ACCESSORIES TO THE POULTRY-HOUSE. 



main safe and warm till the next morning, when 

 a similar move takes place again. The ends 

 of the coop are perforated Avith air-holes, small 

 enough to be secure against rats or weasels. In 

 summer the coops stand out during the night. 



It has a sliding bottom, as indicated by the 

 dotted lines. We consider that the extra ex- 

 pense of a sliding bottom is well repaid by the 

 avoidance of damp, and the greater facility of 

 cleaning it. The interior of these, as in other 

 chicken abodes, is not always so entirely in view 

 as to render it at once perceptible whether the 

 person who has charge of them has the same 

 idea of the importance of scrubbing and purify- 

 ing as we ourselves may think necessary ; but 

 if a second slide is at hand, to be scoured on al- 

 ternate days, and dried in the sun or by the fire 

 before it replaces the one in use, we are safe, and 

 the health of our chickens will soon satisfy us 

 that they appreciate the care. 



But do not let our readers be frightened by 

 the minuteness of these directions, for at a later 

 season the chickens may be left much more to 

 themselves ; only let them remember that if in 

 possession of a choice breed of fowls, and they 

 desire to have healthy chickens at an early pe- 

 riod of the year, their chances of success will 

 be infinitely increased by following our advice. 

 In our system of management we always en- 

 deavored to adopt as natural a course of treat- 

 ment as might be ; and if such daily care and 

 attention to their dwelling-houses and food be 

 insisted on as contrary to the natural provision 

 they would meet with in a state of liberty, we 

 can only reply that equally contrary to nature 

 is their existence in a domesticated state. We 

 have deprived them of what nature would have 

 given ; for which, therefore, some compensation 

 must be made. 



CLOSE COOP. 



A writer in the Cultivator says: " The follow- 

 ing cut is a coop of my invention, which I think 

 is very convenient. It may be made of inch 

 boards, long enough to admit of any number of 

 fowls. A A, slats raised for admitting the hens ; 

 B B, doors to open and shut at night, to prevent 

 the intrusion of any kind of vermin ; C, button 

 for fastening the doors." 



CLOSE COOP. 



In all cases a warm, dry, and quiet place 

 should be chosen for the coops, near the house, 

 on account of the convenience of feeding them, 

 and where the chickens are not in danger of be- 

 ing trod on either by man or beast, nor where 

 the hen will suffer from the intense heat of the 

 sun, or where there is danger of the chickens 

 being carried off by the hawks or crows. To 

 make them thrive, fine sand or ashes should be 

 near at hand where the chicks can roll and busk 

 themselves. 



It has been our practice to place hens with 

 their chickens in the walks of our garden, at 

 least fifty feet apart ; where they not only ob-. 

 tain their livelihood, but are of great service in 

 destroying large numbers of bugs, worms, in- 

 sects, and their eggs, which are so injurious to 

 vegetation. We found some difficulty, howev- 

 er, in this, for the hawks would pounce upon 

 them, and where the vegetables, such as beans 

 and peas, are pretty rank, the rats will take 

 shelter and catch the young chickens when they 

 run among them. It is well to look to these 

 evils, and we would also advise their removal 

 after they are one month or so old, or they will 

 become so attached to the garden that it will be 

 difficult to keep them out. 



At the end of six weeks the hen may be set 

 at liberty after the dew is off in the morning 

 and the weather fair, and if the movable coop 

 be employed, it may be propped up with a stick, 

 and the hen will return to it of her own accord 

 at night, when it may be let down and kept so 

 until the dew of the morning is dried off. At 

 the end of two weeks more they may be turned 

 into the poultry-yard. 



As they will at first hardly receive fair play 

 in the distribution of food, it will be necessary 

 to prepare for them a feeding-coop, so that they 



