16 Doors and Holes. 



cabbage tribe, and is excellent for growing strawberries, 

 or indeed almost any plants, if sufficiently diluted; for, 

 being very strong, it should always be mixed with earth. 

 A fowl, according to Stevens, will void at least one ounce of 

 dry dung in twenty-four hours, which is worth at least 

 seven shillings a cwt. 



The door should fit closely, a slight space only being left 

 at the bottom to admit air. It should have a square hole, 

 which is usually placed either at the top or bottom, for the 

 poultry to enter to roost. A hole at the top is generally 

 preferred, as it is inaccessible to vermin. The fowls ascend 

 by means of a ladder formed of a slanting board, with 

 strips of wood nailed across to assist their feet ; a similar 

 ladder should be placed inside to enable them to descend, 

 if they are heavy fowls ; but the evil is that, even with this 

 precaution, they are inclined to fly down, as they do from 

 high perches, without using the ladder, and thus injure 

 their feet. A hole in the middle of the door would be pre- 

 ferable to either, and obviate the defects of both. These 

 holes should be fitted with sliding panels on the inside, so 

 that they can be closed in order to keep the fowls out 

 while cleaning the house, or to keep them in until they 

 have laid their eggs, or it may be safe to let them out in 

 the morning in any neighbourhood or place where they 

 would else be liable to be stolen. Every day, after the fowls 

 have left their roosts, the doors and windows should be 

 opened, and a thorough draught created to purify the house. 

 During the winter months all the entrance holes should be 

 closed from sunset to sunrise, unless in mild localities. 

 Where there are many houses, they should, if possible, 

 communicate with each other by doors, so that they may 

 be cleaned from end to end, or inspected without the neces- 

 sity of passing through the yards, which is especially 

 unpleasant in wet weather. The doors should be capable 

 of being fastened on either side, to avoid the chance of the 

 different breeds intermingling while your attention is occu- 

 pied in arranging the nests, collecting eggs, &c. See that 

 your fowls are securely locked in at night, for they are 

 more easily stolen than any other kind of domestic animals. 



