THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
47 
1906. 
MAPES, THE HEN MAN , 
But Not the Egg Man. 
Winter Egg Problems.— A hen man 
worthy of the name should get at least 
one egg every day in the year. I am in¬ 
clined in this article to make a clean 
breast of it, at the risk of allowing read¬ 
ers to see what a misnomer the editor has 
been placing at the head of this column. 
Winter eggs have never been my forte. 
The colony system does not present ideal 
conditions for giving that close attention 
to the hens, and watchfulness over them, 
which seems to be the only way to suc¬ 
cess in that direction. Last Fall I hired 
a second man, and decided that for once 
we would care for them the best I knew 
how, even if it took one man’s entire time, 
and even more. John, who was assigned 
to this work, cannot hear a hen cackle, 
as his hearing was entirely destroyed by 
an attack of measles when a boy, but his 
eye and brain are unusually quick, and 
“do it well” seems to be his motto rather 
than to “do it quick.” Mr. Cosgrove has 
promised to tell us the story of his suc¬ 
cess in the columns of The R. N.-Y. dur¬ 
ing the coming year, and the story of 
my failure will serve as a useful foil to 
his success. Between the two, readers 
may be able to sift out something of prac¬ 
tical value. 
Starting Right. —Our first move after 
getting the hens into Winter quarters was 
to make an exact count, seeing to it that 
exactly 50 birds were in each coop 10 x 12 
feet. In most cases it was 49 hens and 
one male. This as an aid to uniformity 
in feeding. There are 28 of these flocks. 
The box on the old buckboard wagon in 
which feed is distributed to the flocks 
was fitted up with a spring-balance scale, 
hanging directly over it, on which the 
pail in which feed is carried to each flock 
can easily be hung. The counting was 
done after hens were on the roost. A 
light frame was made and covered with 
wire netting, of suitable size to confine 
the hens under the table for droppings, 
beneath the perches. This was easily car¬ 
ried from house to house. The hens were 
lifted from the perches and dropped into 
this enclosed space under the table. An 
exact count was easily obtained in this 
way. The first feed in the morning con¬ 
sists of a mixture of wheat, oats and 
cracked corn, equal parts. This is placed 
in the box on the buckboard, and also sev¬ 
eral cans of warm water. At about 7.30 
John starts out with instructions to fill the 
drinking pans, and give each flock of 50 
Leghorns three pounds of the mixed 
grain, scattered in the litter of planer 
shavings with which the floors are well 
covered. This is supposed to induce ex¬ 
ercise and start up a good circulation un¬ 
der their coat of feathers. 
Midday Care. —At 11 o’clock he starts 
out again with a load of hot mash in his 
box. This is composed of the following 
ingredients: 100 pounds good meat scrap, 
400 pounds cornmeal, 100 pounds wheat 
middlings, 200 pounds wheat bran, 70 
pounds cut clover, four quarts salt. This 
is wet with hot water or hot milk (usually 
milk), and each flock is given about seven 
pounds of the wet mixture, equivalent to 
about three pounds of any feed; 125 
pounds of water or milk to 100 pounds of 
dry feed makes it sufficiently wet to han¬ 
dle nicely, and 70 pounds of the cut clover 
in the batch gives elasticity to the mass, 
and is all consumed. I usually follow a 
half hour in the wake of this trip with 
spoon and pail, gathering up fragments in 
some pens and dropping some in others 
as occasion demands to insure against 
over-feeding or under-feeding. At one 
P. M. another trip is made in search of 
eggs, in order to avoid egg-eating during 
the afternoon. There is a bin containing 
whole corn in each coop, and at 3 P. M. a 
full feed of corn is given each flock, as 
nearly as possible, the windows (which 
were opened on the first trip in the morn¬ 
ing if the weather makes it advisable) 
closed for the night, and remnants of 
water in the pans thrown out. I had no 
green feed this season, and fearing that 
the cut clover is not sufficient in that re¬ 
gard have secured some large ruta-baga 
turnips. These are split in two and dis¬ 
tributed at the first trip in the morning, 
with the water and small grain, as much 
as they will eat. 
But They Don’t Lay. —How nice it 
would be to round out this account with a 
report of a big yield of eggs! This is 
written, however, for the columns of The 
R. N.-Y., which is nothing if not truthful, 
and candor compels me to say that for six 
consecutive days in December not an egg 
was laid, and the first day of the new year 
finds us with only 2S eggs laid on that 
day. Now, brothers Cosgrove, Bildad, 
Zophar and Eliphaz, what is the matter? 
