292 HOME LIFE IN FLORIDA. 



because she sedulously conceals her uest, and as often as it 

 is found, and the eggs disturbed, will seek another. 



The young guineas are very delicate ; must be carefully 

 and frequently fed, and kept out of showers and wet grass. 



But ducks ! We would have every one who has a river 

 or lake near by, or even those who have not, to keep on 

 hand a goodly supply of these fat, comfortable-looking 

 birds, whose great value as garden assistants not every one 

 knows, very few in fact. 



Give them a chance to help themselves to the slugs and 

 worms that are the farmers' greatest foes, and see how 

 quickly these pests will disappear ; but look out for your 

 strawberries! Dearly do ducks love these delicious berries, 

 and where they are the latter soon cease to be ; other fruits 

 hang too high to be in much danger, and ducks do not 

 scratch or do other damage to plants. 



Around our Florida lakelets, where tiny frogs and fish 

 and water plants abound, ducks enjoy themselves to their 

 utmost, and cost their owners very little, if any thing, for 

 feed, since scraps that the more dainty chickens refuse 

 they will eat almost invariably. 



When put up for fattening they should be allowed only 

 a trough of water, and be fed on barley-meal, if it can be 

 had, if not, on corn-meal. If celery or ''celery salt" can 

 be obtained, it will impart a delicious flavor to the flesh, 

 mixed with the feed. 



The drake does not approve of a large harem; three 

 wives, or even two, are quite enough for him ; and these 

 wives, being rather eccentric in the matter of the *'how, 

 w^hen, and where " of laying their eggs, should be detained 

 in the hen-house each morning until they have left their 

 eggs there, being otherwise quite as likely as not to drop 

 them in the water while swimming. They will soon learn 

 to connect the detention and the eggs together, and thence- 



