1831.1 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST, 
195 
A TRIO OF PARTRIDGE-COCHIN FOWLS. 
Partridge-Cochin Fowls. 
The Cochin breed of fowls was introduced 
Into this country about the year 1847, and to 
this is mainly due the celebrated “ poultry 
mania ” long to be remembered by breeders 
of domestic fowls. Men became almost wild 
after Cochins, and were willing to spend a 
small fortune for a trio of fine birds. The 
principal sub-varieties of the Cochins are the 
"White, Buff, and Partridge. With those who 
breed the White variety, every feather must 
he pure, otherwise the fowl is looked upon 
with disfavor. The Buff Cochins may be 
of any shade, but the birds in a flock must 
correspond in color. Among the most ad¬ 
mired of the Cochins is the “Partridge” va¬ 
riety, or sub-breed, a fine trio of which is pre¬ 
sented in the accompanying engraving. The 
neck-hackles of the hens are bright gold, 
striped with black, the rest of the body be¬ 
ing light brown, pencilled with a darker shade 
of the same color. The hackles of the Part¬ 
ridge-Cochin cock are bright red, striped with 
black, the back being dark-red, with a bar of 
metallic green upon the wings. The breast 
and under part of the body are pure black. 
Some of the points of merit, as claimed by 
the breeders of these fowls, are as follows : 
They are hardier than any other breeds, ex¬ 
cept the Brahmas, and will thrive under con¬ 
ditions where most others would perish. They 
are of large size, with a very gentle dispo¬ 
sition, and the ease with which the Cochins 
are kept in confinement makes them favor¬ 
ites with many poultry raisers. When full- 
grown, the weight ranges from 10 to 15 lbs.; 
they are too heavy to fly, and a fence 2 feet 
high will confine them. As sitters and moth¬ 
ers the hens are not surpassed and are pro¬ 
lific layers, especially in winter, when eggs 
are scarce. The chickens grow rapidly, and 
at three months are large enough for eating. 
It is true, they have some defects. The 
flesh is inferior, especially of old birds. The 
inclination to sit sometimes interferes with 
their greatest usefulness. This tendency is 
developed by over-feeding. As a breed the 
Cochins are most useful to supply the de¬ 
mands of a family for early chickens and a 
plenty of large, rich eggs. If the Cochins 
had done nothing more than to awaken a 
general interest in poultry breeding, their in¬ 
troduction would still have been of benefit. 
K road 'Wheels lor 1'arm Wagons. 
—The surface over which loads are drawn 
upon the farm is soft, as a rule, and a wheel 
with a broad tire will not sink so far as a nar¬ 
row one. A load of manure or hay can be 
drawn across plowed or other mellow ground, 
upon a wagon which has tires four inches 
wide, when it would be impossible to do so 
with the old narrow wheels, often less than 
two inches wide. The usually heavy, mud¬ 
dy, country roads of early spring, are much 
more passable with the wide wheels than the 
narrow ones; and even upon smooth, hard 
roads the difference in the draft is so slight 
as to be no argument against the use of wide 
tires. Most of the teaming upon the farm is 
upon soft ground, and the light draft of 
broad-tired wagons should make them pref¬ 
erable, because they are a saving of animal 
strength. One of the first things that strikes 