Here is a question worthy of your best 
efforts. I will say in fairness that the 
turnips (as a substitute for cabbage) have 
not yet been used long enough to have 
had much effect. Some of ,my Job’s com¬ 
forters will doubtless say that my hens 
are too much crowded. For answer I 
would point them to Jesse’s hens. They 
are equally crowded, yet he was getting 
more than 100 eggs a day from about half 
as many hens by December 15. One of 
his pens of 60 S. C. White Leghorns in 
a room 12 x 12 feet is laying 20 to 22 eggs 
a day. Another will say my hens are not 
bred to lay. For answer I will say that 
at Thanksgiving time I was applied to by 
a man in town, through a friend, to sell 
him a half dozen pullets. My answer was 
that I had no pullets for sale, but would 
sell him old hens. That proposition be¬ 
ing acceptable, I selected six from a large 
flock of five-year-old hens intended for 
the butcher, and forwarded them with 
some misgivings. Before Christmas this 
stranger sought me out, inquiring if I was 
the Mr. Mapes from whom he purchased 
a half dozen Leghorns. While I was look¬ 
ing for a hole in the floor he took my 
breath away by saying that they were 
beauties, and were already laying three 
eggs a day. The “ninety and nine” re¬ 
maining with me had scarcely laid an .egg 
in the meantime. o. w. mapes. 
This year from 100 White Wyandotte hens 
and 100 Wyandotte pullets I sold $332.42 
in eggs and chickens, besides* all we used in 
the house and for setting. The 100 pullets, 
some of which did not begin to lay until 
March (July and August hatched), laid from 
January 1 to December 31, 1905, 12,022 eggs. 
St. Louis Park, Minn. a. e. b. 
Oats or Range. —My neighbor, Edward 
Mead, has a flock of about 70 hens, which be¬ 
gan to lay the first week in March, and dur¬ 
ing the rest of 1905 he got a few eggs over 
(5,000. He had a full third of the Hock set 
during the Spring, and the result was a nice 
lot of young birds. He keeps an egg rec¬ 
ord, so he knows what he gets. All through 
the high-price season he has been selling at 
the top price, because private customers can 
rely on his word. The flock contains Ply¬ 
mouth Rock, White Leghorn, Wyandotte and 
some that I cannot place. They have prac¬ 
tically unlimited range and have been fed 
twice a day oats, unthrashed, which makes 
them scratch for grain. Is it the oats or the 
range that gives the eggs? Many of our 
neighbors who have ranging flocks get no 
eggs. Mr. Mead got 30 eggs last Friday. 
Cornwall, N. Y. J. M. R. 
B ook on poultry 
diseases rnrr 
donkey’s book on Poultry JJ, 
Diseases sells for 25cts. Full 
of Information on housing, feeding, sickness, and 
how to care for the flock. Will help you to make 
money. Send 1 cents to pay postage and thenamesof 
two other poultry raisers, and we will send you a copy 
of this illustrated book of valuable information free. 
G. E. Conkey & Co., No.84,ott»w»Bidg,- Cleveland, 0. 
HEAP CHICKEN FEED 
Made from scrap bones you’d throw 
away—cut it fresh every day with a 
Crown Bone Cutter. Got more eggs — raise better 
birds. Write todaj for FREE catalogue and price. 
WILSON BROS., Box 628. Easton, Pa. 
<GGS non BONE 
, Green cut bone doubles egg yield. More fertile 
eggs, vigorous chicks, early broilers, heavy fowls. 
MINNfC LATEST MODEL 
IVlflllll W BONE CUTTER 
10 days free trial. No money In advance. Send It 
back at our expense if you don't like it. Cat’lg free. 
F.W.MANN CO., Box 15 , Milford, Mass. 
9 I 0-80 For > 
I dm 200 Egg 
INCUBATOR 
Perfect in eonstruction and 
action. Hatches every fertile 
Off- Write for catalog to-day. 
GEO. H. STAHL, Quincy, Ill 
Take Your Choice. 
Guaranteed Self Regulating Incubators 
ippijy at $1 and $2 per month. Let 
■ rent pay for it. We pay freight 
■ Buy on 40 Days Trial or buy parts and 
■plans and build one. Prices, ready to 
_luse: $5.00 up. Free catalog—tells all. 
