188 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
March 14 
FEEDING A HEN. . 
Pabt X. 
We are glad to see that these articles 
have started many of our readers to in¬ 
vestigation and figuring. It is far better 
for all of us to meet and compare notes, 
than it is to try simply to lay down a 
set of theoretical rules. Here, for ex¬ 
ample, is a note from a man in Connecti¬ 
cut that brings up some new problems : 
I have 75 pullets, all B. P. Rocks, except five, 
which average about 40 eggs a day on the follow¬ 
ing diet: Morning, a mash fed warm, of four 
quarts of beans after boiling (planted too early 
so got full of bugs and are no good to sell), one 
pound Animal Meal, and four pounds of mixed 
meal consisting of wheat bran, wheat middlings, 
ground oats, corn meal, 100 pounds of each. At 
noon, three quarts of oats, and 12 pounds of 
scorched wheat at night. Four or five times each 
week, they have raw' potatoes, apples or carrots 
fed whole, which they pick to pieces and eat 
clean. The house is built after plans in Farm 
Poultry, roosting house and scratching shed com¬ 
bined. There are no floors, and the building is 
filled up to the bottom of the sills with sand. 
J. P. H. 
The Yankees always were strong on 
beans, and it seems from this, that the 
Yankee hens are no less susceptible to 
the effects of bean power than the 
humans. That is one of the strongest 
rations we have had yet. If you care to 
figure on it, it will be pretty safe to esti¬ 
mate the boiled beans as containing, by 
weight, about 10 per cent of muscle- 
makers, 25 of fat-formers, and two-fifth 
per cent of pure fat. The scorched 
wheat has, probably, lost about 20 per 
cent of its feeding value. You will find 
this a narrow ration, and certainly the 
results are good. 
Now here we have another feeding 
problem—from Connecticut again. 
The Feeding a Hen articles in Tub R. N.-Y. in 
terest me greatly. By studying tables of com¬ 
position of feeds and formulas of feeding, w’ith 
the knowledge gained from the articles, I have 
made up the following feed for 50 hens—pure 
Games, P. Rocks, Light Brahmas and Buff Coch¬ 
ins running together : I mix equal parts, by 
w'eight, of cotton-seed meal, eorn-and-cob meal 
and wheat bran ; I use two pounds of the mix 
ture in the morning, wet. At noon two pounds 
of oats and at night four pounds of corn. This 
gives a ration of one to four as I figure it, using 
United States Bulletin No. 22, digestible ingred¬ 
ient table to figure by. I am not sure that it is a 
good formula, and the way it has acted, or has 
the credit of acting, has made me afraid of it. 
The results are these : It was fed but 10 days, 
and the egg production, which had been but three 
a week, has gone to 20 per week. The hens 
seemed to be satisfied ; there was not that crazi¬ 
ness for something to eat as before. After feed¬ 
ing for that length of time, one hen, a Game, lost 
the use of her legs entirely, and could not stand. 
Another showed the same symptoms. 1 thought 
that, perhaps, the cotton-seed meal was the cause 
of the trouble, and ceased to feed it. Both hens 
are all right now, and the eggs under the change 
have continued. Is the cotton-seed meal danger¬ 
ous ? You will notice that the proportion, one to 
four, is nearly what The R. N.-Y. recommends, 
but there is no meat or bone in it. 
Our opinion is that the trouble was due 
to the cotton-seed meal. We have ob¬ 
served the same symptoms in feeding 
large quantities of this substance to dif¬ 
ferent kinds of animals. We regard cot¬ 
ton-seed meal as a dangerous food foi 
poultry. Linseed meal is much better. 
It is unfortunate that cotton-seed meal 
often causes such an injurious effect, for 
it is a strong, cheap, food, and would 
enable us to make tip an excellent ration 
if we could use it with perfect safety. 
The result of this experiment, at least, 
shows the value of a narrow ration in 
improving the egg yield. We would like 
to know what was fed before the at¬ 
tempt at a “balance” was made. 
And now comes something that we 
will all read with interest—a note from 
J. A. W., the “revolutionary poultry 
keeper.” We have looked the matter up, 
and find that J. A. W. did write 30cents. 
