cockerels should be separated
from the pullets ; no crowding, no want of cleanliness should be
allowed, and no roughing it in bad weather, or the feathers will
be soiled. These must be kept spotlessly fresh, and care must
be taken that no rough wire, or ill-made doors or awkward
perches, injure the plumage, on which prizes to a great extent
depend. Three weeks before the show, pen the birds, cook and
pullet separately, giving each a friendly companion of their
own sex ; feed on bread-and-milk, wheat, and twice or three
times a week give linseed ; boil it till it is in a jelly and mix in
oatmeal till it is friable ; this will gloss the plumage. Also
give barley-meal and sharps, buckwheat, a little hemp, oat-
meal-and-milk, with a little meat. Let the pens be deep in
fresh straw ; see that the dust-baths are very clean. Two days
before the show give night and morning a meal of rice boiled in
milk, and plenty of wheat ; a little meat chopped into the rice
is much enjoyed. Rice is to prevent any chance of diarrhoea in
the show pens, which would entail extra soiling of the plumage.
Green food is to be given in plenty, preferable grass and lettuce
and spinach. Forty-eight hours before showing wash the birds
if need be. Feed as above till an hour before starting. Lastly,

KTOLTRY BECEIPTS. 121

wash the comb, face, etc., with soap and water, dry it, and rub
it over with a little vinegar ; give each bird a teaspoonful of
port wine ; they will then sleep instead of fretting in the rail-
road car. Inside the basket at the side tie the top of a loaf
soaked with port wine, and a lettuce, to peck at; this will
bring them in good spirits and condition to the show pen. Do
not omit, three days before the show, to give the cockerel or
cock a hen in his pen, but not one which is to be exhibited.
He will then not take much notice when the show pullet is
introduced into the exhibition basket, and this should be done
about three hours before the train leaves to insure that no fight-
ing occurs.

PRIZE POULTRY.

Does it pay? There is no doubt that keeping poultry for
exhibition and the sale of thorough-bred stock is remunerative
if you can combine it with the sale of eggs and table poultry.
Prizes bring no grist to the mill, the expenses of exhibiting
being great, while the enormous charges of the railway com-
panies consume the profits of even first-class prizes.

PRODUCE HATCHED, GOOD AVERAGE,

Out of first-class prize eggs : chicks seven out of twelve
traveled prize stock eggs : twelve first-class birds fit to show
out of two hundred chicks, Spanish ; eight first-class birds fit to
show out of two hundred chicks of other breeds. Another
great breeder says he has nineteen walks of Dorkings, cock and
four hens in each ; by the 1st of April he has 172 chicks, by 1st
of May 400. If he gets fifty prize birds fit to show, and many
of these to win, and 150 fair birds besides, he considers it a
very lucky year. If properly managed, an egg farm could be
very well kept up at the same time that breeding for exhibition

133 POULTRY RECEIPTS. i

is carried out. Exhibiting is expensive work, but it is neces-
sary, that the prize stock may become known ; when this is
accomplished it may be discontinued as an unnecessary expense.
To pick out six or ten birds fit to show and win entails the
hatching of say two hundred birds annually. Those falling
short of the show standard can be drafted into the laying or
fattening pens at once.

PULLETS.

The pullet is so called for twelve months, or until the year in
which she was hatched is closed. Pullets hatched in April,
1880, for instance, would go through all the shows of that sea-
son, from July to the following February or March, as a pullet,
and so with the cockerels. Pullets should not be mated till they
are five months old, and then with an adult cock rather than
with a cockerel. That their eggs do not hatch is an error;
they do so as well as those of older birds, but the produce is not
quite so vigorous unless the pullet was hatched quite early, in
February or March.

PULLETS NOT LAYING.

If over six months old they are either over-fed, which can be
ascertained by feeling their condition and weighing ; or possibly
Underfed ; if pullets are much exhibited and the runs often
changed this will prevent egg production. Should the birds be
thin give meat and a little stimulant, as red chillies or condi-
ment, buckwheat, sunflower seeds ; if fat, reduce diet and give
an aperient. Constant exhibiting is very fatal to laying.

PURITY TO BE PRESERVED.

Unless the accommodation is very ample, it is a great mistake,
when going in for prize poultry, to try several breeds at on*

IWJLTRY RECEIPTS. 123

time. Amateurs are fond of doing this. The danger of mix-
ing the breeds is too great, and should not be lightly run when
eggs are sold at prize prices.

QUANTITY OF FOOD.

It is impossible to feed fowls or chickens by measure. Never
leave food to be trodden about, let all be eaten up clean.

REPLETION.

Some birds will over-eat themselves, and mope about after
meals in a dejected manner. This may be the fore-runner of
more severe disease from over-feeding.

RHEUMATISM

Shows itself in the same way as in human beings ; stiffness of
joints, contraction of the toes, and a painful gait. Warm
quarters ; a hot bath for the legs, which should be bandaged
with flannel, and rubbing the legs with chloroform or soap lini-
ment, are useful ; give half a grain of opium five times in the
week ; and good generous diet. No one would take this trouble,
save in the case of a very valuable exhibition bird.

RICE.

An excellent food for chickens. It must never be given raw,
but boiled well until soft, and in skimmed milk if possible ; if
not, dripping or fat should be added, or coarse sugar for a
change, and then dry oatmeal should be mixed in till it is a
crumbling mass. It may be given in turn with oatmeal and
Spratt's Food.

124 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

ROOFS.

The best material is corrugated iron, for then the rain-water
from the roof can be collected and stored. A wooden roof
covered with tarred felt is good also, but not so lasting, and the
water which runs off must not be given to the poultry to drink,
neither can it be used for watering flowers, as it is highly
injurious. Slate or tile roofs are equally good. Thatch should
be avoided as it harbors rats and mice, and unless very thick
will not keep the wet out, especially if deep snow melts on it.

ROOSTING.

Chickens should not be allowed to roost till from four to five
months old, and then on broad perches, two to three feet only
from the ground. Exhibition birds are better roosted on shelves
covered with sand and littered with straw, but then they must
be kept very clean, and the straw must be frequently changed.
On no account place perches one above the other so that the
droppings fall on birds lodged lower down. Cleanliness is the
great key to success, and the roosting-places should be scraped
out daily and re-sanded. The greater the number of fowls,
the greater must be the care.

ROUEN DUCKS.

In plumage exactly like the Mallard or "Wild Duck. For
exhibition the drakes must have the breasts rich red-brown, of
darkish hue, the drake's bill yellow with a greenish tinge, not
lead nor bright yellow, the bill to come straight down from the
head, long, broad; the legs, rich orange, and the head rich
glossy green, and round the throat is a ring of pure white, but
this must not go right round ; the back is greenish black ; tail,
darker; wings, grey and brown, and a bar across of brilliant

POULTRY RECEIPTS 125

blue, edged with black-and-white, clean cut; the flights are
grey and brown ; the fluff and under parts must be toned down
to light grey, no white must be seen. The duck's bill, orange
color, must be nearly covered, but not to the tip, with an irreg-
ular splash of dark color, blackish ; the ground color dark,
chocolate brown, with pencilling of still darker tint.

Birds for breeding are good weight at seven pounds. In the
show pen they have exceeded twenty-four pounds, and were
once shown over thirty-two pounds, but such fattening destroys
breeding power, and the birds are useless. The eggs are not so
large as the Aylesbury ; they are both colors, green and white,
and very plentiful ; the flesh is as good as the Aylesbury, and
they fatten equally well.

ROUP.

This dreadful disease beging with a slight cold, followed by
inflammatory symptoms. It affects the cavity of the nose.
The discharge commences by being watery and clear, after-
wards becoming thick and offensive ; the face, eyes, and throat
swell ; lastly, fever, thirst, and loss of appetite, come on.

No. 1. At once isolate the bird when as yet nothing but a
slight cold has appeared. Wash the head with warm milk ;
feed with soft food. Powder the roosting places with quick-
lime just before they go to bed, and give daily one grain sul-
phate of copper in oatmeal ; give warm ale and plenty of green
food.

No. 2. Foment the swelled parts, squeeze out the matter ;
give teaspoonful castor-oil, and feed on oatmeal with pepper ;
plenty of green food.

No, 3. Drop solution of atropine into the eyes when run-
ning. Give a pinch of Epsom salts daily, soft food, and a cap-
sule of cod-liver oil with quinine. Squeeze the inflamed glands,

126 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

and dress with one part Wright's Liquor Carbonis to fifteen
parts water.

No. 4. Keep warm and dry ; give meat-scraps daily ; apply
alum and cayenne, a little in mouth and nostrils, as snuff, to
cause sneezing and clear away mucus ; bathe the nostrils with
Condy or carbonate of soda, and give daily a pill of meal with
two grains myrrh, five grains carbonate iron, two grains
cayenne.

Should any bird get a severe roupy cold, it is advisable, unless
a very valuable bird, to kill it at once, and so stop the spread of
an infectious and troublesome illness, which may clear out your
stock.

RUNS.

For prefection poultry should have grass, earth, and gravel
on their runs. The covered run should be on the original soil,
but well and deeply covered two spades deep in a mixture of
gravel, sand, old mortar, and road drift, all screened. In this
the fowls will delight to dust, and vermin will not irritate them
or their owner. Grass range is of the utmost value, and should
be let out as soon as the dew is a little cleared off. Earth and
manure heaps are invaluable for scratching in, and to supply
animal food in the way of worms, etc. But the birds will not
thrive, however extensive the grass range, if they are not pro-
vided with a light, open run, roofed in, and free from drip and
damp, wherein they can freely dust themselves and keep in shelter
during rain. Birds will not often shelter, however wet the
weather, if they have to do so in a dark, damp, and dirty, air-
less house. If they do, it is to mope about in idle discomfort,
which brings on evil habits and illness of all kinds.

Yard Bun. If a bricked or paved yard is the only place
available in which to give the poultry <* run, great results must

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 127

not be expected, but eggs and healthy birds may be secured
with attention to the necessaries of poultry health. A load or
two of screened rubble, gravel, etc., must be at hand under
shelter for the fowls to dust and bathe in. Access to a manure
and garden refuse heap is highly advantageous, giving occupa-
tion in way of scratching and hunting for the animal food which
it engenders, such as worms and insects of all kinds. Green
food must be thrown to the birds daily, and the manure must be
as regularly cleaned of. In the absence of these precautions,
fowls can scarcely be kept in health in a paved yard.

Ea/rth Runs. If the space is only moderate, earth runs are
superior to any. A small grass run soon gets used up and be-
comes foul. Beyond sweeping it nothing can be done, and the
grass soon loses its freshness, whereas an earth run can be raked
and swept daily, and dug over three times a week. Twice a
year it should be double-dug — that is, the soil should be taken
out, two feet deep, in a trench at one end, and carried to the
opposite end. The trench should then be filled up as the dig-
ging proceeds. Thus fresh soil is brought to the top, and
thorough cleansing is secured.

Covered Buns. An absolute necessity for perfect health and
exhibition condition. Each should have a large trap-door to the
free range, and a well-made roof, impervious to rain and drip,
and the dusting material should here lie deep, fine, and clean.

i

SAND.

Useful to mix with all dusting materials ; it should be kept
dust-dry to mix with earth and to form bedding for the arti-
ficial mothers.

SELF HELP IN BUILDING.

When building poultry-houses, on which most people grudge

128 POULTKT BECEIPTS.

any large expenditure, one can often dispense With the aid of a
carpenter or builder. Carefully plan and measure your intended
buildings, and get the wood sawn to proper lengths at some
dealer's or sawmills — any handy man with some little help
should then be able, if interested in his work, to put the houses
up. Care should be taken to let the boards overlap, and to char
or tar all posts let into the ground.

SOUR MILK.

Sour milk is an excellent drink for young chicks. Let them
have it to run to. It is also good for laying hens. The great
trouble is that many poultry raisers can not get enough of it.

SAWDUST.

A bad packing medium for eggs, the jar of the railway
journey shakes it away from the eggs be they packed ever so
firmly. Good for pigeon lofts if used deep and in quantity, but
not for poultry.

SELECTING EXHIBITION BIRDS.

A very large number of birds must be hatched from which to
make a selection. Any with glaring disqualifications must be
drafted out early in the season. A little later another lot must
be cleared out of those with faults, but not sufficient to dis-
qualify, leaving, say, twenty birds out of two hundred hatched.
To these give every possible advantage in the way of space and
food. Some will answer expectations, and some will fail.
Amateurs are often too sanguine, and imagine all are going to
be prize-winners, whereas it- takes no little care and experience
to attain to the much-coveted honor. Birds have a different
look when penned up and when free in the fields. Choice

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 1S9

should be made when the birds are in their pens or runs, and
great care must be used to match the pullets with the cocks, a
well-matched pair being considered most desirable in the show-
pen. When choice is once made, the birds should not be sent
about to small shows, but should be reserved for one of the
more important exhibitions.

SEPARATING COCKERELS AND PULLETS.

This must be done at three, four, or five months, according
to the breed, some being far more precocious than others.

SEX OF EGGS.

That this can be foretold is an old woman's tale ; it is certain,
however, that the first batches of eggs in the early season chiefly
produce cockerels, and that five or six pullets mated with adults
cocks produce pullets in greater numbers than cockerels, while
from a vigorous cockerel mated with about three or four adult
hens, cocks will be in the greatest proportion. There is no way
of discovering the sex of an egg before hatching.

