Much 2C, 1866. 1 



JOUBNAL OF HOKTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER . 



247 



door fowls. They require far too mucli caro and attention to 

 repay him, and eggs at one shiliing each (ub many are charged 

 from prize hirds). are quite too dear to be trusted to the care of 

 farmers' lads. The name " barndoor fowl " suggests in itself 

 the mode in which a farmer expects his poultry to pick up a 

 living — literally by eating the grain dropped from thrashing and 

 various other farming operations, and tlio seeds and insects 

 procured by scratching in the dunghill, which, besides feeding, 

 causes them to become pubHc benefactcrs ; for the very seeds 

 they eat would, if returned to the land, propagate a rank crop 

 of weeds. 



The question now arises. What cross or crosses of pure-bred 

 fowls will produce at once the largest, best-tlavoured, and 

 healthiest chickens? The one I strongly recommend is that 

 between the Game cock (chosen rather for its size and abundant 

 plumage than for its warlike proclivities), and the Grey Dorking 

 hen. It is generally admitted that the Game bird is the best 

 for the table ; it is alsa a good sitter, and an excellent mother ; 

 but it lacks size. This quality the Dorking gives, and the 

 progeny of the two grow to great weight, frequently quite as 

 large as the pure-bred Dorking itself. They lay and sit well, 

 and the mixture of the Game blood gives a better flavour to the 

 chickens. A further cross in the following year will be ad- 

 vantageously made with the Brahma Pootra fowl, and the third 

 year it will be found wise to turn a few young Game cocks or 

 Malays into the foldyard, so that by continually introducing 

 fresh blood is avoided that most pernicious system of breeding 

 in-and-in, to which I have previously alluded. There are many 

 crosses from which good fowls may be obtained ; but I do not 

 think any equal to that I have described — viz., between the 

 Game, the Grey Dorking, the Brahma Pootra, and the Malay. 



Although for the sake of obtaining eggs at a season when 

 they are most expensive, it is a wise plan to save each year 

 several pullets for laying, still the eggs to be placed under the 

 Bitting hen should be those laid by two-year-old birds, as they 

 will be found not only more certain to contain a chicken, but 

 the chicken will be stronger than any produced fi-om the egg of 

 a pullet. The number of eggs to be set under a hen varies 

 according to the size of the bird and the season of the year. 

 My impression is that too many are generally set, and that the 

 consequence becomes manifest in the weakliness of the chickens. 

 In no case should there be more than thirteen eggs, however 

 large the bird, and in most cases ten or eleven are quite 

 sufficient; indeed, in very cold weather, nine eggs are enough 

 for the largest bird to cover. The good effect of setting com- 

 paratively few eggs is observed in the strength exhibited by the 

 chickens in escaping from the shell, and the fact that they are 

 all hatched at the same time. 



Having shown what description of cross-bred fowl is the best 

 for the farmyard, the next point will be to consider in what 

 manner such birds may be kept in the best health. The only 

 time at which a fowl having the general run of the farmyard 

 really requires any extra assistance is during the time of moult- 

 ing. That operation is to the fowl a great effort of nature, 

 which doubtless, when in reasonable health, it can manage to 

 get through without artificial assistance ; but if, by giving a 

 little advantage in the shape of food, at but slight expense, the 

 bird can get through its difficulties in half the time it would 

 otherwise do, I think every one wiU admit that a little atten- 

 tion to this point will give a good return for the trouble. At 

 this season, therefore, I strongly recommend that all fatty sub- 

 stances left after the farmhouse dinner, such as the crust of 

 meat pies, pieces of pudding saturated with gravy, and all 

 scraps of meat, shall be carefully collected, cut up, and well- 

 mixed together with black pepper, and given to the fowls. The 

 effect of this treatment is most astonishing. It just gives to 

 their nature the required impetus, and enables each bird to 

 complete its moulting, as before stated, in about half the time 

 it would otherwise have taken, and it is ready once more, with 

 renewed vigour, to repay its possessor cent, per cent, upon his 

 slight outlay of trouble, I will not say expense, for the amount 

 really expended will have been so trifling that it can scarcely 

 be calculated. 



