October 28. 
THE COTTAGE GAEDENER. 
00 
the sort now so much in fashion (the Cochin-Chinas), and 
I considered they ate about double what thfe others did.” 
So much for the opinion of three unprejudiced people! 
I have only further to say, that if any of your readers still 
think that Id. a-week will keep a Cochin-China fowl, let 
i them (as 1 did) weigli out 1 lb. of barley (which is about 
that value), and see how soon a Cochin-China will eat it. 
\ I believe we deceive ourselves in saying “ our poultry only 
eat so much," for we forget the bread, the potatoes, and otiier 
scraps, wiiich would, if the cottager kept a pig (as I advise 
every one to do), go towards its food, instead of to the 
I poultrj', so that if the fowls cost less, the pig costs more. 
1 I am very glad, for my own sake, that [ made tlie ex- 
, ])eriment, and 1 am firmly convinced that the time is not far 
I distant, when many now opposed to me will be ready to 
1 own I am not very far wrong. Gali.us. 
Time of Experiment — Oct. i to Oct, 11. 
n 
O 
Description 
Age 
Weight 
Oct. 4 
Weight 
Oct. 11 
Quantity 
of food 
consumed 
Cost 
Weekly 
average 
No. of 
eggs 
' Weight 
1 of eggs 
Cochin-CIiina Cock 
Cochin-China Hen 
Cochin-China lieu 
1851 
1851 
1661 
'd 
o 
^ bo 
'S 
(S 
'V 
^ 4 } 
O ^ 
t/J 
‘S 
rs 
Ib.oz. 
Meal 3 15 
Bran 2 0 
Corn 5 2 
11 1 
d. 
5 
1 
43 
10£ 
(I. 
3i 
4 
oz. 
8 
2 
Cochin-China Cock 
Cochin-China Hen 
Cochin-China Hen 
1851 
1851 
1861 
4 ) 
o -Q 
St 
ra 
o -a 
•7 to 
'53 
c? 
Sleal 4 2 
Bran 1 15 
Corn 5 5 
11 6 
5 
1 
5 
11 
32 
c 
11 
3 
Cochin-China Cock¬ 
erel . 
Ditto ditto 
Ditto ditto 
Ditto ditto 
Ditto ditto 
1852 
April 
May 
June 
June 
June 
Ibs.oz. 
8 5 
7 13 
7 0 
6 14 
5 14 
Ibs.oz. 
8 4 
8 8 
7 9 
7 9 
5 12 
Meal 4 0 
Wheatl4 0 
Pota¬ 
toes 5 0 
23 0 
s. d. 
0 5 
1 2 
0 2 
1 9 
41 
Ti?/ie of Experiment — Oat. 7 to Oct. J4. 
4 
Spanish Cock 
Spanish Hen 
Spanish Heii 
Spanish Hen 
Spanish Hen 
Spanish Hen 
Spanish Cockerel 
Spanish Cockerel 
Spanish Cockerel 
Spanish Pullet 
Spanish Pullet 
Spanish Pullet 
Spanish Pullet 
1850 
1851 
1851 
1851 
1851 
1851 
1852 
1852 
1852 
1852 
1852 
1852 
1852 
^3 
o ^ 
<u 
T3 
£.S 
Barley 7 0 
Wheat 6 o 
Meal 5 4 
Bran 2 8 
Indian 
Corn 4 0 
24 0 
1 ) 7 
0 (i 
0 
0 If 
0 3 
2 0 
2 
[Note by the Editor.— AYe readily declare our belief in 
the accuracy of the above report, because we know the 
writer to be an honourable man; and W'c have Imt two 
objections to make to his experiments, and they ai-e these : 
First, that he did not have his Spanish fowls separated into 
threes and five, the same as the Cochin-Chinas. This is 
not an objection for objection sake, but founded upon our 
own experience, and the experience of others, that two or 
three fowls by themselves will consume proportionately 
more food in a day than when a great number are fed 
together. Whether this is the result of the few being less 
intemipted, and having loss to diveit their attention from 
the food trough, we shall not attempt to explain; but this 
we know—flfteen fowls fed together eat less in twenty-four 
I hours than the same birds divided into threes, and fed each 
three in separate places, eat in the same space of time. 
