POULTRY 



371 



Europe, being, it is supposed, brought into Britain 

 by the Romans, since whose time it has been an 

 important member of our domesticated animals. 

 The fighting qualities of game fowls have always 

 been specially studied, and Cock-fighting (o^.v.) 

 was once a recognised sport in the United King- 

 dom, followed by all classes of society. 



Poultry are valued for two purposes : ( 1 ) for their 

 flesh, and (2) for the eggs produced by them. In 

 those varieties which are specially bred for the table 

 the flesh is abundant, fine in texture, excellent 

 in flavour, and easily digested. It enters very 

 largely into the food-supply of the country in an 

 ever-increasing ratio, and is strongly recommended 

 to invalids or persons of weak digestion. Eggs (q.v. ) 

 are consumed to an even greater extent, and more 

 generally than can ever be the case with poultry ; 

 for they are within the reach of all persons, and are 

 used for every form of cooking, as also largely 

 for manufacturing purposes. The great and ever- 

 increasing demand in Britain for this class of 

 food is seen in the vast imports, which have 

 grown so enormously. In 1864 the value of eggs 

 imported from the continent of Europe was 

 835,028; in 1870, 1,102,080; 1875, 2,559,860; 

 1880, 2,235,451 ; 1890, 3,428,802 ; and 1897, 

 4.356,807, besides poultry to the value of about half 

 a million. And in the same period it is estimated 

 that the eggs and poultry received into Great 

 Britain from Ireland, which has always been a 

 large poultry and egg producing country, amounted 

 to one and three-quarter million pounds sterling, 

 BO that Britain's poultry and egg consumption, if 

 we take the value of home production as equal 

 to that of Ireland, is nearly seven and a half 

 million pounds annually. A calculation was made 

 in 1890, for the French minister of Agriculture, 

 that the income derived from the sale of eggs 

 and poultry in that country is 13,496,000 viz. 

 6, 140,000 'for poultry, and 7,356,000 for eggs. 

 The number of fowls is computed at 45,000,000, 

 representing a value of 4,500,000. It has been 

 Raul that tin- daily consumption of eggs in the 

 United States is 44,000,000, which would represent 

 an annual value of more than $200,000,000. 



Although the breeds of poultry are not so numer- 

 ous as are those of pigeons, trie development of 

 breeds since the era of poultry-shows has been 

 very great, and we have now some forty distinct 

 varieties, several of which are again subdivided by 

 different colours. There are about twenty varieties 

 of ducks, seven of geese, and six of Turkeys ( q. v. ) 

 domesticated. Ducks are most prolific layers, and 

 there is always a good demand for their eggs, 

 especially by cooks and confectioners. The breeds 

 of ducks valued for table purposes and for breed- 

 ing are almost all good layers the Aylesbury, 

 Pekin, and Cayuga breeds lieing famous ; the eggs 

 of the Rouen breed are rather smaller than those 

 of Aylesburys. Fowls may be divided into four 

 classes viz. table breeds; laying or non-sitting 

 breeds; general purpose breeds; and fancy or 

 ornamental breeds. 



Table Poultry. Characterised by rapid growth, 

 fine quality of flesh, and great breast development. 

 Dorkinqi. Old English breed, square bodied, white 

 legs and feet, and five toes ; four colours. French. 

 Seven varieties, all marked by large size, rich flesh, 

 chiefly dark-legged. Game. Have great breast 

 muscles and fine flesh ; not so large as the breeds 

 already named ; nearly half a score colours of game 

 fowl may be found. Indian Game. A very Targe 

 breed, bred chiefly in Cornwall ; l>eautiful in flesh 

 quality, but darker than dorkings or French, and 

 heavier in bone ; can be fed up to a great size. 

 In addition to these may be named Aseels and 

 Malays, which are good as table fowls. 



