1897 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
447 
LIVE STOCK MATTERS. 
(CONTINUED.) 
cured them at the opening of the season, 
the hatch was disappointing and the 
chicks worse. I give my flock free range 
with an average of one male to twelve 
females, and 90 to 95 per cent of their 
eggs prove fertile, and about the same 
per cent of chicks vigorous and healthy. 
Immediately after the hatching season 
is over, the males should be removed 
from the flock and sold or penned up. 
Males should not be allowed to run with 
females, especially if the latter are pure¬ 
bred. from early in July till after the 
moulting season is well over. 
Large Pens, Says Mr. Wyckoff. 
My experience in mating my breeding 
pens agrees exactly with yours. I have 
frequently tried mating one male with 
10 to 15 females, and have invariably 
found that I had a smaller per cent of 
fertile eggs than when I followed my 
usual custom of mating three males with 
40 females, or four with 50. I have, also, 
thoroughly tried the plan so often rec¬ 
ommended, of keeping the males con¬ 
fided by themselves, and allowing only 
one to run with the hens at a time, 
changing every day, but have abandoned 
this method, as results were often un¬ 
satisfactory, and the extra labor and 
care of the male birds were considerable. 
During the last two seasons, I have had 
such good results from a few hens mated 
three^males to 50 females that I am 
thinking seriously of mating all that 
way next season, provided the males are 
as vigorous as I desire always to have 
them. 
Twenty-five Hens in One Pen 
The best results that I ever had were 
from four pens of hens of 25 each, with 
one cock in each pen, the cocks taken 
away each week, and a fresh one put in 
from a surplus kept for that purpose. 
There was no knocking each other off, 
and every germ was strong, and there 
were no half-fertilized germs which I 
find to a large extent among chickens 
which run at large. With the right 
kind of care, I think the eggs will be 
the best from hens that are in yards with 
only one cock. .james h sekly. 
Alternate the Roosters. 
I have always had the best results for 
fertile eggs when I kept about 30 to 40 
hens in one pen, and kept two vigorous 
cockerels, allowing only one of them 
with the hens at a time, keeping one in 
a coop arranged for the purpose, and 
changing them every day. I have never 
been able to get good fertile eggs with 
two or more cockerels in one pen at the 
same time. I think that, as a rule, too 
many cockerels are kept, and I think 
that too many are even worse than not 
enough. I never had eggs hatch better 
than one year, about 10 years ago, when 
I kept about 90 hens, running at large, 
and had only two cockerels with them. 
As a rule, one vigorous cockerel to 20 or 
25 hens I think better than more. I 
notice in a recent R. N.- Y. that you are 
looking for best results in fertile eggs, 
and many of them. I don’t think that 
you will go far wrong if you feed corn 
as the principal grain (with other grains 
only as a change), and meat scraps to" 
make a balanced ration, feeding the 
grain in litter, or covered in the ground 
to give plenty of exercise. 
J. E. STEVENSON. 
Experience of D. A. Mount. 
I prefer using enough hens for one 
cock in each pen ; with the small active 
breeds, such as Leghorns, Minorcas, etc., 
20 hens to one cock are about the num¬ 
ber, and with the larger breeds such as 
Wyandottes, Plymouth Rocks, etc., 15 
hens to one cock. With Brahmas and all 
very large breeds, 10 hens are enough 
for one cock. Were I keeping only one 
breed and could let them have their 
entire liberty, I would then be obliged 
to have more than one rooster with a 
flock unless the flock were small. I 
have, this season, a pen of 15 W. P. Rock 
hens with one cock, that are kept in a 
pen about 30 x 100 feet, with a house 
12 x 20 feet, that I have reports of every 
egg hatching. Last year, this same lot 
with others had the run of my farm, and 
then they did not lay as well, neither 
did the eggs hatch as well as this season. 
Large Flocks Not Desirable. 
I never kept fowls in large flocks. If 
the 50 females and four males were con¬ 
fined I should expect fewer fertile eggs 
than if they were in four pens, as there 
is much jealousy between the males, 
and one will often make abortive the 
service of the other. If they had un¬ 
limited range, so that each male could 
take his favorites and roam where they 
pleased, there would be little, if any, 
difference in the per cent of fertile eggs. 
In pens, the male often has his particular 
favorites, paying no attention to the 
others ; this can be remedied by substi¬ 
tuting other females. Where infertile 
eggs result from this cause, the breeder 
is to blame, as he does not give his birds 
sufficient attention to get the best re¬ 
sults. I am inclined to think that the 
best results can be obtained both in 
fertile eggs and vigor of chicks, by hav¬ 
ing two males for each pen, and using 
them alternate days, although I have 
never practiced the method. If one has 
but a few hens, say half a dozen or less, 
better allow the male with them but a 
half day at a time. b holmes 
Why Eggs Are Not Fertile. 