The it. N.-Y. made the mistake of print¬ 
ing “ 40 cents,” as the supposed price of 
the eggs. 
In regard to Revolutionary Poultry Keeping, 
allow me to say that the criticism of A. R. S. on 
page 148, is well put; but the fault is, I think, 
with the printer. I may possibly have made a 
slip, but I certainly intended to say: ‘‘There is as 
much profit in producing eggs at a cost of 10 cents 
a dozen and selling them for 20 , as there is in pro¬ 
ducing them at a cost of 20 cents, and selling 
them for 30.” Of course, this -would not be true 
if the highest price mentioned was 40. 
Your own remark that there may be one-sided 
thoughts as well as well-balanced thoughts, in¬ 
sinuates, but does not prove, that my thinking is 
one-sided. The fact is, I have thought all around 
this question, and thought “ at it.” If I hadn't, I 
shouldn’t have dared to do as I have done, for the 
old school doctors of poultry science have de¬ 
clared times without number, that it was a 
settled, undebatable fact that hens could not be 
kept in health and at a profit if fed on a strictly 
vegetarian diet, and quartered in large flocks. 
It seems to me that people who always stick to 
old methods are the one-sided thinkers. Ever 
since I was a boy, I have always had great re¬ 
spect for age (with exceptions, eggs, for in¬ 
stance) ; but age alone is a poor recommenda¬ 
tion for a man or a thought. I have never yet 
seen a statement which I considered too sacred 
to investigate. I have doubted and experimented, 
with the result that my conclusions are unlike 
those of some others. I will admit my laziness. 
I have no time to waste, and desire as much pi'oflt 
from my hens for as small an amount of labor as 
possible, and here is where I have the advantage 
of the mush makers. I can feed and water my 
200 henB in the same amount of time as it would 
take to feed and water 20 ; and in less time if the 
20 were fed inush. One large pailful of wheat and 
corn, and one large pailful of water, will feed 
and water the whole flock. It takes five minutes 
a day to rake out the droppings. Leaving the 
broody hens and chickens out, I can do all the 
work required to keep my 200 hens in health and 
comfort, in 15 minutes of time dally. Think of 
the work of boiling vegetables, cutting bones, 
making mashes and distributing the feed among 
12 or 15 flocks, and what would the 15 minutes 
amount to ? 
One-sided practice is better than well-balanced 
theory. This town is filled, so to speak, with bone 
cutters; but as far as I can learn, my hens lay 
more eggs than an equal number belonging to 
any one who feeds meat or bone. Perhaps there 
are one-sided theories. Perhaps my theory is a 
well-balanced one. It is this: Hens which have 
plenty of room indoors and out, wholesome food, 
clean water, freedom from lice, and sanitary 
quarters, will lay eggs at a profit. My hens ap¬ 
pear contented, and as long as they pay me $348 
for 10 days’ labor, I think that I shall feel so my¬ 
self. J- A ‘ w ’ 
certainly hesitate to follow the plan, 
neither do I think that many poultry 
keepers would find the practice satis¬ 
factory. It is really not necessary, and 
entails upon the poultryman a useless 
care and bother. While a fire is all right 
theoretically, it is a nuisance practically. 
If a house is built first-class and plas¬ 
tered, and stocked with a number of 
(Continued on next page.) 
ptti&trtlancouisi gUufrtiSincj. 
lx writing to advertisers, please always mention 
The Rural New-Yorker. 
We wish to say right here that we had 
no idea of insinuating that J. A. W. was 
a one sided thinker. The reverse of this 
is very evident. We meant to warn those 
who read that article and thought of 
dashing in to duplicate J. A. VV.’s suc¬ 
cess, that there are two sides to every 
question, and that they must think the 
whole thing over carefully and see how 
the plan fits into their conditions before 
attempting it. 
We have some other interesting things 
on hand, including a note from a hen 
man who wishes a balanced ration for 
himself. We must leave them for the 
present, however. 
The 
Hen Men 
Who use ffowker’s Animal Meal 
are becoming more numerous 
every day. It is seldom we meet 
any one keeping poultry who has 
not used it. There are many 
good reasons why it pays to feed 
it. It is pure, thoroughly cooked 
meat and bone, finely ground, 
and easily digested. 
