Vol. LIV. No. 2357. 
NEW YORK, MARCH 30, 1895. 
*1.00 PER YEAR. 
A DAY AMONG THE DUCKS. 
“on to pekin!” is now THE CRY. 
[editorial correspondence.] 
Another Visit to the Duck District. 
In The R. N.-Y. of June 17, 1893, I described the 
methods pursued on the Atlantic Farm, at Speonk, 
Long Island, probably the largest duck farm in the 
world, and also those on an adjoining farm. This 
visit was in the midst of the breeding season, when 
the brooding houses and yards were filled to over¬ 
flowing with young ducks being fitted for the New 
York market, and w'hen about 1,000 every week were 
being dressed and sent away. The breed is the Pekin. 
Growth was forced so that the young ducks would 
weigh dressed from five 
to six pounds each at 
eight to ten weeks old, 
and at the time of my 
visit, some seven weeks 
old were being dressed 
that weighed five pounds 
each. The point aimed 
at is to get fertile eggs 
for hatching just as 
early as possible, from 
strong, vigorous breed¬ 
ers, and then get this 
product on the market 
as quick as feed and care 
can do it, while prices 
are high. 
I wished to see how 
the breeding stock was 
handled in winter, so the 
first week in March I 
spent a night and a day 
in the duck district. 
While more or less ducks 
and other poultry are 
produced all over the 
Island, the largest 
breeders are found in a 
district about 12 or 15 
miles long on the south 
shore. The eastern limit 
is at or near West Hamp¬ 
ton, and the western in 
the neighborhood of 
Moriches. Several large, 
and many small farms, 
are included in this area, 
and about 100,000 young 
ducks are grown annual¬ 
ly for the New York 
market, besides many 
eggs and birds which 
are sold for breeders. 
Some of the farms have 
been raising ducks for 
many years, long before 
incubators were thought 
of in the business, while others have engaged in the 
business more recently. 
Why Ducks are the Main Crop. 
ihe region is peculiarly adapted for this business, 
though of little value for practical farm purposes 
near the shore. The soil is generally sandy. Most of 
the farms are situated within a short distance of the 
shore of Great South Ray. From this bay many in¬ 
lets or creeks extend back for some distance inland. 
Along the banks of these creeks are the favorite sites 
for the duck farms. The houses that shelter this 
stock are located short distances from the water, and 
the pens extend down to the water, giving the ducks 
access to their bathing ground. Snow seldom lies 
long on the ground, and the temperature is modified 
by the ocean breezes, which, however, sometimes at¬ 
tain a velocity that seriously disturbs the equilibrium 
of everything movable. Still some of the farms are 
located away from the water, and their owners claim 
that they consider this no disadvantage farther than 
that the ducks are not kept so clean as when they 
have access to the water. 
The most of these duck raisers do not engage in 
farming of any kind very extensively. Most of them 
keep a good many hens, partly for the eggs, and 
partly to act as incubators. For, though most of the 
hatching is done artificially, hens are much used in 
hatching duck eggs. Ducks are seldom or never used 
now for hatchers, as the breeders say that it is im¬ 
possible to get good results from them. Some use 
hens to some extent to finish up the hatch after the 
eggs have been for, say, three weeks in the incuba¬ 
tors. Better results are claimed by following this 
method. It is the general opinion that, while incu¬ 
bators are indispensable, it is impossible to secure in 
them the conditions which give the highest results in 
hatching ducks. 
To a certain extent, the methods practiced by the 
different breeders are very similar. The locations 
differ somewhat; the general direction of the creeks 
along which most of them are located, is from north 
to south. These creeks are fed by springs, and the 
w r ater is fresh, except, perhaps, in very high tides. 
As the surface slopes toward the water, a location on 
the western side gives a warmer slope, and one more 
protected from the bleak western winds, hence more 
favorable for the production of early eggs. Favor¬ 
able locations having a water front, are valued at 
hundreds of dollars per acre, and experienced breeders 
would sacrifice almost every other consideration to 
secure such a location. 
Breeds and Methods ; Mysteries of Incubation. 
The Pekin is the breed that fills the bill for all. In 
a day’s drive, hardly a dozen of any other breed are 
to be seen, and these are kept for experiments in 
crossing and otherwise. The points in which these 
excel are their large size, rapid growth, vigor, hardi¬ 
ness, freedom from disease, and fine appearance when 
dressed. They are excel¬ 
lent layers, also, and 
are the breed that comes 
nearest perfection for 
this business. The fact 
that all raise these ex¬ 
clusively, after having 
tried other breeds, 
proves this. 
Methods of feeding are 
much the same, varied 
of course, by the vary¬ 
ing conditions and cii’- 
cumstances. As an ex¬ 
ample, Mr. W. M. Tut- 
hill, whose methods as 
well as those of others 
visited, will be described 
later, uses a larger pro¬ 
portion of corn meal in 
his feed than any of the 
others. He has no water 
except for drinking pur¬ 
poses, and keeps feed by 
his ducks constantly, 
while Mr. Ilallock of the 
Atlantic Farm, cleans 
up the remaining feed 
after the ducks are 
satisfied. Mr. Tuthill 
also feeds everything 
from the same dish, 
ducks and fowls, young 
and old. Corn meal, 
bran, middlings, No. 2 
flour, wheat, oats, corn, 
roots, clover and beef 
scrap, are the prin¬ 
cipal constituents of the 
different rations. I 
found but one man dur¬ 
ing the day who cooked 
his feed. He was the 
latest beginner, and was 
ahead of any of the 
others. But of him, 
more later. The great¬ 
est efforts are directed towards getting early and fer¬ 
tile eggs, for the earliest ducks give the greatest profit. 
Almost without exception, the Prairie State incuba¬ 
tor does the hatching on these farms, although one 
breeder told me that the Pineland was just as good. 
Other machines were tried, but the makers of the 
Prairie State made a special duck machine, holding 
288 duck eggs, and these machines, properly handled, 
give uniformly good results. They are self regu¬ 
lating ; still, intelligence and skill, not to mention 
experience, are necessary to operate them success¬ 
fully. The beginner sometimes feels discouraged if 
he secures a poor hatch. Yet these men, with years 
of experience, sometimes have poor hatches. The 
man who last year hatched the largest percentage of 
THE PEKIN DUCK ! KING OF DRES8 ED POULTRY ! Fig. 63. 
