THE GENESEE FARMER. 



JA^f. ]| 



BLACK POLAND TOP-KNOT FOWL. 



rection, but they must be perfectly white and the 

 rest of the plumage perfectly black; broken colors, 

 it is said by some, show across breed." J. H. Stan- 

 ley, of Le Roy, in this State, we understand, has a 

 fine lot of this breed. 



Dr. Bennett, of Plymouth, Mass., remarks in the 

 Boston Cultivator: "The eggs of some breeds are 

 twice as valuable as those of others — for instance, 

 one egg of the pure Cochin China Fowl, of the Bay- 

 lies' importation, contains nearly as much nutritious 

 matter as two eggs of the Black Poland or Golden 

 Pheasant Fowl, and is, consequently, much richer, 

 better flavored and more valuable." 



That great difference exists in the nutriment of 

 eggs, is a fact well known; but that this results less 

 from breeds than the way in which fowls are kept, 

 admits of hardly a doubt. As a cow cannot elabo- 

 rate rich milk from a slop made of sawdust and wa- 

 ter, so a hen is incapable of making a highly nutri- 

 tious egg from clean buckwheat bran alone. The 

 silliest of all ideas is that which assumes, that a bird 

 can lay any quantity of good eggs without a full sup- 

 ply of organized nitrogen, sulpur and phosphorus in 

 its daily food, as well as of all the other ingredients 

 demanded by nature to form a perfect chicken in the 

 shell. Supply abundantly, the proper material to 

 make a genuine ami healthy bird in the aliment of 

 the parents, and rich eggs and plenty of them, may 

 reasonably be expected. There is much point in 

 the following remarks of Dr. Bennett: "Chickens 

 should be fed on worms or meat-food if you desire 

 to keep them healthy, and have them grow rap- 

 idly; And the food of fowls in general should be 

 greatly varied, especially if they are not suffered 

 lo run at large, which, however, slinuld always be 

 done when practicable. The quality of tiie soil makes 

 a great difference in the size of fowls. Rich ground, 

 as it contains more worms and a greater variety of 

 such other articles as fowls feed upon than poor land, 

 is, consequently, much better adapted to their na- 

 ture, and produce much larger fowls under similar 

 circumstances." 



Some time since we were at breakfast at the table of 

 a gentleman at his residence in the poor piny woods 

 of Georgia, where linn, sulphur, phosphorus, and 

 organized nitrogen did not abound for the production 

 of any eggs larger than those of small yellow ants. 



Hen's eggs brought on the table had the thinnest possi- 

 ble shells, containing the poorest possible albumen and 

 yolk. A pig which had lived four weeks and been 

 systematically starved before killing, could not be 

 more dejune and innocent of all fatness. 



A short lecture on the domestic manufacture of 

 eggs and the proper keep of fowls, soon doubled the 

 supply of this article of food in that family. All 

 poultry about the premises now have a plenty of pound- 

 ed oyster shells, sulpliur-water, ash-heaps to wallow 

 in and keep off vermin, and animal food of some 

 kind. In addition to the latter, cooked peas and oats, 

 or the same fed raw, are given to the birds to be 

 transformed into the finest flesh of the duck, turkey, 

 or chicken. Nothing is more simple and direct in 

 its natural progress than the vegetable and animal 

 transition by which even night soil may be conver- 

 ted into fat turkeys, or eggs worth from ten (o fif- . 

 teen cents a pound. 



CANADA THISTLES. 



Dear Sir: — The Canada thistle made its appear- 

 ance among us a few years since, and has increased 

 so fast that some of us are becoming alarmed about 

 it. Having learned that it is very common with 

 you, a neighbor of mine, and subscriber to your 

 paper, requests me to apply to you, through the 

 columns of your paper, for the best mode of destroy- 

 ing it, or different modes if there are more than one 

 good one. I have seen it in many different parts of 

 the coiuitry, and am inclined to the opinion that it 

 was introduced into our country by sheep brought 

 from the north. Would not a large quaiUity of lime 

 put on it, destroy the vitality of the plant and roots ? 

 Yours, fee, John Lehman. — Hempjietd, Lan. Co., 

 Pa., .Tor., 1849. 



Remarks. — Salt is altogether better than lime to 

 destroy Canada thistles, or any other obnoxious 

 plants. Frequent mowing, so that no seed whatever 

 is permitted to mature, is all important to prevent 

 this variety of thistles from spreading. Deep and 

 frequent plowing has proved successful in many 

 instances. Any one who has had experience in 

 subduing Canada thistles, will oblige us by giving 

 an account of the process for the benefit of the public. 



