Vol. 6.— No. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



69 



oiler condition. In short, were the farmer's at- 

 tention direc-ted more generally to his farm, as a 

 whole, his sl.Tilo plains would in process of time 

 become fenio fields; his dairy would be more 

 profitable ; cis stocU improved: his farm be more 

 valuable, and his reputation be rescued from mer- 

 ited reproach. (To he concluded next iDCck ) 



GEOLOGICAL Guryev" or Worcester 



COUNTY. 



The citizens of Worcester County, alive to their 

 interests, intend to institute a gooloafical survey 

 of every town, for tiic purpose of aiding Agricul- 

 (ure and Manufactures. A gentleman, by the 

 name of Holbrook, has recently addressed a se- 

 ries of questions, onihe subjeci, to each town, and 

 lias offered to eich a set of specimens of the most 

 valuable productions of the mineral kiugfdom — 

 Such a mode, of developing the natural advanta- 

 ges of old Es.sex, should be adopted. We are per- 

 suaded, that it would be advantageous to us. A 

 few years ago a Society for this purpose was pro- 

 tected among some of our young citizens. Have 

 (hey not enough of public spirit, to renew the pro- 

 iect. and carry it into execution? — Salem Observer. 



SUBTERRANEAN FOREST. 

 The second volume of the Transactions of the 

 Geological Society of London," contains a very 

 interesting account of the subterranean forest, 

 which was laid open in Norfolk, Eng. last autumn, 

 by the sliding off into the sea of a large avalanche 

 of rocks and clay. — The forest occupied a bed of 

 nbout four feet in thickness. The trunks vi^erc 

 found to stand, as thickly as usual in woods. — 

 Tiio stumps appeared to be firmiy rooted in the 

 original soil, "but they are invariably broken off 

 about a foot and a half from the base." The 

 stems and branches lie scattered horrizontally, and 

 among them are thin layers and cakes of decom.- 

 posed leaves. The species of the timber is princi- 

 pally that of the pine, but there are some speci- 

 men's of elm and oak. This forest extends twen- 

 !y miles, and is from ten feet to two hunted feet 

 below the surface of the earth. —Sa/f7)i (Ms. 



KEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



BOSTON, FRIDAY, SEPT. 21, 1827. 



POULTRY HOUSES, &c. 



Beatson, an English writer [Com. to the Boardof 

 .1g. vol.1.) is of opinion that poultry always ought 

 to be confined, but not in a close, dark, diminutive 

 hovel, as is often the case ; they should have a 

 spacious airy place, properly constructed forthem. 

 Some people are of opinion that each sort of poul- 

 try should be kept by itself. This however, he 

 says is not absolutely necessary, for all sorts may 

 be kept promiscuously together, provided they 

 have a place sufficiently large to accommodate 

 them conveniently, and proper divisions or nests 

 for each kind to retire to separately, which they 

 will naturally do themselves. 



Mr. Wakefield of Liverpool, says the compiler of 

 " The Complete Grazier," keeps a large stock of 

 poultry in the same enclosure with singular suc- 

 cess. He has nearly an acre enclosed with a close 

 slab fence about seven feet high. The top of the 

 fence is every where sharp pointed like pickets, 

 though perhaps this may not be necessary. Within 

 this enclosure are put up slight small sheds well 

 secured from rain however, for the different kinds 

 ^ poultry, and it is supplied with a small stream 



! of water. The poultry is regularly fed tlircc times 

 a day witii potatoes boiled in steam, wliich is their 

 only food except vvliat grass may grow in their 

 enclosure. Tiie quantity of dung whicii is made 

 in lliis poultry place is also an object worthy of 

 attention; and when it is cleaned out, a thin par 

 ing of the surface is at the same time taken off 

 winch makes a valuable compost for the purpose 

 of manure. But for keeping poultry on a small 

 scale, it is only necessary to liave a small shed or 

 slight building, formed in souie warm, siiellercd, 

 sunny satuation, if near tlie kitchen or other place 

 where a fire is constantly kept, so much the belter, 

 with proper drvisions, boxes, baskets or other con- 

 trivances for the different sorts of birds, and for 

 their laying and incubation. 



Where a few poultry that take tlieir chance at 

 the barn door, are kept by a farmer for the con- 

 venience of eggs, and not to go to market when a 

 fowl is wanted, no particular attention is requi- 

 site ; but as in some situatiops tliey may pay well 

 for more food and closer attention, other circum- 

 stances may bo noticed. " The poultry house 

 should," Young says, "contain an apartment for 

 the general stock to roost in, another for setting, 

 a third for fattening, and a fourth for food. If 

 the scale is large there should be a fifth for pluck- 

 ing and keeping feathers. If a woman is kept 

 purposely to attend them, she should have her 

 cottage contiguous, that the smoke of her chimney 

 may play into the roosting and setting rooms ; 

 poultry neverthrive so well as in warmth and smoke, 

 an observation as old an Columella, and strongly 

 confirmed by the quantity bred in the smoky cabins 

 of Ireland. For setting both turkeys and hens, 

 nests should be made in lockers, that have lids 

 witli hinges to confine them if necessary, or two 

 or three will, he says, crowd into the same nest. 

