The fowls must be correctly mated: the cocks 
must be pure bred and in no manner related 
to the hens; pullets must not be less than 10 
months old, and be mated with cocks not un¬ 
der 18 months old, while hens should be mated 
with a young cock not over 13 months old. 2, 
The eggs must be laid in a warm house, where 
they cannot become chilled; they must be 
collected frequently, in order to prevent ex¬ 
posure to cold, if there is danger of 
such; they must be sent to the customer 
in as fresh condition as possible; they 
must be shipped in egg crates that will 
insure protection from cold while on the 
journey; they must her uniform, no Very small 
eggs, doubled-yclked eggs or ill shaped eggs to 
be allowed .'1. The cocks must be active and 
vigorous. If they are of a large breed they 
should be mated with only 10 hens, but if they 
are medium-sized, or small, they may be 
mated with 12 or 15 hens each. 
The feediug of the bens, and the manner in 
which they are kept, are very important. A 
hen used as a breeder and one used for 
market should be fed differently. A laying 
hen needs no carbonaceous food other than 
barely sufficient to provide for the Warmth of 
her body; and if she is kept in a building 
warmed artificially she will want but little 
grain, as the carbon for the yelk will be pro¬ 
vided in sufficient quantities in all kinds of 
food. The food of a laying ben should be as 
uitrogenous as possible. Under no conditions 
must she become fat. Hence chopped clover 
(steeped), meat, and rnilk, with only a small 
allowance of wheat, makes the beat food, the 
wheat to be so given that she must work for 
it. Scratching is always a good indication in 
a hen. Eggs from a hen in moderate condi¬ 
tion, fed on food rich in nitrogen, and fuU of 
activity, always hatch well. The proof of 
this is seen in the case of the hen that steals 
her uest, for she hunts for her food, and is 
active and not too fat. Her eggs hatch well 
because the chicks within are produced by 
vigorous parents, and all the chicks have the 
same vitality, while the eggs we place under a 
sitting hen are of all sorts and from all kinds 
qf parents, some hatching well while others 
do not. It is not necessary to use eggs from 
bens running at large, but tlu-y must be from 
hens kept exercised and in good breeding 
condition. 
Every person about to engage in the broiler 
business should endeavor to avoid being com¬ 
pelled to buy his eggs, although, unfortunately 
for us, we are compelled to collect them by 
scouring the surrounding country, but at a 
loss, for we not only sometimes get poor 
batches, but we must run the risk of mongrel 
chicks coming from whatever eggs may bo 
fertile, yet the owners of many large brooder 
houses here do not keep a hen on their places, 
as they batch ami raise broilers in winter, and 
do nothing else. The first thing to do is to 
suitably provide for the liens, and next, to 
give attention to selecting proper breeds, as 
the rapid growth, hardiness, and market ap¬ 
pearance of the broilers di pend on the breed. 
Nine-tenths of the failures to secure good 
hatches in winter are due to inferior eggs, 
anil iu beginning thus series I wish to im¬ 
press that point particularly, as it is the 
foundation stone of the whole structure. 
If we could secure eggs that could bo 
relied upon we could double our profits, 
and we lost, quite an amount of capi¬ 
tal before we made the discovery, but 
time, small or medium-sized tubers of these 
three potatoes will be presented to all sub¬ 
scribers who apply, in order that their real 
value may be ascertained without further 
cost to them than that involved iu planting 
and cultivating them. 
same plot, with the most popular known varie¬ 
ties, so that, all being treated in the same way, 
their relative worth may be approximately 
estimated. 
The distinguishing qualities of the three 
Rural seedlings may be stated as follows: 
No. 2. Very distinct in form, as shown by 
Fig. 467, very few eyes. Shape almost per¬ 
fect. Quality excellent. A heavy yielder with 
the fewest small tubers of any variety ever 
raised here. It is an intermediate as to time 
of maturity. V ines heavy and vigorous, 
No. 3 Of the same color (white), quality 
and shape as No. 2, except that the eyes are 
somewhat more numerous and prominent; 
maturing, say, ten days after it. One of the 
heaviest yielders known to us. 
No. 4. Late, of the best quality, and the 
heaviest yielder ever raised here, though no 
less than 500 different varieties have been 
raised in the same plot during the past ten 
years. 