SHEDS

Are invaluable as shelter from rain and mid-day sun. If
such erections exist already on a farm, the roosting poultry
houses should be built on to them ; the expense of covered runs
can thus be avoided.

SHELF UNDER PERCH.

"When birds are kept for laying purposes, this is highly advis-
able. The collection of droppings on the boards placed to catch
them reduces the trouble of daily cleaning, as with an iron
scraper it is the work of five minutes to scrape off the drop-

180 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

pings of fifty or a hundred fowls. It is a good plan also for
prize birds, as far as cleanliness goes, to have a board under the
perch to catch the droppings, but this shelf must be carefully
adjusted as to its height from the perch and from the ground ;
it should be at such a distance from the perch that the birds
may walk under the latter without injury to the sickle feathers ;
some hens squat on the board, instead of taking to the perch,
and even in one night this may prove fatal to show plumage.

SHELTER HURDLES,

Thatched with straw, and placed on four posts eighteen inches
from the ground, afford admirable shelter from the extreme
glare of the mid-day sun, and also places which they can retire
to in winter from the damp ground, and preen themselves in
the short hours of sunshine.

SITTING HENS, THEIR MANAGEMENT.

During January, February, and March, it is most difficult to
get broody or sitting hens, yet this is the best and only time to
hatch the bulk of exhibition stock, as well as the pullets which
are to fill the egg-baskets in August, September, October, and
November, when eggs are highest in price. For good sitters
seek out in preference Brahmas (especially the Light), Cochins,
Dorkings crossed with Brahma, and Silkies. Moderate-sized
hens have an advantage in not being so heavy. Hens are to be
preferred to pullets. Eggs are most fertile in March, April, and
May. In January and February they are the most valuable, it
being necessary to hatch for early shows. Let the hen sit, if
possible, where she has chosen her nest (this should be a mova-
ble one, either box or basket), and give a few china eggs to ex-
perimentalize upon. While she is off feeding, clean out the
nest, place in it moist sifted earth to a fltepth of three inches,

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 131

and on this make the nest of chopped straw (about six inches
long). Let the hen return to her nest of her own free will ;
then in an hour or so, when she is firmly settled, gently carry
her, covered up in the nest, to the sitting pen, coop, or wher-
ever you mean her to sit, and if in a few hours' time she is still
quiet, give her the eggs she is to incubate ; after this do not dis-
turb her, even for feeding, during the next thirty-six hours at
least. The nest should be placed in a pen or coop by itself,
where no hens or chickens can enter ; give food (barley), and
water, and a barrow-load of dusting material, and leave the hen
alone to come off and feed when she likes. This is the best
method ; but when some thirty or forty hens are to be set it is
difficult, in most cases impossible, to provide separate pens, and
it will be found that if many hens are set in one place, to come
off at their discretion for food, great confusion and fighting will
be the result. Two hens will get into one nest, leaving others
empty, to the fatal injury of the eggs. Where a sitting-house
is employed it is well to have the nests in rows round the walls,
in which the hens should be shut up, each in her box, and taken
out together every twenty-four or thirty-six hours to feed, after
which they should be replaced and shut in. The best nest for
this purpose is a box with the lid on hinges, and one side taken
out ; this open side should be placed over the earth and straw
nest, the lid should be perforated with holes for air, as also the
upper side of box to give free ventilation ; in this way a large
number of sitters can be housed in a small space. If the sit-
ting-house has an outer pen or run where the hens are fed, so
much the better, as it will then not disturb the sitters so much.
Great regularity in the time of feeding is requisite, and extreme
gentleness and quiet. Fresh water, plenty of barley and wheat,
green food, and dusting dry material are necessary. If the lat-
ter be mixed with sulphur to keep the sitters free from vermin,
so much the better ; it will ensure quiet sitting, for a hen tor-

182 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

mented, with vermin will be restless. If you suspect she is so
worried, put about half a pound of powdered sulphur all over
the nest before you put the eggs in ; no vermin will stand it,
and the effect is marvellous. If hens have to be procured from
strange yards, the removal and sitting should be carried out at
night, and the hen should keep her nest twenty-four hours be-
fore the eggs are given ; with these precautions it is quite possi-
ble to get good sitters from a long distance, even five and six
hours' journey by railway. The number of eggs to be put under
a hen varies according to the size of the hen and of the eggs,
also according to the season ; during January and February not
more than eight or nine should go under a large hen, and after
that from thirteen to fifteen. While the hens are feeding it is
well to pour hot water round the nests after the first week, to
cause a moist heat when the hen returns to her labor of love.
After the fifth day the eggs can be examined with an egg tester,
and unfertile eggs replaced, these must be extra new laid, so as
to hatch out within two days of the others ; three or four days
before hatching is due eggs may be floated in a bucket of water
at 105° Fahr. All eggs which do not bob about or rock to and
fro with a pulsating motion may be discarded. Eggs will some-
times remain in the water three or four minutes before the
movement is noticed, or they may move or pipe at once ; they
often chip in the water, and must instantly be lifted out. In
this way more room is given to the hatching chicks, and the
risks of a broken addled egg or crushed chick in the nest from
over-crowding are avoided. If the weather is frosty a handful
of hay put over eggs when the hen feeds is useful to keep in the
heat, and the hen may remain off safely for fifteen minutes. In
very dry weather, besides pouriug water round the nest, a little
may be sprinkled on the eggs, but the hen must be at once re-
placed, or mischief will arise from a chill. If a hen forsakes
her nest, and eggs are found cold, place them at once in water

POULTRY RECEIPTS 133

at 105° Fahr., and leave them in till you provide, as quickly as
may be, another nest and a hen willing to become a foster-
mother. Eggs neglected and chilled should never be despaired
of; it is a fact that eggs left over twelve hours, and stone cold
to the touch, when treated as advised, have hatched eleven out
of thirteen, and all the chicks strong and healthy. As the
chicks hatch out it is well to place them in a drying box till all
are out, by which all risk of the hens squeezing them will be
avoided. The same person should always attend to the " sit-
ters," and extreme regularity, gentleness and regularity in
management, has much to do with success in hatching.

SLIPPED WING.

This chiefly occurs with fast-growing cockerels and ducklings.
The primary feathers, which are naturally tucked up out of
sight, stick or trail out ; the bird has no power to tuck them up.
Should the same feathers stick out and appear twisted, so that
the inside of the quill is outside, it is probably an hereditary
evil. In the first instance it frequently occurs from a number
of cocks being kept together, giving rise to some ill treatment,
constant racing about, and nervous flapping of the wings ; these
being soft and delicate as yet, the birds fail to fold them in
closely, and a habit is acquired of letting them hang down out
of place. Tucking them up into place when the bird is asleep
at night is sometimes effectual ; but the best way is to sew a
band round the wing-feathers near the shoulder, and attach this
to another which is passed round the joint of the wing to pre-
vent it slipping off. It is a work of patience and difficulty.

SNOW.

Poultry will eat quantities of snow. They should be shut up
if seen pecking it, and melted snow-water is not good for their

184 . FOULTBT RECEIPTS.

drink. When shut up at these times, a few bandfuls of hay-
seeds, the sweeping of the hay-lofts, afford excellent amuse-
ment for them.

SPRING CHICKENS.

Hatch them in November, December, and January, and have
them ready for table February, March, and April.

SQUIRREL TAIL.

When the tail rises up very upright from the back, and in-
clines to bend towards it instead of taking a graceful sweep
from it.

STAINS ON FEATHERS.

To remove these use turpentine or benzoline, but the best plan
is care and cleanliness to prevent accidents. Cleaned-up birds
never equal well-kept birds on a grass run.

STRAIN, TO COMMENCE.

The best plan is to purchase a pen of the breed you desire —
say a cock and two hens — from some well-known breeder, pay-
ing a good price, and trusting to his sending birds properly
mated for the purpose you require, whether for showing, or for
raising thorough-bred stock from which to select future exhibi-
tion birds. Having done this about October or January, pro-
cure in March a sitting of the very best eggs of the same breed
from the next best breeder, unless the first can be depended on
to send you some not related to the birds already purchased
from his runs. Hatch these, or as many sittings of these as
you conveniently can, and select the best of the chicks for stock,
mating in the following December your bought cock with the
best hatched pullets, and your best hatched cockerel with your

POULTRY RECEIPTS. ^* 185

bought hens and two pullets to make up the pen. Another
plan would be to go to some of the principal shpws and buy
birds there if you are a good judge of the breed. This may
answer, but there is a risk, as you cannot know the antecedents
of the prize-birds, and may be introducing fatal faults into
your strain to start with.

STRAW.

Never mind the untidy appearance, and let it lie about in dry
covered runs.

SULKY COCKS.

Towards autumn cocks sometimes become very cross to their
hens, and a trial to the whole harem. Isolate them at once,
they require rest and quiet ; feed well and house warmly till
over moult. In December mate the pen up for the season, and
the most irritable bird will have become good temper itself.

SUNFLOWER

Seeds are useful to give gloss to the feathers.

TONICS.

Quinine and iron tonic (citrate of quinine and iron) : four
grains to an adult fowl daily.

Sulphuric acid ten drops, and sulphate of iron a piece the size
of a filbert, in a quart of water for drinking.

Tincture of iron, one teaspoonful in the quart of water.

Nitric acid acts on the liver, and is a tonic. Of the dilute
acid four drops, in a teaspoonfnl of water three times a day, or
ten drops of strong acid in a quart of water for drinking.

136 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

TESTING EGGS.

Eggs should be tested either on the sixth or seventh day, this
applies to both those used in incubators and under hens. The
method of testing is to grasp the egg with the thumb and fore-
finger of the left hand, hold the egg up between the light and
the eye, shading the light from the eye with the right hand. If
the egg is cloudy looking it is fertile, if perfectly clear unfertile.
At seven days a fertile egg will have a black spot in the centre,
gradually shading off to the edges where it is much clearer,
whilst an unfertile egg remains clear all the time.

The easiest method of testing, is to buy an egg tester, they
are sold at a very low price and to those who have not tried test-
ing before are more certain.

TRAVELING.

Birds travel best by night, If a long journey, feed at dusk
— meat and corn — give water, and start them off as soon after
as train will suit, giving a teaspoonful of port wine to each bird
on starting, and tie into basket bread and lettuce.

TREATMENT AFTER EXHIBITION.

On the arrival of birds from an exhibition, feed them on soft
and (if cold weather), warm food, with a very little water, con-
taining a tonic. See that they are housed very warm. If they
are shortly due at another show, give bread-and-milk for one
meal daily, and rice-and-milk, with meat, and, if possible, a
grass run. If the crop is loaded with Indian corn, feed very
sparingly even on soft food at first ; and if it feels hard, give a
teaspoonful of gin on arrival ; it will aid digestion.

TRUSSING.

There is great art in trussing, and amateurs often fail to sell

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 137

at profitable prices owing to the slovenly way in which their
birds are prepared for market. When killed, fowls should be
plucked at once, and placed on one of the boards for shaping
dead poultry for table used in France. It may improve the ap-
pearance of a lean, ill-fed chicken to break the breast bone and
hide it away, but there it still is, destroying the breast slices
and a constant trial to those wbo have to carve the bird at table.
If properly fed and plucked, and pressed on the trussing board,
this operation is quite uunecessary.

UNFERTILE EGG.

Clear eggs, which, after three or four days' incubation show
no appearance of fertility, no veins, or sign of embryo. The
yolk will be seen to float and ocillate with every movement of
the hand. Such eggs must be turned out of the nest or incu-
bator at the sixth day, and are perfectly good for the most deli-
cate cooking purposes.

VENTILATION.

A neglected but most important subject. Poultry-houses are,
as a rule, either draughty, or they are unventilated ; if the first,
the birds are always uncomfortable, and a late egg supply, owing
to cold housing, will be the result ; if the latter, serious disease
will follow, such as diptheria, or the birds will be dull, without
appetite, the wings will droop, upright combs will go blue at
the tips, and fall over limp and flabby. Besides the door en-
trance, every roosting-house should have a window, which can
be left open on hot nights, a wire of small mesh should be
placed over it to keep out enemies ; in the winter a piece of per-
forated zinc is preferable, as it prevents the wind rushing in,
and yet gives enough air. If a window is not practicable, a
hole under the eaves will answer, covered with zinc wire ; the

138 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

higher up ventilating openings are made the better. Foul ah
rises, and openings must be made, or the fowls will suffer.
Ventilating holes should be drilled in all artificial mothers,
dryers, and shelters; foul air generates very quickly where
ehickens congregate.

VERTIGO.

An ailment which betokens over-feeding to an enormous ex-
tent, and a threatening of apoplexy ; a bird so afflicted will
stagger about in a circle as if giddy. Dash cold water on the
head at once, and give castor-oil, jalap fifteen grains, and two
grains of calomel. Feed very little, reduce the system ; the
bird is sure to be a very fat one.

WANT OF CONDITION.

A bird shown badly — i. e., dirty, wanting in gloss, with ruf-
fled plumage — would be passed over, unless his points were
quite super-excellent, and over-showing will destroy the good
looks of the finest specimens. -

WARMTH.

Comfortable housing is all the warmth required by adult
birds. Artificial heat is dangerous, as it is difficult to control.
Heated houses are a fertile source of consumption and many
other evils. A cock and a few hens might, however, be forced
for the supply of early eggs, which certainly come the sooner
for extra warmth. In artificial mothers the heat should not be
kept above 70° when all the chicks are collected under them

WASHING EXHIBITION BIRDS.

