January 31, lSe5. ] 



JOUENAL OF HOETICULTUEE AND COTTAGH GAEDENTEE. 



99 



POULTEY-KEEPING FEOil A COMMEECIAL 

 POINT OF TIEW. 



{Continued from page 77.) 

 ABTIFICIAX VERinX jruRPERY. 



Tbus is a very useftil department in a poultiy-breeding 

 establisbment ; it will supply the poor pi-isoners with those 

 dainty little morsels for which in their free state they never 

 tire of looking after. It is well known, that from the chicken 

 to the old hen fowls prefer insects and worms to any gi-ain. 

 In fact, fowls are omnivorous, but their carnivorous appetite 

 predominates, and they would very soon become unfit for 

 human food were they indulged in their predilection ; but in 

 a free state they have to perform hard work in their search 

 for insects and woi-ms, of which, after all, they find but a 

 scanty supply. It will not, therefore, be advisable to give 

 fowls in a confined state too much animal food, but only in 

 such quantities as will be a stimulant and not injure their 

 health. The effect on a hen fed too freely on animal food 

 becomes soon perceptible ; she wiU pull out her feathers and 

 even peck her flesh until the whole of the upper part of her 

 body is one mass of raw flesh. 



It is not intended that the vermin should replace the 



minced meat in the food of poultry, but should occasionally 



be given in addition, as dainty morsels in wet or cold 



weather. 



The vermin nursery is formed of a succession of pits with 



concrete bottoms, and tlie 

 sides lined with brick ; the 

 top is covered with a trap 

 to prevent the rain enter- 

 ing, as this might kill the 

 vermin. 



To propaga,te vermin, 

 put in alternate layers of 

 mould and vegetable and 

 animal matter, such as 

 horsedung, garden refuse, 

 entrails of animals, dead 

 animals, blood, lic, until 

 the pit is fUled. In a short 

 time fermentation will 

 commence, and the mir- 

 tnre will so Dn be converted 

 If the fermentation take too 

 In winter it is well 



Section of Vermin Pit. 



into a living mass of vermin. 



long it may be hastened by watering. 



to cover the mixture with horse manure, which wiU keep 

 the vermin warm and alive. 



This process of obtaining vermin is inexpensive, and it 

 will be found very serviceable in winter for young chickens, 

 and for stimulating the fowls to lay. 



POTTLTRT JLANITKE OR STJANO. 



In the ordinary way of breeding poultry then- valuable 

 manure is lost, and we actually send ships to the Pacific 

 a^d all over the world to fetch those very droppings of fowls 

 which we despise to coUect at home ; yet in a larga breeding 

 establishment the collection of this manm-e, so much sought 

 after by florists, wtU yield a considerable extra profit, which 

 can safely be calculated at the rate of .£50 per annum for 

 every thousand fowls ; but as vegetable gi-owing, the refuse of 

 which is good food for poultry, is almost a necessary adjunct 

 to a large breeding establishment, the manure would be stOl 

 more valuable to the proprietor. 



THE FEATHERS OP FOWLS 



Are another extra source of profit in large establishments 

 where they can be sorted and dried, as they wiU then com- 

 mand a much higher price, and this item may be computed 

 at .£10 per thousand head. 



THE MOULTING OF FOWLS 



Is classed by many writers on poultrv under the head of 

 diseases, which it is not, but only a natural process with 

 most animals m changing their summer coat for a winter 

 one. Nevertheless, it is a great di-ain on their resources 

 and fowls during moulting ought to be kept warm and 

 liberaUy dieted with warm and stimulating food— such as 

 boiled oatmeal seasoned with salt and pepper, chopced 

 omons, mashed potatoes, and occasionaUy bread crumbs 

 soaked m strong ale or weai gin. Oxide of iron can also be 



given at this time with grea^t advantage. This diet will 

 accelerate moulting and cause the fowls to resume layin" at 

 an earlier period than would otherwise be the case. 



