82 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



towards their owner in an extraordinary degree. 

 Mr. Thompson informed me, that, in no instance, 

 has he ever heeii able to pass the enclosure in which 

 his swans are kept without being recognized and 

 saluted by them, although he has so disguised him- 

 self that recognition seemed impossible. 



Swans prefer food that has lain a day or more in 

 water. If fresh cut grass is thrown into their 

 ponds they will not eat it until it has become so 

 soft that they can suck it down; grain thrown into 

 the pond is usually left untouched until it has been 

 softened by the water. Dry and hard food of any 

 kind is not agreeable to them. Swan keepers usu- 

 ally have boxes or troughs placed in the ponds or 

 streams covered by water, into which, from time 

 to time, is put the grain for the swans. All weeds, 

 garden refuse, and vegetable ofFal thrown into their 

 pond, will be eaten by them after it has been so 

 soaked as to become soft. Should the swans have 

 a brood of cygnets, it will be necessary, if the body 

 of water in which they are kept is of small ex- 

 tent, to throw into the pond or stream, daily, quan- 

 tities of grass and vegetable matter as well as grain 

 for them, as the cygnets grow with astonishing 

 rapidity. 



Swans do not breed until the fourth year, conse- 

 quently it is for the interest of swan-keepers to 

 procure an old pair at triple the price of a pair 

 of cygnets. The risk of loss by death is much 

 greater with a pair of cygnets than of old and well 

 seasoned swans. 



Daring the breeding season and while the cygnets 

 require the care of the old ones, the male swan is 

 exceedingly cross, not only to strangers but to all 

 other fowls. If the pond or body of water in which 

 swans are kept is small, no other water fowl should 

 be allowed in it, as a blow from the wing of a swan 

 is sufficiently heavy to kill, at once, the largest 

 goose. No domestic water-fowl can out-swim the 

 swan. Two or more pairs of swans cannot be kept 

 in the same enclosure. 



At the commencement of the breeding season, 

 a quantity of straw or coarse hay and small dry 

 brush and slicks should be placed near the water 

 frequented by the swans, to aid them in procuring 

 materials for building their nest. If there are no 

 trees or shrubbery on the borders of the stream or 

 pond, a small house or rustic arbor should be made 

 close to the waters' edge, in which the swans will 

 build their nest. When the nest is commenced, it 

 is dangerous as well as unwise to go near the 

 swans. Do not on any account meddle with the 

 eggs. The number usually laid by an old swan is 

 from twelve to fifteen. The incubation lasts about 

 six weeks. While the female is on the nest, the 

 male is keeping guard, sailing backward and for- 

 ward in short tacks, ready and willing to attack any 

 and every thing that approaches, be it man, beast 

 or bird. During incubation a liberal and constant 

 supply of food should always be kept at the place 

 where the swans have been usually fed, that the 

 female may readily and quickly satisfy the cravings 

 of hunger, and that there may be as little inturrup- 

 tion as possible of her labors. 



The cygnets when first hatched are of a giey 

 color, and do not acquire the snow-white plumage 

 until more than two years old, neither does the 

 knob become fully developed, nor does the bill ac- 

 quire the bright orange color until they are nearly 

 three years old. 



A pair of swans accompanied by a brood of cyg- 



nets floating in a handsome well-kept sheet of 

 water is perhaps the most ornamental appendages 

 that a person living in the comitry can have. They 

 are not only ornamental but lucrative. Cygnets 

 will always command a large price and meet with 

 a ready sale. They can be as easily raised as wild 

 geese. A pair of cygnets will produce as much 

 money as a dozen pairs of wild geese. Cygnets 

 must be "pinioned." This must be done in the 

 month of August, or early in September. If it is 

 not done, in the latter pai1 of September the swan- 

 keeper will be left to regret theii departure, and 

 will learn that "delay is dangerous." 



This operation is easily performed and without 

 the loss of much blood. There are two places at 

 which the wing may be severed, viz: the wrist and 

 the elbow. The bird to be pinioned must be held 

 firmly by the assistant, the operator after having 

 pulled out the feathers which cover the joint at 

 which the amputation is to be made, with a sharp 

 knife will cut the skin and flesh beyond the joint so 

 as to allow for the contraction of the skin and mus- 

 cles that the bone may not be left bare, then finding 

 the joint well, with the knife or a sharp chisel 

 separate it, taking care not in any manner to injure 

 the bone. The cygnet on being released will at 

 once go into the water and remain for some hours 

 with the injured wing immersed. In a day or two 

 the wing will be healed. 



Pinioning at the wrist does not entirely deprive 

 the swan of the power of flight. I recommend that 

 the amputation should always be made at the elbow, 

 as then the bird cannot fly. 



In the season when the ponds and streams are 

 covered with ice, swans must be liberally supplied 

 with water, and their food must be fully saturated 

 with water, as they require more than any of the 

 other kinds of ornamental or domestic birds. 

 Yours truly, S. Bradford Morse, Jr. 



A WORD TO YOUNG MEN. 



Wishing and sighing and imagining and dream- 

 ing of greatness, said William Wirt, will not make 

 you great. But cannot a young man command his 

 energies.' Read Foster on decision of character 

 That book will tell you what is in your power to 

 accomplish. Yuu must gird up your loins and go 

 to work with all the indomitable energy of Han- 

 nibal scaling the Alps. It is your duty to make 

 the most of your time, talents and opportunities. 



Alfred, King of England, though he performed 

 more business than any one of his subjects, found 

 time to study. 



Franklin, in the midst of his labors, had time to 

 dive into the depths of philoso])hy, and explored an 

 untrodden path of science. 



Frederic the Great, with an empire at his di- 

 rection, in the midst of war, and on the eve of bat- 

 tle, found time to revel in the charms of philosophy, 

 and fea-st on the luxuries of science. 



Napoleon, with Europe at his disposal, with 

 kings at his ante-chamber, and at the head of 

 thousands of men, whose destinies were suspended 

 on his arbitrary pleasure, found time to converse 

 with books. 



5^= "Cabbage," says the Edinburgh Review, 

 "contains more muscle-sustaining nutriment than 

 yan other vegetable whatever. Boiled cabbage and 

 corned beef make fifty-two as good dinners in twelve 

 months as a man can eat " 