Get two tubs, fill the smaller one with a good lather of soap

POULTRY RECEIPTS. 139

water (for one bird half a pound of white soap is sufficient) ;
stand the bird in the lather and wash it. using a softish hair-
brush, and with it your hand ; thoroughly brush and cleanse
the feathers everywhere, leaving no spot untouched, and do not
be afraid of wetting thoroughly, use no half measures ; take
care not to bend or brush the feathers the wrong way. This
done, having prepared warm water in the larger and deeper tub,
dip the bird in and out freely and thoroughly, rinse every vestige
- of soap lather out ; lastly, take a can of merely chilled water
(may be very slightly tinted with blue for white birds), and
pour this over the bird, drain and dry as far as you can in a
Turkish towel, place the bird in an exhibition basket, from
which the lining has been half removed, and set it at a com-
fortable distance from the fire. The basket should have half or
three parts of the lining left round it to keep off draughts. As
the birds dries and fluffs out, gradually draw away from the
fire ; leave the birds the night in a warm kitchen, and next
morning place them in their own preparing pen, which, mean-
time, has been laid deep in fresh straw ; let them rest here for
twenty-four hours, or twelve, at any rate, before the journey,
otherwise a risk of cold is incurred. After the bath, when still
wet, give a teaspoonful of port wine, and later a meal of bread
and meat scraps, which are gratefully devoured as a rule ; by-
and-by a handful of groats as a treat cast in the straw will
tempt them to scratch for it. A moist, warm atmosphere must
be kept up in the drying basket, or the feathers will not web
properly ; place water withir reach, and add to it a little tonic.
If the birds are not drying properly, try and turn them about
so that the heat will strike all sides equally. Hard-feathered
birds, such as Andalusians, Minorcas, Brown Leghorns, Malays,
Dominiques, Game, Black Spanish, do not require so much
washing. White birds and Asiatics demand the greater care.

140 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

WASTERS.

By this is meant those birds which, although pure bred, and
hatched from prize stock for exhibition purposes, fail in some
important point. They should at once be banished to the fat-
tening-pen, or be killed for chicken-pies.

WEAKNESS AFTER SITTING.

When it exists shows neglect and want of food ; the hen lies
about, pecks at grit and green stuff, but rejects food. Slip a
raw egg down the throat, give half a teaspoonful of quinine
wine and oatmeal food warm. If she will not pick it up, make
a bolus of it, dip it in milk, and cram her daily.

WHEEZING AND COUGH.

When the birds are not otherwise ill, do not be anxious, but
put a teaspoonful of glycerine and a few drops of nitric acid in
the water.

WIRE SUPPORTS TO COMB.

When a cock's comb is given to lopping, or hangs over, un-
principled exhibitors have been found to stick needles or wires
through the flesh to keep it up. Such wicked cruelty would of
course disqualify. A wire support can be made to be worn out-
side the comb, and this is quite allowable with a view to making
it grow straight ; it may be of some help, though a really good
breeding or exhibition bird should be quite independent of such
artificial aids.

WORM EATEN FEATHERS.

Hamburghs are subject to this disgusting disease, if badly
kept, but it comes only from unpardonable neglect, damp, dirt,

CAPONIZING. 141

and deficient arrangements for dusting. Treat as for "Lioe,"
saturate the quills with oil, cleanse the birds and their home iq
every possible manner, if not too far gone for recovery.

CAPONIZING.

The custom of caponizing is practiced quite extensively In
Europe, but is poorly understood in America. We see no rea-
son why it can not be made very profitable to those who will
only take the trouble to learn the modus operandi and prac-
tice it.

When it is made plain that a cockerel at the age of four
months, by caponizing, can be made to increase in size and
weight, at ten or twelve months, nearly twice what he would be,
it is a surprise that more market poulterers do not practice this
art, in a country as progressive in most things as this one is.
But it seems that the people generally, in America, treat with
indifference anything pertaining to poultry, save in a small
number of fanciers, scattered here and there, who are striving
to beat it into the heads of farmers and stock-growers, that
there is something else besides laboring in the hardest manner
from sun to sun to earn a dollar, or that there is other stock of
importance than cattle and hogs.

The mode of proceeding to be successful, is to take the younf
cockerels when they are three or four months old, keep them
from feed the morning you intend performing the operation bo

143 POULTRY RECEIPTS.

that the bowls are empty, for, if they are fed, and full, you will
almost be sure to cut the intestines while making the inoision
and cause death

"The instrument employed in the operation should be very
sharp; a surgeon's small operating-knife, termed a curved"
pointed bistoury, is far better than an ordinary knife, as it
makes a much neater wound, and so increases greatly the
chances of healing ; or a curVed-pointed penknife may be used.
A stout needle and waxed thread are also requisite ; a small
curved surgical needle will be found much more convenient in
use than a common straight one.

"It is necessary that there should be two persons to perform
the operation. The assistant places the bird on its right side on
the knees of the person who is about to operate, and who is
seated in a chair of such a height as to make his thighs hori.
zontal. The back of the bird is turned towards the operator,
and the right leg and thigh held firmly along the body, the left
being drawn back towards the tail, thus exposing the left flank,
where the incision has to be made. After removing the feathers
the skin is raised up, just behind the last rib, with the point of
the needle, so as to avoid wounding the intestines, and an in-
cision along the edge of the last rib is made into the cavity of
the body sufficiently large to admit of the introduction of the
finger. If any portion of the bowels escape from the wound it
must be carefully returned. The forefinger is then introduced
into the cavity, and directed behind the intestines towards the
back, somewhat to the left side of the middle line of the body.
• ' If the proper position is gained (which is somewhat difficult
to an inexperienced operator, especially if the cock is of full
size), the finger comes into contact with the left testicle, which
in a young bird of four months is rather larger than a full-
sized horse-bean. It is movable, and apt to slip under the

CAPOOTMNS. 148

finger, although adhering to the spine ; when felt it is to be
gently pulled away from its attachments with the finger and re-
moved through the wound — an operation which requires con-
siderable practice and facility to perform properly, as the
testicle sometimes slips from under the finger before it is got
out, and, gliding amongst the intestines, cannot be found again
readily; it may, however, remain in the body of the animal
without much inconvenience, although it is better removed, as
its presence is apt to excite inflammation.

"After removing the left testicle, the finger is again intro-
duced, and the right one sought for and removed in a similar
manner. It is readily discovered, as its situation is alongside
of the former, a little to the right side of the body. After-
wards the lips of the wound are brought together and kept in
contact with two or three stitches with the waxed thread. No
attempt should be made to sew up the wound with a continuous
seam, but each stitch should be perfectly separate, and tied dis-
tinctly from the others.

"In making the stitches great care should be taken ; the skin
should be raised up so as to avoid wounding the intestines with
the needle, or including even the slightest portion of them in the
thread — an accident that would almost inevitable be followed
by the death of the animal.

"After the operation the bird had better be placed under a
coop in a quiet situation, and supplied with drink and soft food,
such as sopped bread. After a few hours it is best to give him
his liberty, if he can be turned out in some quiet place removed
from the poultry-yard, as, if attacked by the other cocks, the
healing of the wound would be endangered .

"After the operation the bird should not be permitted to roost"
on a perch, as the exertion of leaping up would unquestionably
injure the wound ; it should, therefore, at night be turned into

144 IKCtTBfTOiW.

a room where it is obliged to rest on the floor previously covered
with some clean straw. For three or four days after the op-
eration the bird should be fed on soft food ; after that time it
may be set at liberty, for a short period, until it has recovered
entirely from the operation, when it should be put up to fatten.' '

ARTIFICIAL INCUBATORS.

The great question of the day, with people about going into
the poultry business is about Incubators. "Are they a suc-
cess ? " * * Which is the best one ? " " How do you work them,
etc.?" You will find the poultry papers full of these "ques-
tions," and the "answers" are sometimes quite amusing. One
distinguished " poultry fancier " has never tried them ; anotherr
(not quite so distinguished) has failed to hatch more thac
twenty-five per cent, of the perfect eggs put in, and still an'
other, a fortunate man truly, hatched ninety-eight per cent, of
eggs perfect and imperfect. Truly the days of sitting hens are
numbered.

But for all these facts in favor of or against the Incubator, it
is a settled thing that artificial incubation, attended to by a pro-
per person, will and does pay. Inventors have been taxing their
brains for many years to produce good machines, and after
many failures, this year of 1884, finds at least a half a dozen
good ones in the field competing for popular favor.

The bad ones are legion, and as Halstead remarks in his work

INCUBATORS. 145

on "Artificial Incubation," that many of the so-called Incubators,
are not much better than a tin pan with a lamp under one end
and a tray of eggs under the other. Some of them being per-
fectly worthless for the purpose, and only a fraudulent means of
obtaining money from a class of people who always make
"cheapness their one criterion of value."

The best way we know of to select an Incubator, is to note
their advertisements in the poultry papers, write to the manu-
facturers and obtain their circulars and testimonials. If they
have taken premiums at any of the State fairs within the past
year so much the better, they are worthier of consideration.
Examine testimonials, and if you see the names of noted fan-
ciers appended to them, men who are known throughout the
land, by their successful yards or by their articles in the dif-
ferent poultry papers and magazines, you are safe in trusting
the Incubator manufacturer. It is only the testimonials con-
taining unknown names and out-of-the-way piaces that are to
be distrusted. I shall give in the following pages, engravings
of some of the noted Incubators with the modes of working
them, I do not do this to advertise them, but merely to present
to the eye of the " uninitiated," the "machine" in all its glory;
the world is wide, there are many of them, you can take your
choice.

(For the following articles on Artificial Incubation we are in-
debted to Mr. J. L. Campbell, of West Elizabeth, Pa.)

ADVICE TO BEGINNERS.

"I am often asked the question, do you think I can make a
success of poultry raising with an Incubator and Brooder ? Now
that is certainly a difficult question to answer. How am I to
judge of the abilities of one I know nothing about? Raising

146 INCUBATORS.

poultry is just like any other business, one will succeed where
another will fail.

" I will answer that question by asking several more. Did
you ever raise any chickens? Do you like to work with and
care for them? Are you willing to give them the necessary
amount of care ? Do you expect the business to run itself, or
do you intend to run it?

"If you can give satisfactory answers to all of these questions,
I can tell what you can do.

"In general terms I will say to all who desire to go into it as
a business, if you don't know anything at all about the busi-
ness, and don't intend to devote the necessary time to it to learn
it thoroughly, you had better keep out of it. To fanciers and
all others who understand the raising of chickens, I would say,
if you only want to raise a few hundreds, even for the early
market, it will pay you well to get an incubator, the profits of a
single hatch has in many instances paid for the machine.

"Those makers who tell you that no care is required, that the
business will take care of itself, that all you have to do is just
to spend ten or fifteen minutes each day attending to the incu-
bator, etc., all they want is to sell you an incubator, after that
you can whistle for the balance.

"The real trouble about artificial raising is that so many have
an altogether wrong idea about the care of the chicks, and that
all that is necessary is to hatch them out, and then throw them
a little feed occasionally. Well, a greater mistake could not be
well made ; any one who goes into it with that idea can either
expect to change the idea very suddenly, or quit the business.
Now, the facts are just this : The real work comes in when the
chicks are out of the shell ; then is when the most care is re-
quired. It is no trouble for one who is used to the care of
chicks, and knows just what they need, to succeed ; but for a
novice to go at it with the idea that they can do it is as well as

INCUBATORS. 147

any one, is all a mistake. To all such, I would say, either go
in with the idea that you are going to give it the care and time
to learn and a few failures will not discourage you, or else keep
out of it altogether. There is money and plenty of it in the
business, either for market poultry, or eggs, or both.

Poultry raising is a business that is especially suitable for
women. There are thousands of farmers' wives and others,
who, if they would try the artificial raising of poultry, could
make it pay handsomely. These women all know more or less
about the care of poultry, and could make it a success from the
start. "Women generally understand the raising of poultry better
than most men ; one reason is that they attend to the numerous
small details which are necessary, but few men are willing to
give the time that is required."

BEST PLACE TO RUN INCUBATORS.

This will depend somewhat on the kind of an Incubator it is,
a good Incubator can be run with success in almost any kind of
a place, but of course it would always be best to have the con-
ditions as favorable as possible.

The very best place that could be selected is a room that
would have a temperature the year round that would not go
below sixty or above eighty degrees.

If the room could be kept so that it would not fall below
sixty and not use fire, it would be the best to never have any
fire, there is no trouble in keeping up the heat in the incubator
(if it is a good one) even at a zero temperature, but the trouble
is that if you have it in too cold a place you cannot take out the
trays without chilling the eggs.

If the eggs can bo turned without taking them out of the
machine, it will not make as much difference as it would with
one that the eggs would have to be taken out frequently in order

148 nrctrBATOas.

to turn them, but even then it would be necessary to take out
the eggs to test them and for that reason the room should not
be too cold.

Therefore the best place to select when it could be done, is a
room on the north side of the house where the sun would not
strike it too hard in hot weather, it is more difficult to make a
good hatch in very hot weather than it is in cold. Then, if it is
desired >to hatch in cold weather, the room should be warmed
up to at least sixty degrees when it is desired to take out the
eggs either to turn or to test them.

