part of the order Rasores. or Scraping-Birds. It 

 ig needless to describe minutely the appearance 

 of the barn door fowl. The most prominent char- 

 acteristics of the cock, or male bird, are a thin 

 indented comb, with wattles on each side under 

 the beak ; a tail rising iu an arch, and a great 

 variegation of colors. The female, or hen, is small- 

 er as regards body, comb and wattles, and her 

 tints are less vivid. The domestication of this 

 bird seems to have taken place in the earliest 

 times, and Persia is usually supposed to have 

 been the place of its origin. Many varieties of 

 it have been enumerated as existing in Britain ; 

 but the differences betwixt these, in the majority 

 of cases, seem to lie as much in color as iu any 

 more important features. The best marked 

 kinds are the following : The Dung-hill Fowl, 

 Game Fowl, Dorking Fowl, Poland Fowl, 

 Spanish Fowl, and Bantam. 



The first of these varieties is a mougi'el one, 

 arising from crosses with all the other breeds ; 

 but it is the common and most u.seful variety. 

 The best fowls of this sort are of middle-size 

 and dark color, and have white, clean legs ; the 

 pure white dung-hill fowls are held to be the 

 weakest in constitution, and to lay fewest eggs. 

 It has been usually agreed to call the game fowl 

 the proper English fowl. The body is erect and 

 slender, and the colors showy, particularly those 

 of the cock. In comparison with other breeds, 

 the game bird is like the race horse beside that 

 which draws the cart and plow. The flesh, 

 moreover, is peculiarly white and delicate in 

 flavor, while, though small, the eggs are also of 

 a very superior quality. There is a peculiarity 

 of disposition, however, in this variety of the 

 domestic fowl, which, while for ages the source 

 of a cruel species of sport, has always impaired 

 the real utility of the creature to a very great 

 degree. We allude to the pugnacious spirit 

 which has gained for the fowl its peculiar name, 

 So strongly marked is this propensity, that 

 broods scarcely feathered are found occasional- 

 ly to have reduced themselves to utter blind- 

 ness by reciprocal battling. Even when the 

 breed is crossed and re-crossed, a tincture of the 

 love of fighting still remains, rendering such ad- 

 mixtures of species the source of risk and 

 trouble, though in other respects very advanta- 

 geous. Hence game-cocks are bred on a large 

 scale almost solely for the battles of the cock- 

 pit. Where persons prefer to have a game- 

 cock in their poultry -yard, their choice, accord- 

 ing to the best authorities, should be directed to 

 birds of some one or other of the following colors: 

 dark-red, dark black-breasted red. dark-grey, 

 mealy-grey, and red dun. The Dorking fowl is 

 named from a town in Surrej', where it has 

 long been bred in great numbers. It is a large 

 bird, well shaped, with a long capacious body, 

 short legs, and five claws upon each foot instead 

 of four. These distinctive marks seem to be of 

 old standing in peculiar breeds, as both Aristotle 

 and Pliny mention five-toed fowls. Though, 

 from repeated crossings, the Dorking fowls are 

 now found of all colors, white or yellowish- 

 white is supposed to have been the primitive 

 and genuine tint. They lay large eggs, and in 

 great plenty. The Poland (Polish or Paduan) 

 fowl is much valued by breeders, but is seldom 

 found perfectly pure in Britain. The species 

 was imported principally from Holland, and 

 when unmixed, was uniformly of a black color, 

 with a white crest or tuft on the heads of both 

 cock and hen. Their foi-m is plump and deep, 

 and the legs of the best sorts not too long. They 



are called everlastings layers, from the number 

 of eggs produced by them, and from their dis- 

 inclination to sit and hatch, which office is usual- 

 ly done for their eggs by other liens. The Span- 

 ish fowl is of large size, and lays large eggs. It 

 is of the Polish family, and is almost uniformily 

 marked by a black body, black legs, and large 

 red combs. In London and its vicinitj', the 

 breed is now extremely common, being valued 

 for the size of the eggs ; but it is supposed to be 

 inferior in some respects toother breeds, though 

 yielding good food. The Bantam fowl is well 

 known for its small size, and its feathered gro- 

 tesque-looking limbs. It was originally a native 

 of India and the nankeen-colored and black 

 birds are the most esteemed. The bantam 

 should have a rose-comb, a full tail, and a lively 

 carriage, and should not weigh above one pound. 

 It has been recently discovered that the charac- 

 teristic of feathered legs is not an improvement, 

 the birds with clean bright limbs being the best. 

 The flesh of this breed of ibwls is peculiarly de- 

 licate. 



Besides these well-marked varieties of the 

 common domestic fowl, there are a number of 

 others, brought from foreign countries, which 

 have produced mixtures pretty familiar to 

 breeders. The Turkish, Malay, Rumkin. Rus- 

 sian, and Barbary species, may be mentioned as 

 the principal of these. It need only be observed 

 here, that all the crested mixtures or varieties 

 of fowls are much esteemed, as possessing the 

 best qualities of the race. All or any of these 

 breeds of domestic fowls are valuable to the cot- 

 tager, even one good laying hen being a treasure 

 to a humble family. 



Hen House. — Another simple poultiy -house of 

 small size may be formed by building a shed 

 against the gable of the house, opposite to the 

 part wanned by the kitchen fire, and placing 

 cross-bars iu it for roosting, with boxes for lay- 

 ing in. or quantities of fresh straw. There should 

 alwa3's be an opening, to allow of the cleaning 

 out, once a week at least, of the poultry-house — 

 a process too often neglected, but very essential 

 to the health of the Poultry. They never will 

 thrive long amid uncleanness ; and even with 

 the utmost care, a place where Poultry have 

 been long kept becomes what the housewives 

 call tainted, and there they will thrive no longer. 

 The surface of the ground becomes saturated 

 with their exuvis, and is therefore no longer 

 healthy. To avoid this effect, some poulterers 

 in the country fi-equently change the sites of their 

 poultry-houses, to obtain fresh ground ; and to 

 guard against the same misfortune, fanners, who 

 cannot change their hen-houses and yards, puri- 

 fy the houses by fumigations of blazing pitch, 

 by washing with hot lime water, and by strew- 

 ing large quantities of pure sand both within and 

 without the poultry -houses. Washing the floor 

 of the house eveiy week is necessary ; for which 

 pui-pose it is of advantage that it be paved either 

 with stones, bricks, or tiles. But as these three 

 modes are expensive, a good flooring, which is 

 cheaper, may be formed by using a 'composition 

 composed of lime and smithy ashes, together 

 with the riddliugs of common kitchen ashes ; 

 these having been all finely broken, must be 

 mixed together with water, and put on the floor 

 with a mason's trowel, and nicely smoothed on 

 the surface. If this is put on a floor which is in 

 a tolerably dry situation, and allowed to harden 

 before being used, it will become nearly as solid 

 and compact as stone, and is almost as durable. 

 The inside of the laying boxes requires frequent 



