46 



THE AMERICAN POULTERER'S COMPANION. 



In selecting a proper situation for this purpose, 

 it will be necessary to have it, if possible, on 

 the south side of some building, or the south or 

 southeast side of a hill or bank, so that one 

 side of the wall may be set against the hill, and 

 if of stone, to be laid in mortar, which will add 

 very much to the warmth of the room. We 

 would suggest, too, as an object of economy, 

 when building the wall, to leave holes or recess- 

 es in them fifteen inches square, 'in which shal- 

 low boxes or drawers may be placed for nests. 

 The sedrawers can be removed when necessa- 

 ry, and cleaned or freed from vermin. If the 

 buildings are of wood, they should be filled in 

 with brick, or lathed and plastered. 



The confinement of fowls will be found a 

 most necessary arrangement, as on many occa- 

 sions it is highly requisite they should be con- 

 fined, as at planting time, or at some other pe- 

 riods, when they are particularly troublesome. 

 Close confinement in a room or shed would in- 

 terrupt their laying, and make them sick, but 

 a yard on the plan we are about to describe 

 would answer every purpose, and be often found 

 very advantageous in securing the eggs of such 

 fowls as had contracted a habit of laying away, 

 and hazarding the loss of eggs. 



It is well known that cold benumbs fowls, 

 retards and diminishes their laying; that the 

 want of good water gives them the pip, costive- 

 ness, and other inflammatory diseases ; in fine, 

 an infectious atmosphere causes them to droop, 

 whence it naturally follows that their fecundity 

 is less, that the flesh is not of so good a quality, 

 .ind that the rearing of them is difficult. Un- 

 der such circumstances one may judge how im- 

 portant it is for the improvement of poultry that 

 it should always be wholesomely, comfortably, 

 and cleanly housed. 



Dickson says, "In order to unite all the ad- 

 vantages desirable in a poultry-yard, it is in- 

 dispensable that it be neither too cold during 

 winter, nor too hot during summer; and it must 

 be rendered so attractive to the hens as to pre- 

 vent their laying in any chance place away from 

 it. The extent of the place should be propor- 

 tional to the number of fowls kept, but it will 

 l)e better too small than too large, particularly 

 in winter, for the mutual imparting of electric- 



ity and animal heat. There is no fear of engen- 

 dering infectious diseases by too much crowding; 

 and it is found, in fact, that where fowls are 

 kept apart they are much less prolific." 



The driest and warmest soils are best adapted 

 to the successful rearing and breeding domestic 

 fowls, especially chickens; and to be attended 

 with the greatest success and least trouble, some 

 expense and great precaution will be required. 

 Fowls endure extreme cold much better than 

 moisture. To unite all the advantages desirable 

 in a poultry-yard, it should neither be wet nor 

 exposed to cold winds. There should, if pos- 

 sible, be running water in the yard, and under 

 cover should be placed ashes and dry sand, where 

 they may indulge in their natural propensity 

 of rolling and basking or bathing themselves. 

 Gravel, broken shells, crushed bones, and old 

 lime mortar, should always be placed within 

 their reach. 



From our own experience we are satisfied 

 that the same house ought to be kept exclusive- 

 ly for barn-yard fowls ; for though they will not 

 be very dissociable with others through the day, 

 they do not like to sleep under the same roof 

 with different species from themselves. Tur- 

 keys, in particular, are very quarelsome, and 

 will not suffer other fowls to come near them. 

 Geese, too, are troublesome at the feeding hop- 

 pers, by keeping the fowls away till they have 

 satisfied their hunger; ducks soil or contami- 

 nate the water, but are less troublesome than 

 turkeys or geese. 



Having settled all preliminaries, we will now 

 give a number of plans, some of which would 

 be rather expensive, and intended more partic- 

 ularly for the wealthy or fancy farmer ; while 

 others would be more simple and unpretending, 

 and for utility rather than show, and could be 

 erected at a very trifling expense, and within the 

 reach of every one. In thus presenting our read- 

 er with a great variety of plans, we leave him to 

 adopt such of them as may appear most suit- 

 able to his individual case. If we had adopt- 

 ed a different mode of proceeding, viz., that of 

 generalizing the plans of others and giving the 

 result of our own, our work would necessarily 

 have exhibited our own opinion only, whereas 

 the former mode exhibits all the more valuable 



