1428 
THE RURAb NEW-YORKER. 
December 5, 
The Henyara. 
Selecting Layers. 
T HE old theory that a hen is a hen, 
and that they all look alike, act 
alike, eat alike and produce the same 
number of eggs each, has been exploded 
bv the modern system of selecting the 
best layers by their actual performance 
at the nest. "To keep individual records 
of a large flock of hens, however, entails 
such a great amount of detail work that 
very few people have been willing to de¬ 
vote the necessary labor and expense for 
this purpose, so the average poultry- 
man is left to rely on his judgment as to 
which will lay the most eggs in a year. 
There has been a great deal of discus¬ 
sion over the question of whether there 
is such a thing as an egg type or not. 
It is my personal opinion that you might 
just as* well ask if there is a dairy type 
of cow or a roadster type of horse, as 
an experienced poultryman or woman 
can see just as much difference between 
good laying hens or pullets which will 
develop 'into good layers, and those which 
will not, as a dairyman can see between 
a good cow and a poor one. Of course 
to become expert it takes long years of 
study and practice before reliable results 
can be assured, but by close observation 
it is certainly possible to judge fowls for 
their laying qualities as well as for fancy 
points. . 
The first thing to look at in a utility 
hen is her weight in comparison with 
her size. She should be heavy, but not 
extremely large. A Leghorn hen should 
weigh at least three pounds, and four 
pounds weight is not objectionable, but 
either under or over these weights should 
be avoided as much as possible. The 
comparatively small hens among the 
larger breeds are usually better layers 
than those which are up to standard 
weight or above. 
We have all heard the old story about 
the prize winners being the best layers—• 
that is, they are supposed by their own¬ 
ers to be when making sales to amateurs 
at long prices—but since the laying com¬ 
petitions started such methods have grad¬ 
ually become less popular, because pur¬ 
chasers as a rule now want to see w T hat 
they are getting. Practically all pure¬ 
bred cattle are now sold on their records 
of production or the production of their 
ancestors, and this is what the poultry 
business is coming to at a rapid rate, 
breeders demanding performance instead 
of plumage, and shape instead of sym- 
metry. , . . 
It is not easy to select the best lay¬ 
ers in a pen without keeping individual 
records, but a few suggestions may be 
helpful to the poultrywomen who are 
enering birds for the It. N-Y. Hen con¬ 
test, and others who wish to keep their 
best stock and discard the drones. 
To be a good layer a hen must be a 
good feeder—able to eat and digest a 
large amount of feed. This requires a 
strong vigorous constitution and an ac¬ 
tive disposition, not inclined to be too 
nervous or flighty. In shape she should 
have a long wedge-shaped body carried 
quite erect, with fairly long legs and 
neck and a large bright prominent eye. 
The head should be wide and well shaped, 
and the pelvic bones thin, sharp and wide 
apart when in laying condition. High 
tails are also an indication of strength 
and laying ability—statements to the 
contrary by our standard makers not¬ 
withstanding. 
After all the experience which may be 
gained by years of study there seems to 
be some natural intuition necessary to 
select good layers which is possessed by 
but few people. Under ordinary condi¬ 
tions it pays to keep individual records 
of a few of the best hens in a flock, and 
breed all the males used from the high¬ 
est producing hens. MRS. c. s. greene. 
Sktm-milk for Hens. 
I N feeding skim-milk to laying hens to 
take the place of meat scraps, should 
it be sweet or sour? While I am 
aware of the fact that sour or butter¬ 
milk is the proper way to feed for fat¬ 
tening purposes, on account of the lactic 
acid it contains, I had always supposed 
that it should be feed sweet to get the 
largest food value, until I was advised 
recently by a person who should be 
authority to feed it sour. D. 
It was first supposed that the milk 
should be soured before feeding, and that 
the lactic acid developed in souring was 
necessary to obtain the beneficial effect, 
I mean the effect of increased growth 
and vigor. But there is another effect— 
highly beneficial—which is due to the 
lactic acid; and that is the making of 
conditions in the intestines and the blood 
of the chick, which are unfavorable for 
the growth and development of harmful 
bacteria. Experiments at Storrs, Conn., 
have shown that chicks hatched from 
eggs containing the white diarrhoea 
germs, if fed on sour milk from the start, 
did not show any signs of that disease; 
the lactic acid preventing the develop¬ 
ment of the “bacteria pullorum,” the dis¬ 
ease germ. 
