136 FARMING FOR LADIES. [chap. ti. 



them in a paddock you will there find them 

 searching eagerly for the larvae of insects 

 imperceptihle to our view, and if an earth- 

 worm rises to the surface they seize upon 

 it with avidity, fighting with each other for 

 the prey. The quantities of earth-worms 

 alone which are found in our meadows after 

 a shower of rain would, perhaps, appear in- 

 credible, if stated according to the calcula- 

 tion of some naturalists ; but, if we consider 

 the vast number of birds which live upon these 

 and other insects, we must be convinced that 

 they swarm in multitudes beyond conception ; 

 and if nature provides such food for the wild 

 tribes of the air, there surely can be no reason 

 why they should not be shared by our do- 

 mestic poultry. M. Reaumur, indeed, tried 

 the effect of giving earth-worms, without any 

 other kind of food, to a cooped hen during 

 fifteen days, and found that, although she at 

 first ate them rather sparingly, she gradually 

 increased her consumption so much that she 

 grew fat, and was all the time in perfect 

 health. The success of this and similar ex- 

 periments led to long published details of the 

 means and profit to be derived from collecting 



