146 FANCIERS’ 
JOURNAL AND POULTRY EXCHANGE. 

would have to be fed liberally, and upon the cost of feed 
would depend the profit and loss of the undertaking. Feed 
is too high on the Hastern seaboard to make it profitable, 
but in the West, where corn sells for fifteen cents a bushel, it 
might be made to pay; however, it must be taken into con- 
sideration, that it requires a pair of old birds at least seven 
weeks to produce a pair of young fit for the pot, during the 
whole of which time they must be supported. 
Five hundred pairs, under the most favorable circum- 
stances, might produce three thousand pairs of young, which, 
at twenty cents a pair, would amount to $600. Now, how 
much of that amount would have to go for feed ? 
kept fifty birds upon one bushel of corn per month by way 
of experiment—at that rate (which might pass for an aver- 
age) one thousand old birds would require twenty bushels 
per month, or two hundred and forty a year; and the six 
thousand young, sold at six weeks old, would require one 
hundred and eighty bushels, a total of four hundred and 
twenty bushels of corn, which might be procured for $250 
"here. Subtracting this from the six hundred, leaves a bal- 
ance of $350, which, added to the sum the manure will 
bring, might pay for the trouble of feeding, shipping, &c. 
The birds in a half wild state ought to pick up enough to 
do away with the necessity of feeding them more than above 
stated; and if the neighbors have good wheat crops, it is 
probable much of the corn would be saved during the sum- 
mer months. 
Any one who wishes to try the experiment of shipping 
commoners to market, can form a tolerable close average as 
to profit and loss by the foregoing account. There should 
be plenty of room, plenty of water, food, and warmth. The 
birds should be but little disturbed in their home, and odd 
birds and capricious ones (of which there are many) taken 
out of the loft; none being allowed as boarders but good 
breeders and sober nurses. 
If a man should turn his whole attention to pigeon breed- 
ing, more money could be made out of extensive raising of 
the toys and fancy birds, the imperfect young of which could 
be sent to market, and the perfect held for high prices. One 
hundred pairs of swallows or turbits could thus be made to 
pay better than a thousand pairs of commons. In the south 
of Europe many persons add materially to their incomes by 
breeding fifty to a hundred runts during a season, some of 
which will weigh two to three pounds each, in addition to 
the chickens, which every cottager produces. This is a 
custom we should like to see naturalized here, for a young 
runt is a delicious morsel to waste a few moments over. We 
have not considered the capital invested in buildings, stock, 
&c., as that would take up too much of your space, and we 
wished merely to suggest the feasibility of breeding large 
numbers of pigeons. Dr. W. P. M. 

(For Fanciers’ Journal.) 
REMINISCENCES OF THE ‘“‘HEN FEVER.” 
BY G. P. BURNHAM. 
The ‘‘ Pea Comb ”’ is an American institution. 
The first indication I ever saw of this feature upon poultry 
occurred in the Light Brahmas I bred some twenty odd 
years ago, and my attention was called to this development 
by Dr. Bennett. He gave the name to this comb, so far as I 
am informed (and it was a good one) from its similarity in 
shape to a half-blown pea blossom. 
The natural comb of the Malay Fowl is a species of pea 
comb, but it is more clumpy and indistinct in form than the 
We have 


modern triple comb required by the standard now-a-days, 
upon the Brahmas. 
The original Brahmas, both light and dark, were single 
combed; and they were thus bred for two or three years. 
When the pea comb showed itself, it was deemed a decided 
improvement, on account of the lesser danger of its freezing 
in winter, in our cold northern climate. And now the single | 
upright comb, upon however otherwise good a fowl, dis- 
qualifies him in the “English and American show-room, for 
competition with the later improvement. 
English writers spoke of this novelty as a ‘‘stubbed’’ comb 
for a time, but they very readily accepted the Yankee title, 
and orders came from across the water for ‘‘ pea comb Brah- 
mas ’’ universally, after the Doctor and myself gave currency 
to this name to the discovery. For a long period it was 
common, and even down to the present time the single comb 
is seen occasionally. But all such specimens are discarded 
among fanciers to-day, whatever may be their other good 
points. i 
And now we have the ‘Pea Comb Partridge Fowls,”’ 
Mr. C, H. Edmonds having exhibited in February, 1874, at 
the third show of the Massachusetts Society, three or four 
cages of superb Partridge fowls, with the pea comb finely 
developed in both sexes. This is certainly a novelty in this 
variety; but I notice that this peculiar indication shows 
itself only on the Chinese birds. Edmonds’ fowls were 
greatly admired, and he had numerous tempting offers for 
his stock, which he declined. It is his intention to test 
his experiments during the present season, and if he has got 
this thing established thoroughly, he certainly has a very 
valuable strain of stock in his possession, the pea comb being 
an admitted advantage. These are the first I ever saw of 
this variety. 
And speaking of this poultry show, reminds me of an in- 
cident that occurred there, which brought back the days of 
‘‘auld-lang-syne’’ very pointedly. An enterprising breeder 
from Norfolk County, where the original Marsh stock was 
bred for years, successfully contributed a few fine samples of 
this long ago popular variety, the parent stock of which was 
imported direct from China about thirty years since by the 
Rev. Mr. Marsh, of Dedham. 
I was surprised to note the points and character of these 
birds, as compared with the originals, which I know so well, 
and scores of which I had on exhibition at the three or four 
first annual shows of the N. E. Poultry Society, in 750 and 
53. I have raised and exported hundreds of this superior 
strain, and I know of no stock that ever gave such universal 
satisfaction, for their kind, as this did. 
Now, in 1874, a quarter of a century from the time when 
this famous Marsh stock was first in rife demand, and when 
almost everybody had forgotten this strain, at the third ex- 
hibition of the new Massachusetts society, a young fancier 
comes in among the favorite Brahmas and Cochins with a 
few coops of the old genuine Chinese stock, very nicely bred, 
and as like their parents as ‘‘peas in the same pod.” 
But nobody notices them! They are probably the nearest 
relations to absolute China blooded poultry we have in 
America. You can’t mistake them for any other fowl. 
They are real Celestials. , 
But I see no mention made of this fine stock in the reports 
of this Exhibition. We shall breed poultry a great many 
years yet in Massachusetts before we shall produce a strain 
of stock that will excel this, in all the characteristics of the . 
best Chinese stock. Itis “out of the fashion’’ now, however. 


Coe ee a ee 
a ee 
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