792 
i'HBC KUKAb NEW-YOKKER 
June 5, It)15. 
THE HENYARD 
Thick Eggshells. 
Can you tell me what makes our egg¬ 
shells so very thick and tough that when 
boiled about an eighth of an inch of egg 
comes away with the shell in peeling 
them? Also our little chicks often can¬ 
not break out of the shells and have to be 
helped by breaking tiny pieces for them. 
We feed mixed grain and oyster shells for 
lime. Is it possible to give too much 
shell? a. G. o. 
New Jersey. 
An excessively thick shell could only 
result from over activity of the glands 
producing the shell-making material in 
the oviduct and is not, so far as I know, 
a common occurrence. Withdrawal of 
lime from the ration of the fowls would 
probably reduce the thickness of overly 
thick shells as it does that of those of 
normal thickness. I should be inclined to 
attribute this trouble to some peculiarity 
of individual liens, rather than to the food 
eaten, though it has not come under my 
observation. M. B. D. 
The Best Winter Layers. 
On page 000 is an answer to O. H. L. 
near Hartford, the reply by M. B. D. If 
O. II. Jj. will take your egg-laying con¬ 
test report there will be no question in re¬ 
gard to which breed he would select for 
Winter layers. On the twenty-fourth 
week of the egg-laying contest the Barred 
Itocks have averaged 005 eggs to the pen; 
White Rocks, 510; White Wyandottes, 
051 and a fraction; Rhode Island Reds, 
C20; White Leghorns, 551. It looks to me 
as though for the Winter eggs and table 
use, he would have no trouble in selecting 
by figuring the contest as at present. In 
none of the contests, if I recollect correct¬ 
ly. has it been much different from this. 
The Leghorns, of course, will gain 
through the Summer, but for meat and 
Winter layers the other birds rather sur¬ 
pass in this climate. oscab a. logan. 
New Jersey. 
Blue Ointment for Lice. 
You ask for reports on “blue ointment” 
for poultry, on page 70S. I have used it 
for three or four years past with the best 
of results, and have not been able to de¬ 
tect any evil effects of any kind. I use 
the regular commercial ointment as a gen¬ 
eral thing, but it seems equally effective 
if rubbed up (mixed) with an equal vol¬ 
ume of vaseline, and 10 cents’ worth will 
keep a flock of 100 birds free from lice for 
a vear, making one application Spring 
and Fall. 
My method of application is to go 
through the houses at night with a lan¬ 
tern, taking each bird off the roost, and 
applying a quantity about half the size 
of a pea to the hollow under the vent, 
rubbing it well into the skin, and cover¬ 
ing a space the size of a quarter. It must 
lie rubbed on the skin, and not smeared 
on the feathers. A bird so treated will be 
louse-proof for at least six months. Do 
not use on a setting hen, for she will 
probably smear the eggs and kill the 
germs. But as soon as she hatches, and 
before putting her out with the chicks, 
make an application as before directed 
under the vent, and rub a very Utile on 
the bare skin under the wing. You will 
not be troubled with head lice, or any 
other kind, on the brood, for they will get 
enough off the hen to clean them, if affect¬ 
ed. and if you clean up the source of in¬ 
fection (the hen) the chicks will be all 
right. 
Remember you are handling a poison, 
and don’t put it on the heads of baby 
chicks. It is not necessary, if you treat 
the hen, and will probably kill the chicks. 
It is, however, the most economical, clean¬ 
est. most convenient and most effective 
remedy to use on mature birds I have ever 
found. Incidentally, I first saw this rec¬ 
ommended in “The Business Hen,” and 
have simply elaborated the treatment, 
and reduced the quantity of the drug rec¬ 
ommended, by practical experiment. 
Credit to whom credit is due. 
New Jersey. iienby h. savage. 
Domesticating Partridges. 
1 have sot a hen on a setting of 11 part¬ 
ridge eggs which I have found in the 
woods. If these eggs hatch should I feed 
them the same as baby chicks, and will 
you tell me if it is possible to domesticate 
partridge? Would it be profitable? 
V. I*. H. 
Partridge eggs may be hatched under 
common hens, and the young become tame 
when reared in captivity. In their wild 
state the young of these birds are fed 
upon seeds, maggots, the pupae of ants, 
bugs, etc. The following directions are 
given by the State Conservation Commis¬ 
sion for feeding young pheasants, and are 
probably applicable to partridges as well, 
though I cannot speak from experience in 
raising these birds. “Young pheasants 
should be fed as soon as they remove from 
the nest. The food should consist of hard 
boiled egg, chopped fine, with a little 
bread or cracker crumb mixed with it. 
