294 
Some Minor Rural Industries. 
death to a species of louse — caught from the brood hens, he 
opines — fastening on the back of the neck. 
It will be understood that the young birds destined to be 
killed as ducklings are never allowed to roam at large, nor do 
they go on the water, the object being to reduce the wear and 
tear of muscular tissue to a minimum, so that as much as possible 
of the food may be utilised in adding to the weight of flesh upon 
the bird. As the ducklings are never kept for breeding pur- 
poses this somewhat unnatural mode of life can have no ill- 
effects of an hereditary nature. Such water as the ducklings 
are allowed access to is supplied to them in small troughs or 
shallow vessels, and they use it for bathing and drinking purposes. 
The duck-rearers are very particular as to the kind of grit which 
is given in the drinking water. It is found that the local 
gravel, which is free of clay, will not “ bind,” and material for 
this purpose is therefore obtained from Long Marston, near 
Tring, at Is. 6d. a load. As the birds are always kept in con- 
finement, it is essential to health that they should be provided 
with efficient means of triturating their food. 
Where a large number of birds of the same age are kept 
together, it is usual, except when they come to the front to feed, 
to partition them off into small “flocks” of about 100 birds 
each. This is easily done by means of planks about one foot 
wide, set on edge, so as to divide up the ground space into a 
number of rectangular areas. The object of this is to prevent 
the birds from overcrowding, and possibly killing the weaker 
ones by overlying. As the birds return from feeding they are 
successively partitioned off as fast as a sufficient number enter 
the shed. When the birds get larger with advancing age it is 
found expedient to confine fewer in each pen — say, two dozen 
or so. 
A somewhat frequent malady of the ducklings is that known 
as “soft bill,” which may possibly be induced by high feeding. 
But this can hardly be the case when the bill is so soft that the 
young bird cannot break its way out of the shell. The evil 
would then seem to be, in some way, inherited, and too close 
inter-breeding of the parent birds suggests itself as the cause. 
Inquiry in the neighbourhood elicited the fact that in some 
cases the same drake may be kept in use as long as four years. 
Change of blood would, therefore, seem to be imperatively called 
for ; but as a rule the egg-producers, who are scattered through 
the district, seem indifferent to the most elementary principles 
underlying the art of breeding, and are perhaps quite ignorant 
of them. 
The number of ducklings that can be reared on a very 