It makes h*ns lay; 
It makes chickens grow. 
Enough for io hens 3 months, $ 1 . 
Four times as much for $ 2 . 25 . 
Our little book about it free. 
Bowker 
43 Chatham St 
l, Boston. 
Live Stock Matters. 
FORKFULS OF FACTS. 
Two Meals a Day. —I noticed in a late 
issue of The R. N.-Y. a suggestion as to 
farmers trying the two meals a day as 
well as their stock. I have tried it for a 
long time, and am well pleased with it. 
I seldom do any “piecing” between 
meals, enjoy better health than the 
average, and always work hard. N. N. 
Harwinton, Conn. 
Two Horse- Notes. —Tell A. J. B. to 
apply pine tar on the wart on his three- 
year old mare, and it will soon disappear 
and cause no injury. 
Tell the man that wishes to prevent 
his horse from biting the hitching strap, 
to strap his mouth shut when occasion 
requires. s. k. m. 
Mich. 
Fire in a Poultryhouse. —In a recent 
issue of The R. N.-Y. a correspondent 
says that he keeps a fire in his henhouse. 
If he really finds this profitable in his own 
experience, well and good ; but I would 
Feeders of Stock 
Kindly Stop a Minute. 
We wish to remind you of the 
importance of using liberally 
OUR LINSEED OIL MEAL. 
Never before has linseed oil meal been anything 
like as low in price as now, and as prevailing prices 
are not remunerative to the manufacturer, feeders 
can readily reason that prices must soon be higher. 
Address 
DETROIT LINSEED OIL WORKS, 
DETROIT MICH. 
Horse Owners! Use 
GOMBAULT’S 
Caustic 
Balsam 
_ _ A Safe Speedy and Positive Cure 
The Safest, Kent BLISTER ever used. Takes 
the place of all liniments for mild or severe action. 
Removes all Bunches or Blemishes from Hot'sew 
and Cattle. SUPERSEDES ALL CAUTERY 
OR FIRINC 1 mpussible to produce scar or blemish. 
Every bottle sold is warranted to give satisfaction 
Price $1.50 per bottle. Sold by druggists, or 
sent by express, charges paid, with full directions 
lor its use. Send for descriptive circulars. 
THE LAWRE NCE-W1LLIAMS CO- Cleveland O . 
O KR’S Clear Grit Quarterly. Free to any ad 
dress. A postal brings it. Box 13, Orr’s Mills, N. Y 
FEED MILLS 
(Sold with or without Elevator) 
Medal Awarded—World’* Fair. 
Crash 00 b and grind all kinds of grain. 
Have conical shaped grinders. An 
ti.'ire departure from aU other mUls. 
Lightest running, strongest and 
handiest made. Three 8 izes: 2 to 6 , 
6 to 8 and 8 to 12 horse power. 
1 also make SWEEP MILLS that 
grind wheat fine and crush ear com. 
P. N. B0WSHER, So. Bend, Ind. 
Strange 
waste of harness and shoe-leather! 
Vacuum Leather Oil is best. Get a can 
at a harness- or shoe-store, 25 c a half¬ 
pint to $ 1.25 a gallon ; book “ How to 
Take Care of Leather,’’ and swob, both 
free ; use enough to find out; if you 
don’t like it, take the can back and get 
the whole of your money. 
Sold only in cans, to make sure of fair dealing 
everywhere—handy cans. Best oil for farm ma¬ 
chinery also. If you can’t find it, write to 
VACUUM OIL COMPANY, Rochester, N. Y. 
Whv Pay Retail Price 
When you can buy a custom hand- 
s* made oak leather Harness direct 
[ from the mfrs. at wholesale price. 
Send 2c. stamp for illustrated Cata¬ 
logue, giving full description. 
KING & CO., Mfrs.. 
10 Church Street, Owego, N.Y. 
HEADQUARTERS FOR 
DUMPING 
Horse Carts 
Wide and narrow tires. 
Steel axles. Low rates of 
freight from our works, 
Tata my, Pa., to all points 
HOBSON & CO., 
No 4 Stone St.. New York. 
