mas all they want, they will not lay the sec¬ 
ond Winter. They grow too fat. 
Prof. Coofc, of the Michigan Agricultural 
College, l;ept. Brown Leghorns aiul Light Brah¬ 
mas. He found the Brahmas superior as 
winter layers. Taking the whole number of 
eggs in a year, the Leghorns might excel a 
very little. If we count by weight, then the 
Brahmas are ahead. As to eating qualities, 
the Leghorns are smaller and their flesh is in¬ 
sipid .„. 
Ducks, according to Mr. Felcb, grow in ten 
weeks to weigh seven pounds aud over. They 
seldom die. They can be kept in grass in- 
closuros aud fed four or five times a dav with 
bread and corn meal, with ten per cent, ground 
scraps, and allowed to graze, they will weigh 
as above stated. They need not have water 
to swim in. They enjoy their food in a sloppy 
condition. 
Mr. Warren never kills his Leghorns as 
long as they lay, been use they are worth more to 
lay than to kill. They will lay well until they 
are three or four years old. The best rule 
seems to bo to kill all birds before one year 
old, or in June or July. 
Too much glass was condemned by the 
leading speakers of the New England farmers’ 
meetings. It causes sickness: the change of 
temperature between midday and night is too 
great. During warm, suuny, winter days, the 
thermometer will show 100 degrees of heat, 
while the nights may 1*? below zero.. 
Mr. Felch says that if we feed celery to 
ducks a week before they are killed, a flavor 
similar to that of the canvasback ducks will 
be imparted to the flesh . 
Mr. Ranicin says, in the Poultry Keeper, that 
he has found the growing of ducks (artificially) 
for market, fully as profitable as growing 
young chicks, for as many pounds can be put 
upon a duck when nine weeks old, as on a chick 
at 19 weeks. Ducks, he says, can bo grown at a 
cost of five cents a pound. 
A building 75 feet long aud 12 feet wide, 
with a quarter of an acre of land, will be am¬ 
ple room room for 1,500 ducks. Mr. Rankin 
feeds the same as for chicks, with the excep¬ 
tion of a little more animal food. He does not 
feed cracked corn or hard food of any kind 
until after they are five weeks old. The duck¬ 
lings should be confined in a small run, with 
only room enough to exercise, and giv¬ 
en just water enough to drink. They will 
readily fatten treated this way. He likes the 
Pekins best of all, as they are the best layers 
and mature the earliest. They will always lay 
their eggs in nests when given the opportun¬ 
ity. Their feathers also are by far the most 
valuable ot any, as they readily command 
50 cents per pound at wholesale. His 
chicken aud duck buildings are 75 or 80 
feet long and 10 feet wide, with no artificial 
heat. He uses just enough glass to heat the 
buildings whou the sun shines, thus avoiding 
extremes. His yards occupy about two acres 
of laud. Tho yards are subdivided by wire 
netting into small compartments of about lOx 
80. Into one of these yards ho puts about 100 
ducklings. The ducks are ready for market 
when nine or ten weeks old. They should 
theu weigh from nine to eleven pounds per 
pair. He keeps ducklings in brooders about 
throe weeks in early Spring, when the weather 
is cold, aud about 10 days duriug the warmer 
part of the season...^ 
The N. Y. Tribune calls attention to an incu¬ 
bator miscalled “Economy”—an aggravated 
sample of all the rest, so far as its knowledge 
goes. The Poultry Keeper says, “It is a worth¬ 
less affair. Au Ohio Farmer correspondent, 
after losing all his oil aud eggs in repeated 
trials, declares it a complete failure aud fraud, 
and cites experience anti opinion of other 
% ictims to the same effect. This machine has 
been advertised and distributed by “H. 8. 
Waldo, Quincy, Ill..” a name and address to 
beware of. This Is the same rascal who sent 
out tho Nature's Incubator denounced sev- 
ral times of late in the Rural. 
Incubation by Irrigation.— Mr. O. 8. 
bliss says, in the N. Tribuue, that a mau 
had watched a sotting of choice eggs with 
much solicitude till the 23d day of incubation, 
and still there was no sign of their hatching, 
Seeking advice at this stage he was told to put 
them into a pan of warm water, aud leave 
them till they began to dance aud then return 
them to the nest. Five hours afterwards ho 
came with the joyful tidings that every egg 
had hatched. He said the moment they were 
in the water they danced like puppets. The 
lining of the shells had become so dry and 
tough that but for the wetting not one of the 
chicks would have been able to break the shell. 
^ that condition absorb the necessary 
moisture almost instantaneously though they 
will not suffer injury from remaining in the 
water several minutes. Care should be taken 
to return the hen to the nest with the eggs to 
prevent the too rapid cooling from atmo¬ 
spheric exposure and evaporation. 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
[Every query must be accompanied by the name 
and address of the writer to Insure attention. Before 
asking a question, please see if it is not answered in 
our advertising columns. Ask only a few quest ions at 
one time. Put questions on aseperate piece of paper.] 
