Cheap Hen House. 
[The following was sent us some time since, in an¬ 
swer to the inquiry of another correspondent. We 
have delayed its appearance longer than we intended, 
and we hope it may afford valuable hints to those 
about to erect such buildings.] 
l6FP 
Messrs. Editors —Observing in a late No. of 
your excellent journal, The Cultivator , an inquiry for 
the best Coop to accomodate Poultry, I have thought 
it not out of place to send you a drawing and plan of 
one we consider the best, as it can be made to accom¬ 
modate from one dozen to 
five hundred fowls. The 
plan I send is 16 feet long 
by 8 feet wide at the bot¬ 
tom, and costs, by using 
one-inch matched boards, 
about SI per foot. The 
present one will cost from 
8 FP $16 to $20, including sash 
doors and other fixtures. The engravings exhibit the 
plan so clearly that they require no explanation. J. 
Ramsey. Middletown , Ct. 
In connection with the above, we give the following 
from an English paper:— 
First, of the roost and nest house. The floor should 
be sprinkled with ashes or loam or pulverized peat or 
fine charcoal, and the floor should be cleaned oft' every 
week. 
“The yard should contain a grass plat, some fine 
gravel, slaked lime, dry ashes, and pure water. The 
nests should be lined with moss heath or straw. Evi¬ 
dently the Dorkings are the best breed; they will lay 
an average of 185 eggs each per annum. Fowls with 
black legs are best for roasting, while those with white 
legs are best for boiling. If you want them to sit early 
leaye the eggs under them. Fowls in their native hab¬ 
its never lay more eggs than they can hatch. Remem¬ 
ber that no success can be expected from poultry-keep¬ 
ing if their houses be damp, cold, unclean or badly ven¬ 
tilated ; if their food does not approximate to that which 
they get in a state of nature, viz., a mixture of animal 
and vegetable food; if the water they drink be stag¬ 
nant, the drainage of the manure heap, &c., or if the 
strongest and handsomest be not bred from. 
Feeding Straw to Cattle, &c. 
Messrs. Editors —The great scarcity of fodder the 
past winter, and the loss and suffering occasioned by it, 
ought to serve as a caution to farmers against the un¬ 
necessary waste of their straw. I consider tho prac¬ 
tice of using straw for bedding, a bad one, especially 
where leaves or saw-dust can be obtained. The amount 
of straw used for bedding a cow, if fed properly with 
three or four ears of corn a day, would carry her 
handsomely through the winter. Good bright straw 
is about as palatable, and nearly as nutritious as hay. 
Then why waste it, by throwing it under their feet? 
Saw-dust, or leaves from the forest, is better than straw 
for bedding ; and they absorb the liquids better, and 
add more to the stock of manure. 
Another argument for feeding instead of wasting 
straw, especially in this section of country, is, that it 
is becoming very common for cows to slink their calves 
during the winter, and it is generally believed to be 
caused by the smut on the June grass, which is getting 
into nearly all the meadows in this part of the coun¬ 
try. I have known of many large dairies nearly ru¬ 
ined in this way. Only one instance of this kind has 
ever happened in my dairy, and that was when I was 
feeding hay only. If we keep our stables warm, dry 
and clean, and use the currycomb freely, our stock 
will do well enough without bedding. 
To prepare my corn for feeding, I fill a cask with it, 
in the ear, pour on boiling water, and let it stand 24 
hours, when it will be soft, and easy of digestion ; but 
it has occurred to me, that an apparatus might be con¬ 
structed for steaming corn, which would be still better. 
I would like to get, through the Cultivator, some in¬ 
formation on this subject. J. H. Woodburn. Gus- 
lavus , Ohio. —^— 
Feeding Breeding Sows. 
Messrs. Editors —I see in the last Cultivator, an 
inquiry respecting breeding sows fed on beech nuts. It 
sometimes happens that pigs will die when fed on grain, 
especially corn, which I think is as bad as beech nuts. 
Corn or beech nuts are very binding in their nature, and 
make the animal very costive. Anything given to the 
sow, that will keep her bowels loose, will give you a 
litter of live pigs. Feed plenty of salt, and if you 
have a dafry, and “ deacon your calves,” feed them 
to the sows, and two or three of the first milkings 
of the cows. Breeding sows want a warm nest and 
plenty of exercise. Otsego. 