Progress ana Improvement 
THE CHAMPION p,v w°a t G o a n xle 
Ih “The Horse’s Friend.” 
and was awarded medal at World's Fair for PROG¬ 
RESS AND IMPROVEMENT. We also make old-style 
straight axles, one and two-horse wagons, with thim¬ 
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Our THREE-SPRING U 6 -INCH AXLE WAGON is 
the handiest and cheapest general-purpose run-about 
wagon made. 
THE O-WE-GO GRAIN AND FERTILIZER DRILL 
works to perfection, and the price is a surprise to 
every one. 
The MASCOT is the name of one of our very best 
lever spring tooth harrows. 
Catalogue free. If your dealer does not handle our 
goods, we will on application name bottom prices. 
THE CHAMPION WAGON CO., 
Owego, Tioga County, New York. 
NEW CATALOGUE rOB 1896 
Printed in colors that are correct. 
Best and finest illustrated Poultry 
Catalogue ever printed. Get it 
■ and be convinced. It tells how to 
I make poultry pay, how to build 
1 poultry houses, gives remedies for), 
diseases, also lowest prices of 
' fowls and eggs. If interested in 
_ w 1 poultry this book is what you 
want. Sent post pnid for 16 cents.(• 
i J. W. Miller Co. Box 144, Freeport. Ijls.J 1 
POULTRY 
40 Standard Bret^rffins -1 
trated A fully described I 
in my new Poultry Book. I 
Reliable information for | 
E oultrymen & intending I 
uyers. Good stock Ducks I 
& Geese: also Shetland I 
Ponies. Send 6 cin stamps | 
. H. COOK, Box 42. Huntley, Ill. 
GREIDER’S NEW CATALOGUE 
FOR 1896. Finer and larger than ever, the flneit 
engravings of poultry, with descriptions of each 
variety, best plans for poultry houses, how to 
raise broilers, caring of fowls, remedies for all 
diseases,best licedestroyer.pricesof eggs and stock 
from high scoring birds,send 10 cents for this noted 
book which will be deducted from first order. 
Address, B. H. GREIDER, FLORIN, PA., U. S. A. 
^SHOEMAKER'S POULTRY BOOK 
96 pages, printed in 6 colors. Birdseye view 
of largest Poultry Farm. Tells all about 
Chickens, Prices of same, their Diseases, 
jtSttm remedies,poultry buildings,etc.; finely illu» 
trated. Prievonlyllje. C. (!. SHOEMAKER, Frevport, IlU.l'.S.i. 
2000 PREMIUMS 
•t 10 State Fair* In 1895. This is my rec¬ 
ord. £((■ and Fowls For Sale. Largest 
Range in the We#t- Send 5 one cent stamps 
for best Illustrated Catalogue. 
CHAS. QAMMERDINGER.BOX 86, COLUMBUS, Q. 
1200^More Eggs 
When hens are fed on 
GREEN CUT BONE. 
MANN’S 
BONE GUTTER 
will pay for itself la two months. Sent 
on trial, $5.00 BUYS ONE. 
Catalogue free if name this paper. 
F.W. MANN CO. .Milford, Mass. 
Crnn PoHlnfrilO of 22 varieties of prize winning 
lice UaldlUtUc fowls, ’it prizes at one show. 
Every bird bears a score card by F. H. Sheliabarger. 
Scientific Poultry Yds. W. E. Senneff, Prop., Dixon, Iil. 
GRANULATED BONE FOR POULTRY. 
Bone Meal, Crushed Oyster Shells, Calcite, Crushed 
Flint, Ground Beef Scraps. Send for Price List. 
YORK CHEMICAL WORKS, York. Pa. 
f 
4 
Pain often con¬ 
centrates all 
its Misery in 
RHEUMATISM 
Use 
at 
once 
ST. JACOBS OIL 
if you want to feel it con¬ 
centrate its healing in 
a cure. 
ar? Hand Bone, Shell, and 
O Corn Mills for Poultrymen. 
Daisy Bone Cutter. Power Mills. 
__ Circular and testimonials Free. 
WILSON BROS., Easton, Pa. 
PASTEURA FO^aNANDBk’AST. 
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?mell or stain. 50 cts. per box, postpaid. y 
Pasteura Medicine Co., Chittenungo, N, *• 