It is our impression that the older readers 
of this journal have confidence that in these 
“Notes from the Rural Grounds 11 we aim to 
tell the exact truth as to the grains, fruits, 
tubers or other plants tried here. To aid our 
readers in their selections of b igli-prieed novel¬ 
ties is a chief reasou why these experiment 
grounds were beguu 14 years ago and why 
they have since been kept up at no inconsider¬ 
able cost. But our later readers may view 
with distrust such statements as those above 
€*penmrnt tifcouttA* of the %m\l 
Ufto-porker. 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER SEEDLING 
POTATOES, NOS. 1, 2, 3 AND 4. 
A TRIAL OF THE RURAL’S POTATO¬ 
RAISING METHOD. 
Durtng the last spring I noticed that the 
Rural constantly recommended the farmer 
and gardener to put the seed potatoes in the 
bottom of wide furrows or trenches,covt r them 
slightly aud then sprinkle on the fertilizer. 
This advice I once noticed printed in italics, 
and it so impressed me that I planted my en¬ 
tire crop in this way. Now the present year 
in this part of the country has t>eeu one of the 
poorest known for this crop. Rains have in¬ 
duced rot to such an extent that entire fields 
are so poor that they have been plowed up 
without saving a potato. Rut this has not 
been the case with mine. The rust and beetles 
diminished the yield, but I never obtained 
finer or sounder potatoes than the present sea¬ 
son. This success lit this unfavorable year I 
attribute to the method of planting and the 
sole use of commercial fertilizers. A neigh¬ 
bor tried the same method with results equally 
good, and another year we both propose to 
test the matter more thoroughly. But we are 
nnnuinf>pH the RURAL llAS C 1 VCI1 the 
These are lobe propagated for distribution 
among Rural Subscribers in due time 
— JVo. 2 probably next year. 
THE OUTCOME OF TEN YEARS’ WORK 
The potato to be introduced next year as 
the Rural New-Yorker No. 2, has been raised 
this year far from the Rural Grounds (in 
Northern New York) in the same field with 
many other varieties, and the report of its 
yield, etc., is now at, band. The seasou was 
wet, throughout, and rot prevailed to a greater 
extent than in many years before. The report 
is very gratifying to all hands concerned, and 
we fancy that Rural readers will al¬ 
so be pleased to kuow that our hopes 
of having originated a potato of high 
promise are likely to be realized. The 
report in a word is that it, has yielded more, 
w ith fewer small tubers, than any other kind 
raised; it rotted least and is of the best quali¬ 
ty. It is about as smooth and shapely as a po¬ 
tato well can be, and tbe eyes are very few 
and mostly flush with the surface. In order 
to compare this variety with our next prom¬ 
ising seedling, our cut of December 18, 1886, is 
reproduced for comparison (see Fig. 467, page 
783). The potato of which we have now' to 
speak comes from the same lot of seeds as the 
No. 2, and will be named the Rural New- 
Yorker No. 3. In general appearance the 
two kinds resemble each other, but No. 
8 has more eyes (though still few) and 
they are somewhat deeper set. The quality 
seems to V>e about the same. The No. 2 is 
au intermediate or late intermediate; the No. 
3 is 16 days later, or an early late pota¬ 
to. Thus far it will appear that there is no 
pressing reason' why the No. 3 should be 
introduced, since all points of difference are 
somewhat iu favor of the No. 2. 
We raised but four lulls of the No. 3, but those 
four hills gave next to the greatest yield we 
have ever seen. Unfortunately the product 
of but one bill was weighed and this gave 
seven pounds. There were but 16 potatoes, 
the smallest of which weighed 4 L ounces, the 
largest 11 ounces, the average being seven 
ounces. The illustrations (Figs. 464 aud 465) 
show the characteristic shape, though it is 
smaller lhau the average size by one ounce. 
Fig. 464shows the fiat side of the potato, while 
Fie. 465 shows the side. 
We may now announce that in all prob¬ 
ability we shall lie enabled to send a small 
tuber of tbe No. 2 to all of our readers who wish 
it, next fall, and of the No. 3 duriug the fall of 
1889, unless it should develop, as did our No. I, 
some bad quality. The R. N.-Y. No, 1, it will be 
remembered, is very early, of tiue quality aud 
distinctive shape. But latterly it cracks 
badly and the proportion of small tubers is 
too large. It has therefore been decided not 
to introduce it. 
