785 
7ht  RURAL  NEW-YORKER 
Poultry  and  Livestock 
Poultry  Conditions. — Judging  from 
the  advertisements  offering  day-old  chicks 
this  Spring,  the  popularity  of  White  Leg¬ 
horns  is  still  growing  in  New  England, 
although  not  so  fast,  perhaps,  as  the  sup¬ 
porters  of  this  breed  have  predicted.  On 
the  whole,  the  White  Plymouth  Rock 
seems  to  hold  its  lead,  with  the  Rhode 
Island  Red  a  good  second.  The  low  price 
of  eggs  last  'Winter  has  somewhat  damp¬ 
ened  the  ardor  of  poultrymen  who  were 
prepared  to  greatly  increase  their  hatches. 
Yet  a  very  good  business  is  being  done. 
Some  changes  in  feeding  methods  are  be¬ 
ing  made,  particularly  as  regards  the  use 
of  vegetables  and  green  foods  on  a  larger 
scale.  County  Agents  throughout  the 
State  are  urging  poultrymen  to  plant 
more  freely  of  mangel  wurzel,  or  cow 
beets,  as  they  are  sometimes  called,  or  to 
arrange  with  a  neighborhood  farmer  to 
grow  them.  Their  argument  is  that  the 
average  poultry  flock  does  not  get  nearly 
the  amount  of  succulent  food  which  it 
needs,  and  that  mangel  wurzels  are  both 
cheap  and  satisfactory.  Even  baby 
chicks  will  eat  these  beets  freely  if  they 
are  chopped  fine.  It  is  not  necessary  to 
cut  up  the  beets  for  laying  hens.  \\  lnle 
other  vegetables,  and  particularly  cab¬ 
bages  are  approved  by  poultry  keepers, 
they  do  not  keep  as  well  or  give  as  gen¬ 
erous  yields  as  the  big  beets.  The  feeding 
of  sprouted  oats  seems  to  have  declined 
to  a  large  extent,  probably  because  as 
good  results  can  be  obtained  with  much 
less  labor. 
Standardized  Poultry. — In  shipping 
his  poultry  to  the  larger  markets  the 
Eastern  farmer  must  come  in  competition 
with  the  Western  fatteners,  who  are  now 
making  large  shipments  to  the  Last,  lhe 
Western  fattener  has  one  distinct  advan¬ 
tage,  in  that  he  is  able  to  grade  his  birds 
carefully.  Stacked  up  in  Quincy  Market, 
Boston,  you  will  see  boxes  marked  with 
the  various  grades,  with  special  reference 
to  weight.  This  is  very  important  to  the 
wholesaler,  because  if  he  has  an  order  for, 
say.  five  dozen  roasters,  weighing  o  lbs., 
or  two  dozen  broilers  weighing  2  lbs.,  he 
can  find  each  kind  packed  in  one  box. 
Few  farmers  realize  the  extent  to  which 
standardization  is  being  carried.  If  one 
of  the  Boston  hotels  places  an  order  for 
a  certain  number  of  chickens,  to  be  served 
at  a  banquet,  every  chicken  in  that  order 
must  weigh  the  same,  to  within  a  tew 
ounces.  Every  order  of  steak  which  goes 
to  the  table  is  first  measured  and  the  sur¬ 
plus  cut  away.  iWhen  poultry  is  bought 
from  local  farmers,  the  commission  house 
is  obliged  to  sort  it  all.  over.  If  several 
poultrymen  could  make  shipments  to¬ 
gether,  and  grade  their  birds  before  pack¬ 
ing  them,  they  would  be  able  to  get  bet¬ 
ter  prices.  Of  course,  this  is  often  impos¬ 
sible,  but  the  small  grower  can  dress  his 
chickens  carefully  and  pack  them  neatly. 
Shipments  are  very  often  received  in  bar¬ 
rels,  but  it  pleases  the  dealers  to  have  the 
birds  come  in  boxes*  Even  turkeys  and 
geese  make  a  better  showing  wnen  boxes 
are  used.  If  barrels  must  be  used,  they 
should  be  lined  with  paper,  never  with 
straw.  In  summer  there  should  be  a 
layer  of  ice  for  the  birds  to  rest  on,  and 
alternate  layers  to  the  top.  Then  a  piece 
of  burlap  should  be  stretched  and  tacked 
over  the  top. 