 All must have access to a gravelled yard, and to 

 grass range, and the building should be near the 

 farm yardj and have clear water near. Great at- 

 tention should be paid to cleanliness and white 

 washing, not for appearance, but to destroy ver- 

 min. 



Loudon says "The interior arrangement of a 

 poultry house for a farm yard is generally very 

 simple and consists of a little more than a number 

 of spars reaching across the bottom of the build- 

 ing at different heights, or the same height, with 

 a gang way or ladder attached, for the fowls to 

 ascend; but where comfort and cleanliness are 

 studied, a preferable mode is to form a sloping 

 stage of spars (see a b in the annexed figure) for 



the poultry to sit on ; beneath the stage may be 

 two ranges of boxes for nests (c c) the Tooffd) 

 should be a ceiling to keep the whole warm in 

 winter, and tlie door (e) should be nearly as high 

 as the ceiling for ventilation and should have a 

 small opening with a shutter at bottom, which 

 where there is no danger from dogs or foxes, may 

 be left open at all times to admit of the poultry 

 going in and out at pleasure, and especially fo,r 



their early egress during summer. The spars on 

 which the clawed birds aro to roost, should not be 

 round and smooth, hut roundish and roughish, like 

 the branches of a tree. The floor must be dry 

 and kept clean for the web footed kind. 



A writer in the European Magazine, in speak. 

 ing of this mode of managing and feeding fowls 

 says, "I gave them corn fgrain] in the morning, 

 and in the r:fteriioon boiled potatoes mixed with 

 Irish bran, but I never allowed tliein to take a full 

 meal of corn. They liad a small orchard to range 

 in, where in the course of tlic day, they occasion- 

 ally j)ickcd up worms and other insects, and J 

 have observed that poultry of all kinds eagerly 

 seek for animal food, even after they have satiated 

 themselves with corn: indeed I can perceive a 

 portion of animal food essentially requisite to pre 

 serve them in a healthy state. 



Mr. Lawrence, (JVew Fnnncrs^ Calendar, page 

 551,) says "Poultry are an article of luxury, for 

 which the little farmer never obtains an adequate 

 price. He had better allow his wife a certain 

 annual sum for pin money than suffer her to keep 

 these dcvourers. Four hens to a cock or five at 

 most. Hens set twenty one days. Leave plenty 

 of nest eggs where you desire them to set. Take 

 away the strongest chickens aa fast as they arc 

 hatched, secure them in wool until the whole art 

 hatched, a-id strong enough to be cooped. Hens 

 not to be cooped near,as they may kill each other's 

 chickens. Young poultry fed by themselves, or 

 under coops, as the large arc apt to tread the 

 smaller to death." 



It is said a little molasses or any other sacchar- 

 rine substance is very useful to mix with the food 

 of poultry, which it is intended tofatten. Perhaps 

 it might be well to boil a proportion of beets, ripe 

 and sweet pumpkins or squashes with potatoes for 

 the food of poultry. When corn is given to fowls 

 it should be broken or soaked in water. Hens, it 

 is said, should have access in winter, to slacked 

 lime, lime mortar, or oyster shells, otherwise they 

 will be less likely to afford eggs, as something of 

 a calcareous nature is necessary to form the shell. 

 Wheat, however, if given to fowls for food, will 

 furnish the substance [phosphate of lime] which 

 is the principal constituent part of egg-shells. 



We have noticed the following among new 

 works just published in London : 



The Florist's Guide ; a treatise on Tulips, Hya- 

 cinths, Carnations, Pinks, Auricula, Roses, &.C. by 

 R. Sweet, F. L. S. 



Flora Australacia ; description of Flowers in 

 New Holland, &,c. 



Designs for Agricultural buildings, Cottages, 

 Farm House, &c. ; by C. Waistell, Esq. Chairman 

 of the Committee on Agriculture of the Society of 

 Arts. 



English Flora, by Sir Jas. E. Smith. 



Essay on the different modes of cultivating the 

 Pine Apple ; by a member of the Horticultural 

 Society. 



The Gardener's Remembrancer. 



Treatise on Shrubbery; by Thos. Philips, F.H.S. 



It ia stated in Loudon's Gardener's Magazine, 

 which has been published in London but one year, 

 that it has already over 3000 subscriberfi. 