A real dry, well ventilated cellar is a good place to hatch in,
either in winter or summer, but it should be well ventilated and
perfectly dry, else it will not give good results, the ventilation is
next in importance to the heat, no matter where the incubator
is, a good hatch will never be obtained if the air is not pure.

The very best temperature that a room could be kept at is
seventy-five degrees, this gives enough difference between the
temperature inside the machine and out to insure good ventila-
tion, and there would never be any danger of chilling the eggs
when they were taken out.

The hardest time to make a good hatch is when the tempera-
ture of the hatching room runs away up into the nineties, the
worst trouble about it is that the eggs and the outside air is so
near even in temperature that there is very little ventilation.

I have made hatches in hot weather when the machine would
have to be left standing open all day, and never have the lamp
lit at all during the last week, the eggs keeping up all the boat
that was needed, I tried the eggs on the fifth day after the lamp
was out just to see how high they could run up the heat in the
incubator, and they actually raised it to one hundred and eight
degrees, of course there was a large number of eggs, over one
thousand, and the temperature of the room at the time was

INCUBATOBS. 149

ninety-eight degrees. I have no doubt at all but what it would
have went still higher, but I was not willing to risk it any-
longer for fear of killing all the chicks, of course it could not
have went much higher as just as soon as there would be a few
degrees difference between the inside and outside of the incu-
bator the air would begin to circulate and keep down the heat,
but it shows what a large amount of heat is in one thousand
eggs when the chicks are nearly full grown.

This is one reason of many failures that have occurred with
incubators, enough allowance was not made for the animal heat
that was in the embryo chicks.

A good incubator or rather one that has a good regulator will
be able to take care of itself during the first two weeks, even
if the temperature should range as high as ninety-five degrees
in the shade, but during the last week, if the weather should go
above ninty degrees the incubator will have to be watched dur-
ing the hot part of the day no matter how good it is, for it may
turn off the heat and open the ventilators and still the heat may
go too high. To sum up then, those who want to run an incu-
bator and not give it only the least possible attention must get a
room that will be cool in summer and warm in winter.

When the weather is at all cool there is no necessity for tak-
ing out the eggs to air them, in fact, it is much better to not do
it, if they are cooled down to about ninety-five degrees two or
three times during the hatch it will answer every purpose, I
have hatched ninety-eight per cent, of the fertile eggs and not
let them cool off once during the whole hatch.

I made a test of six trays, one hundred and seventeen eggs
in each tray, the eggs were kept at one hundred and two to one
hundred and four degrees all the time, that is the regulator was
set to run from one hundred and two to one hundred and four
degrees and back again, the change would occur about once an
hour on the average, these eggs were out of the machine once

150 IHCUBATOB8.

only and that was on the sixth day for testing them, the result
was that I had from one hundred and four to one hundred and
thirteen chicks out of each tray, the weather was cool and
pleasant, neither warm nor cold.

I have made a great many tests with the same end in view,
i. e., to find out whether it is necessary to air the eggs or not,
and I find that in cold weather it is best to not air them at all,
in cool, pleasant weather it is not necessary, but will do no
harm unless they get too much of it, in very hot weather they
should be aired daily.

If they are not aired in hot weather the chicks will be weakly,
and if they are aired frequently, in cold weather the result will
be just the same, weak chicks from too much chilling.

Eggs can be hatched at a temperature that will vary from
ninety-nine to one hundred and ten degrees, that is they can be
hatched in large numbers, I have tried some at one hundred and
twenty degree for a short time and still hatched some of them,
but all such chicks are worthless they will neither live, or, if a
few of them does live they will not grow or do any good.

But if they are hatched at an even and proper temperature
and all the other conditions to successful incubation are com-
plied with, the chicks will be much stronger and more healthy,
and will outgrow those that are hatched by the average hen.

Those that are hatched at too low a temperature will be
weakly, if hatched at too high a temperature they will be
weaker still, overheating makes the blood turn to water, if it is
carried too high the red color will entirely disappear, of course
the chick is dead before that can occur, but they can be heated
hot enough to entirely destroy the vitality of the blood and not
immediately kill the chick. Therefore, above all things else,
avoid too much heat, the proper temperature will receive at-
tention futher on.

INCUBATORS. 151

AVERAGE TIME REQUIRED TO HATCH.

The average time for all breeds is twenty-one days, the actual
time for the different breeds is from nineteen to twenty-two
days. I have frequently hatched an occasional egg on the seven-
teenth day, but I am convinced that the eggs were either started
before they were laid or else they had been sat on by a hen be-
fore they were put in the incubator.

If is a fact not generally known, that a hen will sometimes
carry the egg after it is fully formed, until it will begin to
hatch before it is laid, but this is a rare occurrence, and can
never take place under ordinary circumstances, for the hen
nearly always drops her egg in a few hours at most, after it be-
comes perfect, but it sometimes happens that a hen from fright
or other causes will retain her eggs until she has three or four
perfect eggs in the oviduct all at once. I killed a large hen
once that had seven perfect eggs in her and she was unable to
get rid of any of them, three of these showed that incubation
had started quite plainly.

Sometimes a hen will be so badly frightened that she either
cannot or will not lay the egg at the proper time, and in that
case the egg production, will cease, now what is to hinder the
hen carrying the egg two or three days and then dropping it,
and what is to hinder it hatching afterwards, and if it did it
certainly would have that much of a start. It is a well-known
fact that the germ cannot begin to develop until it enters the
perfect egg, then what is to hinder it starting to develop in the
hen as well as out, some will say, why, want of air of course,
but that will not hold water, all those who know anything about
the structure of the body of the hen knows that there is a large
open cavity, and they should know that this cavity must be full
of air, else the body of the fowl would collapse instanter.

Now, who knows what kind of air this is, whether it contain*

15$ INCUBATORS.

\

oxygen or not, I will have to confess that I do not, but would
like to know, but I do not see why it should not, and if it does
what is to hinder the egg having enough air in it before it is
laid to start it hatching while it is still in the body of the hen?
That it does do this sometimes I know.

Any one who will take the trouble, can see the air bubble in
the large end of the egg just the instant it is laid, although it
will be quite small at first, so that the air that is in it when laid
must certainly be there while it is still in the hen.

I should, therefore, conclude that all eggs that hatch under
nineteen days, have been started one way or the other, before
they were put in the incubator.

The average time of Leghorns, Games and Bantams in a good
incubator is twenty days. The average time of Cochins,
Brahmas and all the large, slow moving birds should be put at
twenty-one and one-half days ; I have hatched large numbers
of Cochin eggs and the great majority of them came out on the
twenty-second day ; Plymouth Rocks hatch in just twenty-one
days ; Houdans, Polands, Spanish, Hamburgs, and the Dork-
ings, all hatch in twenty-one days. Ducks and Turkeys in
twenty-seven and one-half days, and Geese in twenty-eight
days

The fresh eggs will hatch quicker than stale ones, and also will
hatch more healthy chicks ; I hatched a Plymouth Rock egg
once that was laid on January 2d, and I put it in the incubator on
the 18th of March ; it had a small hole in it where a little nail
had penetrated the shell, I stuck a bit of paper over the hole ;
this egg had laid in a drawer in the office of a store room all the
time. The chick was perfect, but it did not live, it never eat
any, and was weak when hatched.

Eggs that are well taken care of from good stock will hatch
WeU until three weeks old, middling well at five weeks, but

INCUBATOKS. 158

longer than that I would not care to hatch them, because, even
if the chicks do hatch out they are not so healthy and vigorous.

It will depend greatly on how they are kept, my plan is to
stand them with the large end down, and keep them at a
temperature as near fifty-five or sixty degrees as possible ; some
advocate keeping the small end down, but I never could see the
philosophy of that method, the main object in keeping eggs, is
to prevent the yolk adhering to the shell, and I can see no bet-
ter way to make it stick fast than to stand it on the small end,
while, if it is stood on the large end, the air bubble will tend to
keep it off the shell, while the pressure of the yolk will tend to
keep the bubble from spreading and drying up the egg, while,
if you stand it with the large end up, you place it in the best
position for drying up, and, also for to stick the yolk fast to the
shell, the very two evils that you are trying to avoid.

It is known to all that have studied the structure of the egg
that the large end is the most porous, any one can test it for
themselves, by holding a stale egg under water, and all the air
will come out of or near to the large end, now the inside skin is
not fast to the large end of the egg, it is loose nearly one-third
of the way down, and if it is allowed to fall away from the shell
it will just allow it to dry up that much faster, while, if it is^
held down to the shell it will keep the pores closed and prevent
the drying up process.

In hatching chickens, those that come out on time will always
be the best and strongest, those that come out later than the
twenty-third day, are usually not of much account, if they have
been kept back for want of sufficient heat, they may come oui
and do all right, but if it is because the egg was not good and
the germ vigorous, it would not pay to try to raise them, over-
heating will cause them to be late in coming out, in that case
the chicks are useless and will not pay for raising them, even if
they live at all, which will be doubtful,

154 INCUBATORS.

I have tried how long I could keep eggs back by keeping a
low heat, and I have made them hatch on the twenty-sixth day,
but I never yet could succeed in getting a chick to live that was
later than the twenty-fourth day in coming out, and seldom then.

CARE OF ARTIFICIALLY HATCHED CHICKENS.

There is no subject connected with the business, that deserves
the attention that this does, for on it all the balance depends.

The most important requirment of young chicks, is warmth,
the next is an abundance of pure air, and to be kept perfectly
dry, then comes the feeding, and unless this is properly done, all
the balance will fail, the feeding will be treated of separately.

Chicks when first hatched should be kept at a temperature of
ninety-eight to one hundred degrees for the first twenty-four
hours, and great care must be used to not allow them to get
overheated, it is much easier to overheat five hundred or one
thousand chicks just out of the shell than it is to overheat that
many eggs, and it is just as fatal to the health of the chicks to
overheat them after they are hatched, as it is while they are in
the egg, the only difference is, that it will take a little more
heat to kill them than it will while still in the egg.

They require no feed for the first twenty-four hours, although
it will do no harm to give them a little if it is desired to do so,
for there is no danger that they will eat enough to hurt them.

Then, as soon as they are large, or rather old enough to be
fed they must be divided in small lots, if a large number is fed
in one lot there will always be some of them that will not get
any, the outside limit that ever I could succeed in feeding pro-
perly in one lot is one hundred, fifty is better, and twenty-five is
just that much better still, those who divide their chicks up in
flocks of twenty-five will stand a much better chance to raise
all of them than they would if left in larger lots.

INCUBATORS. 155

Then it is very important to select out all the weak ones and
put them by themselves, these, if left with the others will soon
be trampled to death, while, if put by themselves will soon pick
up and be all right. I refer to the small chicks and not to those
that have any thing the matter with them, a chick that is sick
when hatched out will never come to anything any way.

And just here it is pertinent to remark that healthy chicks
can only be hatched from eggs that are laid by hens that are in
vigorous health, if eggs are hatched from yards that have the
cholera the chicks are pretty sure to have it before they are a
month old.

There is no one thing connected with the raising of artificial
chickens that require more care than to see that they don't pile
up and smother, the best remedy for this is to keep them so
warm and comfortable that they will not want to pile up,
chicks that are sick or weakly will be muoh more apt to do this
than those that are in vigorous health.

The only way to do it is to keep them in a brooder that will
keep them just warm enough and not too warm, and it must
give them an abundance of pure, warm air, even in warm
weather chicks require a little artificial heat, at night, not be-
cause they realy need it, but because if they do not have it they
will be sure to crowd and smother.

It is best that the heat should be above the chicks, but while
it is warm above it should not be cold below for if it is the
chicks will not be comfortable.

The best plan that I have ever tried is to have a tank of warm
water over the chicks lined with flannel underneath and in ad-
dition to this a heater to deliver pure, warm air directly in over
the backs of the chicks, they are so comfortable that they do
not think of orowding.

156 INCUBATORS .

No matter what plan is used there must be abundant ventila-
tion and no draughts of cold air.

They must have sunlight, the more the better, but it is pretty
safe to say that it would be impossible to raise a flock of chicks
to the age of three months and not let thttn see the sun, I can-
not do it, whether others can or not I do not know.

WATERING.

Another important thing is the watering. Some claim that
no water at all should be given, and others claim that they
should have it all the time. But I have always had the best
success by not doing either the one or the other but by adopting
the middle course, my plan is to give no water in cold weather
except what I put in the feed, and in warm weather I give them
from one to three drinks daily owing to how warm it is, if the
chicks are at liberty they can have water all the time and it will
not hurt them, but when confined as they must be in cold
weather, if it is before them all the time they will drink too
much and it soon weakens their digestive apparatus so that they
soon depart for another world.

They cannot live without water, but it can be given in the
feed in such a manner that it will furnish all the moisture that
is required by the chick and at the same time not hurt them.

FEEDING.

On the proper feeding of chicks the success or failure of
everything else depends, one great point is gained by starting
right.

There is no better article for the first feed than good, sweet,
stale bread and milk, made just wet enough so that it will be
soft.

Now, I wish all who read this to bear in mind that I am

INCUBATORS. 157

giving directions for the feeding of chicks that are in confine-
ment, if they are at liberty and have a good, large range they
will not require near as much care as they do when confined and
will do well on a much more simple diet.