Prof. Hadley at the Agricultural Ex¬ 
periment Station at Kingston, It. I., 
found that the feeding of sour milk had 
the same effect in preventing the fatal 
“blackhead” in turkeys. The harmful 
bacteria—or bacilli—could not multiply 
in sufficient numbers to do any harm in 
the acid condition of the intestines, pro¬ 
duced by the sour milk. Later experi¬ 
ments at Storrs seemed to indicate that 
sweet milk was equally effective, but 
most likely the sweet milk sours soon in 
the chick, where the heat is 106 to 107 
degrees. Milk is at its best as a feed 
when it is loppered, and it requires about 
SO degrees of heat to produce- this. It 
should not be left in the dishes until it 
gets foul, dirty, and begins to decay. To 
prevent little chicks getting into the milk, 
use shallow graniteware pans about an 
inch deep, and cover these pans with 
poultry wire netting. This allows the 
chicks to dip their beaks into the milk, 
but prevents their getting daubed up 
with it, as they will if the milk is not 
covered. geo. a. cosgrove. 
Hen* Going Light. 
W ILL you tell me what is wrong -with 
my hens? Last Spring we had 65 
hens, we now have 34. Five of 
these are lame, but they are fat, so I 
think they are all right for food. Their 
roost is about three feet high, and they 
are heavy hens (Barred Rocks) perhaps 
that accounts for their lameness. Those 
that died got poor, as if they were 
starved, but they were fed with other 
hens that were fat. I shut the poor ones 
up to fatten ; when I thought they ought 
to be fat, they were as poor as ever. Fin¬ 
ally they could not stand and soon died. 
In the early Summer we fed some corn 
that was musty; they did not eat much 
of it, as they had free range. In the 
Spring we bought four roosters. They 
were fine birds but after we had them 
a while, they seemed to walk as if they 
had sore toes; one of them died. F. P. 
Michigan. 
These fowls were very likely suffering 
from the disease known as “going light,” 
an infectious disease which attacks some 
fowls and by interfering with digestion 
of their food brings about wasting of the 
flesh and, finally, death from exhaustion. 
This disease does not spread rapidly and 
usually takes only a few of the flock. It 
can be guarded against by killing affect¬ 
ed fowls and destroying their carcasses, 
while attention is paid to cleanliness of 
their quarters. If a considerable num¬ 
ber of the flock are affected, they should 
be rigidly culled out and special pains 
taken to clean and disinfect the living 
quarters and utensils used. Boiling water 
for utensils and whitewash for walls, 
perches, etc., should protect the healthy 
members of the flock. M. B. D. 
Soaking Alfalfa ; Feather Eating. 
D OES the ordinary short-cut Alfalfa 
make a satisfactory Winter green 
food, after being soaked in cold or 
hot water, and, if so, how is it best 
prepared? 2. Does a great appetite for 
eating feathers show a lack of any par¬ 
ticular element in the feeding? Some of 
the half-grown birds are constantly 
about the place where we dress chickens, 
and eat largely whenever they get a 
chance at the feathers. J. F. T. 
Short-cut Alfalfa is an excellent green 
food for Winter use and may be prepared 
by putting the required amount into a 
bucket, pouring boiling water over it, 
covering the bucket with an old blanket 
or coat and allowing it to stand over 
night in a warm place. If not eaten 
readily at first, a little feed may be 
mixed with it. 
2. Feather eating is supposed to indi¬ 
cate a lack of animal food in the diet, 
but it is also a habit readily acquired 
by fowls that get a taste of the soft 
green quills. It is safer to keep the 
feathers away from the chickens and see 
that the latter are supplied with animal 
and green foods. M. B. D. 
Removing Stains from Eggs. 
I N October a reader asked how to re¬ 
move stains from market eggs. 