This food should be given three or four 
times a day until the chicks are five or 
six days old ; after this, small grains may 
be substituted—such as cracked corn, 
rolled oats or wheat. It is well to feed 
the egg with the grain occasionally. Two 
boiled eggs are sufficient to furnish food 
for 15 or 20 pheasants and will make 
three good feeds a day. The young pheas¬ 
ants are also extremely fond of milk curd, 
hut this must be free from salt.” 
I am unable to say whether partridges 
can profitably be domesticated in any 
large numbers, but should expect that their 
wild nature would assert itself when they 
reached maturity and make it difficult to 
keep them within bounds. Some one who 
has tried rearing them may be willing to 
report his success. M. B. D. 
Emphysema. 
One of my seven weeks’ old S. C. W. 
Leghorn pullets has a swelling, which 
first showed on outside of the crop only; 
it. felt very soft and I thought maybe it 
had drank too much water. Later the 
swelling extended all over the head and 
neck. After examining it closely one 
could almost, see right through the skin, 
and it seemed to me that air had come be¬ 
tween the outer and inner skin. After 
sterilizing a darning needle I punched 
several holes through the skin, so that the 
air could escape. The swelling went 
down leaving a very loose skin around the 
neck. To-day everything is puffed up 
again. The pullet’s appetite is good, and 
it is lively otherwise. o. e. k. 
It is not an uncommon occurrence for 
air to escape from the internal air pas¬ 
sages of fowls and find its way to be¬ 
neath the skin. It is thought that some 
obstruction to the escape of air from the 
lungs is often the cause of this, but as 
fowls have large air sacs in addition to 
the lungs, and these sacs extend into 
some of the larger bones, it is quite possi¬ 
ble that, air escapes from some of these 
secondary air chambers. Your method of 
puncturing the skin and allowing the es¬ 
cape of the confined air was proper. 
M. B. I). 
Poultry on 30-acre Farm. 
TTow many chickens would a 30-acre 
farm be able to maintain without buying 
any, or at least a small quantity of feed? 
In what proportions and of what should 
the crops consist? B. S. 
New York. 
This inquiry is impossible of answer, 
even by the owner of the farm until he 
has tried it out. Some 30-acre farms 
worked to their full capacity would sup¬ 
port a large number of hens, others would 
starve a jack rabbit. Few poultrymen 
attempt to produce all food used upon 
their farms; even if possible, it is not 
usually economical, as the labor and ex¬ 
pense of producing crops can be better 
utilized in other ways. Some foods, like 
beef scrap, cannot be produced upon the 
farm, and others would cost more to pro¬ 
duce than to purchase. It is a sadly 
mistaken impression that food raised upon 
the farm costs little or nothing, and is a 
source of clear profit. Any farm used 
for poultry keeping should be made to 
produce those crops to which it is best 
adapted, and which are within the range 
of the poultryman’s ability to produce 
economically. It is not at all necessary 
that they should be crops that may be fed 
to liens; it may be better to raise other 
crops and exchange them for poultry food. 
M. B. P. 
Vibration Affecting Hatch. 
One of your correspondents writes 
about vibration affecting incubator hatch¬ 
ing. I operate my machine in the base¬ 
ment of a building containing two 500- 
horsepower engines. This building is 
covered more or less with Boston ivy, and 
you can see every leaf vibrate when the 
engine is in motion. My hatches com¬ 
pare favorably with those from quiet in¬ 
cubator cellars, so I don’t think surround¬ 
ing vibrations can affect the eggs much. 
Massachusetts. J. i*. w. 
Average Hatching Percentage. 
What is a safe average to figure on, on 
the following? I put 12,000 eggs in an 
incubator. Percentage of hatch, per¬ 
centage of live birds at the end of the 
season, and percentage of pullets in the 
bunch. c. H. b. 
Where chicks are hatched on a large 
scale I do not think that one can reason¬ 
ably figure upon more than a 50 per cent 
hatch, with 50 per cent mortality before 
maturity, and 50 per cent of pullets. This 
means eight eggs set for each pullet 
raised to maturity; of course, many 
times these results will be bettered, but, 
taking the season through, I believe that 
one who figures upon more than this will 
be apt to be disappointed. M. B. D. 