Well, as I said before, begin with stale bread and milk, this
can be fed several times at first, all the eggs that are just the
least bit addled and all the unfertile ones that do not hatch (an
unfertile egg never hatches) can be used, eggs should never
under any circumstance be fed dry, they should be boiled until
quite hard and then mashed fine, shells and all, and should then
be mixed with something else, either bread, potatoes or oatmeal,
and then made soft with sweet milk, but never sloppy. All feed
must be cooked, a certain amount of cornmeal is good, but it
must never be fed raw, there are many ways to prepare it so as
to make a good, wholesome food. One good way is to scald the
meal then to mix it in a stiff batter, use sour milk, and add
enough bi-carbonate of soda to the milk to make it foam, a tea-
spoon to the quart is the right quantity, then salt slightly and
add a small quantity of lard, mix well and then bake in a hot
oven, but not so hot as to burn it.

When the weather is cool, enough can be baked at one time to
last several days, the best way to feed it is to crumble it and
then slightly dampen with sweet milk.

The best wheat bread for chicks is made from whole wheat
ground fine and then sifted to take out the coarse bran, bake it
just the same as if you were going to eat it yourself.

Then, for variety, use potatoes, rice, barley, and a little fresh
meat of some kind, meat should be cooked and then cut fine,
very little at a time must be fed, they should have a little once
a day, .two or three bites for each chick is enough.

The best meat chopper that I have ever tried is that made by
the Enterprise Manufacturing Company, of Philadelphia, Penn-
sylvania. It can be obtained of nearly all hardware dealers, it

168 INCUBATOBS.

is cheap and easy to keep clean and just what a raiser of
poultry needs. The man who invented it deserves a gold medal
a yard in diameter.

The best way to feed potatoes is to boil with the skins on and
then mash up fine, for small chicks the skins should be removed,
then add a little salt, plenty of black pepper, a teaspoon of
pepper is not too much for one hundred chicks, and if the pota-
toes are very dry add a little sweet milk, they can also be mixed
with other articles of food, the best way to feed the meat is to
mix it with something else.

The potatoes must never be watery, nothing but good, sound
and sweet food of any kind must ever be used, nothing will de-
stroy a lot of young chicks quicker than sour feed.

For green food there is nothing superior to onions and cab-
bage, give me these and I will agree to keep the chick in good
health and not use any others. The onions must be cut fine and
they can either be mixed with the other food or they can be fed
alone.

In feeding, variety should be the rule, give a different food
each time if possible, never give more than they will eat up
clean, never leave any food to become sour and dirty or you will
soon spoil the appetites of the chicks so that they will not eat
and then you are done, a chick that will not eat is not of much
account.

The main object in feeding is to get the chicks to eat all the
feed that it is possible for them to eat and remain in good health
and condition, and the best way to do this is to not leave it be-
fore them all the time but to give it often, my rule is to feed
three times daily, some successful poultry raisers feed five times,
giving a little at a time and it is a very good plan, but I think
that my plan is the best, I give three main feeds daily and then
I allow them to have something to peck at between times to
amuse themselves, a head of cabbage, some apples, sweet ap-

1KCUBA.T0RS, 159

pies are much the beet, ripe tomatoes are good when they can
be had.

Bones and oyster shells are two of the best articles for chicks
that can be used, but it depends somewhat on how the bones
are treated, they should be obtained while fresh and sweet, and
then place them in an oven or a stove and roast them until they
are quite brown, it is best not to burn them black, they will then
pound or grind up quite easily, and when roasted will keep
sweet for a month, keep some of this and some pulverized
oyster shells before them constantly, the bones are much the
best, and you will be surprised at the quantity that they will
eat.

In regard to feeding troughs, I have tried all that I ever saw
that I thought was of any use and I have never found anything
that is superior to a shallow tin pan for small chicks, they are
easily kept clean and are the best, any kind of a trough that
will let the head of a small chick through will let the body of
all the smallest ones in and it is worse than useless.

As soon as the chick comes to be of any size you can use a
trough with a row of round pins on each side one inch apart
cut level on top so that you can cover it with a light board, this
is a good trough for any kind of fowls old or young.

The most difficult part of the whole business is to water the
chick3 in such a manner that they will not get wet, no matter
what kind of a vessel is used it must be large enough so that
the chicks can all drink at once, else they will fight and all be
wet before any of them can drink. The best drinking vessel is
made in the following manner, they can be made of any desired
size, I will give the proper size to make one large enough to
water twenty-five chicks all at once, so that they will not fight
and get wet.

Make a tin pan nine inches in diameter, with a rim turned at

I GO IirCtfBATOBS.

right angles and three-fourths of an inch deep, then make a
second one-eight inches in diameter and two inches deep, solder '
three stops on one or the other so as to hold the eight inch pan
at an equal distance from the nine inch one all round, then
make three holes one-fourth of an inch in diameter in the eight
inch pan, make them so that the upper edge of the holes will
be just a half inch from the bottom of the pan.

Now, to fill them just invert the eight inch pan in a bucket
of water, place the nine inch one over it and turn over with a
quick motion, the water will always stand a half inch deep in
the outside or nine inch pan but no deeper, so that the chicks
can drink without getting wet, they are so easy to keep clean
and are cheap, any tinner will make them for twenty cents
each, I know of nothing that is equal to them, freezing will not
burst them unless clear full then it will.

Eternal vigilance is the price of Liberty. Eternal vigilance is
the price of chicks. The man or woman who is as regular as a
clock in the feeding of and the care of the chicks will succeed,
those who are not will fail, chicks must be fed early in the
morning, and they must be fed in the evening before they want
to go to sleep, they follow the old maxim, early to bed and
early to rise, they should be fed as soon as they are up in the
morning, a chick that is in good health and is fed properly will
always have an empty crop in the morning, and it should always
be full at night, if it is not it is either because the chick did not
get what it wanted or else it is not in good health.

Always go round at night just about the time that the chicks
are going to bed and see that they don't pile up, that is the time
that they are the most apt to do it, just when they are going to
roost take your hand and gently spread them out so that they
will be sure to all get plenty of air, when they are a week old is
the time that you will need to use the most cares before that

N WOUBATOBS. J61

they are not strong enough to hurt each other much, and after
they get a few days over a week old they are not so apt to
crowd.

If they will pile up in spite of you, why then the only remedy
is to have the brooder so arranged that they cannot pile up, this
can be done quite easily, just have a tank of water above them
and raise them so close to it that they will have no room to pile
up, but as I said before, if they are kept perfectly comfortable
they will not do this, the only time that there is any danger is
just when they want to go to sleep at first going to bed at night,
you know that it don't feel very pleasant to get in a cold bed at
night, and if the brooder is cold when the chicks go in it they
will be sure to pile up and crowd each other, but if it is warm
and comfortable they will not.

I wish to repeat, that if they are not kept warm and dry all
else will fail, also, they must be kept clean, one of the worst
things about them is that when confined they will eat the drop-
pings of each other unless they are kept clean.

Chicks will never do any good if they are allowed to sweat in
the brooder, the only way to prevent it is to give plenty of venti-
lation of warm dry air.

PROPER TEMPERATURE OF INCUBATORS.

The very best point is one hundred and three degrees, one
hundred and four degrees, or one hundred and two degrees,
either one will do, one hundred and five degrees will not kill the
chicks but is too warm, it will not do to buy thermometers
wherever you happen to come across them, they will be wrong
nine times out of ten, you must either get your thermometer of
Rome one that keeps them for that purpose or else you will have
to experiment until you get the proper heat, those that are sold

102 IHCUBATORS.

as a general thing are not correct unless a high price is paid for
them.

The tubes should be seasoned for at least two years before
they are marked, the ordinary weather thermometers are usually
made with the marks so close together that it requires the
greatest care in reading them or else you can vary two or three
degrees and not know it.

Thermometers for hatching eggs should have the degree marks
one-eighth of an inch or near that apart, so that the slightest
change can be noted.

When eggs are first put in the incubator it will take much
more lamp power to keep up the heat than it will after the
germs begin to develop and the eggs to give off animal heat,
they do not give off much until the end of the second week, the
only proper way to get the exact heat of the eggs is to lay the
thermometers on the eggs, and you must be very sure that it is
on fertile eggs, eggs that are unfertile will not be near as warm
as the fertile ones even if they are laying side by side.

When you first put the eggs in the incubator you cannot tell
which is the fertile eggs and of course it will make no difference
at that time, for all will be of the same temperature, but as soon
as the germs begin to develop you must test them and find out
which are the fertile ones, and then keep the thermometers on
them, keep it at or near to one hundred and three degrees all
the time from first to last, one hundred and four degrees will do
as well, but you are just one degree nearer to the danger point
and will not hatch one more chick at one hundred and four de-
grees than you will at one hundred and three degrees.

Don't ever lay fresh eggs in among those that are well ad-
vanced, it will destroy the evenness of the heat, if you wifh to
put eggs in at different times keep each batch by itself, and
don't let the fresh eggs touch those that are under way.

INCUBATORS. 163

The best results will be obtained by filling the machine full
all at one time, and it will be much less trouble to care for the
chicks, but it often will happen that a person wants to put in a
few at a time, and they should know the plan that will give the
best results, it is as I said before, keep each lot separate from
the others.

All of my large machines, from six hundred eggs and upwards
are now so made that by the use of a system of stop cocks
whereby the circulation of the water can be controlled at the
will of the operator, each set of trays can be kept at a different
temperature, so that one large machine can be run in just the
same manner that two or more small ones could, that is, one set
of trays can be full of eggs that are well advanced and another
full of fresh eggs and each set kept at the same heat which
would be impossible under ordinary circumstances. And when
it is desired to do so the entire machine can be kept at the same
heat, the great advantage of this arrangement will be at once
appreciated by any one that has ever run an incubator.

TESTING OF THE EGGS.

This is a subject of much importance, and it is one that can
only be thoroughly learned by experience, although a little in-
telligent instruction will learn a novice more in one hatch than
he would learn in two years by experience as a general thing.

First, all eggs must be divided into two classes, fertile and
unfertile, the fertile eggs must be divided again, those that will
hatch and those that will not, those that will bitch must be
divided into three classes, viz :, those that are /igorous, those
that are weak;, and those that are very weak.

The unfertile ones should all be classed as one kind, but there
will be an almost infinite variety of forms, these will be de-
scribed'presently.

164 IHCUBAT0B8.

The fertile ones (that is each of the three separate classes),
will all look as much alike as two peas, or as so many grains of
corn ; of the vigorous, all will hatch, barring accidents ; of the
weak, most of them will hatch under good conditions ; of the
very weak, they can all be considered doubtful, some will hatch
and some will not, these differences will not be distinctly marked
until the sixth day, and to an operator that has but little ex-
perience will not be plain even then without instructions.

First, the vigorous, these on the third day of incubation will
show a small ant shaped clot with the small, bright red blood
vessels radiating in all directions, a ten cent piece will usually
cover the whole thing at the age of three days, but I have seen
them so large that a half dollar would hardly do it, with clear
shells, a good light, and a good egg tester, the heart can be
seen beating quite plainly on the third day.

I wish to remark here, that the best egg tester that can be
made is in the reach and means of any one who will go to a
little trouble to make it, all that is necessary is to make a room
perfectly dark, or even darken a single window both inside and
outside, it must be one that will get the sunshine, then have a
board with a hole through it and a piece of soft gum or soft
leather with an oblong hole, and made so that the eggs will not
go through it when held tight against it to exclude the light.

"No light must come in the room except what comes through
this hole, and the sun must shine on the hole in order to get the
best results, although fair work can be done on a cloudy day,
for testing large numbers it is the only thing that I ever tried
that would not tire my eyes, the main thing is to have the room
perfectly dark.

Well, to resume, the vigorous eggs on the fifth day will look
more like a large spider than anything else, although it is im-
possible to see one in a hundred of the blood vessels with the

INCUBATORS. 165

naked eye, still there will be enough of them seen to make it
look like a large spider sitting on a small web, on the fourth day
a black dot will be seen on the small end of the clot, on the
sixth day this will be much increased in size, on the eighth day
it will appear to be the largest part of the chick, this is the eyes.

On the fifth day the chick begins to move, it will only occa-
sionally do this, on the sixth day it will move quite often, on
the seventh day it will be in motion constantly, a waving pul-
sating movement, backwards and forwards, up and down in a
circle apparently, never stopping more than a few seconds at a
time, this motion I think is involuntary, and is no more under the
control of the chick than is the beating of the heart, but I do
not state this as a fact for I know of no means of proving it to
my own satisfaction, this motion is kept up constantly until
about the twelfth day, when it gradually begins to cease until
on the fifteenth day the motion is entirely under the control of
the will of the chick and it will only move when it wants to.

The circulatory system of an egg is one of the most beautiful
objects in nature, thousands of minute air cells line the inside
of the shell, these take the place of the lungs in purifying the
blood, the blood is forced by the action of the heart into the
circulation, does the perfect work of nature by contributing to
the growth of the embryo, it is carried to the air cells, becomes
purified and is then carried back to the heart, again to be sent
on the same round of labor, this goes on constantly and evenly
(that is,- it will if the heat is even), and as all the air that the
blood receives comes through the pores of the shell, it shows
how important to the successful hatching of healthy chicks, it is
that the eggs should be perfectly clean.

