FOOD OF FOWLS. 139 



placed before them equal quantities of maize, 

 wheat, buckwheat, oats, and rye, and the 

 corn was invariably first eaten. Next to 

 this, wheat is preferred, but its price deters 

 many from using it. Some have recom- 

 mended to feed fowls with tail wheat, or 

 what is known under the name of wheat- 

 screenings, upon the same rational principle, 

 I presume, that they would give bran to 

 their horses, instead of oats or corn. 



The cultivation of the common sunflower, 

 Helianlhus annuus, has been highly recom- 

 mended by some poultry breeders. In Rus- 

 sia, where these seeds are used by man and 

 beast to a great extent, they are said to fat- 

 ten fowls better than anything else, and to 

 increase the number of eggs more than any 

 other kind of grain. The seeds are oily, and 

 very nutritious. Some content themselves 

 with throwing down the heads of the plant, 

 when ripe, to the fowls, to help themselves ; 

 others, more careful, thresh them out gently, 

 and preserve them for future use. They 

 are, however, apt to become rancid and 

 mouldy if kept together for any considerable 