IMPREGNATION OF EGGS. 
J. D. N., New Brunswick, N. J, —Are all 
the eggs of the common hen impregnated by 
one effort of the male before the hen begins 
to lay, or are the eggs impregnated singly 
while she is laying? With a turkey hen, I 
know one “tread' 1 of the cock impregnates 
the whole clutch. 
Ans. —The matter of impregnation has re¬ 
ceived much attention from breeders, and the 
experiments, made give no results for min g 
conclusions. We have known eggs to hatch 
from hens that had been separated from the 
males for 10 days, and again, on changing to 
cocks of a different breed, the influence of 
the previous male has ceased on the third day. 
By using a White Leghorn coek, and a Hou- 
dan for comparison, the difference in the 
chicks may be easily noticed. Tho turkey 
fertilizes the whole clutch at a single meeting, 
which has been proved satisfactorily. Re¬ 
garding the cock and hen, the accepted theory 
is that something depends upon whether the 
hen is served a few days before beginning to 
lay, or during the laying period—that is, 
there are times when a number of the eggs 
maybe fertilized together, while at others the 
positions of the different eggs allow of only 
one to be fertilized. It is a broad field for 
future experiments. That the impregnation 
of the eggs from the first coupling influences 
all subsequent progeny is denied by some and 
affirmed by others. In viviparous animals 
or mammals there is an arterial circulation 
between the foetus aud the mother, but there 
is uo such connection between the hen and the 
contents of the egg. The circulation of blood 
takes place within the egg shell and uncon¬ 
nected with the body of the hen. The young 
of mammals are hatched and nourished with¬ 
in the body. 
ABOUT AN INCUBATOR. 
O. C. C., Shespequin, Pa .—Where can the 
hard rubber expansion rods for incubators be 
had? 2. What is a thermostatic incubator? 
3. What are a “pyrometer' 1 and a “regula¬ 
tor.” 
Ans.— 1. The hard-rubber expansion bars 
are usually made to order; but may be pro¬ 
cured of any rubber dealer. L. N. Clark & 
Son, 38 Doy St., New York, sell them. No 
regulators are sold by any one to fit miscella¬ 
neous incubators; but they are made and sold 
as parts of special machines. 2. The Ther¬ 
mostatic Incubator is made and sold by E. S. 
Renwick, 19 Park Place, New York City. 
They will send circulars describing it. 3. A 
pyrometer is simply intended to take the place 
of a thermometer where a very high degree of 
heat is to be measured. It is sold usually at 
first-class opticians’ or at other places where 
telescopes, thermometers, etc., are sold. If 
you have beeu so fortunate as to secure 93 
chicks from lOtS eggs, you would oe unwise to 
attempt to use a regulator, as the best incuba¬ 
tors are those that compel the operator to 
depend upon himself. Please send us a sketch 
aud description of your incubator and 
brooder. 
LEG WEAKNESS IN POULTRY: HENS EATING 
EGGS. 
C. Centci'ville, Can. —1. My hens lose 
the use of their limbs. Sometimes they recover 
iu a day or two; what causes the weakness? 
2. Why do hens eat their eggs? 
Ans.—1. Leg weakness or paralysis is 
occasioned by various causes, such as consti¬ 
tutional feebleness, sometimes from inbreed¬ 
ing; poor food; dump surroundings, etc. We 
know of no permanent, remedy, as itgenerally 
recurs after one attack. Fowls need sound 
wheat, and corn. Broken oyster shells aud 
crushed bone are good to keep fowls in health, 
especially growing chickens. 2. liens very 
rarely, if ever, cat properly shelled eggs. 
Animal food in the shape of scraps from lard- 
melting places, hazlets, etc., with the shell and 
bone as above, will generally assist in making 
strong shells, ami prevent the vice. 
ROUP IN CHICKENS. 
If ., 11 est Oranby, Conn ,—My chickens 
breathe hard and fast and move as if they 
had the rheumatism; their appetite, however, 
is good; what ails them? 
Ans.— The hoarse breathing is a form of 
“eroupy” roup, due sometimes to draughts 
(perhaps from top ventilation) of air. It also 
occurs during long-continued damp weather. 
A good remedy is to subject them, until near¬ 
ly suffocated, to the smoke of burning wood, 
tar and turpentine, after they are on the roost 
at night. A few drops of kerosene oil, forced 
down their throats from a sewing machine 
oil can, is usually efficacious. The weak legs 
may be due to dampness, too much fat, or 
rapid growth, if the fowls are young. Warmth 
and dryness are the best remedies. 
