1877.] 



THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



39 



"GAME FOWLS." 



In the freneral demand foi- novelties in the 

 "poultry line," the nuwer and more fashion- 

 able varieties liad for a time occupied the fore- 

 ground, and had pushed tlie (tAMIcs of our 

 boyhood, to a jzreat extent, in tlie bickuround. 

 These biids, liowever, the noble pluek of which 

 had been the adinir.itiou of our youth, as con- 

 tradisthiETuislied from the|)usillaniniily of the 

 "dunirhills," have always had their admirers 

 aside fronj those who bred and reared them 

 solely to gratify their love for the cruel sport 

 of the " pit ;" and now, again, tlie game fowls 

 are looming up and receiving a new appre- 

 ciation of those excellencies of character wliicli 

 had been nearly eclipsed by their newer rivals. 

 Of these excellent birds Afessrs. Benson & 

 Burpee thus discourse in their catalogue for 

 1877 : " Tlie thoroughbred game hen is an 

 excellent layer of tlie very richest and most 

 delicately flavored eggs. As a mother none 

 can equal her. The game cock is vigorous, 

 watchful, and a sure getter of stock. They 

 are comparatively small eaters, and if allowed 

 tlieir liberty, are excellent foragers. As a 

 table fowl "tliey are ne ;jf'M icHra, beincr un- 

 eqiialed in the rich, gain'i II ivor of their llesh. 

 All in all, they are worthy of general culti- 

 vation as a fowl for 

 beauty, utility and 

 profit, even by those 

 who would, and right- 

 ly, most strongly con- 

 dcmu the pit and its 

 uses. We are breed- 

 ing DEAD GAME, that 



for courage, brave and 

 noble carriage, beauty 

 and compactness of 

 pUiniage and general 

 good qualities, cannot 

 be excelled." 



Among the varieties 

 imported and bred by 

 this enteri)rising lirrii 

 are '"Brown Hed 

 Games," -Black Red 

 Games," "Sumatra 

 Games," "Duck wing 

 Games" and "Game 

 Bantams." 



It is not distinctly 

 clear when or whence 

 the game fowls orig- 

 inated. Some writers 

 allege that they are 

 descendantsfroin Son- 

 nerat's common jun- 

 gle fowl {GaUus Son- 

 nera(ti) of continental 

 India, where it in- 

 habits the woods ; it 

 exceeds in size the 



" Bankiva" [GaUus Bankiva), from which our 

 " Bantam" is supposed to have sprung, and is 

 very beautiful, both in symmetry and plumage. 

 The Mussulman natives of India, wlio eairerly 

 engage in the barbarous sport of cock-fighting, 

 highly prize this bird for its great courage and 

 determination. It is, however, easily domes- 

 ticated. Two strongly marki^d varieties are 

 found. In the valleys, about 2.000 feet above 

 the sea, Sonnerat's species is found, "stand- 

 ing higli on its legs ;" and in belts of woods 

 on the sides of mountains, at an elevation of 

 4,000 feet above the sea, a short-legged variety 

 is found, and who knows but our " Crcepies" 

 have come from thi:; stock. Captain Skinner 

 records the curious fact that, in their native 

 wilds, these birds have the same habits as our 

 domestic poultry, in their sexual relations. "A 

 cock struts at the head of a bevy of hens and 

 keeps a strict watch over their safety," so 

 that this ])olygainous habit, after all, does not 

 Seem to be tlie result of domestication. 



instinct of their own. In the fall they direct 

 their course in great numbn'S to the rich 

 b ittoin lands of the Ohio and Mississipi)i. 

 Their food consists of grains, grasses, acorns, 

 bi'rries, fruit and insects ; neitherarc tadimles, 

 young frogs and lizards despised. When there 

 is an abundant crop of acorns, flocks of turkeys 

 may be expected. It often occurs that rivers 

 are to be crossed during 'these migrations. 

 When arrived at tlie banks they assemble on tlie 

 highest eminences and there remain for hours, 

 and even days, as if in consultation, or perhaps 

 to recruit tlieir strength for the undertaking. 

 While thus waiting, the miles employ their 

 time in gobbling and strutting about with ex- 

 panded tails ami lowered wings, in iking with 

 the latter a drumming or booming sound. 

 Even the females often imitate these raove- 

 mentss. At last, mounting the trees and .high- 

 est eminences, at a given signal from the 

 cliosen leader they wing their way to the 

 opposite shore. The old birds easily cross, 

 but, should the stream be wide, the young anil 

 feeble frequently miss the goal desired and fall 

 into the scream wlien they swim ashore. They 

 swim with no litMe dext'M-itv by closing their 

 wings and expan ling their tails for support, 

 striking out rapidly with their long and 



THE WILD TURKEY. 