Preparing  Dressed  Poultry— There 
should  be  nothing  in  the  crop  of  n  bird 
that  is  ready  for  killing,  but  if  this  is  not 
the  case,  the  contents  should  immediately 
be  removed.  The  average  farmer  makes 
a  slit  in  front  of  the  crop,  without  think- 
ing  of  appearances.  If  the  slit  is  made 
in  the  back  of  the  neck  it  will  not  show 
when  the  bird  is  hung  up  in  the  market. 
This  is  one  of  the  things  that  help  to 
affect  prices.  Poultry  should  always  be 
marketed  undrawn,  and  with  the  head  and 
feet  on.  In  the  holiday  season  it  is  often 
possible  to  dispose  of  fowls  which  have 
had  their  heads  removed  with  an  ax,  but 
always  at  lower  prices.  There  is  really 
a  good  reason  for  this,  because  both  the 
head  and  the  legs  help  to  show  the  age 
and  condition  of  the  bird.  A  chicken  that 
is  not  fresh  begins  to  get  green  below  the 
bill,  and  has  sunken  eyes,  while  the  legs 
of  old  birds  are  pretty  certain  to  be  rough 
and  scalv.  Some  cities  prefer  birds  which 
have  been  scalded,  while  others  want 
them  dry-picked.  Dry-picked  fowls  have 
the  preference  in  the  Boston  markets,  the 
dealers  asserting  that  they  look  better 
and  keep  better.  Some  neople  declare 
that  scalding  chickens  injures  the  flavor 
of  the  flesh. 
Cooling  and  Packing. — The  best  way 
to  cool  newly  dressed  poultry  is  to  place 
it  in  refrigerating  rooms,  and  that  is  the 
plan  followed  by  the  poultry  buyers  in 
Boston  who  have  large  establishments. 
Twenty-four  hours  at  least  is  needed  to 
cool  a  carcass  properly.  But,  of  course, 
the  average  poultryman  has  to  depend 
upon  ice-cold  water  or  ice.  If  all  poultry 
were  more  carefully  cooled,  however, 
there  would  be  fewer  fowls  condemned  by 
the  inspectors.  They  would  make  a  bet¬ 
ter  appearance,  too,  if  the  heads  were 
wrapped  in  parchment  paper.  If  going 
to  a  nearby  market  chickens  may  be 
nacked  in  pine  boxes,  but  if  they  are  to 
be  stored  it  is  better  to  use  boxes  made 
of  whitewood. 
Ornamental  Pigpens. — We  often  read 
in  books  about  the  desirability  of  having 
pigpens  which  are  clean  and  sanitary. 
It  is  seldom,  however,  that  wTe  find  hog 
quarters  which  measure  up  to  specifica¬ 
tions,  as  the  books  outline  them.  Last 
year,  however,  I  stumbled  across  a  pig¬ 
gery  which  was  owned  by  a  young  woman, 
which  was  a  revelation  of  sanitation  and 
pig  comfort,  as  well  as  proving  that  a 
pigpen  need  not  necessarilv  be  an  eyesore, 
even  though  located  in  a  backyard.  There 
was  a  tight  little  house,  surrounded  by 
a  neatly  painted  board  fence,  while  lattice 
work  had  been  erected  in  front  of  the 
fence  almost  the  entire  length  of  the  yard, 
this  lattice  being  covered  with  climbing 
nasturtiums.  The  accompanying  illus¬ 
tration  may  have  a  lesson  for  other  ama¬ 
teur  pig  growers. 
Feather  Pulling 
Why  do  my  hens  eat  their  feathers? 
Is  there  a  cure  for  this?  r.  g.  w. 
Vermont. 
Feather  eating  is  a  practice  that  hens 
may  acquire  easily,  and  one  that  it  is 
difficult  to  break  them  of.  The  irritation 
caused  by  lice  or  mites  may  induce  them 
to  pick  at  the  skin  and  the  quills  of  the 
feathers  until  they  get  a  taste  of  the  lat¬ 
ter,  then  they  are  likely  to  continue  the 
vice  by  attacking  others  in  the  flock.  It 
is  one  of  the  habits,  too,  that  close  con¬ 
finement  during  the  Winter  encourages, 
and  there  is  generally  no  further 
trouble  from  it  when  you  can  let  your 
hens  out  of  doors  in  flip  Spring.  To  rid 
the  fowls  of  lice,  smear  a  bit  of  blue  oint¬ 
ment  about  the  size  of  a  large  pea  over 
the  skin  just  beneath  the  vent;  this 
should  prove  effective  in  keeping  the  birds 
free  from  the  pests  over  a  period  of  sev¬ 
eral  months.  m.  b.  d. 
