1876.] 



THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



135 



will feed on apple, p(';ir, qniiioe, clicny, and 

 other kinds of foliage; lint if not, the best 

 tliinR he can do is to " mash " tliem, for if 

 tluee ean strip the foliasie off a small eherry 

 tree, he can form some idea what a thonsaiid 

 can do. Tlie moth is very larijeand very pretty, 

 e.siieeially the male.s, some of whieli incasnre 

 nearly six inches across the expaiuhil win;;s. 

 The ground color is dusky hrown, varrualed 

 with waved lines of white, dull red, and dark 

 lirown ; tlie nnlcniur are feathered, and there 

 are four crescent-shaped spotson the front and 

 hind winj;s. Tlie body is alionl two inches in 

 leni;th, and ha.s cross lines of nd, hrown and 

 white. 



The Reneric name, Attiinis, means elegant, 

 and the specific name recmjiin, is sujiposed to 

 have heeii derived from Cecroiis, the founder 

 and head of the Athenians, the most polislied 

 and refined peoide of antiquity. They usually 

 come down from the trees and spin their 

 lari;e sjiindle-sliaped hrown cocoons on shrnh- 

 herv o|- the dry stems of jilants, where they 

 remain all winter, and the inotli appears in 

 April or May, aceordiiiK to the temperature of 

 the weatlier. Last spriiv^ one evolvcil for us 

 in tlie liouse, in Marcli, in tlie sam(> room 

 where it had heen all winter. We have never 

 known them to lie very 

 numerous or destructive. -^ 



the chitinous coverinfjand the corneous parts, 

 es]iec)ally the spines on the tiliia. dry and 

 chippy, and somewhat irritatini; to the lliroat. 

 This olijeetion would not apply witli the same 

 force to the mature indiviiliials, especially of 

 lai'tjer species, where the heails, lc>;sand winjjs 

 are carefully seiiarated before cooking',- and, 

 in fact, some of tlie inalure iiiscels |irepai'ed 

 in this way, then boiled and aflerwardsstewed 

 with a few vej;etal)les and a 'itlle butler, pep- 

 per, .salt and vinegar, made an excellent 

 frimifce. 



BLACK HAMBURGS. 



Mlaek Ilambur^s are di'servedly at the head 

 of this valuable class of fowls. They are laiijer, 

 are fuller and more iilump in body, and lay 

 larfjpr Cirgs than theotlier varieties. Tiny are 

 very prolilic and may be termed " everlasliiif; 

 layers. " They should be (ine and syinuietrical 

 in sliajie and conlbrin with other llamburKS — 

 not tall and thin like the Hlack Spanish. In 

 color they should be a deeji, jilossy black, en- 

 riched lliroiii;li<iiit with a beautiful respleii<lenf 

 green gloss; when the sun shines n|ion their 

 plumafje it is very res))lendent with an in- 

 tensity and glow uneipialeil by any other black 

 fowls. Their legs are of a slaty blue color. 



LOCUSTS AS FOOD. 



In the annual report o' 

 the Commissioner of Agri- 

 culture and Arts for On- 

 tario, recently to hand, we 

 find the following remarks 

 by Prof. Riley: -'AVhen- 

 ever the occasion present- 

 ed, I partook of locusts pre- 

 pared in different ways; 

 and one day I ate of no 

 other kind of food, and 

 must have consumed, in 

 one form and another, the 

 substance of several thous- 

 and half-grown locusts, 

 ("ommencing the experi- 

 ments with some misgiv- 

 ings, and fully expecting 

 to have to overcome dis- 

 agreeable flavor, I was 

 rather agreeably surprised 

 to tind that the insects were 

 quite palatable, in what- 

 ever way prepared. The 

 flavor of the raw locust is 

 most strong and disagreea- 

 ble; but that of the cooked 

 insects is agreeable, and 

 sufficiently mild to be 

 easily neutralized by any- 

 thing with which they are 

 mixed, and to admit of easy disguise, ac- 

 cording to taste or fancy. T?ut the great point 

 I would make in their favor is, that they need 

 no elaborate ]ireparation or seasoning. They 

 require nodisgui.se, and herein lies their value 

 in excejitiona! emergencies ; for when people 

 are driven to the point of starvation by these 

 ravenous jiests, it follows that all other food 

 is very scarce or nnattainaVile. A broth made 

 by boiling the untledged ('(tlopletii for two 

 hours, in the jirojier quantity of water, and 

 seasoned with nothing in the world but liepjier 

 and salt, is ipiite jialatahle, and can scarcely 

 he distinguished from beef broth, though it 

 has a slight flavor peculiar to it and not easily 

 described. The addition of a little butter im- 

 proves it, and the flavor can, of course, be 

 modified with mint, sage and other spices, 

 rid libitum. Fried or roasted in nothing but 

 their own oil, with the addition of a little salt, 

 they are by no means unpleasant eating, and 

 have (piite a nutty flavor. In fact it is a flavor, 

 like most peculiar and impleasant flavors, that 

 one can soon learn to get fond of. Prepared 

 in this manner, ground and compre.s.sed, they 

 would doubtless keep for a long time. Yet 

 their consumption in large quantities in this 

 form would not, I think, prove as wholesome 

 as when made into soup or broth ; for I found 



t'AOW.^*^.^,^,.:. 



