FANCIERS' JOURNAL AND POULTRY EXCHANGE. 



73 



ment of English sovereigns and nobles. The practice was 

 prohibited under Edward III, but became general again 

 under subsequent rulers until again put down under the Pro- 

 tectorship. But as this barbarous pastime has a history of 

 its own — more interesting to roughs — we will not pursue it 

 here. 



Columeli was the first whom we know to have devoted a 

 work to the subject of poultry. And though he was nearly 

 cotemporary with Christ, the markings and qualities of 

 many varieties were about as definitely classified then as at 

 present. He speaks of the Dorking with his " fifth toe/' 

 the Polish with his "top-knot," the game with his "black 

 breast, red hackle, and fiery courage," and the black Spanish 

 with his " white face." 



Gallinaceous fowls are now to be found in nearly all portions 

 of the habitable globe. The aborigines of America and the 

 Greenlander have not possessed them, but the islands of the 

 Southern Oceans are said to be "alive with them; " while 

 Asia, North Africa, Europe, and civilized America, use 

 them and their eggs in such profusion as to occupy many 

 millions of money annually with incident commercial trans- 

 actions. 



The objects for which persons have given attention to 

 poultry have been food, profit, fancy, and science. The 

 first of these, namely, was, together with the time-keeping 

 qualities of the crower, the great reason, no doubt, for their 

 domestication and care in ancient times. And as this care 

 was bestowed principally by woman, it is natural that it 

 should, with herself, have been despised by men and neg- 

 lected by ancient writers. But not caring that her devotion 

 was unappreciated by her lord, she sedulously sought every 

 means to " give food to her household." I suspect that to 

 this feminine devotement, we owe the preservation of the race 

 of poultry. But, as the world grows older and wiser, not 

 only woman, but this charge of the housewife, grows in im- 

 portance, till the products of the poultry-yard command 

 hundreds of millions. 



New York City alone consumes $8,750,000 worth of eggs 

 annually, while the annual consumption of eggs and chick- 

 ens in the United States, is estimated at $100,000,000. Over 

 $1,000,000 worth of eggs are annually exported from Ire- 

 land to the two ports of Bristol and Liverpool ; and of 

 poultry feathers Ireland sells to England $2,500,000 worth 

 yearly. Yet the importation of eggs and poultry by Eng- 

 land from Prance are even greater, while Prance keeps 

 $80,000,000 worth for home consumption. Full statistics of 

 the trade in eggs and poultry are not now in my possession, 

 but they cannot fall short of $2,000,000,000. 



In view of these immense figures the question of profit 

 presents itself. Careful accounts and experiments have 

 settled the profits of poultry-keeping to be, on an average, 

 one hundred and fifty per cent, upon the capital invested. 

 These figures have led many into a hasty investment in 

 poultry rearing as a business, without .sufficient regard to 

 the three great conditions of success, namely : 1. Experi- 

 enced skill in the management; 2. Market facilities; 3. 

 The practicability of keeping fowls on a large scale, so as to 

 invest a considerable capital. 



This last consideration was experimented upon by Mr. 

 Geyelin, at Bromley, England. The failure was decided, 

 and the consequence was to discourage all similiar attempts 

 for many years. 



A reconsideration of the subject has, of late, led to the 

 belief that his failure was chiefly owing to fault in the first 



above-mentioned condition. He proceeded upon mere 

 theory, and that theory strangely defective. Parties in the 

 United States are conducting the experiment with encour- 

 aging success. 



In Egypt immense numbers of fowls are hatched by arti- 

 ficial means, but are not reared together in large numbers, 

 but sold or parcelled out among other parties to be raised on 

 shares. These incubating establishments have been carried 

 on, it is believed, for centuries, but by a clan who possess a 

 secret that accounts for their success. They receive eggs 

 from the surrounding communities to supply their ovens, 

 and pay in advance twenty-five per cent in chickens. 



Fancy, however, has been the chief motive in the careful 

 culture of fowls in Great Britain and the United States, 

 where the finest and purest varieties are to be found. In 

 England, this fancy directed chief attention to the game 

 fowl, at a very early date, and developed clearly the best 

 fighting strains. These had about monopolized the fancy 

 until between the years 1840-50, when importations of the 

 gigantic hens of China, Malacca, and the East India islands, 

 began to be made in large numbers. Most of us may re- 

 member those days of the " hen fever," that as mysteriously 

 and universally as the " epizootic " swept over our country. 

 Games, Bantams, Dominiques, paled into insignificance in 

 the estimation of those effected by this epidemic. Nothing 

 but the rooster that could peck corn from the top of a flour 

 barrel and bawl with the ambition of an ox could be the 

 object of their fancy ; and for such specimens fabulous sums 

 were paid. 



(To be continued.) 



PHILADELPHIA ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS. 



(Continued from page S2, No. 4.) 



It will hardly be asserted that there is any prospect of 

 this number diminishing, nor will it be denied that it is 

 most probable it will steadily increase, and during the year 

 of the Centennial be more than quadrupled. It is reason- 

 able to believe that few would resist the pleasure of driving, 

 riding or walking through the zoological gardens so invit- 

 ingly at hand. Saturdays should be cheap days, and the 

 money that would be taken in on those days alone would dis- 

 solve any fears of their six per cent, in the minds of the 

 stockholders. Apparent, however, as the result seems to 

 those who have studied the question, or who have the sub- 

 ject at heart, the managers have had great difficulty in rais- 

 ing sufficient money, but they have struggled gallantly along, 

 and have established the nucleus of a collection in the park 

 which, with encouragement from the public, will assume 

 magnificient proportions in a very few years. "With some 

 $60,000 they have inclosed ten acres in the centre of the 

 thirty-three shown in the plan, and have laid it out as there 

 shown. The walks are vulcanized, the ground graded and 

 ready for a lovely turf in the spring, the stream opened and 

 widened into pools in places for fish and aquatic birds, rus- 

 tic bridges have been thrown across, a handsome place for 

 beavers has been built, an enclosure for prairie dogs, a mon- 

 key house, the finest to be seen anywhere, costing six thou- 

 sand dollars, a buffalo enclosure, six deer parks and houses, 

 three connecting pits for bears have been begun, a barn, or 

 temporary winter house, and before spring an aviary, aqua- 

 rium house, restaurant, eagles' cage, and other buildings 

 will be completed. The list of members nearly reach four 

 hundred, and means are being taken for increasing the num- 