We have been unable so to mate our 
yards for the past two seasons, that we 
could procure a large per cent of fertile 
eggs. We have tried few in a pen, also 
large numbers with three and four 
males ; still the eggs were not fertile, 
and it seems to be a general complaint 
all over this season that eggs are not 
fertile. As a rule, Leghorn eggs are 
about all fertile, but we haven’t been 
able to mate these fowls so that we can 
get over 25 per cent of chicks. I have 
one small yard of Brown Leghorns con¬ 
sisting of one yearling cock and eight 
pullets that I put out in a grass run a 
few weeks since ; from this small pen, I 
am getting about 95 per cent fertile 
eggs, the best lot of fertile eggs we have 
had in several years. I think our sea¬ 
sons have more or less to do with eggs 
being fertile ; cold, damp weather dur¬ 
ing early spring is of no value to poultry 
which has been in warm winter houses 
all winter. Then again, poultry that 
lay well throughout the winter months 
do not furnish eggs in the spring that 
will be very strong in the line of fertil¬ 
ity. Poultry, as a rule, give us more 
eggs in cold weather or during the win¬ 
ter months than they formerly did, for 
two reasons; their winter houses are 
more comfortable, and egg-forcing food 
is fed more or less. I find that, when 
fowls are forced for egg production, 
their eggs are more or less infertile. I 
can’t say that we go by any rule ; we 
get more fertile eggs in June than 
earlier. g. w. Randolph. 
More Hens in Warm Weather. 
I do not know what you call a small 
pen of birds, but with a very active 
rooster with only eight hens or less, the 
eggs are likely to hatch poorly. For 
winter broilers or early spring fancy 
(fertile) hatching eggs in mating, from 
the heavy breeds such as I handle, the 
average rooster is good for only about 10 
to 15 hens (average about 13 hens). For 
Leghorns and the lighter weight breeds, 
about the same number per male bird 
or, perhaps, a few more. There can be 
no set rule in mating fowls, as the stock 
and conditions vary so much. The 
breeder must use a large amount of horse 
sense in mating. In warmer weather 
or when fowls can run at large on bare 
ground and grass land, the same male 
birds will often properly attend to twice 
the number of females mentioned for 
cold weather. The main reason for this 
is that they get more exercise when 
running at large. Plenty of exercise— 
for the stock—is one of the greatest 
essentials to any branch of successful 
poultry culture. Some male birds are 
barren and of no account, while others 
will have only a few favorite hens that 
they will serve properly ; eggs from 
these disliked hens will generally prove 
infertile. One must either remove these 
unpopular hens to another pen, or 
change males in the same pen every few 
days, that is, let one rooster in with a 
flock a few days, then take him out and 
let him rest by himself while the other 
male is with these hens. By taking 
some pains in the fall and early winter, 
one can, as a rule, get males suited to 
and mated to 10 to 15 females that will 
do all right without changing males as 
mentioned above. chan e davis. 
Some Interesting Experiments. 
Guernseys. 
295 purebred Guernseys of the best American and 
Island breeding. Butter average, whole herd, 318 
pounds per head. No catalogue. Come and make 
your own selection. 
ELLERSLIE STOCK FARM, 
RHINECLIFF, N. Y. 
JERSEY CATTLE FOR SALE. 
First-class Dairy Stock. 
Registered CALVES, BULLS and COWS. 
R F SHANNON ) 907 Liberty 8t., Pittsburgh. Pa 
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■ » W Cl 1Ayrshire Bull Calves, of the 
cho'cest breeding, from great mUkers and good but¬ 
ter-makers. D. M. CAMPBELL. Oneonta, N. Y. 
A ,J. c. CLUIi Young Bulls of the ST. L \MREHT 
blood, from our best cows, at farmers’ prices. 
E. L. CLAKKSON, Tivoli, N. Y. 
Refer by permission to The Rural Nkw-Yohker. 
21 Times Stoke Po^ls; 5 Times Ida’s Rioter. 
St. Lambert .lersoys by Comelv's Matilda Rioter; 
also comoination by Brown Bessie's Prince. Write 
for what you want. S. E. NIV1N, Landenberg, Pa. 
In a general way, my experience has 
been in accord with your conclusions. 
