54 



THE AMERICAN POULTERER'S COMPANION. 



and height the lowest tier elevated two feet 

 above the ground, and one tier above the other, 

 and snugly partitioned between, with a hole at 

 one corner of each, 10 by 8 inches, for passing 

 into them, and a shelf or passage board, 9 inch- 

 es wide, in front of each tier, for passing into the 

 boxes. These are for nesting, and should be 

 supplied with short, soft straw or hay for that 

 purpose. 



COTTAGER'S POULTRY-HOUSE. 



"No housewife in the country," says Bos- 

 well, " whether her cottage is situated in a vil- 

 lage or on the roadside, need be without a few 

 fowls ; provided proper care be taken to do no 

 injury to surrounding property not her own, and 

 of whose possessor she has not obtained per- 

 mission. This can be more easily accomplished, 

 even in apparently disadvantageous circumstan- 

 ces, than is generally imagined. Although in 

 some cases the profit may appear small, in all, 

 the economy is great. Suppose a cottager while 

 engaged in his daily toil, and his wife in her 

 usual avocations, should have some means by 

 which even the scraps of their scanty table, with- 

 out intrenching upon their time, should be turn- 

 ed to profitable account, instead of littering the 

 floor, or being swept out. into the road! 



"For the accomplishment of this most desir- 

 able object, the means, in a great majority of 

 instances, are simple and easy. 



"At the gable end of the house, as near as 

 possible to the opposite side of the kitchen fire 

 at which part, and for this purpose, the wall 

 might be made thinner ; perhaps only brick in 

 bed, or brick on end, to the height of six or 

 eight feet a poultry-house, 

 something similar to the an- 

 nexed figure, might with the 

 slightest materials be made. 

 Formed of rough slabs, or of 

 such materials as -the rural 

 resident must be at all times 

 able to find in his neighbor- 

 hood, such an erection would 

 cost almost no expense. Its 

 construction can easily be un- 

 derstood from the figure. Its size, form, and 

 fitting up must depend principally upon the 



judgment and convenience of the rearer; but 

 in such a place, it not being advisable to per- 

 mit them to roam at large, a palisade can easily 

 be formed completely to inclose this poultry- 

 house. It will only require one row of stakes, 

 running parallel with the gable of the house, 

 with the shed at one end and a small gate at 

 the other, to form a complete parallelogram, in 

 which the poultry, when necessary, may be con- 

 fined. The inclosure does not require to be 

 high, if the tops are pointed, for these fowls 

 seldom attempt to pass over. If this inclosure 

 can be made to surround the ash-pit, even in 

 very unfavorable circumstances, a very perfect 

 and profitable poultry establishment may on a 

 small scale be formed." 



In some plans, a poultry-house is built large 

 enough to contain all the different species, and 

 this is often found an agreeable as well as use- 

 ful addition to a mansion, affording an oppor- 

 tunity of observing their habits. Some poultry- 

 houses have been fitted up on a considerable 

 scale, consisting of various compartments, each 

 species of bird being placed in circumstances 

 suited to its nature and habits ; and each com- 

 partment comprising separate divisions for feed- 

 ing, roosting, laying, incubation, and rearing. 

 Among the most extensive of these we may re- 

 fer to those of Her Majesty and Lord Penryhn, 

 in Europe, and in this country, to that of Mat- 

 thew Vassar, Esq., at Spring Side, near Pough- 

 keepsie, one of the neatest and completest estab- 

 lishments we have ever seen. The yard is in- 

 closed on three sides with sheds, the roofs slop- 

 ing outward, and divided into wards for the dif- 

 ferent varieties of fowls, including turkeys, pea- 

 cocks, Guinea-fowls, pheasants, tame and wild 

 ducks, and different varieties of geese. A great 

 variety of fancy pigeons are also kept in this 

 establishment. 



How much of the excellence of these first-rate 

 constructions are attainable on a small scale, 

 will depend upon the taste of the owner, and 

 other circumstances ; but although a small col- 

 lection may be kept in one place, yet the prin- 

 ciple of separating each species should not be 

 lost sight of, and it will be found proper to give 

 them different habitations, according to their 

 several habits. 