The ear lohe is a very attractive feature of the 

 Black Ilaraburgs. It should be oval and imre, 

 spotless white throughout, standing forth in 

 bold relief with the surrounding black jilum- 

 age and red wattles. The coiiih. should be rose, 

 evenly serrated, and coming to a point at the 

 end. This iioint should turn nicely iipwanls 

 and not point down, as is often the ea.se. The 

 comb must also (it lirinly on the head and not 

 lop to either side. Tlie Black Ilumburgs are 

 not nearly so common as the Penciled and 

 Sjiangled varieties, and good specimens are 

 exceedingly rare. Many liirds at our exhibi- 

 tions show too plainly, in their form and style, 

 a very decided cross or admixture with Black 

 .Spanish blood. To the Hev. W. Sergeantson 

 is probably due the credit of the present per- 

 fection of' the highest class of this breed. I.. 

 Wright, in his illustrated hook of poultry, 

 sjieaks of his birds as the " most successful in 

 tlie .show lien," and gives an illustration of his 

 premium fowls. Our Black Hamburgs, de- 

 jiicted in the a<^eompanying beautiful engrav- 

 ing, drawn expressly for our new catalogue, 

 were, with other hens, brought over by Mr. 

 Spence, of .Scotland, who selected them in per- 

 son from Rev. Mr. Sergeantson's yards. 



In breeding Black Hamburgs, as with other 

 non-sitting varieties, it will be necessary to 



keep a few mongrel hens that have proved 

 good mothers, to hatch and rear the young 

 chicks.— W. Altec Uurpcc, PlUla., Sept., IHTU. 



INSECT VITALITY. 



A common fly, that had lain drowned for 

 two days in a cup of lager beer, at Ilolyoke, 

 recently, and was swclhd to huge jiroportions 

 by th(' liquid, was by experimenf of some idlere 

 on a wager, restored to activity by an hour's 

 coaxing with the Iwat of a cigar held over the 

 fly ineviousiy covered witli the cigar's ashes. 



.Vs soon as i pie lind this out they will sing 



" I woiilii I were a fly" louder than ever. 



AVhether the aliove is truth or not, the 

 tenacity of some insects is very remarkable, 

 and we have seen exhibitions of it fully as won- 

 derful as tlie ahovi'. It is on record that the 

 Rev. Mr. Kirhy. a distinguished miuisler of 

 the English established church, had his atten- 

 tion lirst called to till- .study of enbunology, 

 from witnessing something akin to the above. 

 He hail immersed the "Twenty-spotted Lady- 

 bird" in alcohol for sixteen hours, after wliieli 

 he ]iut it on a window sill, in the warm sun, 

 when it revived and flew away, to his astonish- 

 ment and disaiipointment. We have seen 

 nearly all (he flies taki'ii 

 ■'-'.._ in a "Tumbler-trap," 



" after being immersed in 



water for half a day, re- 

 =^_, vive again, after having 



heen tlirown out in the 

 sun, within an hour after 

 exposure to its rays. We 

 have' seen a )>air of 

 "Horned Toads" from 

 Texas survive for five 

 months without eating 

 anvthing whatever. 



FEED FOR YOUNG 

 FOWLS. 



VCv presume there are 

 few farmers' wives that do 

 not raise a flock of chicks 

 every year without dilli- 

 culty; but we have heard 

 many complain that they 

 h;ul trieil turkey raising 

 until they gave it niiin dis- 

 gust. 



As T li.ave been remark- 

 ably successful with this 

 most most tender of all 

 fowls, I will give my idan 

 of feeding, which is, sim- 

 ply, fcrd nnlhivi rmi\ I 

 prefer feeding corn bread 

 made of unsifted meal and 

 cold water. Make the 

 dough stiff, and bake it in 

 a slow oven until done— no more. If baked 

 too long the crust will iH'hard. and if the meal 

 is sifted the liread will be stickv. Knoni.'h can 

 be baked at once to last several days, and is 

 more convenient than mixing raw meal every 

 feed. I think it well to feed all young fowls 

 in this manni'i'. but always found it dhmlutfh/ 

 vms.tin-ii to hake bread for turkeys and com- 

 mon ducks. The Aylesbery are more hardy, 

 hut I follow mv old jilan and hake break for 

 them also. I liave fifty-seven at this writing 

 that are growing nicely. 



Lice are often the cause of death in young 

 fowls, and must be got rid of before they will 

 thrive well. I prefer using an ointment made 

 bv stewing tobacco in lard, to sulphur, or any- 

 thing else I have evertried. .\noint thebrpa.st 

 and under part of the wintrs of the mother, 

 and head and under part of the yoinvj. and the 

 vermin will give voii no further trouble. 



If these sim|ile directions ar<' followed, to- 

 sether with housing until (he sun is up and 

 the dew is nearly gone in the moruinir, and on 

 stormy days, von will never fail to liaveaniceu, 

 roast for Christmas.— 2'rairtc Farmer. 



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