60 OUR DOMESTIC FOWL?. 



Fowls aro easily kept ; even in some of the 

 streets of London we sec them, but they are 

 miserable and dirty, and roost at night, for 

 the most part, in cellars, into which they de- 

 scend on the approach of evening, accustomed, 

 by use, to seek an underground asylum. We 

 have often pitied the poor birds, whose dirty 

 ragged plumage, dull eyes, and colourless 

 combs, bespeak the want of air, and of proper 

 food, and the evils of damp, and of muddy 

 puddles. How different from the tenants of 

 the farm-yard, with fields and green lanes 

 around, — with pure air to breathe, plenty of 

 good food, and clear water to drink ! Where 

 a farm-yard does not offer its advantages, a 

 poultry-yard is a good substitute. This should 

 be commodious and dry, and so sloping that 

 no water lodges after rain, forming unwhole- 

 some puddles. It should have a warm aspect, 

 and be sheltered from the cold winds. Ashes 

 or sand should be stored in one corner for the 

 fowls to roll in and clear their feathers from 

 annoying vermin. If possible, they should 

 have access to a fresh running streamlet, but 

 pure clear water is indispensable. A dry com- 

 mon or fields, in which they may fi-eely wander 

 and pick up grubs, insects, ants' eggs, and the 