QUCKEYC INCUBATOR CO., Box 2 3 . Sprlitflflold, O. 
m HATCHERIES 
now In use. Valuable catalog and Pure-bred 
Poultry List free. F. GRUNDY, MornsonviUe, Ill, 
BANTA 
Incubators A Brooders 
Backed by 14 Years 
wmmm of Successful Use by 
poultrymen all over the world. 
No guesswork. They are auto¬ 
matic in regulation and ventil¬ 
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YOU satisfaction. Send for 
free book. BANTA - BENDER 
MFG. CO,, Dept. 46, Ligonier, Ind. 
sel 
M. M. Johnson Co.. 
40, 60 or 90 Days Trial on 
Old Trusty 
The Easy Machine to Operate. 
You run no risn. Five year guar¬ 
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care—less oil—most profit. Don’t 
pay two prices. Thousands sold. We 
u direcl 
CC. Big 1906 Book Free. 
Clay Center, Neb. 
LIFE PRODUCERS 
SUCCESSFUL INCUBATORS. 
LIFE PRESERVERS 
SUCCESSFUL BROODERS. 
’ The only machines that rival the mother 
_ hen. Incubator and Poultry Catalogue 
FREE. Booklet, “Proper Care and Feeding Small Chicks, 
Ducks and Turkeys,” 10c. 60c poultry paper one year, 10c. 
DES MOINES INCUBATOR COMPANY, 
Department BO be. Molnea, Iowa. 
Eureka Flat Tooth Sulky 
Smoothing Cultivator 
Made in three sizes, 
A Harrow, 
A Weeder, 
A Seeder. 
Send for catalogued 
EUREKA MOWER CO., Utica. N. Y. 
The International 
Hoo 
y _..... _ 
p. Also has Continuous, Open Front, Air Tight, 
and Easy Operating Door, and a Permanent Ladder, 
always in Position. Made of Selected 2-ineh Tank 
Pine. Matched, ready to set up. THE INTER¬ 
NATIONAL SILO CO., Box91, Jefferson, O. 
DAVIS 
) 
Get It direct from 
factory at lactory 
prices and save 
20% to 50%. 
The simple cream separator 
which doubles proilts and cuts 
dairy work in two. Absolutely 
the simplest, easiest running, 
easiest cleaned sepuratorin the 
world. Just belt high to a man. 
Its three-piece bowl gets the 
last drop of cream. Investigate 
our liberal selling plan. Send 
your name and address to us on 
a postal card and get our 
money saving catalogue No. 
1 40 by return mail. 
Davis Cream 
Separator Co.. 
56AN^CUnton^L^Chlcago^Hj 
COLLIE PUPS, 
R. I. RED COCKERELS, 
WALTER SHERMAN, 25 Boulevard, Newport, R.I. 
FINE ONES, 
BARGAINS. 
HENS, 
PULLETS. 
CAD QAI C MALE AND FE- 
lu OMLt MALE ELK at 
I he Michigan School for the Deaf, Flint, Michigan. 
S COTCH COLLIES, Spayed Females, two to 
eight inos. (lire. SILAS DECKER, Montrose, Pa, 
WANTED 
50 Choice White Leghorn Pullets. 
CHESTE R CREST, MT. VERNON, N. Y. 
Drown Leghorn Ckls. of great egg-producing strains 
also collie pups. NELSON Bros., Drove City, Pa. 
L IGHT BRAHMAS, prize stock, A few good birds. 
O. GORDON, R. F. D. 1, Sprakers, N. Y. 
75 
eggs in 
CHOICE WHITE WYANDOTTE 
Cockerels; Duston strain,$1.25 each: three,$11; 
season. Grand View Farm, Stanfordville.N.Y. 
GREIDER’S FINE CATALOGUE 
of Standard bred poultry for 1900, printed in 
beautiful eolors, contains Fine t'hroiuo, illustrates 
and describes 00 varieties. Gives reasonable prices 
for stock and eggs, tells all about poultry, their 
diseases, lice, etc. This book only 10 cent*. 
B. H. GREIDER, RHEEMS, PA. 
C holceStock forSale.—Rocks, Wyandottes, Leghorns 
Minorcas, Turkeys, Ducks andUuineas. Also, Lice 
Killing Nest Eggs, sample mailed, 5c.; dozen. 50c 
Agents wanted. Pine Tree Farm, Jamesburg, N. J 
BLUE RIBBON 
Barred Plymouth Rocks,'! S 
White Wyandottes, V 
White Leghorns. J S 
Eggs. $1.50 per 15; $2.50 per L_. __... 
