July IS, 1911 



lions; and even if their eggs do not bring 

 any better prices than hens' eggs, I am 

 sure there is a great opening for a wonderful 

 new industry. 



Here is something further about the In- 

 dian Runner ducks, which I got from the 

 Rural Neiv -Yorker. Please notice this 

 writer corroborates my experience, to the 

 efTect that an old drake is often hostile to 

 young ducks, and will kill them if he is 

 permitted to do so. What a sad specimen 

 of an unnatural father ! 



TRUTH AND "INDIAN KUNNEK '" DUCKS. 



I see you wish the plain truth about the Indian 

 Runner duck. I wish to say I do not see how they 

 can be improved upon wlien kept In small flocks to 

 supi)ly the farm table with eggs, and roast duck oc- 

 casionally. They are great layers, among the best 

 in ducks, and they do mature early — three to four 

 pounds each — not heavy enough for a market duck 

 for general consumption. As a market fowl I do 

 not see why they should be expected to compete 

 with the hen on the egg question. The customer 

 must be found, and the market created. Fifty cents 

 a dozen before Piaster and 85 cents a dozen for the 

 remainder of the season would be a fair price, but 

 few will pay it, for tlie simple reason that the pub- 

 lic will resent the extra price, the same as your 

 correspondent does what he terms breeders' prices. 

 I consider the prices of these duck-breeders for 

 eggs and stock extremely reasonable. Most of them 

 sell eggs for 81.00 a setting: and 81. 50 to 82.00 each for 

 stock will not more than pay the advertising bill. 

 My wife says one duck egg in a cake equals two hen 

 eggs. 



If the surroundings are agreeable, five ducks will 

 lay 1-tO eggs a month, and get their own living out- 

 side of the morning and evening meal. The quali- 

 ty of tlie Indian Runner duck egg is mild; the meat, 

 in the hands of a good cook, is delicious. These are 

 reasons enoiigh why they will pay their way on any 

 farm. As to the glowing stories being printed con- 

 cerning these ducks, one must not rush heedlessly 

 into anv enterprise and expect great pnjfits. Find 

 your market first, and then stock up accordingly. 

 1 will state briefly how I handle my ducks: I try 

 to close them up nights and turn them out at feed- 

 ing-time, when they will liave laid. They then go 

 to the water, and I do not see them again until it is 

 time to feed grain at night. They can be expected 

 to lay from February until August. Last season I 

 had one commence laying again in the fall, and she 

 laid (50 eggs before the snow came, when she shut up 

 shojj at once. I raise the .voung ducks under Buff 

 Plymouth Rock hen.s. as they make good mothers 

 and do not kill many in the nest. Yesterday a lit- 

 tle hen had spent four weeks on nine eggs, and at 

 the sound of the first peep she threw the egg out on 

 the floor. Not finding a hen on the nests 1 went to 

 a coop where 1 had confined some broody hens, se- 

 lected a BufI Rock, put the eggs under her, and 

 covered her up. To-day she has six liright little 

 ducks, and seems happy in her new surroundings 

 without being restrained in any way. Wlien the 

 young ducks are turned loose the drake will have 

 to be confined or he will kill them. Set duck eggs 

 on the ground to hatch well, otherwise the ducks 

 will probably have to be helped from the shell. Do 

 this 24 hours after the shell is pipped, and after the 

 blood in the lining of the shell has been absorbed 

 by the duckling. Take ofT the small end of the egg, 

 release the head, and let Mr. Duck do the rest him- 

 self. Young ducks thrive best on sloppy food, such 

 as one would feed young pigs — middlings and milk 

 mixed into a batter, and poured into a trough, with 

 cracked corn at night. 



Orange Co., N. Y. Geo. E. Howell. 



TINTED EGGS AND WHITE EGGS, ETC. 



Since so much has been said about having 

 Indian Runners that laid white eggs instead 

 of greenish ones, I have written to friend 

 Jennings for his opinion. Below is his re- 

 ply: 



As to the green-egg layers, I will say that there is 

 no flock in the United States that will lay all white 

 eggs all the time. There may be a man who has 



447 



one or two that will lay white eggs, but they will 

 not do that all the season. I could not say wheth- 

 er the tinted-egg layers are any better layers than 

 the white or not, as I have ducks that lay tinted 

 eggs the fore part of the season, and during April, 

 May, and .lune they will lay mostly white eggs. 

 The two ducks that are illustrated on the corner of 

 this sheet laid 105 eggs each, without a miss, and I 

 think they would have done better if they could 

 have had the same kind of feed: but I was com- 

 pelled to make a change, and that changed their 

 laying a few days. 

 Mt. Gilead, O., May 29. Kent Jennings. 



I have just returned from a visit to my 

 brother, living near Fennville, Mich. He 

 has three ducks, and their eggs, at least 

 those I saw, were what would be called 

 white eggs, although they are not quite as 

 white as some hens' eggs. The tint is more 

 of a brown (what httle tint there is) instead 

 of being green or bluish-green, like mine in 

 Florida. 1 think friend .Jennings has given 

 us pretty nearly the truth in regard to the 

 matter; and I am still of the opinion that 

 their rations may have soiBething to do 

 with it, esjiecially the shape in which they 

 are furnished lime. A poultry-keeper in 

 Florida who was helping in a grocery told 

 me he could tell from every lot of eggs 

 brought in whether chickens had crushed 

 oyster-shells or not. He said the shell of 

 every egg had a different look when the 

 fowls were jjrovided with i)lenty of crushed 

 oyster-shells. If people are going to 'in.n,st 

 on having white duck eggs, and if the mar- 

 ket will give a httle moi-e for eggs that are 

 clean antl very white, it may be worth our 

 while to look into the matter. By the way, 

 why can't we mix a little indigo in their 

 feed so as to whiten the shells in the same 

 way the women-folks whiten their dresses 

 and other articles of clothing? 



GARDENING IN FLORIDA; CAN IT BE KEPT 

 UP THE YEAR ROUND? 



You will notice that the "spread-eagle" 

 advertising of "homes in Florida," that is 

 now to be seen in almost every periodical 

 (and perhajis some of it in our own journal 

 also) , fails to mention that there are certain 

 reasons why you can not make garden, very 

 much, the year round in Florida. When I 

 was down there last August I found the 

 truck-gardeners very busy with their plant- 

 beds starting celery, jiepper-plants, and per- 

 haps a few other kinds; but as a rule there 

 was little or nothing being done in the open 

 fields. Neighbor Rood was growing beggar- 

 weed, and, I think, velvet beans for hay; 

 and the beggarweed especially made a most 

 astonishing growth, notwithstanding the 

 heat and the excessive rainfall; but the truth 

 is, there are very few croi)s of any value ex- 

 cept hay that will stand the wet and the 

 heat together. All kinds of clover, includ- 

 ing sweet and alfalfa, go down in the sum- 

 mer time. See what the Florida Experi- 

 ment Station has to say in regard to it on 

 page 84, Feb. 1. Last season my brother 

 tried making garden in the summer time. 

 I do not believe any thing succeeded on our 

 place except the chufas. Even sprouted 

 oats in the open ground were a failure. He 