As soon as the blood vessels become well developed, an ex-
perienced eye will at once detect the difference between the
main veins and arteries. The veins will be of a deep blackish

166 IKCUBATORS.

red and the arteries will be a bright scarlet, the difference will
not be so marked as the difference in venous and arterial blood
that is taken from man or an animal, but it is quite plainly-
marked to an experienced eye.

Of the weak eggs the only apparent difference between them
and the vigorous is that they will be very much smaller in size
at a given age, and the blood vessels will not look so red or so
plentiful as in the others, but still the most of them will hatch
under very favorable conditions, but the chicks usually will be
later coming out and when they are out they will not grow as
fast as the others.

Fortunately if the eggs are from good, vigorous, healthy hens
the proportion of weakly chicks will be very small.

Of the very weak, but few of these will hatch at all, the most
of the very weak eggs will be loose, by that I mean that the
blood vessels are not fast to the shell, this can be told by turn-
ing the egg over and over, and the embryo will be seen to float
freely all through the egg, should it not be fast to the shell by
the sixth day at the farthest, the chick will not hatch, it will
be for want of air if for no other reason.

Most of them will be dead by the eighth day, but all that
survive that period stand a chance of getting out if the circum-
stances are all favorable, if not they are sure to die.

Last, comes those that don't ever hatch at all, although fer-
tile, these in poultry parlance are called addled, they are what
make the rotten eggs, an egg that is unfertile will keep perfectly
sweet in the incubator during the whole period of incubation,
and if it is not shook or disturbed will keep longer even than
that.

The addled eggs have such an infinite variety of forms that
it would be out of the question to describe them all, they also
come from various causes, mostly from imperfect germs, many

INCUBATORS. 167

are made by the hens sitting on the eggs long enough to just
start the germ growing, the egg is then taken away and of
course the growth stops at once, then, if the egg is put in the
incubator in a day or two no harm will be done usually, but if
it is kept any length of time the germ either dies outright or
else when it is put in the incubator it will degenerate into some
kind of a small monstrosity, live a few days and then die.

Some of them will appear as a small round ring, others as a
large ring the size of a quarter to the half of the egg, others
will appear to be a zig-zag streak, and will run in all sorts of
shapes. Looking for all the world as if they had been struck
with lightning, or rather like a zig-zag streak of lightning,
others will appear to have started off all right, and then a small
vein will have broken and the embryo has bled to death, some
will show nothing but a dirty looking spot, others will just be
slightly cloudy and no signs of red at all, some will show a
long, straight streak, others a short one, again we will see one
with a reddish band from one-eighth to one-fourth of an inch
wide, running clear round the shell, this kind is not often seen,
in my experience, not once in a thousand eggs, but it is not
necessary to name any more varieties, when one is seen that is
radically different from the spider-like form, it may as well be
thrown away, for even if it is not dead it will either die in the
shell or else it will hatch a cripple.

I would advise all operators to select out all but the perfect
and vigorous embryos and throw them away for even if you get
them hatched out they will not on the average pay for the
raising.

It is much cheaper to throw a few eggs away than to bother
with a few weakly chicks that will never pay for the raising.

Of course it will not do for one that has no experience to do
this for they would be apt to throw those away that might be

168 IKCUBATORS.

good, but a years work at the business will tell any on« what
they want to do.

The eggs of the Duck, Goose, Turkey and Guinea, will be
very much slower about starting off than hen eggs, and must
not be classed with them at all.

They will hardly show that they are started at all on the third
day, even to an experienced eye, and a novice would not be able
to see anything, without a very close observation, nothing but a
small cloudy spot will show, and this would be overlooked by
many.

There will mostly be a few chicks that will die when full
grown even under the most favorable condition, this will occur
from a variety of causes, some of them will stick their beak
through the skin of the yolk and that is sure death, others will
choke either because the shell was too thick to allow it to dry up
sufficiently to supply the chick with air when it needed it, or be-
cause it has the head in the wrong part of the shell.

Some will die from sheer overwork and exhaustion, trying to
get out, especially if the shell is very thick and hard, they are
very easily overheated at this time as the exertion of the chick
in trying to get out will heat it more or less owing to how hard
it works.

This is the time that the most" care is required to see that the
heat does not go too high, keep the thermometer right in among
the chicks that are coming out and see that the heat does not go
higher than one hundred and three degrees. The best heat for
chicks that are coming out lively is one hundred and two de-
grees, and it is very important that the heat should be just
right, it is just as bad for it to be too low as too high, if the
heat is too low the chick will not properly absorb the yolk.

The majority of chicks absorb the yolk into the abdomen
just as they are coming out, that is, they do this when they

INCUBATORS. iO»

come out on time, if they are a day or two late coming out they
may have the yolk absorbed before they chip the shell.

But if they come out on time, they first chip the shell and
then take a rest of from two to ten hours, they then begin to
turn around, and as they turn they throw back the head and
each time they throw back the head they will break the shell
a little farther until they finally break it so near around that by
stretching out they are able to burst it open and come out.
"Well, if the heat is too low when this is going on it seems to
operate against the absorption of the yolk so that the chick will
come out with the yolk more or less out and it is usually useless
to try to save it, while, if the heat is too high, it, with the ex-
ertion of the chick, will often overcome it so that it will die and
nothing can be seen to be the matter with it, only too much heat
Now here is two rules to go by and either one will give you
good results.

First, keep the heat at one hundred and three degrees all the
time from the first day the eggs are put in the incubator until
the chicks begin to chip the shells, then drop to one hundred
and two degrees until they are all out.

Second, set the regulator so that the heat will run from one
hundred and two degrees to one hundred and four degrees and
back again, etc., from first to last, and as soon as they begin to
chip set it so as to run steady at one hundred and two degrees
I have no choice between the two methods as far as the num-
ber of chicks that will be hatched is concerned, but if there is
any difference in the chicks it will be in favor of the latter
method. Mind, I don't say that there is any difference, but I
believe that the latter method allows more oxygen to reach the
blood of the chick than the first, but this is a point that each
one can decide to their own satisfaction, one way will hatch as
many chicks as the other.

170 INCUBATORS.

But which ever plan you may adopt, be sure above all
things to not overheat them, nothing is more discouraging to an
operator to hatch out a fine looking lot of chicks and have them
all die and not know what is the matter, if they are properly
hatched they will be the strongest kind of chicks, but if not,
they may appear to be all right and still all die. If they have
the proper heat and plenty of fresh air all the time and then
come out on time they will be all right, and will, if properly
fed, out grow nine-tenths of those that are hatched by hens.
There is not more than one hen in ten that can keep the heat
just right all the time, unless the weather is favorable.

INCUBATORS.

171

THE

BEST INCUBATORS WE KNOW OP.

THE EUREKA INCUBATOR,

MANUFACTURED BY MR. J. L. CAMPBELL, WEST ELIZABETH, PA.

J.UCAMPBELL, WATO*}g^E
frUJBOIEKrfa,**. TM*HHJT

The cut represents an Incubator with a capacity of three
hundred eggs. It is made as follows :

The case is made of wood. It is double, with an air space
between the inner and outter case. This serves a double pur-
pose, it makes it possible for the machine to withstand a large
variation of temperature, and it also protects the outside case
from the action of the heat and moisture from within.

The heat is distributed to the eggs by means of a double cop-
per tank, the lower tank is made to cover the entire bottom of

i72 INCUBATORS.

the machine and it is connected to the top tank by fotif Of mOre
brass pipes, owing to size of machine. A false bottom is placed
inside over the lower tank, and between this and the tank is a
hot air space where all the fresh air that goes inside the machine
is heated, on the top of this false bottom is placed a pan of
water which furnishes all the moisture that is required to hatch
the eggs.

The water in the lower tank is heated by the lamp and the
hot water rises to the top tank by means of the connecting
pipes. The eggs are placed under the top tank and the greater
part of the heat that hatches them is radiated from the upper
tank, just enough is allowed to come from the lower one to over-
come the bad results of having it entirely cold below the eggs.

The heat is regulated perfectly by a most simple and perfect
arrangement that is entirely different from any other one that is
in use at the present time.

Nothing is used that will ever wear out or need renewing.
There is a thermostat placed inside just over the eggs and con-
trols the exact heat of the eggs, a lever is connected .to this
thermostat and comes out on top of the machine as shown in
the cut, this lever is moved one way by the heat and the other
way by the cold, it is so sensitive to a change either way that
the amount of variation required to move it cannot be measured
on a common thermometer, it requires about the one-tenth of
one degree to move the lever sufficient to make it shut off the
lamp and open a ventilator. This is done as follows :

There is a small clock- work movement that is connected to
the lamp, and to a valve or ventilator that is placed in the top of
the machine, there is a lever on this clock that has a long and a
short end, one end always rests on the top of the thermostatic
lever. When the short end of it rests on the thermostatic lever
the ventilator is closed and the lamp is burning full, as soon as

1NC0BATORS. IIS

the heat rises to the point at which it is set the thermostatic lever
moves back a little and allows the short end of the clock lever
to slip off, in doing this the clock lever makes a half revolution
and the long end catches and at the same time opens the venti-
lator and turns down the lamp.

This can be set so as to hold the heat exactly at one point, or
it can be set so as to allow the heat to run up and down from
one degree, to two degrees, or even three degrees, but not over
three.

Another special feature of this machine is the clock for turn-
ing the eggs, all that has to be done is to wind the clock twice a
week and the eggs are all carefully turned four times each
twenty-four hours, this is a very important feature of this
machine, as the eggs are turned no matter whether the operator
is present or not.

Underneath the machine is a nursery for the young chicks,
they are taken out of the incubator as soon as hatched and
placed in the nursery, this nursery is heated by the same lamp
that heats the eggs, there is a hot air chamber in the centre of
the nursery, the fresh air is conducted into this from the out-
side and becomes heated and is distributed over the top of the
chicks.

The entire machine is very perfect and at the same time it is
not at all complicated, any person of ordinary intelligence can
comprehend it at once, it has the fewest parts of any self regu-
lating machine that is made.

The machine does the work to perfection. Many who have
bought them claim to have hatched every egg, but the maker
considers that eighty-five per cent, is a good average, taking
eggs as they come, good eggs that are well taken care of in
storing will average that many all the time, at the same time it
is a very common thing to hatch ninety-five per cent.

174 INCUBATORS.

The machine is made in all sizes from sixty eggs to five
thousand eggs, the large machines are much the cheapest in
proportion to the number of eggs that they will hold, the labor
of making one that will hold sixty eggs is just the same as to
make one that will hold three hundred eggs. The prices for the
complete machine is as follows :

60 eggs, $57 ; 100 eggs, $62.50 ; 200 eggs, $69 ; 300 eggs, $75 ;
500 eggs, $116 ; 600 eggs, £126 ; 1,000 eggs, $180; 1,500 eggs,
$222; 2,000 eggs, $264; 2,500 eggs, $315; 3,000 eggs, $346;
4,000 eggs' $438 ; 5,000 eggs, $520.

INCUBATORS.

THE EUREKA BROODER.

175

The cut represents a brooder for two hundred chicks, the size
of it is three feet wide and six feet long, twenty inches high at
the comb of roof, the sides are made of two wide boards cut to
the proper shape and the floor is nailed on cross ways out of
flooring.

176 INCUBATOBS.

The heating apparatus consists of a double sheet-iron lamp
chamber, a pair of hot water tanks and a lamp.

The lamp chamber serves the double purpose of heating the
water in the tanks, and it also makes a hot air heater, the
air enters at the bottom of the heater on the outside of the
brooder and is heated and then rises to the top and comes out
inside over the top of the chicks, the brooder can be used as a
hot air brooder and not use the tanks if it is so desired, but it
is best to use the tanks as a general thing.

The tanks rest on the top of the lamp box or chamber and are
heated through the iron top, the under side of the tanks are
covered with flannel, the lower part of the brooder is divided
into four rooms, movable platforms are placed under the tanks
so that the small chicks can get their backs up against the warm
tanks.

The large room above the tanks answers the purpose of a
nursery for small chicks.

In using the brooder the chicks must be kept warm enough so
that they will not pile up on each other. Also, when it is so
desired, the platforms can be raised up so close to tho tanks that
the chicks have not room to pile on each other, but it is always
best to keep them warm and comfortable and then they will sit
around and not crowd at all.

More failures to raise the chicks that are hatched in incu-
bators have resulted from keeping too many in one lot, than all
the other causes combined, fifty chicks in one lot is as many as
should be kept together.

Poultry raisers are beginning to find this out, and those who
have adopted the plan of keeping the chicks in lots of not over
fifty chicks have been successful.

Nothing is of more importance than plenty of pure air with-

INCUBATORS. 177

out draughts. The Eureka Brooder uses the correct system of
ventilation for this purpose.

All know that hot air rises, also, that foul air sinks, when the
brooder is in operation the fresh air in going through the heater
has considerable pressure, and coming in at the top it gradually
mixes with the inside air so as to not cause a draught and at the
same time it forces the foul air out at the floor of the brooder at-
tbe openings that are provided for that purpose.

This brooder can be used out in the open air and will keep the
chicks dry and warm no matter how severe the storm, but all
brooders should be used in a shed if possible.

The brooder shown in the cut is arranged so that four separate
yards can be made to connect with it, and each one will have its
own door to go in and out, each room is large enough to accom-
modate fifty chicks until they are large enough to do without
artificial heat. Then the nursery can be made to accommodate
one hundred chicks more until they are from a week to ten
days old.

