520 
HUSBANDRY. 
attention at this period, as they lay a great number of 
eggs, and are very apt to drop them in the water, or at 
random in other places. One drake is fufHcient for four or 
five ducks. When fet, from ten to a dozen or thirteen eggs 
are a fufHcient number. They fit about thirty days, and 
during the time fhould be fed and have water near their 
nefts, to prevent the eggs from being injured by \their 
leaving them too long. When hatched,, they fhould re¬ 
main with the duck in forne inclofed fafe warm funny 
place, and be well fed with crumbs of bread, grits or bar¬ 
ley-meal, and boiled potatoes well mixed and tiled frefh 
and frefh ; fand and clean water being conftantly kept in 
fhallow pans. The duck-breeders have alfo in general a 
provifion of worms, fnails, and other fimilar animals, in 
readinefs for them when a little more advanced in their 
growth, as well as corn, either in its ground or natural 
Hate. The practice of railing ducks under hens l'eldom 
anfwers well, as their habits are by no means fuited to the 
rearing of fuch birds ; nor has the cuftom of trimming 
off the tails of the young ducklings any better founda¬ 
tion in reafon. They fhould never be admitted at full 
liberty till they are become quite llrong, as at a month 
or fix weeks old. 
In fattening ducks,'grain, either in its whole or reduced 
mixed ftate, is probably the bell fort of food. The ufe of 
boiled potatoes well mixed with oatmeal, is found to be 
an economical- and expeditious method. Much however 
depends on their being fed in an exadf and regular man¬ 
ner, and on a proper lupply of water and fand being con- 
flantly given ; while at the fame time they are kept in a 
perfeftly quiet fituation, not too much expol'ed to the ac¬ 
tion of light, but well aired. When fattened on animal 
lubflances, which are very expeditious in accomplilhing 
the bulinels, they are faid to have more relemblance, both 
in the colour and flavour of their flelli, to the wild duck. 
In the acorn-leafon they are alfo capable of being readily 
fattened upon them, and are allowed to be well-flavoured 
in their flefh from it. 
. The breeding of Geese, from their being fuch fa¬ 
vourites upon the table, and living principally by gra¬ 
zing, is an inducement toalmoll all perions, whether far¬ 
mers or not, fituated on the fides of commons, to attempt 
rearing them in the domeftic way. But the breeding of 
geefe in the fenny countries is a bufinefs of the utmoft 
magnitude, and often attended, on account of the fea¬ 
thers, with immenfe profit. See the article Anas, vol. i. 
p. 516-510, and the correfpondent Engravings. 
In the choice of ftore-geefe, great care fhould be taken 
to procure them as large a fize as poflible. They begin 
to lay in the fpring months ; and the earlier this happens 
the better, as the price of early green geefe is generally 
high, and ns in fome cafes it may be pollible to have a 
fecond brood. Both thefe purpofes may be promoted by 
letting them he well fed with oats, grains, or fome Inch 
kinds of food, at the period. The gool’e generally lays 
from eight to twelve eggs. It may be known when geefe 
are about to lay, from ftraw being frequently picked up 
and carried about by them. The length of time of fit¬ 
ting is about thirty days. The proper quantity of eggs 
is from ten to twelve, which fhould be placed in the 
nefts, and lbme.thing put before them, fo as to prevent 
the geele from being; much feen. They fhould alfo have 
plenty of food, land, and water, near them, in order that 
they may not remain long off the nefts. The ganders 
fhould be left with them as guards. When the weather 
i; warm they generally hatch rather fooner than when it 
is cold. After the gollings are hatched, the belt method 
i to let them remain with the g-oofe, efpecially where 
t ley are ftrong, in fome warm funny place, that is well 
f cured again it the entrance of rats, and all other forts of 
vermin, ami which is properly fupplied with water; be¬ 
ing well fed with the crumbs of bread, grits, wheat, and 
chopped clivers' They fhould remain until they are 
gr.uvn ftrong and capable of following the goofe with 
tale; they may then be put into a linall field, or pad¬ 
dock, where the grafs is fliort, till they are fit to be turned 
out with the geefe. When weakly, it is- cuftomary to 
feed them in the houfe, with bread foaked in milk, or a 
little barley-meal, &c. 
