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ORNAMEKTAL WATER-FOWLS. 
A mono the numerous species of aquatic 
birds ■which are kept chiefly for their beauty 
none are so attractive as those of which wc 
present an engraving upon this page. White 
Swans, Black Swans, and Mandarin Ducks. 
The first is the largest and the last named 
the smallest of domesticated water-fowls. 
The Swan has of late years become com¬ 
paratively common in this country, until 
might be much more so, for whoever has 
within his private grounds, ponds or lake 
lots of pure water may breed them conven¬ 
iently and inexpensively. Reference is now 
made to the White swan, the Black Swan is 
regarded as more difficult to raise, and more 
delicate. It hu - nut been so long domestic i- 
ted, as it is an Australian native, and the 
supply is still maintained from that country; 
those bred in Europe not being sufficient iu 
numbers to meet the demand, though the 
price is very high. It is a superb bird, hav¬ 
ing glossy black plumage of a somewhat 
more soft and wavy character tlmu that of 
the White Swan, which, however, it closely 
resembles in form and motions. It’s bill is 
crimson and its feet and legs dark, slatey 
gray. In disposition it is shyer and more 
quarrelsome than its white cousin. 
The native swans of this couutry arc hard¬ 
ly less beautiful than the Domestic or Whits 
Swan of Europe. There are two well- 
known species, namely, the Trumpeter Swan 
and the Whopper, which receive their names 
from their sonorous notes. Those spend the. 
winter often in large flocks wherever they 
can find open water and good feeding 
grounds from the Delaware to the St. 
Mary’s. They are very shy, but are often 
shot, and the grey cygnets are good food, 
but are said to be hardly equal to young 
wild geese. Their breeding places uro far to 
the north in the lakes of British America 
and the streams flowing Into Hudson’s Bay. 
No doubt they might be domesticated, as 
some of the wild species have been in Europe, 
but so far as we arc aware they never have 
been. 
The Mute Swan has been long domestica¬ 
ted, it has a tendency to roam, and its flight 
is so strong that after remaining a year or 
two apparently quite contented upon one 
sheet of water, it will often fly oil several 
miles, perhaps to return—perhaps not. This 
makes it advisable to remove the last Joint 
of one wing in the males, which are the 
restless ones. 
Swans usually breed in pairs. The female 
lays five to eight eggs in April, and sits about 
39 days, the first young appearing about the 
35th day. The old birds defend their nests 
and young with great energy, and are bo 
strong that they are no meun antagonists. 
A t other times they" are exceedingly gentle 
and become tamo and familiar. Their habits 
are much like those of geese; they require 
about the same treatment, with warm, dry 
shelter and plenty of water in winter. 
The Swans of the Central Park breed free¬ 
ly, but the management is so disgracefully 
slack that the eggs are annually stolon, so 
that the flock hardly increases at all in num¬ 
bers. Every year quite a number of swans 
and cygnets are imported into this country 
from Europe, yet very few are seen upon 
gentlemen’s places, where they would be so 
ornamental. 
MANDARIN DUOKS. 
These exquisite little birds closely resemble 
our native Wood or Summer Duck, with 
which many of our readers of the Rural 
must bo quite familiar. They are, however, 
less graceful in their stylo; but, like many 
city hollos, arc plumed and furbelowed with 
such gay paraphernalia that on the whole 
they eclipse their country cousins. They 
come from China, breed in domestication, and 
oven in confinement, and become as tamo as 
any water-fowl. Their gay colors lose some¬ 
what of their brilliancy after a few gener¬ 
ations, but this change comes on less rapidly 
than does a similar change of plumage in 
the Wood Duck when it is bred in domesti¬ 
cation. Both of those ducks require the 
freedom of a stream and to bo unmolested 
in some sequestered nook during the breed¬ 
ing season, where a hollow tree or artificial 
oontrivance affords a shelter for their nest 
and young not far from the water, or over¬ 
hanging it. 
It is difficult to describe their colors. Tho 
Drake is the brilliant one; his plumage com¬ 
bines the brilliant colors of almost every 
species, green and blue and bronze and rain¬ 
bow tints flash from the feathers of the 
head and neck; rich browus, with white and 
black bars and stripes, shade olT into mot¬ 
tled wine color upon the sides. The up¬ 
turned feathers of the wings are. of an orange 
brown; their breasts are black, and beneath 
they are greyigh white. The Duck is olive 
brown, marked a little like the Wood Duck. 
SURE CUltE FOR CHICKEN CHOLERA. 
A Trnnehhru correspondent of the Ru¬ 
ral Sun says:—.“I would not so strong¬ 
ly recommend the following remedy or cure 
for this disease, were it not that 1 have found 
it beyond question. I had, and now have, 
some twelve or fifteen game fowls, imported 
into Maury County, the original stof k, in 
1859. They are freer from attacks of cholera 
than any other biccd 1 am acquainted with. 
However, every spring and summer llose, or 
rather have lost, a number of fowls, both 
old and young, 1 tried all remedies afivised 
or advertised, with only partial benefit. As 
an experiment 1 used Brown’s Essence of 
Jamaica Ginger. Take of this one tablespoon- 
l’ul and put it in enough of water to mix into 
dough one quart of meal, and feed three 
times daily. The essence of Ginger can be 
procured of any druggist. This remedy I 
vouch for.” 
■-♦♦♦-- 
Fowls for Winter. Family comfort— 
especially the comfort of a family in the 
couutry or in a rural vllliage or in the out¬ 
skirts of the town—is greatly promoted by 
a nice flock of liens, kept in warm quarters, 
with a sunny run anil well fed, so that they 
v/ill furnish plenty of eggs all winter. The 
llook should not be less than six nor more 
than twenty in number, with one rooster, 
and should consist of some brood Of Asiatic 
fowls, or a cross of the same. 
NEW YORK, AND ROCHESTER, N. Y„ SEPT. 20. 1874. 
PRICE SIX CENTS. 
82.50 PER YEAR. 
[Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by the Rural Publishing Company, in the office of tho Librarian of Congress at Washington.] 
VOL. XX.V. No. 13. I 
WHOLE No. 1287. I 