The nursery has bottom heat only, and while this is good for
young chicks for the reason that there is no place for them to go
out in the cold until they learn to go in under the tanks, still I
never could successfully raise them to any size with bottom heat
alone for the reason that it would make them weak in the legs
almost invariably. Price list of Brooders are as follows :

25 chicks, $6 ; 50 chicks, $8 ; 100 chicks, $12 ; 200 chicks,
$16 ; 500 chicks. $20 ; 1,000 chicks, $35.

178

INCUBATORS.

THE KEYSTONE INCUBATOR AND BROODER.

MANUFACTURED BY THE KEYSTONE INCUBATOR COMPANY,
PHILADELPHIA, PA.

The following description gives a full and clear analysis of
the construction of this machine, showing in detail its various
parts and method of operation.

Heat is applied by means of water, which is heated by a
small oil stove on the outside, and kept in constant circulation
through tubes running upward in each of the four corners of
the machine, and thence through a hollow framework, which is

INCUBATORS. 179

made of the best sheet copper, and serves as shelves for the egg
frames. By this means the water is kept uniform in all parts of
the machine, which is a matter of great importance in securing
successful results, and is a distinctively original feature of this
machine.

The hollow framework before mentioned is neatly fitted into
a wooden case, with a door on one side, to facilitate the hand-
ling of the egg frames, and open at the bottom, which is flush
with the lower hot water shelf.

A space of three inches, directly beneath the lower hot water
shelf forms the brooder, which is open on one side for the at-
tachment of the yard, as shown in the cut, which allows the <
chicks to run about at will.

The egg-frames are three in number, and are made to slide
between the hot water shelves.

Beneath the egg-frames are the moisture-pans, the bottoms of
which are lined with asbestos, which, by pouring on water, will
take up and hold enough to supply the eggs with moisture for
twenty-four hours.

The heat regulating apparatus is a thermostatic arrangement.
The least variation in heat— so little that the thermometer does
not register — will cause the regulator to act. When the tempera-
ture is too high it shuts off part of the flame, thus saving oil.
The regulator can be seen to open and close frequently in a very
short time, the mercury in the thermometer all the while re-
maining stationery.

This machine obtained first preminm at the Pennsylvania
State Fair, held in Philadelphia in September 1884.

Prices are as follows : 100 eggs, $50 ; 200 eggs, $60 ; 800
eggs, $75. Yard for brooder $5 extra.

180

INCUBATOKS.

SAVIDGE HYDRO-INCUBATOR.

MANUFACTURED BY C. W. SAVIDGE, 2534 HUNTINGTON fcTWCKg;

PHILADELPHIA, PA.

The abovw shows what the incubator looks like when finished.
It is a tank enclosed with four inches of sawdust. The saw-
dust, which is called the packing, is under, all around, and on
the top, even in front of the egg-draw, so that the heat is com-
pletely retained and enclosed. On the top is a tin tube, into
which the water is poured into the tank in the inside, and in
front, just above the egg-drawer, is a spigot by which the cold
water can be drawn off before adding that which is hot.

The sizes and dimensions need not be given, for the reason
that some prefer small sizes while others are partial to those that
are larger. A tank fifteen inches wide and twenty-five inches
long will answer for an incubator holding seventy-five eggs.
The tank should be twelve inches deep. Any depth may be
given it that may be desired, for the greater the volume of water,
the easier and longer the retention of heat.

• INCUBATORS. 181

!

DIRECTIONS FOR RUNNING THE SATIDGE INCUBATOR.

Place the incubator in a room where the temperature does not
fall below fifty degrees Fahrenheit, if possible. This is not
absolutely necessary, but it will be found more economical, and
then fill the tank with boiling water ; it must remain untouched
for twenty-four hours, as it requires time during which to heat
completely through; as it will heat slowly it will also cool
slowly. Let it cool down to one hundred and fifteen degrees,
and then put in the eggs, or, what is better, rnn it without eggs
for a day or two in order to learn it, and notice its variation.
When the eggs are put in, the drawer will cool down some.
All that is required then, is to add about a bucket of water once
a day in summer, and in the winter once or twice a day, in the
morning and at night, but be careful about endeavoring to get
up heat suddenly, as the heat does not rise for five hours after
the additional bucket of water is added. The tank radiates the
heat down on the eggs, there being nothing between the iron
bottom of the tank and the eggs, for the wood over and around
the tank does not extend across the bottom of the tank. The
cool air comes from below in the ventilator pipes, passing
through the muslin bottom of the egg drawer to the eggs. Lay
the eggs in, the same as in a nest, promiscuously. Keep the
heat inside the egg drawer as near one hundred and three de-
grees as possible. Avoid opening the egg drawer frequently, as
it allows too much escape of heat. Be sure your thermometer
records correctly, as half the failures are due to iucorrect ther-
mometers, and not one in twenty is correct. Place the bulb of
the thermometer even with the top of the eggs, that is, when
the thermometer is laying down in the drawer, the upper end
should be slightly raised so as to allow the mercury to rise, but
the bulb and eggs should be of the same heat, as the figures
record the heat in the bulb and not in the tube. Keep a pie

183 INCUBATOHS.

pan filled with water in the ventilator for moisture, and keep
two or three moist sponges in the egg drawer, displacing a few
eggs for the purpose. Turn the eggs half way round twice a
day at regular intervals — eight o'clock in the morning and six
o'clock at night. Let the eggs cool down while turning them ;
it will do no hurt ; but do not let them cool lower than seventy
degrees. No sprinkling is required if the sponges are kept
moist. If the heat gets up to one hundred and ten degrees, or
as low as sixty degrees for a little while, it is not necessarily
fatal. Too much heat is more prevalent than too little. A
week's practice in operating the incubator will surprise one how
simple the work is. Heat the water in one or two boilers, as a
large quantity will be required when filling the first time, and
pour it in through the tube on top of the incubator, boiling hot,
using a funnel in the tube for the purpose. Just at the time of
hatching out do not be tempted to frequently open the drawer.
Cold drafts are fatal. Patience must be exercised. When
turning eggs in the morning let them cool well. The best
results have been obtained when the heat was kept at one
hundred and five degrees the first week, one hundred and four
degrees the second week, and one hundred and two degrees the
third week.

Prices of the- Savidge Incubator, 100 eggs, $21. No charge
for boxing. 50 eggs, $18. Brooder, $10.

INCUBATORS. 188

THE "PERFECT" HATCHER.

MANUFACTURED BY THE PERFECT HATCHER CO., ELMIRA, N. Y.

This is a self regulating incubator ; the water tank is above
the eggs, and it is warmed by a heater exterior to the machine,
the nursery is placed underneath the egg trays, and the methed
of heating is by gas or kerosene oil.

The heat is regulated by means of a thermostatic bar, which,
by moving a lever, connects an electrical battery with a clock-
work, which, when the heat reaches the highest point, opens a
ventilator and reduces the flame of the lamp, and when the
lowest permitted temperature is reached, closes the draft and
turns up the flame.

Thus the heat constantly, but slowly vacillates between the
two extremes as fixed.

A peculiarity of this machine is the double layer of eggs.
The upper tray is placed below, after being set ten days, and
then the upper one is filled.

184 INCUBATORS.

The battery connected with this machine is warranted to
work a year without renewal ; the clock needs to be wound but
once in three days.

The "Perfect" Hatcher is very highly commended by those
who use it and is said to be very certain and satisfactory in its
results.

THE "NEW CENTENNIAL" INCUBATOR.

MANUFACTURED BY A. M. HALSTEAD, RYE, N. Y.

This is a self regulating machine, very similar in its working
to the "Perfect Hatcher." Mr. Halstead, the manufacturer of
it, is one of the oldest and most successful incubator men in
the country. It is well made, easily managed and gives uni-
versal satisfaction.

Of course, even with the successful machines described in this
book, a person can easily fail to make a success. Perhaps it
will be well to name a few things necessary to success : A
steady, settled purpose to make the thing succeed. Intelligent
study of the instructions supplied with the machine, so as to
enable you to thoroughly understand it, just as an engineer
understands his locomotive. Careful attention to cleanliness in
the lamps, wicks trimmed evenly, etc. Patience for results.
This will enable you to put twenty eggs into a one thousand
egg machine for a start, and practically learn "how to do it."
In a word use common sense, as much of it as you can com-
mand, and you are sure to come out successfully.

HOW TO KILL AND DRESS FOWLS.

Never kill your fowls until they have fasted twenty-four
hours. No man ever made any money by selling his fowls with

INCUBATORS. 185

their crops stuffed to make them weigh. The petty fraud is too
apparent. To kill and dress, tie their legs together, hang the
fowl up, open the beak and pass a sharp pointed, narrow bladed
knife into the mouth and up into the roof, dividing the mem-
brane. Death will be instant. Immediately cut the throat by
dividing the arteries of the neck and the bird will bleed
thoroughly.

We never scald ; the nicest way is to pick the fowl dry and
while yet warm. A little care will prevent tearing the flesh,
and the bird will bring enough extra in the market to make it
pay. Most persons, however, will prefer to scald, and for home
consumption, or the village market this will do.

Have the water just scalding hot — not boiling— one hundred
and ninety degrees is just right. Immerse the fowl, holding it
by the legs, taking it out and in, until the feathers slip easily.
Persons become very expert at this, the feathers coming away
by brushing them with the hand, apparently. At all events,
they must be picked clean. Hang turkeys and chickens by the
feet, and ducks and geese by the head, to cool. It should be
unnecessary to say that under no circumstance whatever, should
ducks and geese be scalded; they must invariably be picked
dry. Take off the heads of chickens as soon as picked, tie the
skin neatly over the stump, draw out the insides carefully, and
hang up to cool. Never sell fowls undrawn. They will bring
enough more drawn and nicely packed, with the heart, gizzard
and liver placed inside each fowl, to pay for the trouble. Let
them get thoroughly cool— as cold as possible— but never, under
any circumstances, frozen. There is always money in properly
prepared poultry ; the money is lost in half fitting them for
market, the fowls often being forwarded in a most disgusting
state. There is money in the production of eggs; tbere is
money in raising poultry for the market. The money is lost in

186 INCUBATORS.

a foolish attempt occasionally made to make the buyer pay for
a crop full of musty corn, at the price of first-class meat. It is
that class of men, however, who are too smart ever to make
money at anything.

PACKING FOR MARKET.

The poultry, having been killed as directed, carefully picked,
the heads cut off, and the skin drawn over the stump and neatly
tied — or if preferred, leave the head on, the fowl will not bring
less for it — and the birds chilled down to as near the freezing
point as possible, provide clean boxes and place a layer of clean
hay or straw quite free from dust, in the bottom. Pick up a
fowl, bend the head under and to one side of the breast bone,
and lay it flat on its breast, back up, the legs extending straight
out behind. The first fowl to be laid in the left hand corner.
So placed, lay a row across the box to the right, and pack close
row by row, until only one row is left, then reverse the heads,
laying them next the other end of the box, the feet under the
previous row of heads. If there is space left between the two
last rows, put in what birds will fit sideways. If not, pack in
straw at the sides and between the birds, so they cannot move.
Pack straw enough over one layer of fowls, so that the others
cannot touch, and so proceed until the box is full. Fill the box
full. There must never be any shaking, or else the birds will
become bruised, and loss will ensue. Many packers of extra
poultry place paper over and under each layer before filling in
the straw. There is no doubt but that it pays. Nail the box
tight; mark the initials of the packer, the number of fowls
and variety, and mark plainly the full name of the person or
firm to whom it is consigned, with street and number on the
box, Thus the receiver will know at a glance what the box
contains, and does not have to unpack to find out. These direc-

INCUBATORS. 187

tions, if carefully carried out, might save a person many times
the cost of this book, every year.

KEEPING EGGS FRESH.

The place selected for keeping eggs should be cool in sum-
mer, but not cold in winter, that is, it should be kept at a
temperature of from forty-five to sixty degrees all the year
round. If too cold, the eggs will freeze and crack, if too warm,
they will commence to decay and get stale sooner than they
otherwise would. Shelves should be fitted up with holes bored
in them, sufficiently large to keep the eggs upstanding, but, of
course, not large enough to allow them to pass through. These
shelves will be very inexpensive and will serve a lifetime. The
eggs should be placed in these holes broad- end downwards, and
tests have proved that they will keep fresh in this position, very
mnch longer than with the broad-end upwards.

INDEX.

Age, to Breed, -

11 to Fatten, -

11 to Judge, -

" to Kill,

" to Show, - - - -

Air Bubble or Cell, -
Alarm, -

Ale, - -

Appetite, -

" Loss of
April, Work for -
Artificial Incubation, -

" •• Advice to Beginners,

Artificial Rearing,
Asiatic Breeds, -

Asphalt Flooring,

Atropine,

August, Work for -

Awards,

Bantams,

" Varieties
Bad Feathering,
Barn Door Fowls,
Bedding for Chicks,
Benzine,
Best Breeds for Market,

" " Confinement,

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49

(i

2,

50

n

2,

51

u

2,

61

ii

2,

51

ii

?

51

ii

2,

52

Parti,

32

ii

1,

32

<<

2,

13

ii

2,

54

ii

2,

54

ii

2,

65

ii

1,

67

ii

2,

71

[90 INDEX.