“Scrubbing with some scouring mate¬ 
rial,” as advised by your question expert 
hardly fills the bill when it comes to 
grass'stains, besides being hard on weak- 
shelled eggs. Here is the California com¬ 
mercial egg seller’s method. I learned it 
from an egg peddler whose business it 
was to travel through our canyons and 
gather up the eggs from the farmer folk. 
His profits came from his skill in reduc¬ 
ing the promiscuous assortment to order 
and attractiveness for his city customers, 
and making the soiled, stained, and stale¬ 
looking eggs appear like yesterlaids. 
Wash all the loose dirt from the eggs in 
plenty of clear cold water; place the eggs 
to drain in a colander. Have ready a 
saucer of sharp vinegar and a clean 
white cloth. Every egg that is stained 
or has a dull, stale appearance wipe with 
the cloth wet in the vinegar. Little rub¬ 
bing or vinegar is required unless the 
stain is very deep. When much vinegar 
is used on the egg rinse afterwards with 
a dash of cold water. The philosophy of 
the method is that the sharp vinegar acts 
on the lime of the shell, removing an in¬ 
finitesimal coating from the egg and mak¬ 
ing it appear as though just from the 
egg mint. M. RUSSELL JAMES. 
An old colored man was relating to a 
crony his experiences during a drive down 
the mountain after dark. He had seen 
two wild cats fighting. “Dey fought and 
dey fought,” he said, “an’ all de time dey 
wuz a-elimbin’ up in de air, till by’m by 
dey wuz clean ovah de treetops.” “What 
wuz dey a-holdin’ on tu all de time dey 
wuz a-dimbin’, Rastus?’ asked the skep¬ 
tical listener. “Holdin’ on tu !” exclaim¬ 
ed Rastus scornfully. “Wy, de top one 
wuz a-lioldin’ on to de bottom one, an’ de 
bottom one wuz a-holdin’ on to de top one, 
of course !”—New York Evening Post. 
CORNELL GASOLINE 
BROODER HEATER 
Improved 1915 
Equal to five Kerosene Heaters 
Recommended by the NewYorkState 
College of Agriculture 
Will burn any kind of Gasoline 
Cares for 250 Chicks 
Needs little attention 
No lamps to trim 
No ashes, dirt or soot 
Absolutely safe 
Perfect ventilation 
Send for Free Catalog 
TREMAN, KING & CO. 
DepL 311, Ithaca, N.Y. 
Manufacturers of 
Poultry House 
Appliances 
Prairie State Incubators 
Famous for hatching big, strong chicks that live. Built 
for lasting service, reliability and economy of operation. 
no-prii iM j'.LiiQT J T(fTnN*~| Poultry raisers find them practical 
pss to operato and profitable to own. 
Prices $9 to $38 
Made in fivo sizes; 60 ckk to 390 
egri? ; All embody the well-known 
Praino State principles—top radi¬ 
ant heat, down-draft ventilation, 
and applied moisture. Catalog free. 
Prairie State Incubator Co. 
125 Main St., Homor City, Pa. 
RIGPJML 
I II The incubate 
dreds of dead air 
lintnbna pAnnm* )>nl 
BIKER 
:35 
, EGG 
CAPACn 
incubator with hun- 
cells. Gets 100% 
hatches. Copper boiler. Hotwater heat. 
UOWEST price: yet 
roR 155 EGG INCUBATOR 
With brooder *9.85. Wood parts California 
Redwood. Best regulator and 
tester. Frt. pd. E. of Rockies, j 
Book free. Progressive Incu¬ 
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MacKellar’s Charcoal 
For Poultry Is best. Coarse or fine granulated, also 
powdered. Buy direct from largest manufacturers of 
Charcoal Products. Ask for prices and samples. Est. 1814 
R. MacKELLAR’S SONS CO., Peekakill, N.Y. 
Improved Parcel Post Egg Boxes 
SEND 15 CENTS FOR SAMPLE 
New Flats and Fillers and Egg Gases 
CATALOGUE SENT FREE ON REQUEST 
H. K. BRUNNER, 45 Harrison Street, N. Y. 
MAK 
HENS 
Lots of eggs by feeding green bone fresh cut, because It Is rich In protein and all other 
egg elements. You get twice the eggs—more fertile; vigoro us chicks; earlier broilers; 
Ihearler fowls; MANN1C LATEST DflMC PIITTCD cuts all kinds 
'bigger profits. IT1 rtI.Il w MODEL DUIIEi UU I I ti* of bone, with 
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W, Mann Co., 
Box 15 
fS/l i I ford, Mass. 