Between the months of November and March the farmer has 

 great opportunities of doing well to his fowls, and again at very 

 little cost ; for there are generally operations going on in his 

 house which enable him to give them a considerable quantity 

 of extra food. I allude to the killing of the fat pigs, which 

 takes place periodically at this season, and every bit of refuse 

 meat should be carefully saved, boiled, and cut up. The broth 

 or liquor consequent upon the boiling should be mixed with 

 common meal, and the whole made into one compound, and 



given to the fowls once a-day. Black, or even in very cold 

 weather, a sraall quantity of cayenne, pepper may be added to 

 this with good effect. 



I am not by any means an advocate for coddling fowls in 

 warm hen houses, because I believe the injury done to them 

 by a sudden change of temperature is much greater than any 

 advantages which may accrue from their being in ft heated at- 

 mosphere during the night. The hen that comes from a cold 

 night's lodging feels no great difliculty in getting up for rather 

 down), and going out early in the morning to "pickup the 

 early worm ; " but the hen from the warm and enervating 

 roost fears to brave the inclemency of the weather, picks up 

 what little corn may be thrown to her near the door of her hot- 

 house, and retires with dainty steps as soon as possible, pre- 

 ferring rather to dose out her existence on her comfortable 

 perch than to live a life of activity and search after food. At 

 the same time, a slight, but very slight, artificial heat is of 

 advantage during the winter months, though not by any means 

 imperative. Therefore, if with perfect convenience one wall of 

 the hen house can be attached to any building in which a daily 

 tire is kept — for instance, a harness room, a boiling house, or 

 a blacksmith's shop — and a flue can, with little expense, be 

 run up between the two buildings, the fowls will derive good 

 from it. 



It is very important to arrange the breeding of fowls in such 

 a manner as to have both eggs and chickens ready for market 

 at the time when they are most in request and command the 

 highest prices. There is no art in getting fowls to lay well, 

 and to sit and bring up their chickens in the spring months; 

 but the great point is to have eggs during the moulting season, 

 and thence to the end of January, and also to have what 

 are termed spring chickens ready for market in the first three 

 months in the year. To obtain these, hens should be put to 

 sit late in October in some cow house or outbuilding opening 

 into a small foldyard, so that the chickens, when hatched, can 

 be turned out for two or three hours in the middle of the day ; 

 and after the first month they will require very little care, and 

 will be sold at a remunerative price. In order to ensure a 

 supply of eggs when they are most valuable, the hens should 

 sit at the end of .January or beginning of February. The 

 cockerels from these hatchings should be sold in May, when 

 there is no Game, and the pullets will begin to lay early in 

 autumn, and will continue to do so during the winter months. 



Mr. Bainbridge said that last summer a friend of his had 

 obtained some hens from the Cape of Good Hope, and they 

 were placed amongst some Dorkings. These hens, after a time, 

 began to hang their heads, and appeared likely to die. Some 

 garlic and hot bran weie given to them, and a little pepper was 

 added as a stimulant, and the result was that the fowls came 

 round again. Fowls were carnivorous as well as grain-eating, 

 and some tallow cake with cayenne pepper might be given to 

 them with advantage. Pepper was a powerful stimulant, and 

 aided the health of the birds, and aided their digestion. By 

 the use of animal food and pepper, fewer fowls would be lost 

 than was the case at present. 



Mr. Scott considered that Game fowls of pure breed were the 

 best, and they were much superior for the table. They were 

 hardy birds, and required less attention than other breeds. 

 He recommended the giving of animal food to fowls, and showed 

 that there were many things in connection with housekeeping 

 which might be given to fowls, instead of being wasted. The 

 French people gave their fowls more animal food than English 

 farmers did. and the production of eggs was more abundant 

 than in this country. Mr. Gaunt had not touched upon Geese 

 and Turkeys in his lecture, and in his opinion the breeding of 

 these was unprofitable to the farmer. Female spring chickens 

 were profitable, as they supplied eggs in the winter season.— 

 {Mark Lane E.vjrress.) 



THE AMALGAMATION of the PHILOPERISTERON 

 AND NATIONAL COLUMBAIUAN SOCIETIES. 



I w.^s very pleased to read in your valuable paper of the lilth 

 inst. the Committee's report of the amalgamation of the Philo- 

 pcristeron and National Columbarian Societies. Would it not 

 be a great boon to fanciers, if the new Society would have 

 their proceedings, and all papers read at their meetings, re- 

 ported, in a similar manner to the Royal Horticultural Society's 

 reports, in your widely-circulated paper ; also, a description of 

 all birds shown at such meetings V I think it would be the 

 means of raising the Pigeon fancy in the eyes of the public, 