Of course, something depends on the 
breed ; but taking the country through it 
is generally admitted that only about half 
the eggs hatched and about half of the 
chicks hatched are raised to maturity. In 
other words, each bird in the Fall repre- 
seuts the results from four eggs. The 
man who has had good luck will think 
that statement too low; the man who has 
had poor luck will think it too high. Pul¬ 
lets average about 50 per cent of total. 
My early chicks are just 50 per cent pul¬ 
lets. GEO. A. COSGROVE. 
G.D. TILLEY 
Naturalist 
* ‘ Everything in the 
Bird Line from a 
Canary to an Ostrich ” 
Birds for tlie House and Porch 
Birds for the Ornamental Waterway 
Birds for the Garden, Pool and Aviary 
Birds for the Game Preserve and Park 
I am the oldest established and largest ex¬ 
clusive dealer in land and water birds in Amer¬ 
ica and have on hand the most extensive stock 
in the United States. 
G. D. TILLEY, Naturalist 
Box N, Darien, Conn. 
— A limited numberof 3-BA NT) 
ITA LI AN QUEENS. Queens 
are large, vigorous, and pro¬ 
lific, producing bees that are 
gentle, hardy and industrious. Untested, $1.00; 
tested after June 1. $1.50. Satisfaction guaranteed. 
W. K. ROCKWELL, - Bloomfield, Conn. 
r-» l /A IVI O—Maltese. Mated 
r IUillV/l«0 Carneaux, Mated 
Pairs, $3. 
and Work¬ 
ing, $3.50; youngsters, $8 doz. White Kings, Mated, 
$4; youngsters, $10 doz. JOHN EMMELUTH, Vineland, N. J. 
BalDy CliicKs 
s. c. w. 
LEGHORNS 
R. & S. C. R. 
I. REDS 
Purebred, 
Strong, Livable. 
From heavy-laying, 
healthy, free range 
stock. Safe arrival 
guaranteed. 
WESLEY GRINNELL, 
Sodus. N. Y. 
Mattituck White Leghorn Farm 
Baby Chicks, * OperlOO 
<>.K-weeks-old pullets - 50 per 1OO 
3-months-old “ - ICO per lOO 
All stock delivered in satisfactory condition or your 
money returned. A. II. Penny, Mattituck,N.Y. 
White Leghorns Exclusively 
D. W. Young’s Strain 
3,000 breeders on free fnrm-range. drinking from never- 
failing streams, ns nature intended. Special Bred-lor- 
Winter eggs. Entire Plant Buttermilk fed, which means 
Vigor and great Vitality. Eggs, $1 per 100. Balance of 
season orders filled oil a day’s notice. Baby chicks in any 
quantity, $9 per 100 for June. A hatch every Tuesday. 
Sly book, “Profits in Poultry Keeping Solved,” free with 
all $0 orders. Circulars Free. 
EDGAR BRIGGS, Box 75, PLEASANT VALLEY, N. Y. 
ELIZABETH POULTRY FARM 
DAY-OLD CHICKS AND EGGS FOR HATCHING 
S. C. Brown Leghorns, Kulps Strain, S. 0. W. 
Leghorns and Barred Plymouth Rocks. Our breed¬ 
ers we have selected with great care for which we 
claim are as fine a flock of breeders as can he had. 
We have 2,700 layers at this time on our farm. We 
are prepared to fill al I ordors promptly. Our hatching 
capacity 10,000. Write for Price list. Visitors 
welcome. 
JOHN II. lVAltFEl, A. SON, Ilohrcrstown, Pa. 
200,000 S. C. W. LEGHORN 
BABY CHICKS 
for 1915. Seven Hall Mammoth Incubators; 12,000 
chicks per week after February 15th; only No. 1.high- 
class chicks shipped; New England’s most profitable 
breed, the famous "iCverlay Strain.” Reasonable 
prices: prompt service. CO-page catalog on request. 
THE EVERLAY FARM, - Box 240-E, Methuen, Mass. 
Rohv PhinLs—Barron S. C. W. Leghorns. Strong 
Daoj UniCKS chicks. $7 per 50; $12 per ICO: eggs $5 
per 100. Itansom Farm, Chagrin Falls, Ohio 
Tom Barron’s White Leghorns 
Winners at Storrs and Missouri. Trap-nested 20 
years. 282-egg strain. Pure blood, male and fe¬ 
males. Eggs, $1 per getting: $5 per 100. Special 
pens, $2. P. F. RAFFERTY, Marlboro, Mass. 