L1PP1NCOTT, P. O. Box 3. Moorestown, N. J. 
Full Egg 
Basket. 
SURE TO GIVE 
A 
SQUARE DEAL. 
SQUABS 
are raised in one'month: ; ' 1 
bring big prices. Money U'ifJ 
makers for poultrymen, 
farmers, women. tS 7 
Send for our Frf.e Book and learn thisJV 
rich industry. Correspondence invited 
Plymouth Rock Squab Co., 
335 Howard St., Melrose, Mass.^i^^tJ 
90 
War's Poultry, Pigeons, Parrots, Dogs, Cats. 
Ferrets, etc. Eggs a specialty. 60 p. book. 10c. 
Rates free. J A. BEKGEY.Box 8,Telford,Pa, 
DURE BRED BLArCK TURKEYS, R. C. B. 
r Leghorn cockerels, and ferrets, at SHADY LAWN 
FERRET FARM, New London, Ohio. 
Qarred, Buff and White Rocks, Wyandottes B. &. W. 
^ Minorcas and Leghorns, Mammoth Pekin Ducks. 
$3 each, $7.50 for trio. Eggs $2 for 15, $3.75 for 30, $5 
for 45. Duck eggs $1.50 for 11, $2.75 for 22, $5 for 44. 
Edward G. Noonan. Marietta. Lancaster Co., Penna. 
EMPIRE STATE S, C. WHITE LEGHORNS 
Winners at N, Y. State Fair, 1904-05. Trios, $5. Eggs 
for hatching, $1.00 per 15; $5.00 per 100. Catalogue 
J. H. ZIM- -- 
free. O. 
IMMER, R. D. 41, Weedsport, N 
:T 
R 
EGISTERED ANGORA GOATS—Pairs or 
trios. REGISTERED RAMBOUILLET RAMS. 
Write for prices and information. 
MELROSE STOCK FARM, Oincinnatus, N. Y. 
EGGS FOR HATCHING. 
BARRED ROCKS—Best blood; bred for vigor 
and utility. Free range and eggs of high fertility. 
$1.50 per 13. Grant Davis, Whitehouse, New Jersey. 
BufT Rocks— 200 for sale; a few Solid Buff Cockerels. 
58 premiums last winter. Dr. Coolidge, Warner, N.H. 
WHICH? 
Which way do you skim your milk ? 
It Is hard sometimes to realize just how 
great the loss of cream is with crocks and 
pans. Some people may not believe that a 
u. s. 
f 
NO r 
BUTTER 
LOST 
[THIS 
I 
CREAM SEPARATOR 
skims enough closer than the old way to increase their butter yield one-fourth i 
or more. But it does. Users say so. Here’s an every-day example— 
“Alturas, Cal., Sept. 1, 1905. 
“The U. S. Separator beats them all for ease of handling and clean 
skimming. When we got the No. 7 we were making 40 lbs. of butter 
per week with pans. The first week that we run the Separator we 
made 60 lbs. and with less work. —KELLY BROS.” 
For additional proofs write for our interesting free catalogue 
VERMONT FARM MACHINE CO., BeHows Falla. Vt. 
4 a 6 A 18 centrally located warehouses in United States and Canada 
OHNSTON 
Harvester 
For over 55 years the name 
“Johnston" has stood for merit, 
for quality, for the superiority ^■ 
of its products. Farmers everywhere have learned 
by experience that goods of the Johnston Manu¬ 
facture are honestly made. The Johnston Harves- ■ 
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The name never meant so much to farmers as it means right 
now.* We are Independent—Not in the Trust. What is to 
your interests as an independent buyer is to our interest as 
an independeht manufacturer. The Trust can offer you no 
advantage—can give you no greater value for your money. 
The effect of their policy is to limit your freedom of 
choice, to kill off competition and control trade. 
You know what it will mean if they do that. 
When you need farm machinery remem¬ 
ber that The Johnston Harvester Co., is 
not in the Trust. We have no agreement 
verbal or otherwise, or stand in any posi¬ 
tion which in any way tends to compromise 
our independence. Before you buy, write 
for the Johnston catalog. It’s free. 
The Johnston Harvoster Co. 
BOX lOl Batavia, N. Y.- 