THE BROODER OF PROVEN MERIT 
When you use this brooder you do not hope for good results—you arc sure 
that it will raise your chicks. It is not an experiment—it has “made good”. 
Thousands of poultrymen in all parts of the world testify to this. They know 
because they have tried it! The 
NEWTOWN GIANT COLONY BROODER 
Coal-Burning, Self-Feeding, Self-Regulating 
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Our Brooder Booklet is mighty interesting reading tor 
chick-growers. Send your address today tor a free copy. 
NEWTOWN GIANT INCUBATOR CORPORATION 
74 Warsaw St., Harrisonburg, Virginia 
Get the Eggs NOW 
While Prices are High 
GILBERT HESS, Doctor of Veterinary Science, Doctor of Medicine 
Dr. Hess 
Stock Tonic 
Your cows, horses 
and hogs are pretty 
apt to get out of fix 
during winter, be¬ 
cause grain, hay and 
fodder do not contain 
the natural laxatives 
and tonics so abun¬ 
dantly supplied in 
grass. Lack of exer¬ 
cise is another thing 
that retards good 
health. 
Dr. Hess Stock Tonic 
contains tonics that 
Improve the appetite 
and tone up the diges¬ 
tion, laxatives for 
regulating the bowels, 
and vermifuges that 
will positively expel 
worms. I guarantee 
It. 25-Ib pail $1.60; 
100-lb. sack $5.00; 
smaller packages as 
low as 50c (except In 
Canada, the far West 
and the South). 
Dr. Hess 
Instant 
Louse Killer 
Kills lice on poultry 
and all farm stock. 
Dust the bens and 
cliickswlth it.sprinkle 
It on the roosts, In the 
cracks, orif kept in the 
dust bath, the hens 
will distribute it. Also 
destroys bugs on 
cucumber, squash and 
melon vines, cabbage 
worms, etc., slugs on 
rose bushes, etc. 
Comes in handy sift- 
Ing-top cans, 1 lb. 25c; 
8 lbs. 60c (except in 
Canada and the far 
West). I guarantee it. 
This is the time of the year when the price of eggs 
is high and your hens ought to be making up for 
the small egg crop during moulting. 
But hens need a tonic during the winter months, because the 
lack of exercise and green stuff and also close confinement 
impairs the digestion, makes the system sluggish and the egg 
organs dormant. With the knowledge I have gained in a life¬ 
time experience as a veterinarian, doctor of medicine and 
successful poultry raiser, I have succeeded in compound¬ 
ing a scientific preparation that will make poultry healthy, 
make hens lay and keep the egg organs vigorous and active. 
Dr. Hess Poultry 
PAN-A-CE-A 
contains ingredients for toning up the digestive system and 
enriching the blood. It also contains tonics for toning up 
the dormant egg organs and making hens lay, internal anti¬ 
septics for preventing and remedying gapes and other ail¬ 
ments, also hone and shell forming ingredients. Every single 
ingredient in my Pan-a-ce-a (printed on every package) 
bears the recommendation of the U. S. Dispensatory and 
other high authorities. Now read this carefully: 
So sure am I that Dr. Hess Poultry Pan-a-ce-a will make your 
poultry healthy and make your hens lay that I have authorized 
my dealer In your town to supply you with enough lor your 
Hock, and It It does not do as I claim, return the empty pack- 
ages and get your money back. Buy now on that guarantee. 
Sold only by reputable dealers whom you know, never by 
peddlers. lHbs. 25c; 5 lbs. 60c; 25-lb. pail $2.50 (except in 
Canada and” the far West). Pan-a-ce-a costs only lc per 
day for 30 fowl. 
My new poultry book tells all about Pan-a-ce-a. It’s free 
DR. HESS & CLARK, Ashland, Ohio 
When you write advertisers mention The R. N.-Y. and you’ll get a 
quick reply and a “square deal.’’ See guarantee editorial page. : : : 