Pullets and Baby Chicks 
FREE FROM WHITE DIARRHEA 
Certified by Storrs' Station test. 8 and 10 weeks old 
White Leghorn pullets. Chicks for June delivery, 
$12.100. Circular. A. B. llall,'Wallingford, Conn. 
Ketch Chix 
Are hustlers. Strong, vigorous, easy-to-raise, day- 
old chap s from “ HIGH CLASS," Bred-To-Lay stock. 
S. C. W. Leghorns, $10 per 100. R. I. Reds $12 hun¬ 
dred, delivered. Live arrival guaranteed. Order NOW. 
Free circular. WM. W. KETCH, R. D. 1. Cohocton. N. Y. 
Barron’s 248-260 egg strain, 8 to 10 weeks old—§1 each. 
Bal>y chicks—$11 per 100; $20 for 200. 
E. CLAUDE JONES, - - Hillsdale, N. Y. 
Improved Parcel Post Egg Boxes 
SEND 15 CENTS FOR SAMPLE 
New Flats and Fillers and Egg Cases 
CATALOGUE SENT FREE ON REQUEST 
H. K. BRUNNER, 45 Harrison Street, N. Y. 
TOM BARRON’S 
WINNING WYANDOTTE PENS 
I*A. CONTEST! WINNERS in e(re« and ralnr: 
ftrer. *236. ‘‘Baroness V’* laid 2M2 : others. ‘274. *2.V2 
CONN. CONTEST! WINNERS in value; aver. 
l’Uh . ; 2nd Triie in epps. 
MISSOURI CONTEST: 2nd PRIZE, likely; 
aver. 210. Ilarron Leghorns. 284; Huff Hocks. 280; 
Vihert lleds. 247. Prize Kouens. Rig Toulouse Geese, 
corn A I Tire * have lately imported the HIGH 
JILUALIIlJ F.ST KFIOKD III FF ROCKS IN 
TIIK WORLD. They have laid 2.'»0 and over at three 
successive contests in U. 8. and England. PFDIGKF.FH, 
280 and 275. Actual layers of 265 and 263 eggs. Another 
hen, 12 eggs weighing 32 oz. Hedlfree mating 280 # 
WORLD’S RECORD LEGHORN 
288 ofllclal .onnt. STJUIOIIT TRl'THS of the BARRON 
until; USEFUL Practical Information; HONEST. HIRE- 
WARII STATEMENTS, I do not fear. FUEL LINE OF 
STOCK for Sale. All In my catalog, now r»ady. Price 10c 
In itampk, issue limited. 
Eggs Half-Price After June 1st 
MORRIS-FARM, R. 4, Bridgeport, Conn. 
WANTED-60 White Wyandotte Pullets 
preferably Barron Strain, March or April hatch, 8 
to 10 weeks old. State Cash Price and Breeding. 
C. W. HUNSBKRGKR, - Green Lane, Fa. 
White Wyandotte Baby Chicks-,K *x 
MOUNTAIN VIEW POULTRY FARM, Hopewell Jet , New York 
Barron Wyandotte cocWUandpunets,' 
Contest 
PA 
dams records 203 to 284, including Barron Con 
entries, $2.00 up. BARRON FARM. CONNELLSVILLE. 
B arred rock sr? All chicks guaran- 
ABY CHICKS ,,A) I'll!;, 
Wt Guarantee ' with records of 200 
SAFE DELIVERY to 236 eggs in their 
pullet year, and from hardy, vigorous stock. Buy 
chicks that make layers,—chicks bred from layers. 
Also a few WHITE ROCKS of same quality. 
Immediate delivery. Write for circular. 
C. E. BURGER. Route 50, ITHACA. N.Y. 
BARRED ROCKS 
Eggs—$1 per 15: $3.50 per 100. Nonpariel strain. 
It. H. HKNION, - Brockport, New York 
HATCHING EGGS OF QUALITY 
‘‘Perfection " Barred Rocks bred from Thompson, 
Hawkins, Bradley, and Riley strains. Eggs from 
prize-winning pens, $3 per 15. Utility, $1 per 15: $•> 
per 100, Dr. G. T. HAYMAN, Bn» D4B, Doylestown, Penna. 
WHITE CORNISH 
FOWL—10 to 12 lb. males, 7 to 9, females. Good 
layers. Eggs, $3.00 setting 15. Guarantee 10 fertlles. 
Replacements Free. Catalog. 
Mountsville Farms, Duck Rd.. Mountville, Va. 
GIANT BRONZE TURKEY EGGS, R ! 