This noble bird may be considered as both 

 migratory and gregarious, migrations arising 

 mainly from scarcity of food or of greater 

 abundance elsewhere, to which they are 

 gradually led by finding the supply increase as 

 they advance, rather than from any particular 



"GAME FOWLS." 

 powerful legs. When the banks are steep, as 

 is frequently the case, many are unable to 

 ascend, and falling back from their repeated 

 and unsuccessful attempts, are overpowered 

 by fatigue and perish in the water. 



The nest is a very rude structure, being a 

 straight hollow scraped in the ground in some 

 dry and sheltered place, and filled with with- 

 ered leaves or dry grass. These are usually 

 found in rising ground at the edge of marshes, 

 slushes or thickets, evidently for the security 

 the latter give the young. In one case 1 knew 

 of a wild turkey building her nest in the top 

 of a stub some eight feet from the ground, the 

 stub being protected by a thick top of a fallen 

 tree. The nest contained only six eggs. These 

 were carefully removed and placed under a 

 sitting hen, which hatched them all seven 

 days later. As the nest of a wild turkey 

 usually contains from ten to eighteen eggs, Tam 

 led to believe that this unusual selection of a site 

 for a nest was due to former ones having been 

 destroyed. The females alone incubate, care- 

 fully "concealing the nest, apiiroaching it 

 always with great caution and from a differ- 

 ent point, and covering the eggs with dry 

 leaves when leaving in search of food, and 

 bravely defending them against all depredators. 



It is said that three or four females will lay 

 in one nest, one always remaining as a guard 



while the others seek food. This I am inclined 

 to doubt ; and unless the turkey is far more 

 astute than supiiosed, there would be some 

 dithculty in dividing the progeny, particularly 

 it one or two eggs failed to hatch, and would 

 cause no small amnunt of tin key talk, to bo 

 settled by some grave old gobbler capable of 

 acting tiie Solomon. P.jssibly tliey may pool 

 progeny as well as eggs. 'I'he eggs arc of a 

 dull cream color, splotched with red. The 

 young mil as soon as liatched. and are covered 

 with a delicate hairy down. They are very 

 tender and easily killed by cold or wet. To 

 guard against the latter catastroplie, the first 

 night of the brood is usually passed In the nest, 

 after which the hen lea<lstliein to dry, elevated 

 places, carefully shielding them at night be- 

 neath her outspread wings until they ar(! two 

 weeks old, when they roost upon the broad 

 branches of trees, still ])rotecU'd by the wings 

 of the parent. The fetnile calls her young by 

 the well-known cluck. They run very fiust, 

 and when pursued trust more to their legs 

 than their wings for escape. 



HAY FOR HENS. 



T/ie Poultry World advises the use of hay in 

 the diet of fowls in winter, as they eat gra.ssto 

 advantage in sum- 

 mer. " Bulk in food 

 is required for health 

 ^ as well for poultry as 



'manor animals. Rich 

 and concentrated food 

 is not readilydigested 

 and invites disease. 

 Some think a craving 

 for bulky food is one 

 chief cause of feather 

 eating in winter, or 

 among fowls confined. 

 Now, just try and se- 

 cure a good supply of 

 second crop hay, short 

 and, if possible, con- 

 taining clover. Cure 

 only enough to pre- 

 serve, and your fowls 

 will eat a portion of 

 it all winter when 

 they would turn away 

 from stale cabbage. 

 What is not eaten will 

 furnish untold amuse- 

 ment in scratching 

 over. Remember in 

 winter, if poultry 

 stand on one leg, un- 

 employed all day, they 

 are disposed to have 

 tlie blues. Idle medi- 

 tations lead always to 

 bad habits ; while a 

 healthy mind, in a vigorous b xly, suggests 

 business, which, with fowls, means winter eggs 

 and early chickens. Secure your rowen in 

 September, or early in October of each year, 

 or before frost, if possible, for it is injured in 

 quality by being frost biten." 



The above advice is good, although few sup- 

 pose hens would eat hay if given them, but this 

 is because they have not watched the habits of 

 their poultry. We have noticed them often 

 picking short bits of cut hay of almost any 

 variety, and hay cooked for cattle is eaten 

 greedily by them. We advise short clover 

 well boiled for them. Clover is better than 

 anyollierhay, because it possesses egg-making 

 nutriment, besides fibre to separate the particles 

 of grain. It is not bulk, as mere quantity, 

 that is needed, but coarse fibre to .separate the 

 concentrated food in the stomach, so that the 

 gastric juice can circulate through the mass. 

 The stomach cannot well manage solid food. 

 Only a few minutes will be required to prepare 

 this hav for a large number of poultry. — Na- 

 tional Live Sliock Journal. 



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