TETHERING HENS WITH YOUNG BIRDS. 129 



ends are then tied together in a knot at B. The cord should 

 be so arranged that the loop A is about an inch long. 



The proportions are shown of the correct size in the 

 engraving. When it is wished to apply this to a hen the loop 

 can be enlarged by sliding the slip knot down the string 

 towards B, when the loop will become sufficiently large for 

 the foot of a hen to be passed through. On returning the 

 slip knot to its former position, the loop is round the leg of 

 the hen, but cannot be tightened by her pulling, and is readily 

 taken off and put on again as required. The free end of the 

 string may be as long as is desired, depending on the amount 

 of space over which it is wished to allow the hen to roam. 

 At its extremity should be a peg, which can be forced into 

 the ground firmly enough to prevent the hen pulling it out. 



An open, sheltered coop should be placed near her, under 

 which she can retreat at night and during rain. The coop 

 should not be put so close to the peg by which the hen is 

 fastened that she can walk round it, but near the limit of her 

 cord, so that she can pass in and out, but not round the back. 

 When thus fastened the hen is able to scratch the surface of 

 the ground and supply her young with the seeds, grubs, 

 worms, and natural food which is so much more beneficial 

 to them than any artificial substitute that can be given. The 

 young pheasants, even when two or three days old, will be 

 observed scratching for themselves, and the progress that 

 they make when reared under these conditions is out of all 

 proportion to that made when the hen is kept cooped up and 

 the birds are fed on the hard, soiled, dirty ground. The 

 pegs and coops can be shifted daily, so that the young birds 

 are always on fresh ground. 



In situations where such a convenience is available, there 

 is no more advantageous situation for newly hatched 

 pheasants than a garden surrounded with high walls. A 

 very practical correspondent, writing from Kildare, says : 

 " There can be no better place to put young birds when 

 newly reared than a large walled-in vegetable garden. I 



