1015. 
AMERICA’S POPULAR FOWL 
HE PLYMOUTH ROCK enjoys the distinction 
of being the most popular breed of poultry 
in our country today. Unquestionably the 
Rock blood has become so widely diffused that there 
is not even a remote possibility of any other breed 
Rock Egg And Leghorn Egg. Fig. 33. 
supplanting it as the leader of American poultry. 
Where is the district that does not possess a strain 
of this interesting and serviceable fowl? It is partly 
or entirely the flock on the general farm; it flour¬ 
ishes in the more restricted suburban districts and 
there are instances even of its existing on the tops 
of city apartment houses. It is obvious, then, that 
it will thrive under very diverse conditions. The 
Rock is therefore peculiarly adapted to the amateur 
chicken raiser, or those who are primarily engaged 
in mercantile or other pursuits, merely maintain- # 
ing a flock of poultry for family use. As a specific 
line of poultry, from a business standpoint, it is par 
excellence, adequately illustrated by the numerous 
successful Plymouth Rock farms which characterize 
our typical poultry sections. 
BREED CHARACTERISTICS.—In recognizing 
this breed the uninitiated are apt to confound it 
with its American cousin, the Wyandotte. The Rock 
body is comparable to an old-fashioned gravy bowl; 
the Wyandotte is essentially circular in outline. 
Furthermore, the Rock is single combed, while the 
Wyandotte is always rose-combed. There is no 
barred variety of Wyandotte. The American Stand¬ 
ard of Perfection demands that the breast shall be 
well rounded, broad and moderately deep. Both 
male and female shall have comparatively long 
bodies. The shanks should be yellow in color and 
set widely apart. It is desirable that they be free 
of stubs. The latter are indicative of undeveloped 
feather growth, and signify that the bird is not 
purebred, that it carries some Asiatic blood. The 
comb should bear five clean cut points, the outline 
of the top representing a perfect are. As required 
by the Standard, the mature male should weigh 9% 
pounds, the hen 7 1 / 4, the cockerel eight and the pul¬ 
let six. 
A GENERAL-PURPOSE FOWL.—The Plymouth 
Rock falls in the category of the so-called “general 
purpose” breeds, meaning those breeds which are 
neither of a strictly meat type nor primarily main¬ 
tain high egg production, but present a combination 
of both of these qualities. If one has obtained a 
good strain of Rocks, purchased from a reliable 
poultryman, and subsequently improves the stock by 
judicious in-breeding and at the same time does not 
create a susceptibility to disease through poorly ven¬ 
tilated houses, there is no reason why ultimately he 
should not have an average production of ISO eggs. 
Rock eggs are large and brown in color and readily 
find a sale on the market. They furnish quick re¬ 
turns for the investor. Birds hatched in April in¬ 
variably lay tlieir first eggs in October and continue 
supplying eggs through the Winter months when 
eggs are a market scarcity. 
TABLE EXCELLENCE.—This quality of early 
maturity renders the Rock especially profitable from 
the standpoint of broiler production. The flesh is 
more oily than that of other breeds; the meat is 
decidedly more juicy and the consequent palatabil- 
ity induces a great demand for Rock broilers, weigh¬ 
ing about three pounds. Such broilers find favor 
in the hotel trade of our large cities. Under cer¬ 
tain conditions the raising of Rock capons may also 
prove profitable. This specialization of the indus¬ 
try has not received its merited attention in the 
past. Consumers are usually willing to pay two or 
three cents more a pound for capons, so tender is 
the meat. Aside from the profits, they afford an ex¬ 
cellent medium for the disposition of surplus cock¬ 
erels. 
ACCEPTED VARIETIES.—Each Plymouth Rock 
breeder generally asserts that his particular variety 
is the most desirable. In reality there is very little 
difference between the several varieties in utility 
characteristics. The accepted varieties are the 
Parred, White, Buff, Silver Penciled, Partridge and 
M'JhltC 1-iUK.A.Iv MJtv W-VO-KK-iCK. 
Columbian. The Barred Rock is the most frequently 
encountered. 
ORIGIN OF THE BREED.—Authorities disagree 
as to the exact breeds that were utilized in the crea¬ 
tion of the Plymouth Rock breed. They first began 
to attain prominence in the late sixties in New Eng¬ 
land. It is reasonable to suppose that the principal 
stock employed in the origin was the Dominique 
male, which is a barred type, and the black Java fe¬ 
male. Progeny of such crosses were mated back to 
the Dominique to intensify the barring. The White 
Rock originated as a sport from the Barred variety; 
the remaining varieties have originated diversely by 
the employment of Wyandotte and Asiatic strains. 
Systematic breeding has accomplished wonders with 
the utility value of the Rock. The writer recently 
heard an eminent poultryman synonymize the de- 
\elopment of tin carrier pigeon with increased egg 
production of the domestic hen. It was argued that 
just as the pigeon has been bred to fly a thousand 
miles in a single day, the hen will so develop that 
she will lay every day in the year. Of course such 
an evolution must take place gradually, yet it leaves 
food for thought. The tendency of the future will 
surely be toward increased egg production of the 
Plymouth Rock, and simultaneously to maintain 
those efficient requirements of meat production that 
enable it to rank first in the list of our general 
purpose types, the popular fowl of America. 
geo. w. iiervey. 