KEEPING EGGS. 
S. S., Delphos , Kans .—For “keeping eggs 
in warm weather,” a dry process is to pack 
them in a box, using a layer of fine ashes be¬ 
tween the egg. no eggs touching. Keep them 
in a cool place, pack none but fresh eggs, and 
be careful to turn the box twice a week. Eggs 
from hens not in company with roosters will 
keep twice as long as those that are fertilized. 
The wet process is to pack the eggs in a firkin 
or barrel, and cover them with a saturated 
solution of salt (strong brine) mixed with lime 
to the consistency of cream. Another good 
and better mode is to add half a pound of salt 
and an ounce of salycilic acid to a gallon of 
strong lime-water. The eggs must be kept en¬ 
tirely immersed in the solution. 
Subscriber (no address). —1. A cockerel was 
taken sick in September and < lied in February. 
His droppings were green striped with white, 
or yellowish green. He seemed hearty, but 
food did no good, and no remedy availed. 
What ailed him? 2.1 hatched 12 ducks, but lost 
every one of them. They were all well till tak¬ 
en with a spasm, when they threw their heads 
around nearly behind them aud fell on their 
backs. They would recover, but the attacks 
always returned until they died. What was 
th'e matter ? 
Ans. —1. The cockerel, most likely, died 
from consumption—a lingering sickness com¬ 
mon to chickens. A tonic medicine will some¬ 
times cure them if taken in time. 2. It is hard 
to tell what caused the death of the ducklings. 
If very young, sometimes a cold rain will 
cause such symptoms, or finding some uncon¬ 
genial food in then- rambles. 
B. H. 7'., Cnion , .V. J .—Is there any ex¬ 
perience on record as to the inter-breeding of 
Plymouth Rocks and Gray Dorkings? 
Ans. —Very seldom is a record made of 
crossings in poultry. The above cross would, 
no doubt, produce strong, large chickens. 
T. B . L., Cerona, III. —Corn-and-cob meal 
will not be objectionable feed for chickens; 
but corn should not tie fed in any shape during 
the warm season, and only sparingly in Win¬ 
ter, especially to mature fowls, as it induces a 
tendency to become fat, which is detrimental 
to good laying. One part corn-and-cob meal 
with one part bran and one part middlings, is 
better. Wheat and oats should always be fed 
in preference to corn. 
RANGE FOR SHEEP HUSBANDRY IN THE SOUTH; 
AVERAGE RATION FOR HORSES AND COWS; 
A “CORD OF MANURE,” ETC. 
R. H. F., New York City.—I. How about 
sheep husbandry in Central Florida and in 
the same latitude elsewhere? 2. Given 20 
WDi k horses aud as many milch cows, stable- 
fed and soiled, with no pasture, what should 
be the average consumption per head, per 
day, including a liberal supply of all kinds of 
feed? How near would 50 pounds per day 
coine to it? 3. What is the average of wheat, 
rye, oat aud bean straw and of corn-stalks 
per acre? 4. What is a cord of manure? 5. 
Is there any work which tells the various 
weights and measures of farm products and 
bye-products, etc.? 
Ans.— 1 . Florida is not a desirable locality 
for sheep-herding. The heat and dampness 
of the Summer and the want of the right 
kinds of food will always be a bar to anv ex¬ 
tensive enterprise in this way. There are 
some sheep iu Florida; but it cannot be called 
a sheep country. The Wire Grass region of 
Georgia; the southeastern counties; the 
southern mountain region, including West¬ 
ern Georgia; South Carolina, North Carolina 
aud Eastern Tennessee, are remarkably favor¬ 
able in locality ami climate for sheep both 
for wool and mutton. 2. Fifty pounds of 
green fodder are quite inadequate for the sus¬ 
tenance of a horse or cow. The rule is 30 
pounds of dry hay per day for 1,000 lies, of live 
weight for simple maintenance; 50 lbs. of green 
fodder are equivalent to only 12 , lbs. of dry 
matter. The usual consumption of soiling 
fodder is So pounds per day for an ordinary 
cow weighing 800 pounds; aud 120 pounds for 
a large cow. A horse cannot be kept iu work¬ 
ing condition ou a sufficiently large quantity 
of green fodder, on account of his small 
stomach, and the larger part of his food must 
be grain; 25 or 30 pounds of green food and 20 
pounds of grain are required for full feeding 
of a horse; 12 pounds of grain and 00 pounds 
of soiling will supply a cow of 800 pounds. 3. 
