l8 A POULTRY COMPENDIUM. 



driving storm, will answer very well for a coop, though 

 it is not convenient to get at the hen or chickens when 

 it is necessary to examine them. 



Cat-proof, rat-proof, and crow-proof coops and runs 

 are demanded in some places. They are not difficult to 

 make, but fine-meshed wire enters into their construction. 

 Fig. 7* gives a very good idea of such a coop. 



Fig. 7. 

 MATING. 



We have now built our poultry-house and yards and 

 purchased our fowls, and naturally desire to mate them so 

 as to produce the best results. We have selected a breed, 

 and wish to retain those characteristics which determined 

 our choice. Upon what principles shall we make our 

 matings to produce chickens which shall be equal or 

 superior to their progenitors ? If we make correct mat- 

 ings, we may feel reasonably sure of retaining the desira- 

 ble characteristics of the breed, but if our fowls are in- 

 correctly mated, their descendants will prove inferior to 



* This design, as well as the one on movable fences, is bor- 

 rowed from "Poultry Architecture," by H. H. Stoddard. 