$1.00 per 15. Fawn K. Duck Eggs, $1.00 per 12. Shrop¬ 
shire Sheep. H. J. Van Dyke, Gettysburg;, l’a. 
WHITE HOLLAND TURKEYS 
ee doilnrsfor 
eleven. II. W. Anderson, Stewartstown, Pa. 
TlfDI/Tl/ M. Bronze, B. Reds. 
■ mJ mm Im mZ W tWWO Narrngnnsett & W. 
Holland $3.50 per 12. Walter Bros., Powhatan Point. 0. 
BLACK POLISH SILVER SPANGL 
ED HAMBURGS. American 
Dominiques, Buff Orping¬ 
tons, Sicilian Buttercups. Aneonns and Barred 
Rock eggs, 5c each. A, JACKSON, Mineral Springs, N. Y. 
Black LeghornsiKing 1 En¬ 
tile kind that lay. A- E HAMPTON. Box R. Pittstown. N. J. 
White Crested 
CHICKS 
—6 and 8c. 8. C. Buff Leghorns. 
Money hack for dead ones. 
JACOB NEIMOND, RICHFIELD. PA 
CHICKS—SI 2 per 100 white Wyandottes l Tghorns 
S10 per 100 Pekin, Rouen and Runner Ducklings, 
25c. each: $20 per 100. Send for catalogue. 
Aldharn Poultry Farm, R. 34, Phoenixville, Pa. 
HATCHING EGGS: S.C.W.LEGHORNS 
Largo size and heavy-laying strain. After May 1st, 
75c per 15, $3.00 per 100. J. M. CASE, Gllboa, N. Y 
CHICKS 
6 and 8c 
C. O. D. Leg 
horns. Money 
hack for dead ones. Pam¬ 
phlet free. C. M. I.AUVEK 
ltox 78, Rich livid, I'm. 
|ONE BETTER S.C.WHITE LEGHORNS Allbreed 
N lint UL I I Lll tf ■ w. il ill 11> LLUiiumiu ers care¬ 
fully selected from free ranged raised birds. Eggs that 
hatch, $4.00 per hundred. Strong, vigorous chicks 
guaranteed to your Express Office. 10 cents each. Satisfac¬ 
tion guaranteed. SUMMIT P0ULTRV FARM, Ridgeljr, Maryland 
WICHMOSS POULTRY FARM 
Guarantee safe delivery on properly-hatched, 
Ilealthy, vigorous chicks and ducklings. S O. W. 
Leghorns. $10.50 per 100. White Pekin Ducklings. *20 
per 100. ANDRESEN A AMMERMAN. Box 137, Demarest. N. J 
YEARLING HENS 
I>. A. Davenport, New Hope. Pa. 
SHIPMENTS ON APPROVAL-*;”,,,™, 
Chix, 10 cents each; 500 or more 9 cents each. 0 
weeks Pullets 50 vents each: 12-weeks, $1. JLISTA 
POULTRY FARM, Southampton, New York 
WHITE LEGHORN PULLETS 
3 months old. Also cockerels, including Barron 
strain. Booking orders now. Write your wants. 
HAMILTON FARM, - Huntington, N. V. 
ROSE COMB A BROWN* LEGHORNS 
Fine one and two-year-old breeding hens 
at $1 each; also cockerels, $1. Circular. 
Ward W. Dasey, Box 55, Frankford, Del. 
SINGLE COMB WHITE LEGHORNS 
250 egg strain, Baby Chicks, ten centa each for bal¬ 
ance of season. Ten-week-old Pullets, 50 cents each. 
Year-old hens, $1.25 each. A. K. (JltAYKS, Whites, Hie, N. Y. 
Our Specialty-Winter-Laying S. C. W. Leghorns 
400 yearlings for sale. $90 per 100, future delivery. 
llirmingham Kgg Farm, Birmingham, N. J. 
THE HILL SELF-FEEDING, SELF-REGULATING 
COAL-BURNING COLONY BROODER 
Will Raise Your Chicks Better Than a Hen 
It is the only brooder equipped with safety magazine 
which absolutely prevents any gas from escaping In the house, 
and at the same time automatically feeds the fire, making 
it possible to maintain an even temperature of pure, warm air 
under all conditions which ispositively necessary to success¬ 
ful brooding. It is fitted with Ransom Duplex Grate, the 
greatest grate known. The brooder is perfect in operation, 
simple In construction, will last a lifetime and fully 
guaranteed. 
Send lor circular and price list of the brooder that solve! (he brooding problem 
Address, MERCER POULTRY FARM, TRENTON, N. J. 