Henhouse  With  Saw-tooth  Roof 
1  am  sending  a  plan  of  a  henhouse  I 
think  of  building  this  Spring.  I  built  a 
310-ft.  house  for  my  layers,  but  found  it 
to  be  too  long,  as  the  outside  pens  are 
cold.  Would  there  not  be  a  saving  of 
lumber  by  building  this  way,  as  shown 
in  diagram,  each  coop  having  wire  be¬ 
tween,  saving  two  ends  on  each  additional 
coop?  One  door  in  rear  coop,  and  a  door 
from  eaC-h  coop  allowing  passage-way  for 
caring  for  same,  the  floors  of  grael  and 
sand.  Would  the  top  windows,  12x13  ft., 
throw'  light  enough  in  rear  coops? 
Colton,  N.  Y.  H.  n.  S. 
Your  plan  is,  in  effect,  a  poultry-house 
12  ft.  wide  and  45  ft.  deep,  with  a  saw¬ 
tooth  roof  for  light  and  ventilation.  While 
you  save  a  portion  of  the  front  and  rear 
walls  of  each  section,  you  lose  in  being 
obliged  to  build  two  side  walls  for  each. 
I  think  that  you  will  find  the  ordinary 
type  of  long  house  more  satisfactory  if 
you  build  it  of  considerably  greater  depth 
than  15  ft.  The  more  nearly  square  your 
bu Udine  the  less  the  material  required 
for  walls  to  enclose  a  given  amount  to 
floor  space.  I  would  suggest  that  you 
determine  the  number  of  square  feet  of 
floor  space  that  you  will  need,  then  build 
your  house  from  20  to  25  ft.  deep  and  as 
long  as  necessary  to  give  you  the  desired 
room.  A  deep  house  will  require  a 
higher  front  wall  to  enable  the  sun’s  rays 
to  penetrate  well  toward  the  rear  than  a 
narrow  one,  but  it  is  less  expensive  to 
build  and  more  satisfactory  from  the 
standpoint  of  warmth  and  general  com¬ 
fort.  M.  B.  D. 
A  Few  Neighborhood  Troubles 
Value  of  a  Sitting  Hen 
My  neighbor  got  a  hen  from  me  last 
year  to  set.  He  said  he  w’ould  pay  later. 
He  has  not  paid  for  her  yet,  and  now  we 
have  got  into  a  little  trouble  over  school 
affairs.  He  is  going  to  pay  me  for  the 
hen  and  a  little  work  I  have  done  for 
him  when  he  gets  ready.  How  much  can 
I  collect  for  the  hen?  He  has  had  the 
use  of  her  for  a  whole  year,  and  nothing 
was  said  about  the  price  when  he  got 
her.  Can  I  collect  more  than  so  much 
a  pound  for  the  weight?  If  I  state  a 
good  big  price  per  pound,  say  50  cents, 
would  he  be  obliged  to  pay  it?  farmer. 
Behold  how  great  a  mailer  a  little  fire 
kindleth!”  It  seems  too  bad  that  a 
neighborhood  quarrel  should  arise  over  a 
hen;  We  have  both  bought  and  hired 
sitting  hens  from  neighbors.  A  popular 
price  for  such  a  hen  has  been  $1.  We 
have  paid  50  cents  for  a  hen  used  to 
hatch  a  sitting  of  eggs,  and  then  returned 
the  hen.  In  this  case  you  are  entitled  to 
the  market  price  of  the  hen;  that  is,  her 
weight  at  the  regular  price  of  live  poul¬ 
try  in  your  neighborhood.  You  cannot 
justly  charge  50  cents  a  pound  unless 
the  hen  is  a  fine  specimen  of  some  estab¬ 
lished  breed.  “Agree  with  thine  adver¬ 
sary  quickly  !’’ 
The  Hired  Man  and  Chores 
There  has  been  some  dispute  in  my 
neighborhood  about  a  man  working  by 
the  month  on  a  farm  having  to  do  chores 
every  Sunday  night,  and  as  I  am  work¬ 
ing  that  way  I  would  like  to  know 
whether  we  are  obliged  to  do  this  or  not. 
New  York.  e.  w.  m. 
Under  the  usual  contract  with  a  hired 
man  it  is  expected  that  he  will  do  the 
chores,  unless  otherwise  provided  for. 
Who  should  do  them  if  he  does  not? 