The eggs which I have used, however, 
have been from several different breeds, 
and occasionally from crosses, kept 
under somewhat different conditions, so 
that the results of hatching have not 
been strictly comparable. I have bred 
often from a pair of birds, and some¬ 
times found the proportion of fertile 
eggs low and sometimes high. Several 
matings of one male and one female this 
season gave, in per cent of fertile eggs, 
8(5, 25, 88, 93 and 90. Sometimes for two 
weeks or so, every egg from a hen 
would be fertile, and sometimes most of 
them infertile. Eggs from a flock of 
(56 hens and pullets having a large run 
with only two cockerels were 93 per cent 
fertile. These were Leghorns, and the 
fertile eggs hatched well, as they 
usually do from Leghorns, either single 
matings or large flocks. Eggs from a 
pen of a larger breed, nine females and 
one male, were 92 per cent fertile. A 
pen of four hens and a cockerel gave 82 
per cent, fertile eggs, as did another pen 
of three hens and a cockerel. From a 
pen of six hens and a cockerel (Light 
Brahmas) the proportion of fertile eggs 
was in April. 40 per cent, and in May, 70 
per cent. From another pen of six pul¬ 
lets and a cock, also Brahmas, the eggs 
were 44 per cent fertile. Some of the 
best results in fertile eggs and good 
hatching I have had were from ten hens 
mated with a one-year-old male. The 
hens were in three peDS, four in one 
and three in each of the others. The 
male bird was in each pen one day in 
three. I cannot now give the exact re¬ 
sults. I am not sure which is best, but 
prefer matings of the larger flocks sim¬ 
ply to obtain many fertile eggs, though 
for other reasons, I have usually pre¬ 
ferred to breed from small pens of about 
three females, full sisters. In my ex¬ 
perience, there have been more fertile 
Have you bought a Boar 7 
Wlllswood Herd 
Recorded Berkshire Swine. 
WILLS A. SEWARD, Budd’s Lake, N. J. 
fct Reg. r, cninas, Berkshires 
“ and C.Whites. Positively hard 
times prices. Spring Pigs eight 
weeks old, not akin. Boars 
and Sows, all ages. Sows 
bred. Pure Poultry Eggs. 
HAMILTON & CO., Cochranvllle, Chester Co., Pa. 
stored Chester Whites 
nowready for shipping, from 
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sired by my prize boars, 
Chester 2nd 0017, Eureka 
King 6961, George R., 7359, 
and out of choice reg. sows 
Order soon and get the best. 
Send 2-cent stamp for catalogue and prices. Come 
see my stock and select for yourself. EDWARD 
WALTER. Eureka Stock Farm, West Chester, Pa. 
P OLAND-CHINA PIGS. - Another litter of 10 
Poland-China Pigs from a 400-lb. Yearling Sow at 
$7. Just the kind to Improve your herd. Orders 
booked. F. H. Gates & Sons. Chittenango, N. Y. 
COOP that hatch. Prices cut in two. 2C0 Pekin 
CuUu Ducks; selected breeders; must be sold. 
Stamp for cat. Brookside Poultry Farm, Columbus.N..I 
SITTING HENS 
Will sit. eggs will hatch, chicks will grow, 
where LAMBERT’S DEATH to LICE is 
used. Safe, yet sure. Trial size, 10c post¬ 
paid ; 100 ozs. by Ex., H. Book fhek 
D. J. LAMBERT, Box 307, Apponaug, R.I. 
EGGS! EGGS!! 
W. guarantee double 
the yield when hens 
are fed green cut bone 
prepared on our new 
c b r o e n e e n CUTTER. 
Only cutter awarded rssa -premium at 
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WEBSTER & HANNUM, 
CAZENOVIA, NEW YORK. 
FEED jor PROFIT? 
MILK F?c n sh? 
, . -....■ Sores on Coxes, 
SHOO-FLY 
t»o 
YOU 
FLIES ■ . 
No Flies, Ticks, Vermin, or Sores on Cotes, 
if 1 cent is spent in — — — — —- 
Send 25 cents to 
Mfg. Co., 1005 Fair- 
mount Aye., Phi la.. 
Pa. They will return 1 pint., and prnarantee to refnnd 
money if cow is not protected. MERIT brought more 
duplicate 10 and 30 gallon orders in 1896 th 
Trial gal., $1 15; lasts 3cows a season 
an ever 
Agents wanted 
eggs from such breeds as Leghorns, 
Hamburgs and Iloudans, than from 
Brahmas, Cochins, etc , with a few ex¬ 
ceptions. w. p wheeler. 
“Stick to the bridge that carries you safe over.’’ 
For more than 62 years Dr. D. Jayne's Expectorant 
has done that for thousands of sufferers from Lung 
and Throat troubles. 
nealea, toughened and cured 
while at work by . . 
MOORE BROS.’ 
50c. and $ 1 by Poll 
mail,postpaid. VJdll 
Moore Bros. j 
Albany, N.Y. POWflei 
WHILE WORSE WORKS 
If bilious takeJayne’s Painless Sanative Pills .—Adv 
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THE LAW RENCE-WILLIAMS GO., Clevelan d O- 
BICKMORE’S GALL CURE 
Will cure your horse of collar 
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AMERICAN LIVE-STOCK COMPANY 
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Refers by permission to Tub Rural NewYobkeb. 
