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TJic Country Gaitlcmaiis Magarjinc 



takers, matched pens of chickens fetch from 

 ^3 to £(i each ; single birds for breeding, 

 30s. Turkeys (hatched in May), which should 

 now weigh — cocks, 17 lb. ; hens, 1 2 lb. — are 

 considered cheap at £1 per pair; goslings 

 and ducks, ditto. Pens for exhibition must 

 of course be reserved, as only by success in 

 the show-room can stock command high 

 prices ; and it is a pleasant thing to watch 

 the progress of birds intended for Birming- 

 ham or Manchester, where, if a prize is taken, 

 almost fabulous prices may be obtained, and 

 a certain sale for eggs in spring secured. To 

 breed for market only will pay ; but then a 

 great source of interest is lost, and all in- 

 dividual tastes must be sacrificed in trying to 

 keep the balance on the right side of the ac- 

 count. Where exhibition (in moderation), 

 home supply, and market are all combined, 

 a daily, nay hourly, amusement is afforded, 

 and profit may still exist ; it will only be a 

 matter of time, not of degree, for there are 

 many well-known amateurs who gain con- 

 siderably by their prize poultry. Poultry 

 rearers must make up their minds to one or 

 other plan, and adhere strictly to it. As a 

 matter of business, and solely for profit, the 

 great object is to increase the stock as fast as 

 possible. Sell off when ready for market — ■ 

 the earlier in the season the better, when 

 young poultry is in greatest demand. Feed 

 economically, and give the birds entire liberty. 

 Keep only young hens of the best kinds for 

 laying and crossing, to obtain large chickens. 



It is often asked " how much grain should 

 I give daily to my fowls ? " This is a ques- 

 tion not easily answered, so different may be 

 the treatment in poultry-yards. Where exhibi- 

 tion is the rule, a very high and varied course 

 of feeding is necessary — the birds must be 

 forced into feather at the proper time at any 

 expense ; but where one pure variety of fowl 

 only is kept — however numerous the stock — 

 from having full liberty during the day, Avhen 

 they pick up much food in farm-yards, fields, 

 &c. (which makes them in a great measure 

 independent of the provision commissariat), 

 the cost of keep is obviously less, and the 

 birds never do better, are in grea'er health, or 



feather more quickly, than when treated thus. 

 But they will not be in exhibition condition 

 — they will be merely in good buying and 

 breeding order. It is impossible to lay down 

 exact rules as to feeding : some varieties eat 

 more than others. At all times feeding well 

 is positive economy. Hens lay better and 

 earlier when abundantly fed, and the eggs 

 (on a yearly average) will always more than 

 repay the extra cost. My next " note " gives 

 the details of the weekly diet of a cock and 

 fourteen hens, set apart for the purpose of 

 arriving at the exact expense of their weekly 

 food. The hens are principally crosses be- 

 tween Dorking and Bramapootra, the cock 

 pure Dorking. From the numerous varieties 

 of pure breeds kept, it was impossible to give 

 the occupants of this experimental yard en- 

 tire liberty ; they have, in common with the 

 others, merely access for a couple of hours 

 daily to a grass field and plantations which 

 adjoin the poultry-yard. I give a true 

 and faithful description of the treatment of 

 this particular house and run, and it may in 

 some measure be a guide to beginners in 

 poultry life. Amateurs who themselves look 

 a good deal after the comfort and wants of 

 their stock can best judge of its requirements, 

 and will soon fall into the little peculiarities 

 of taste shewn by their favourites. One bird 

 will not eat barley, another reject Indian 

 corn, so that a mixed diet in that case is 

 necessary. No one kind of food can be 

 forced upon fowl ; their likes and dislikes 

 must be studied. Feed at regul-ar hours, and 

 watch them while they eat. It is at that time 

 you can best judge of the state of health they 

 are in. 



For a cock and fourteen hens, confined 

 entirely to their yards, the following descrip- 

 tion and quantity of food, given daily, is 

 abundant — 2\ lb. paring and whole meal 

 mixed, and 2 lb. of wheat and Indian corn 

 mixed. In the morning open the trap and 

 give the fowls access to their yard, feed with 

 one-half of the soft food, and give fresh water. 

 In the middle of the day throw down some 

 lettuce or cabbage leaves and calcined oyster 

 shells broken small, also the remaining half of 