They  are  the  most  necessary  part  of  the 
job.  In  some  cases  there  is  a  definite 
understanding  between  the  boss  and  the 
hired  man  that  the  latter  is  to  be  relieved 
of  certain  chores,  but  unless  there  is  such 
an  agreement  the  hired  man  is  expected 
to  do  them.  Why  not?  That  is  the  full 
understanding  on  our  own  farm,  and  the 
way  we  always  worked  when  hiring  out. 
Keep  Dogs  at  Home 
Mrs.  H.  W.  has  only  to  prove  that  her 
dog  was  tied  up  or  shut  in  house  or  barn, 
and  then  she  can  have  the  party  arrested 
for  stealing.  Eight  years’  experience  in 
breaking  dogs  and  running  boarding  ken¬ 
nels  taught  me  this.  c.  H.  v.  s. 
This  refers  to  the  case  on  page  594, 
where  the  neighbor  enticed  the  dog  away. 
In  this  case,  however,  the  dog  was  not 
tied  or  shut  up,  as  it  should  have  been. 
Evidently  the  dog  ran  about  without  re¬ 
straint,  and  quite  likely  was  not  fully 
fed  and  cared  for.  In  such  a  case  the 
dog  found  the  neighbor’s  place  more  com¬ 
fortable,  and  as  the  owner  did  not  keep 
the  dog  tied  or  confined  he  naturally  ran 
away.  Who  would  blame  him?  It  is 
true  that  some  dogs  will  die  rather  than 
leave  humans  for  whom  they  have  af¬ 
fection.  There  have  been  cases  where 
dogs  have  been  starved  and  beaten,  yet 
refuse  to  leave  their  oppressors  because 
they  love  them.  However,  it  is  not  likely 
that  the  average  dog  has  any  more  of  this 
quality  than  the  average  human. 
Wearing  the  Army  Uniform 
My  son,  a  World  'War  veteran,  lies 
sleeping,  having  fought,  bravely  for  his 
country,  and  near  me  lives  a  man  who 
tried  in  every  way  to  keep  from  serving  in 
the  war,  and  at  the  same  time  was  a  single 
man.  He  had  one  brother  who  came  back 
from  the  war  and  gave  this  man  his  uni¬ 
form,  and  this  man  now  wears  this  uni¬ 
form  (especially  the  coat)  time  and 
again,  and  it  hurts  me  to  see  this.  Has 
he  any  right  to  sport  the  uniform  he 
never  fought  for?  j.  k. 
On  page  440  we  gave  the  army  rules 
about  wearing  the  uniform.  Unless  the 
coat  has  been  changed  in  color  or  cut  or 
in  other  ways,  this  man  is  subject  to  a 
fine  of  $300  or  imprisonment  for  six 
months.  The.  man  has  jio  business  to 
wear  the  coat  in  the  way  you  describe. 
Shooting  Boy’s  Pigeons 
.1  am  14  years  old,  and  I  have  many 
pigeons.  My  neighbor  is  constantly  kill¬ 
ing  them  all  the  year  round,  and  says  that 
they  were  his.  Last  week  he  killed  about 
15  of  them,  and  I  went  there  and  told 
him  that  I  would  sue  him  for  $25.  Could 
I  do  it?  He  shot  the  old  mother  pigeons, 
and  they  had  young  squabs.  Is  there  a 
law  concerning  the  pigeons?  If  I  knew 
I  could  sue  him  I  would  do  it.  If  my 
pigeons  were  doing  any  damage  to  him 
he  ought  to  have  told  me.  I  am  willing 
to  pay  for  his  damage  if  he  only  would 
pay  me  for  those  pigeons.  b.  j.  w. 
It  is  not  a  high-class  specimen  of  a 
man  who  will  shoot  a  boy’s  pigeons  in 
this  way.  Some  flocks  of  these  birds 
will  do  damage  at  times  and  should  be 
kept  up,  but  it  is  very  small  business 
for  any  man  to  destroy  a  boy’s  property 
and  then  claim  the  birds  belong  to  him. 
A  lawsuit,  however,  will  cost  you  more 
than  you  can  expect  to  get  out  of  it.  As 
you  are  under  age  you  could  not  bring 
suit  yourself,  but  would  have  to  have 
parent  or  guardian  do  it.  In  such  a  con¬ 
test  a  man  who  is  willing  to  do  so  has 
a  chance  to  take  advantage  of  a  boy. 
Saw-tooth  Roof  Henhouse 
Dressed  Foiols  in  Cooler 
A  Model  Backyard  Piggery 