Black Hamburgs,
Bone Dust, -

Brahma Fowls, -

Breast-Bone, Crooked -
Breeding Cocks, -
Breeding In-and-in
Broods for Crossing,
Broken Leg, -

" Bones, -

Bruises and Fractures,
Buying Poultry and Eggs,

Carbolic Acid,

Capons and Caponizing,

Caponizing,

Change of Place,

Chicks, Ordinary Fattening of

Chickens, General Treatment of -

" Precocious,
Combs, Torn -

" Varieties of -

" Pea,

" Wire Support to
Cochins, -

i ' Varieties of -
Cocks, -

Cockerels, -

Cockerels and Pullets, Separation of
Cold Weather, - -

Concrete Flooring, -
Condition to keep Fowls in,
Cooking for Poultry,
Corns,

Cramming, -
Crevecoeurs, -

Daily Routine,

-

Defects, Choice between

Dirt and Droppings,

-

Dictionary of Poultry Terms,

Diseases of Poultry,

-

" " Apoplexy, -

" " Appetite, Loss of

" " Asthma,

♦« " Bumble Foot,

_.

" " Black Rot, -

" " Canker, -

-

" « Catarrh, -

Part 2,

56

n

2,

55

a

1,

3

<(

2,

56

a

2,

56

<<

2, 56,

104

tt

2,

57

a

2,

22

a

2,

58

a

2,

21

a

2,

59

Part 2,

61

<<

2,

61

<(

2,

141

a

2,

63

tt

2,

94

tt

2,

64

tt

2,

119

<(

2,

25

<<

2,

69

<(

2,

117

<<

2,

140

tt

1,

8

tt

1,

9

it

2,

67

a

2,

67

tt

2,

129

tt

2,

68

n

2,

70

tt

2,

71

n

2,

72

*t

2,

23

tt

2,

73

tt

1,

44

Part 2,

32

a

2,

66

a

2,

78

t*

1,

62

tt

%

4

tt

2,

13

a

2,

109

n

2,

12

tt

2,

24

a

2,

55

a

i

60

14

63

TKDVX* 1*1

Diseases of Poultry, Cholera, - - Part 2, 7, 66

« « Colds, - - " 2, 68

" Cramp, - "2, 20, 74

" Cramped Sitting Hen, - " 2, 74

" Crooked Breasts, - "2, 75

" Crop-bound, - " 2, 15, 75

«« Dropsy, ^ - "2, 17

" Diarrhoea, - - - " 2, 8, 78

" Eruptions, - - "2, 89

•1 Elephantiasis, - " 2, 28

" Gapes, --- " 2, 10, 99

" Giddiness, - - " 2, 100

» Gout, - "2, 11

" Hereditary, - " 2, 103

«! Hoarseness, - - "2, 103

•f Indigestion, - - " 2, 9, 104

" Inflammation of the Lungs, " 2, 104
« " " " Mucous

Membrane, "2, 10

« Influenza, - - " 2, 18

" Liver, ... "2, 108

" Leg- Weakness, - - " 2, 10, 107

" Loss of Feathers, - " 2,- 96

" Megrims, - - " 2, 12

M Mange, - " 2, 16

" Moulting, - - " 2, 14

« Paralysis, - - "2, 19, 116

" Pip, - - - " 2, 18, .118

« Phthisis, - - " 2, 20

«« Rheumatism, - - ..'.." 2, 20, 123

■■ Roup, - - - " 2, 6, 125

« Rump-Gland, - " 2, 22

" Torpid Gizzard, - •• 2, 17

" Ulcers, - - ". 2, 23

" Vertigo, --- " 2, 138

" " White Comb, - " 2, 24

* " Wheezing, - - "2, 140

Dominiques, - - - - ' 1> 31

Dorkings, ----- 1, 16

Drowning, ----- 2,

Drainage, ... - 2, 79

Drink, - " 2, 79

Ducks, " 1, 56

11 Aylesbury - - - " 2, 53

11 Breeding Pens for - - - "2, 57

" Buenos Ayres - - - - " 2, 59

" Carolina .... " 2, 62

« Pekin "2, 117

* Rouen " 2, 124

N

n
ii

li

II
II
II
II

II
II
II
II
II
II
II
(I

198

INDUS.

Dubbing,

Earth Deodoriser, -

Ear-Lobes,

•

Early Roosting,

Economy,

•

^S' Addled" -

m

ff

Blood-stained -

fit

Broken in nest

-

ff

Bound -

a

Chilled

.

u

Dropping

Ducks, Color of -

H

-

it

Eaters -

it

Fertility of

-

if

How to collect

If

How to Preserve -

•

ff

How to Pack

ff

Hens, Color of -

•

ff

Keeping fresh

ff

Nest

-

ff

Moistening

ff

Packing for Hatching

-

<f

Preserving for Sitting

ff

Preserving for Winter

use

ff

Producers

-

ff

Production increasing

-

fi

Selecting for Sitting

ff

Soft

•

ff

Sex of

ff

Testing

-

ff

Test of fresh

-

ff

Unfertile -

-

«f

Yolkless

Epsom Salts,

-

Exhibition Birds, Care of

-

" " Selection

of

" " Washing

Exhibition, Treatment afte

r -

Fattening, -

" AlaBresse
Fancy Points,
Farm Poultry,
Farmyard Duck,

Part),

Part 2,

a

" 2,

81

" %

82

" 2,

82

" 2

83

" 2,

41, 83

" 2,

83

" 2,

83

" 2,

15, 84

" 2,

65, 84

" 2,

81

" 2,

84

" 2,

88

" 2,

84

" 2,

35

" i

37

" 2,

40

" 2,

84

" 2

187

" 2,

112

" 2,

86

" 2,

115

" 2,

86

u 2,

86

" 1,

67

" 2,

85

" 2,

87

« 2,

87

" 2,

129

" 2,

136

" 2,

88

" 2,

83, 137

" 2,

88

" 2,

89

" 2,

61

" 2,

128

" 2,

138

" 2,

136

" 1,

97

" 2,

94

« 2,

90

44 2,

91

" 2,

93

INDEX.

198

Feathers, - \ •

" Hard -
" Loss of
" Laced -
" Eating
" Paint and Tar on
" Worm eaten
Feathering of the Legs and Feet -
Felt, -

Fencing wire, -

Feeding, Excessive
First outlay, -

Fleas, -
Flesh,

Floors, ....
Food, -

" Allowance of - -

Animal - -

After Exhibition

" Kinds to procure
Barley -
Bran -
Buckwheat
Buttermilk -
Brewers grain

Cabbage - - -

M Corn
" During Moult
" Green -
" Hemp -

" Indian corn
" Insects -

" Oats -

" Oatmeal -

" Onions -
" Parsnips * •■

" Quality of
" Rice -
" Sour milk
Foods, List of
Fountains, -

Fowls, Common

" Bad habits of -
" General treatment of
" Fattening
" Handling of
" How to kill and dress -
French Breeds,
Fresh Blood, -

art 2,

95

" 2,

103

" i

96

" 2,

106

" 2,

95

" 2,

25

" 2,

140

" 2,

96

" 2,

96

" 2,

97

« 2,

89

" 1,

70

" i

97

" 2,

97

" 2,

98

" t,

76

" 2,

44

" 2,

45

" 2,

98

" i

46

" 2,

53

" 2,

56

<f 2,

59

" 2,

59

" 2,

105

" 2,

60

" 2,

73

" 2,

98

" 2,

101

" 2,

103

" 2,

104

" 2,

105

" 2,

114

" 2,

113

M 2,

114

" 2,

117

" 2,

123

" 2,

123

" 2,

128

" 2,

108

" 2,

98

" 2,

70

" 2,

27

" 2,

29

" 2,

93

" 2,

102

M 2,

184

" 1,

44

81 «.

98

194

mm*.

bright,
Frost-bite,

Part 2,

Game Fowls,
Geese,

" Fattening
Grass,

" Bun -
Gravel,

Ground, Cleanliness of
Guinea Fowl,

Hamburg Fowls,

Hardiness,

Harm to Crops,

Hatching, Early

Hay, - . . -

Heat, -

Hens, Age to lay
" Broody

" Setting, Their management
" To prevent setting -

Hospital, -

Houses and Yards,

" Early opening of

Houdans, ...

Incubation, -

a

Artificial

Incubators,

<(

Average time to hatch

<<

Best place to run -

«

Care of chickens

a

Eureka

«

" Brooder

«

Feeding

tt

Keystone

a

New Centennial

tt

Proper temperature of

a

Perfect Hatcher

tt

Savidge

tt

Testing the Eggs -

tt

The best we know of

tt

Watering -

n

1,

26

U

1,

54

it

5,

95

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2,

100

<<

2,

100

<<

2,

100-

tt

2,

101

«<

1,

52

tt

2,

101

it

1,

33

a

2,

102

i«

2,

102

tt

2,

85

a

2,

102

<(

2,

103

(i

2,

41

it

2,

58

a

2,

130

<«

2,

119

it

2,

104

a

1,

73

a

2,

81

a

1,

46

n

1,

88

a

2, 47,

144

tt

2,

144

<«

2,

151

n

2

147

a

2,

154

(<

2,

171

a

2,

175

it

2,

156

««

2,

178

«<

2,

184

M

2,

161

a

2,

183

«(

2,

180

a

2,

163

n

2,

171

n

2,

156

Journeys

" 2,

106

INDEX.

195

Rilling for Table,

Lameness, ...

Langs bans,

La Fleche Fowls,

Laying, To prevent

Laying Mixtures,

Leghorn Fowls,

Lime, -

Limit to Numbers,

Lobes, ...

Malay Fowls,
Management of Chicks,
Manure,

March, Work for
Marking Chickens,
Mating, ...

May, Work for
Meals, -

Meat Producers,
Milk for Chickens,
Moult, To hasten
Moulting, -

Nests for Laying,
Night Accommodation for Chicks,
Number of Ducks to Drake, -
Number of Hens to Cock,

Old Chicks,
Old Fowls for Table,
Orchards, -

Over Fattening,

Packing Fowls for Market,

Parasites, -

Pen for Breeding Stock,

Perch, ...

Points of Poultry,

Poul try Keeping,

" " Failures in -

Plucking, -
Plumage, -

Poland Fowls,
Plymouth Rocks,
Prize Poultry,

v' " Their Treatment,

Produce Hatched, Good average

Part 2,

105

.

ti

2,

106

•

.

it

1,

37

.

a

1,

45

.

.

tt

2,

107

a

(<

2,

106

.

.

a

£

41

-

ti

2,

107

•

.

ti

2,

107

"

<(

2,

108

m

.

Part 1,

25

m

<<

1,

91

.

.

<«

2,

109

.

tt

2,

109

.

tt

2,

110

.

a

2,

110

.

•

ti

2,

110

•

tt

2,

111

•

.

tt

2,

111

.-

tt

2,

111

.

.

tt

2,

111

"

a

*■"*

14

„

—

Part 2,

112

a

2,

113

.

•

n

2,

113

a

2,

113

•

—

Part 2,

114

a

2,

114

•

•

a

2,

115

a

2,

115

•

—

Part 2,

186

n

2,

116

' . '

•

a

2,

118

tt

2,

118

•

•

a

1,

61

tt

1

65

•

•

a

2,

90

a

2,

119

•

.

a

2,

119

. '

a

1,

20

•

.

a

1,

34

tt

2,

121

•

•

<t

I

120
121

196 iKDKi.

Pullets,

" Not Laying
Purity, To be preserved

Repletion, -

Roofs, .

Roosting, -
Runs, -
" Aspect of

Sand, ....

Sawdust, -

Sex of Chicks, Fortelling

Sheds, - - . .

Shelf under perch,

Shelter Hurdles,

Slipped Wing, -

Small Yards, Sorts for

Snow, - - - -

Soft Eggs, -

Spanish Fowls,

Spring Chickens,

Squirrel Tail, -

Stains on Feathers,

Strain, To Commence -

Straw,

Sulky Cocks, -

Sultans, -

Sunflower, -

Tonics, -

Traveling, -

Trussing, . - - -

Turkeys, -

" Fattening

Varieties, . • •

Ventilation, -

Vermin, • •

Want of Condition, - «

Warmth, ...

Wasters, -

Weakness after Sitting, •

Wyandottes, • • «

Part 2,

m

«<

2,

122

<<

2,

122

Part 2,

123

<(

2,

124

it

2,

124

tt

2,

126

it

2,

51

Part 2,

127

«i

2,

128

tt

2,

85

tt

2,

129

tt

2,

129

n

2,

130

tt

2,

133

tt

1,

68

tt

2,

133

tt

2,

16

tt

1,

10

tt

2,

134

tt

2,

134

n

2,

134

€t

2,

134

tt

2,

135

tt

V

135

tt

1,

23

tt

2

135

Part 2,

135

a

2,

136

tt

2,

136

tt

1,

47

tt

1,

50

Part 1.

3

a

2,

137

tt

2,

25

Part 2,

138

tt

2,

188

tt

2,

140

a

2,

140

M

<

39

CONFESSIONS

—OF—

JEAN JAWS ROUSSEAU

A New Edition of this Famous Book — Trans-
lated from the French — with \ 3 Illus-
trations by Ed* Hedouin.
625 Pages, Long Primer Type.
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SENT PREPAID ON RECEIPT OF PRICE.

WILLIAM L. ALLISON,

216 WILLIAM ST., N. Y. CITY

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THE GRAND PRIX

to the

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