! Our second objection is, that we have not the weights of 
the futl yrowii Spanish fowls, as well as the w'eights of the 
I full-yruu'ii Cochin-Chinas. AVo suspect that the weight of 
the latter must be nearly double the weight of the former, 
and, if so, it is not so groat a marvel tliat they eat nearly 
twice as much. 
AVe have tided one experiment ourselves upon this subject 
very recently, and it yields a very dilferent result, explicable 
upon no other grounds, as far as we can see, than that the 
birds were all fed together, and that ours in the south have 
not the keen appetites bestowed upon their brethren in the 
north, by its colder breezes. 
Our experiment extended from Oct. ITth to Oct. lOth, 
both inclusive. In one yard were fij'teen cockerels, and in 
the other twenty-seven hens and pullets, all pure-breds, from 
the stocks of Mr. Punchard, Mr. Moody, and Captain 
Hornby, with the exception of three hens imported from 
Shanghai, and two hens, crosses between Cochins and 
Dorkings. Their respective ages and average weights (in 
the morning, before being fed) were as follows :— 
lbs. 
!) cockerels, aged three months, average weight - 2 
4 cockerels, aged four months, average weight - 4 
2 cockerels, aged six months, average weight - (1^ 
8 jiullets, aged three months, average weight - lij 
(i pullets, aged four montlis, average weight - - oj 
!) pullets, aged six months, average weight - - T-J 
(i hens, average weight.- (i 
They were fed ujion the following articles, to which we 
append the weight and price ;— 
Parley-meal, 4(i lbs. per bushel, lls. Od. 
Barley, 42 lbs. per bushel, 3s. 9d. 
Oals, Sii lbs. per bushel, 2s. i)d. 
Eice and greaves, averaging Ifd. per lb. 
They were fed in troughs, barred across tho top, so that 
they could not trample in the food, nor waste it in any 
other way; the troughs were never allowed to be empty, 
and they had a roomy yard, with access to grass for an hour 
or so daily. The supply of water unlimited. They con- 
sullied during the time— 
251- ll's. harley-meal 
d. 
- 251 
4 „ bran - 
- 
2 
14 „ oats - 
- 
- 14 
14 „ barley 
- 
- 14 
4 „ nno 1 
- 0 
2 „ greaves | 
(Ml lbs. 
041 pence, 
So that the 42 fowls consumed food which cost C4^d. in 
seven days, being scarcely more than three-halfpence per 
week each. If this had been a cheap potato year, so that 
boiled potatoes could have been partly substituted for barley- 
meal, wo are certain that the expense would have been 
nearer five farthings a week. As in the experiments by 
“ Callus,” the corn was bought of a retailer; if bought by 
the quarter it would have been somewhat cheaper. During 
the week the six hens laid seventeen eggs, weighing from 
2^ to 2,j- ozs. each, and two double-yolked eggs, weighing 
3 ozs. each.] 
Aiistcr Bonn in a letter, from which the following is an 
extract, says—“I enter on the subject now, for this last 
time, from a desire to reply, with all willingness, to 
“Callus’s” question. At the dinner to which he refers, 
tho opinion of the fowls in the dininy room was not pro¬ 
nounced so decidedly as out of the dininy room, because it 
was, on both sides, somewhat repressed by politeness. 
Although, from keeping but one kind of fowl, I lack the 
opportunity to join in “ Callus’s ” experiments, T shall feel 
great interest in their result; in aid of them, I can only 
offer the knowledge which I possess. The cost of com and 
meal of various sorts to me, during the whole month of Sep¬ 
tember, was £3. 4s. (id, and tho number of fowls being 141). 
This (about five farthings a-week each) gives rather a 
greater increase on tho preceding months than I expected; 
but among these fowls are included fifty cocks near matu¬ 
rity : an extravagant disproportion, which would scarcely 
be tolerated by persons desirous of feeding with economy.” 
VISITS TO SOME OF THE CHIEF POULTRY- 
YARDS OF ENGLAND. i 
[Mr. Sturof.on’s.] i 
Time was, and that within the memory of those who do ; 
not wish to think themselves old men, that a trip down 
Father Thames to Cravesend was an uncertain, and there¬ 
fore somewhat serious undertaliing. If tho wind was 
favourable, and the tide suited, the liglit little river craft, 
then called “packets,” ran you down merrily enough ; but if 
the breeze failed, and the tide was against you, groat was 
the consumption of patience—and tobacco. Independent of 
the wind, and comparatively but little affected by the tides. 