STARTING A VINEYARD. 
OULD you advise me the best way to get a field 
in shape for setting out grapes next Spring, and 
a general idea of number of vines required per 
acre and cost per acre for first three years; or 
until they bear? The field has been in sod for about 
10 years previous to this year, and I have just had a 
good crop of corn. Would Fall plowing be to advan¬ 
tage? w. E. F. 
New York. 
I should most surely plow this piece of land in 
the Fall if it is to be set to grapes next Spring. 
In the plowing it will be best to do so in lands of 
the width that the rows are to stand apart. Prac¬ 
tically all Concord vineyards are now being planted 
with rows eight feet apart and the vines in the 
rows eight feet. The plowing into lands opened the 
furrows in which the vines are to be set to the 
changes of weather between now and Spring, and 
has a beneficial effect upon the soil. In the Spring, 
it the soil be a heavy one, it is a good plan to go 
through each furrow twice with a subsoil plow. 
This gives a loose root-bed. 
At the distances mentioned approximately 680 
vines will set an acre, and these can be bought from 
$16 per 1.000 up, depending on the variety. Those 
that are difficult to root from cuttings command a 
higher price. Concords quite frequently sell at the 
figure given, and in some seasons they can he bought 
for considerably less. In the estimates given be¬ 
low they are figured at $16. Several items charged 
may vary considerably from the figures I give in 
the different localities, so that the costs are approx¬ 
imations for regions other than the one from which 
these data were taken. It is believed that the fig¬ 
ures are fairly reliable, as they were obtained from 
a five-acre vineyard in which all the labor was done 
by others than the owner, and actually represent 
12J 
the cash outlay. Team work was paid for at the 
rate of $5 per day, single horse with man $2.50 and 
day work $1.75. On the acre basis the charges are 
as follows: 
First Year. 
Vines and the setting.$15.00 
Six cultivations . 4.00 
Plowing back to vines, one furrow. 1.00 
Fertilizer . 5.00 
Second Y'ear. 
Pruning . 
Spring plowing . 
Fertilizer . 
I Iorse hoeing . 
Hand hoeing . 
Six cultivations . 
Plowing back to vines, one furrow 
$25.00 
$1.50 
2.7.”. 
5.00 
LOO 
2.00 
4.00 
1.00 
Third Year. 
600 lbs. No. 10 wire at $1.75 per 100. 
275 S-ft. posts at $.01 per foot. 
Sharpening posts . 
Setting and driving posts and putting on wires.. 
Pruning . 
Staples and twine, stapling wires and tying. . . . 
Plowing . 
Horse hoeing . 
Hand hoeing . 
Six cultivations .. 
Spraying, once . 
Plowing back one furrow . 
$16.25 
$ 10.00 
22.00 
5.50 
7.50 
2.50 
5.50 
2.75 
1.00 
2.00 
4.00 
2 25 
L00 
$66.00 
Total Per Acre For The Three Years. 
First year.$25.00 
Second year. 16.25 
Third year. 66.00 
$107.25 Total to harvest of third year. 
F. E. G. 
BUILDING A SMALL BARN. 
I WOULD like to build a barn for one cow and one 
horse, and wish to know what size I would need? 
I require room for bay wagon, tools, etc. Do you 
think those galvanized steel barns are suitable for 
this cold climate? I have been told that they will be 
very cold in the Winter and very hot in Summer. Do 
you advise me to build cement flooring or lumber? 
Massachusetts. g. e. a. 
For the purposes mentioned, barn 20 by 30 feet 
will be needed. This will give room for stalls for 
the horse and cow and an extra box stall, also room 
for wagon and a limited number of tools on the first 
floor; and none too much room for hay and straw 
above. If many tools are to be housed more floor 
space will be needed and extra room above will 
often be found convenient. 
By all means make the ground floor of cement. 
It is cheap, sanitary and durable. If desired, bed- 
pieces can be imbedded in the cement and plank 
1 laced over the cement in the horse stall. Lay the 
plank in tar so there will be no chance for the ac¬ 
cumulation of waste beneath. 
As to construction, it is hazardous for one from 
a distance to advise. A neat, durable and economi¬ 
cal construction is the cement block or glazed clay 
building blocks. This provides practically a dou¬ 
ble wall and is warm in Winter and cool in Summer. 
It is fireproof, as far as the building is concerned, 
and requires no paint. 
I should investigate the ready-made barn very 
carefully before purchasing. I should want to see 
( lie and find out from the owner and user whether 
it has proved satisfactory. I should also want a 
satisfactory guarantee as to the quality of mate¬ 
rial used. Stalls and mangers made of two by four 
studding and inch lumber would look rather flimsy 
to a practical livestock man. 
F. A. ALLEN. 