Laying or Non-fitting Poultry. In these the 



laying powers have been greatly developed (some 

 varieties producing upwards of 200 eggs per annum), 

 and the maternal instinct has been suspended by 

 disuse. They are chiefly of the Mediterranean 

 family, but not exclusively so. These Mediter- 

 ranean varieties have large single combs, a lightish 

 body, and include Anconas (speckled), AndaTusian 

 (blue), Leghorns or Italians (of which are ten 

 colours), Minorcas (black), and Spanish (black 

 with long white faces). Hamburg/is. Under this 

 term are two families, the Yorkshire and Lanca- 

 shire Pheasant Fowls (spangled and black), as also 

 the Redcaps, and the Dutch (pencilled), all very 

 beautiful, and the most prolific layers we have. 

 Houdans. Another French breed, with a crest, 

 pale legs, and five toes. Polish or Polled. Have a 

 very large crest, are good layers, but are delicate ; 

 of these there are six colours. Scotch Greys. A 

 cuckoo-plumaged fowl, with pale legs, good flesh, 

 and suitable for cold climates. 



General Purpose Poultry. Breeds which are not 

 specially good in any one quality, but well balanced 

 and good all round ; chiefly of the Chinese type 

 i.e. heavy in leg and bone, large in size, and with 

 high tails. Brahmas A Chinese fowl modified in 

 Europe and America ; two colours. Cochins. The 

 breed which made such a furore in the ' Fifties ; ' 

 very handsome, but poor as a layer and moderate 

 in flesh; five colours. Langshans. Like the 

 Cochin, of Chinese origin ; an excellent layer of 

 eggs with buff-tinted shells, and a capital table 

 fowl ; one variety, black in plumage. Plymouth 

 Rocks. A variety of American making, cuckoo in 

 plumage, and excellent in economic qualities. 

 Wyandottes. Also of American origin ; equal as a 

 layer and for the table ; four colours. All these 

 make excellent mothers, as do most of those in the 

 table-poultry section, and are very hardy. 



Fancy or Ornamental Poultry. These include 

 the breeds which are either bred alone for their 

 beauty or peculiarity of plumage, or by reason of 

 diminutive size are of no service for economic pur- 

 poses. They embrace the Game Bantams (six 

 varieties), Bantams (thirteen varieties, but con- 

 stantly being added to, many from China and 

 Japan), Japanese Long-tailed, Silkies, Sultans, 

 Frizzled, Naked Necks, Rumpless, &c. 



That poultry can l>e made profitable is undoubted, 

 but hitherto all attempts to establish poultry-farms 

 as such have ended in failure. Considerable profit 

 is often made by those who breed and exhibit pure- 

 bred poultry, whilst the advantage of having fresh 

 eggs and home-fed poultry is sufficient inducement 

 to many who have the opportunities of keeping a 

 few fowls, apart from the pleasure derived from 

 them. Poultry can be kept under many conditions, 

 and have been found to thrive in the most unlikely 

 places, but all their wants must be artificially 

 supplied. To maintain them in health they should 

 have a house dry above and below, with 16 square 

 feet of floor space for every half-dozen fowls of the 

 medium-sized varieties, an outside shelter in which 

 is placed a dust bath, this being the way in which 

 their skin and feathers are cleansed, and an open run 

 without. If they can be given full liberty it is all 

 the better, for which reason movable houses placed 

 out in fields or parks are the best ; but often it is 

 impossible to do this, and then not less than 6 square 

 feet of ground should be allowed to each fowl if 

 the run is laid in gravel or sand, or 100 square feet 

 per bird if in grass, or it will all be eaten off 

 and the ground left bare. Absolute cleanliness is 

 essential for them in houses, nests, and runs, and 

 the ground should be changed every two or three 

 years, or it is liable to become foul from the rich- 

 ness of their manure. Fowls naturally eat grain, 

 slugs, worms, &c., and, if the latter are not obtain- 

 able in the ground by them, some substitute must 