DISEASES IN POULTRY. 



Host books on poultry contain a more or less lengthy 

 description of the various diseases fowls are subject to, and 

 prescribe certain remedies, all of which help, no doubt, to 

 swell the book, but are perfectly useless for all practical 

 purposes. We might as well try to doctor ourselves for 

 diseases of which we know nothing. The diseases in fowls 

 may chiefly be ascribed to our variable climate, to dampness 

 and cold, to injudicious feeding, and to iU-ventilated roost- 

 ing places. 



A diseased fowl, as will have been observed by many, is 

 never kindly treated by its healthy companions, and in my 

 opinion the best and most economical cure for a diseased 

 fowl is to kill her before she is too far gone, and whilst yet 

 fit for the market, and if not fit for the market, she viH, 

 when hashed, up, make good food for the pigs. I acknow- 

 ledge myself ignorant of the diseases of fowls, consequently 

 of their proper treatment, and as I have no desire to teach 

 the public that which I do not understand myself by simply 

 copying from other books, I shall only state, that with 

 judicious feeding and housing according to my plan there 

 ought not to be one diseased fowl in a thousand. 



YAKIOUS EACES OF POtTLTRT. 



On this subject I would refer the reader for information to 

 some special publication, as it does not exactly enter into 

 the consideration of poultry-breeding in a commercial point 

 of view. All that is necessary to know of the different races 

 is to be able to distinguish those that are the best layers, 

 the best sitters, and the best table fowls, and never mind 

 about the particular points or feathers, the distinguishing 

 characteristics of a pure breed. !Now, where eggs are the 

 sole object, some small breeds lay larger and more eggs 

 than larger fowls. For this, Hamburghs, Spanish, and some 

 cross-bred hens may be kept with advantage ; and as for 

 fowls that will do credit to the breeder for their weight after 

 being fattened — Dorkings, Br^hmas, and Cochins, and their 

 crosses should be selected. 



KILLING AlvD DRESSING POULTRY FOE THE ilAKEET. 



Almost every locality has its own system, but I may advert 

 to a few facts on this subject. Poultry when bled to death 

 is much whiter in the flesh; they wiU also keep much 

 longer fresh when the entrails are drawn immediately after 

 death, and the fowl stuffed as they do in France with paper 

 shavings or short cocoa-nut fibre to preserve the shape. 

 Some breeders cram their poultry before killing to make 

 them appear heavy. This is most injudicious, as undigested 

 food soon enters into fermentation, and putrefaction takes 

 place, as is evidenced by the quantity of greenish putrid- 

 looking fowls that are seen in the markets. 



MACHINERY, LJIPLEISIENTS, AX3D Tn?ENSILS. 



Without desiring to recommend any particular plan for 

 saving labour, it is, nevertheless, desirable to state, that in 

 any establishment of magnitude the expense for labour 

 forms a prominent item, and it wiU, therefore, be to the 

 interest of the proprietor to invest a certain capital in the 

 purchase of such machines and utensils as will not only 

 economise labour, but also perform the work much better 

 than it could be done by manual labour. 



The principal machines required are — a grinding mill for 

 the grain; a pug mOl for mixing the poultaceous food; a 

 mincing machine for the meat and vegetables ; a potato- 

 mashing machine with wooden rollers; a sifting machine; a 

 weighing machine, scales, and sundry smaller machines; 

 also, a steam-boiling apparatus, a heating apparatus, and, in 

 fact, such appliances as will not only economise labour, but 

 also materials, and particularly fuel. 



The manual labour itself ought to be sub-divided in such 

 a manner that each person has his or her particular branch 

 to attend to, in which each person will very soon become so 

 expert that the work wiU be perfoimed much better and in 

 less than half the time. 



"WHITEWASH. 



A large quantity of whitewash will necessarily be required 

 for sanitary pui-poses, but if prepai'ed as follows, it will 

 possess the advantage of preventing the wood fr-om taVing 