In fattening of green geefe, care fhould be taken that a 
little green food be given them' along with the oats or 
other grain that may be employed for the purpofe when 
they are put up, and that they be well fupplied with 
water and fand. A fortnight or three weeks is long enough 
for this purpofe, if they be well and regularly fed; but, 
in the fattening of the older geefe, there will not be any 
neceflity for the green food. The place in which they are 
fattened fhould be quite out of the hearing of the old or 
ftore-geefe, or it will occafion a reftleflhefs in the fattening 
pens, that will prevent them from thriving in the manneV 
they ought. 
We cannot difmifs this fubjedt without noticing a very 
ingenious contrivance, invented by Mrs. Hannah D’Oyley, 
of Sion Hill, near Northallerton, in Yorkfliire, by which 
lhe hatches chickens, and raifes poultry, in any quantity, 
and at a fniall expence. Her account of the procefs is as 
follows: “ I keep a large ftock of poultry, which are re¬ 
gularly fed in a morning upon fteamed potatoes chopped 
(mall, and at noon they have barley; they are in high 
condition, traftable, and lay a very great quantity of eggs. 
In the poultry-yard is a finall building, fimilar to a 
pigeon-cote, for the hens to lay in, with frames covered 
with net to Hide before each neft; the houfe is dry, light, 
and well ventilated, kept free from dirt by having the 
nefts and walls white-wafhed two or three times a-year, 
and the floor covered once a-week with frefh afhes ; when 
I wifh to procure chickens, I take the opportunity of 
fetting many hens together, confining each to her refpec- 
tive neft; a boy attends morning and evening to let any 
off that appear reftlefs, and to fee that they return to their- 
proper places; when they hatch, the chickens are taken 
away, and a fecond lot of eggs allowed them to fet again, 
by which means they produce as numerous a brood as 
before. I put the chickens into long wicker cages, placed 
againft a hot wall at the back of the kitchen fire, and 
within them have what I call artificial mothers, for 
the chickens to ruli under; they are made fimilar to thole 
deferibed by Reaumur, in his Art de fairc eclore et d'elcver 
en toutes Saifons des OiJ'eaux domcjliqucs, &c. in two volumes, 
printed at Paris, 1751. They are made of boards 
about ten inches broad, and fifteen inches long, fup- 
ported by two feet in the front, four inches in height, 
and by a board at the back two inches'in height. The 
roof and back are lined with lamb’s ikins dreffed with 
the wool upon them. The roof is thickly perforated 
with holes for the heated air to efcape; they are formed 
without bottoms, and have a flannel or green baize cur¬ 
tain in front, and at the ends, for the chickens to run 
under, which they do apparently by inftinch The cages 
are kept perfectly dry and clean with fand or mofs. The 
above is a proper fize for fifty or fixty new-hatched 
chickens ; but, as they increafe in fize,. they of courfe re¬ 
quire a larger mother. When they are a week old, and 
the weather fine, the boy carries them and their arti¬ 
ficial mother to the grafs-plot, nourifhes and keeps them 
warm, by placing a long narrow tin veflel filled with hot 
water at the back of the mother, which will retain its 
heat for three hours, and is then renewed frefh from the 
fteamer. In the evening they are driven- into their cages, 
and relume their ftation at the hot wall, till they are 
nearly three weeks old, and able to go into a fmall room, 
appropriated to that purpofe. The room is furnifhed with 
frames fimilar to the artificial mothers, placed round the 
floor, and with perches conveniently arranged for them 
to rooft upon. 
<( When I firft attempted to bring up poultry in the 
above way, I loft immenle numbers by too great heat and 
fuffocation, owing to the roofs of the mothers not being 
fuflaciently ventilated; and, when that evil was remedied, 
I had another ferious one to encounter; I found chickens 
3 brought 