There is no excuse for the introduction of 
new varieties that are no better than those 
already iu the market Bending out new 
kinds at a high price with exaggerated state¬ 
ments of their fine qualifies, is sure in the end 
to reflect harmfully upou the introducers. 
We have now to speak of our seedliug No. 
4, an illustration of which appears at Fig. 
466, page 783. About flVe years ago this 
seemed to promise to outyield any variety 
we had raised, while the quality was found to 
be of the very best; but its shape was so irre¬ 
gular that it has since been raised for its 
quality and because it has continued to out¬ 
yield any other of the many kinds of potatoes 
raised here. From the beginning we have 
saved for seed only the l>est. shaped tubers, and 
we have had occasion to notice that the shape 
has every season improved, until now it is 
about as shapely as the Late Beauty of Hebron 
or Late Rose. On about the 20th day of Sep¬ 
tember, in the presence of witnesses, the 
writer dug two of a dozen hills. The yield of 
one was 7% pounds, consisting of 23 tubers, 
all but two of which were of marketable size. 
The other bill was much the same iu weight 
and number of tubers. On tbe 28th of Sep¬ 
tember, while one of the firm ol’ Thorburn & 
Co., of N. Y., was present, the remaining hills 
were dug. The yield was surprisingly large— 
the largest we have ever seen, though, owing 
to an oversight to count the hills, the entire 
yield per hill or rate per acre could not be 
computed. 
These three varieties, therefore, are the re¬ 
sults of the Rural’s seedling potato cultiva¬ 
tion for ten years. Next seasou, life spared, 
we shall plant tbe three side by side iu the 
jf 
RURVL NEW-YORKER NO. 3 POTATO. From Nature. Fig. 4G4 
farmers a method of raising potatoes which, if 
they had adopted it the present season, would 
have resulted iu fewer failures than have 
been recorded. J. M. H. 
Dover, N. H. 
made, and we are ready to pardon them for 
so doing. But it should he considered that 
though we have raided potatoes from seeds 
for many years these three varieties are the 
only ones we have deemed worthy of intro¬ 
duction, while hundreds upon hundreds have 
been discarded. They should further con- 
THE BROILER. FROM THE EGG TO 
THE GRIDDLE. 
P. H. JACOBS. 
Good eggs for hatching indispensable; how 
to procure them-, feed far hens for eggs 
and market; prcliminarg precautions; 
when to hatch-, the cock. 
In this town (Hamnionton, N. J.) great 
progress has of late been made in hatching 
broilers for market. If the broiler bouses 
here were stretched in a line, it would be over 
hair a mile in length. 
Success or failure in hatching and raising 
broilers depends upon the beginning of the 
work, and the first consideration is the egg; 
for thesuccess of the enterprise depends upou 
the kind of eggs used. As the highest prices 
are obtained in April uiid May, the chicks 
reaching t he market before or after that tune 
do not yield so large a profit as when the de¬ 
mand is greatest, and the Importance Of se¬ 
curing eggs that will hatch iR such that if 
the operator fails to obtain a fair hatch, he 
not only loses the eggs, but he is thrown out of 
the market such chicks would have reached 
had he been successful; hence something else 
is at stake other than the loss of eggs, viz., 
time and profit. 
No fair price should be considered too high 
for eggs that can be relied upon. A party 
made an offer of eggs from pure Plymouth 
Rocks, the hens being kept In steam-heated 
buildings, and fed for the production of incu¬ 
bator eggs, at $5 per 100, which was at first 
thought too high a price; but as such eggs 
were only 60 cents a dozen, one additional 
chick raised uud sent to market would more 
thau repay the extra cost of the eggs. No 
poultry man cun afford to provide suitable 
eggs for incubators (or bens either) at regular 
market prices, as more labor is involved and 
more care must bo bestowed, as follows: 1. 
RURAL NEW-YORKER NO. 
Side View. Fig. 465. 
rider that if the farmers of our country, after 
a trial, find that they are by no means whut 
we represent them to be, their confidence in 
our future reports will be shaken aud the 
editorial influence of the R. N.-Y. be propor¬ 
tionately weakened. Finally, they should 
consider that the Rural has never sold any 
of tbe productions of its farm or experiment 
grounds to its subscribers aud tbut in due 
THE DAIRY FROM A NATIONAL ST AND 
POINT. 
(RURAL SPECIAL REPORT.) 
The eleventh aunual convention of the 
