THE ILLINOIS FAKMER. 



287 



THE POULTRY YARD. 



Laying Hexs. — Just about this season of the 

 year, when eg-gs are an indispensable ingredient 

 in the gaod things to be got up for thanksgiving 

 and Christmas, laying bens are a valuable and 

 profitable portion of a fiirmer's stock. The 

 propensity for Inying", seems to belong to dis 

 tinct families of tb.e same breed. We know of 

 a farmer ^Yhose chickens are a cross of Shanghai, 

 Brama and the common ducghill. The pullets 

 lay when four months old, and they keep on 

 laying with little intcrinissiou, thror.gh the 

 whole year. No especial pains are taken to 

 feed them. Othtr persons having precigely the 

 same cress, get but very fe?/ eggs. Why is 

 this? We occasionally find a scrub cow an ex- 

 cellent milker, while some cows of the same 

 stock are worth nothing for the dairj'. 



To Prepare Poultry for Market. 



Preparing. — Mi'ke thera fat. A grain-fed 

 plump, fat fowl v;Ui sell for double the price per 

 pound of a lean one. A liberal feeding, for a 

 few weeks before killing will iiecirJy double the 

 weight and double the price, rcakiiig a quad- 

 ruple return for the fiiiis,hing oil food. 



Killia.i. — Keep them from bruising thenia 

 selves. Secure the wings the instant they are 

 caught, and tie thera behind the back. 1'ie the 

 legs logether, hang 'iliem upon a pole, ani'l then 

 cut off the heud with a sharp knife, leavicg as 

 loa-r' a n-^-ck as Dos.-ible. Let them hang until 

 they bleed clean. Keep tasm from food for two 

 or three hours before killing. Any grain left 

 in the crop sours and materially injures the flesh 

 if kept long beiore cooking. 



Dressing. — Pick tuera dry, taking particular 

 care not to tear or bruise the if"sb. If scalded 

 at all let it be done (mickly and in water not 

 qaile boiling hot. Ee carelui uvl to rub cii the 

 ouier thin fikiii from the legs. If not to be 

 packed in b;iX',;s, alter picking dry or scalding, 

 wash them ii; clean Vv^arm soap-suds, end 'plump' 

 thcrn, that is hold them in boiling v.;iter about 

 live seconds, if to be packed for carrying a 

 long distance tlo n./.t wet thc-ra at all, except to 

 v/a'h the ncsk. .Strip back the skia on the 

 ncok bone; oraw the loose skin over, tie it 

 lightly, cut oft the bloody portion a little way 

 beyoau the string and wash oft any blood, wip- 

 ing dry. 'ibis will keep thera clean and blood- 

 less, and inci'e:;?o their saleableoess. 



Cvnv.xyvE a>;d IJoosi-serriks. — These can 

 now be triniincd. Cuttings for new plants can 

 be planted out now, or when the ground is in 

 order, or kept for spring planting. In the lat- 

 ter case, they should be covered with sand or 

 earth, to prevent tlie'.n from drying up. 

 ■'df- • 



When pork sells for 5c per pound, it brings 

 .5c per bushel in corn. 



Famous English Oaks. 



The King Oak, Windsor Forest, is more than 

 1,000 years old, qmte hollow. Professor Bur- 

 net, who once lunched inside this tree, said it 

 was capable of accommodating ten or twelve 

 persons comfortably at a dinner sitting. 



The Be<j gar's Oak, in Bagshot Park, is 20 

 feet in girth five feet from the ground; the 

 branches extend from the tree 48 feet in every 

 direction. 



The V/allaca OaTc, at Ellerslie, near where 

 Wallace was born, is 21 feet in circumference. 

 It is 67 feet high, and its branches extend 45 

 feet east, 36 west, 30 south, and 25 north. Wal- 

 lace and 300 of his men are said to have hid 

 themselves from the English, among the branch- 

 es of this tree, which was then in fail leaf. — 

 Dowtiing's Landscape Garcl. 



Handsome Ornamental Hedge, 



In passing through a nursery recently, we ob- 

 served a long row of purple Althea, in full flow- 

 er. The plants were about 4 feet in bight, one 

 foot apart, ar.d thickly branched from the ground. 

 They formed a close, compact hedge, of hand- 

 some form, and the flower^ gave it a very gay 

 appearance. The Althea is much more com- 

 pact than the Privet; will bear the shears well, 

 and is easier kept in form, not being apt to 

 throw out long, straggling branches. It will 

 not, of course, do for keeping out animala, and 

 neither will the Privet; but for a small ornamen- 

 tal hedge, we know few plants that will com- 

 pete with it, and cutting in the spring, will in- 

 crease the show of blossoms. "We may, however, 

 remark that it is not well adapted to Vtry dry 

 soil, as ii will lose its leaves in such a situation, 

 in a dry time; but it will grow finely in good, 

 rich loam, and all the better if somewhat moist. 

 — Ohio Farmer. 



-*^p~ 



Colossal "Walnut Tree. 



On the road from Martel to Gramant (Lot) is 

 to be seen a colossal wa'nut tree, at least 300, 

 years old. The bight of this tree is about 55 

 feet: it? branches extend to a distance of 125 

 feet; the trunk, 14 feet in diameter, is only 20 

 feet high, but it sends out seven immense bran- 

 ches. 



It bears on an average each vear 15 bags of 

 v?ahiuts. Older trees grow near, but they are 

 of verv moderate dimensions. — Galinnani's 

 Mess, ' 



K@-Tallow may be hardened by mixing one 

 pound of alum in the lump, with every twenty 

 or tiiirty pounds of tallow, when "trying" or 

 rendering it. This is said to secure an exemp- 

 tion from soft greasy candles. 



S^'-Mr. Frederick Hecker, of St. Clair coun- 

 ty, in this State, has produced one hundred and 

 fifty gallons of wine from his vineyard, this 

 season. The quality is said to be superior to 

 the Cincinnati wine. 



