CHAP. 11.] FARMING FOR LADIES. 39 



French naturalists enumerate no less than 

 sixty different species of fowls ; and although 

 English writers on the subject modestly 

 confine their description to little more than 

 one-third of that number, yet as the greater 

 part of these are chiefly bred for the satisfac- 

 tion of the curious, we shall only particularise 

 a few of those more prominent breeds which 

 are in general use ; leaving to amateurs the 

 amusement of producing new varieties by 

 crosses with some of the foreign kinds. Nor 

 is this to be looked upon as an idle waste of 

 time or money ; for, while it innocently em- 

 ploys the mind, should it be attended with 

 success in bringing forward a superior breed, 

 not only will a private, but also a national 

 advantage be thus obtained ; and we should 

 recollect, that to such experiments all our 

 improvements in the present native stock of 

 animals are due : it is not, therefore, destitute 

 of interest in the view of either domestic eco- 

 nomy or public benefit. 



Although it may call forth a smile from 

 ladies who are initiated in the management of 

 poultry, to be told the names by which fowls 

 are described, yet it may not be uninteresting 