About 1,500 pounds of straw is the yield of 
the grain crops mentioned; 2,000 pounds per 
acre is a large yield of the grains and 1,000 
pounds of bean straw. 4. A cord of ordinar 
manure weighs about two tons, and strawy 
manure that is not water-soaked will no| 
weigh so much. A cord of solid cow manmj 
weighs from 4,500 to 5,000 pounds. Tlfl 
weight depends very much upon the dryn« 
or wetness of the manure. A eardoad^B 
horse manure containing, GOO cubic feet, vjl 
trampled, weighs 10 tons actual measure ^B 
weight, which Ls equal to nearly five cdl 
and two tons per cord: 25 cords per acr^B 
only very moderate. Mixed barnyard manura 
would easily weigh 25 per cent. more. Sixty 
to seventy-five tons of manure per acre are only 
a moderate quantity for a market garden and 
100 tons are often used. 5. There is no such 
book. The information is contained in a num¬ 
ber of works. Harris's Talks on Manures 
gives the weights of manures: but no rule can 
be given because manure varies so much in 
character. 
ABOUT THE COMPOSITION OF MILK. 
J. M. S., Watertown, N. F.—1. What is the 
relative composition of milk for the different 
seasons of the year in regal'd to cream? 2. 
What is the effect in cheese making? 3. Does 
the quantity or quality of milk vary with the 
quality of food, or does the amount of cream 
remain nearly the same for a given amount 
of milk from the same cow? 4. Does the com¬ 
position of milk change materially if a cow 
becomes farrow from what it would be if she 
had chopped a calf? 
Ans,— 1. The milk grows richer in cream as 
the fall season approaches and the feed be¬ 
comes drier and more concentrated. If cows 
come to milk in the Fall, by feeding roots, 
silage, or other succulent food along with 
good Orchard Grass or clover hay, or a mix¬ 
ture of Timothy and clover, or with bright 
corn-stalks, milk very like that of June may 
be produced. If the feed is dry and concen¬ 
trated, the flow will be less and the milk 
richer in cream. More depends on the feed 
and shelter than ou the season. To get the 
best results, cows must be kept warm and 
have plenty of good, nutritious food. 2. As 
the milk grows richer in cream, it makes a 
richer cheese. Hence the custom in many 
cheese factories of letting patrons skim the 
night’s milk after September. But ’.his re¬ 
duces the quality and value of the cheese. 
Perhaps buyers do not properly discriminate 
and make difference enough in price between 
cheese poor in fat and that which is very rich. 
The latter is the more digestible, and hence 
the more nutritious. A certaiu proportion of 
fat is necessary to aid in the digestion of the 
caseiue. 3. Yes, most decidedly. Rich food 
—that is, food rich in nitrogen, with a proper 
proportion of carbon—makes rich milk. 
Watery food makes thin, poor milk. The 
relative proportion of solids to liquids may be 
greatly varied by the feed. But the relative 
proportion of fats to caseous matter can be 
changed but little, if any. Milk rich in cream 
is also rich in caseiue; where the variation is 
caused by feed, both are increased or dimin¬ 
ished in equal proportion. There is a differ¬ 
ence in the proportion of fats to caseiue in the 
milk of different cows, and no kind of feeding- 
can vary this proportion to auy material 
amount. 4. Yes, very materially. The fat 
globules grow smaller aud the proportion of 
albumen is probably increased, making the 
milk more viscous and the cream more ropy. 
The change is sometimes so great that no but¬ 
ter can be churned from either the milk or 
the cream of a farrow cow. On the contrary, 
when the cow first drops her calf, the fat 
globules are the largest, the milk is the most 
limped and the churning most easy. 
GRAIN RATION AND CUT FEED FOR HORSES. 
C. O. U. t Highland Lake , Col.— 1. What is 
a proper grain ration fora 1,200 pound farm 
horse? 2. Is it advisable to feed grain alone 
for a midday ration ? 8. Is anything gained 
by cutting the hay and mixing the grain with 
it, wetting the whole? 
Ans.— 1. No definite rule can be given for 
such a grain ration. No horseman orders the 
same rations for all of his horses. On the con¬ 
trary, he carefully watches the needs of each 
animal und feeds accordingly. Much depeuds 
upon the general make-up aud constitution of 
the animal, whether at. work or idle, the care 
received, the surroundings aud climate, and 
also the quantity of the ration of corn fodder 
as well as of the grain. In general, t w o to 
eight quarts three times daily may be taken 
its the extremes. While oats are probably 
the best and most natural grain for the horsii 
when fed alone, it is much better to supple * 
meut the oats in part by some of the othet I 
grains. Any of the other cereals may be fed 
for the sake of a variety, the choice usually 
being determined by the kind at hand or the 
cost iu the local market. An excellent meth¬ 
od is to feed oats once or twice daily, and a 
grouud mixture for the other ration. 2. It is 
better to feed a little hay or other coarse fod¬ 
der first, especially if the grain is unground. 
Ihe hay will take the edge off the appetite so 
