Indiana American. [volume] (Brookville, Ind.) 1833-1861, 1855-03-30

poiiucai EDITORS anu professional pollt-
icians rs to the destruction Of the corn
market has heightened many farmers.
as ! see extensive preparations making
for raising. as much as ever.
JOHN II. GOODWIN.
Keeping Poultry in Large Numbers
LUTHER TUCKER, Eso.--In the
Co. Gent. of Goth inst, ID. II. r.
of Hartford, CT, wants to know
hop to build a chicken house
for "about 1000 fowls" If my
poor opinion is worth anything,
he piH not build IL at ALL
Fowls, in any large number, will
not thrive, unless they have.a
ride range. They are, partially,
a grdsing animal. When the
ground is bare Of snow, in winter
they pick the grass if they can
get IL, and are fond Of green veg
etables Of any kind. In sum-
mer, they pick and eat grassevery
day. They are great scavengers
after slugs, insects, and all kind
Of flesh. They are better, Also,
for having some flesh food in win
ter; and abundant air. fresh and
pure, they must have, aitcays.
Although l have seen it tried. |
never knew a largo collection Of
several hundred fowls, succeed ia
a confined place.
A few years ago some entepris-
ing men from thocountry and near
town, enclosed an acre or two
of ground with picket fence
and put up building, atan ex-
pence ofnear or quito . thousand
dollars, intending to supply eggs
for the Buffalo market He had
his barn well done off with any
quantity ofroosts, nesting places,
and other conveniences. lie
started his concern with seven oil
eight hundred chickens, and fol
a few weeks, growing and cock
fighting, and laying and cack.
ling, went on to his hearts con.
tent. He had food Of all kinds
for them, and great anticipations
we're INDUCED oil iortune-makine
in his chicken enterprise. Blu
three or four winter months told
the story The fowls got discas.
ed-tho hens first eat the ieath'
ers Of the r00sisrS-or what
were left Of them after they had
fought themselves almost bare,
aud then the hens unneeced, il
the same way, each other. They
stopped laying, were tormentet
with lice, got the "roup," went
moping about the place, and dice
fflike a pestilence; and by sprins
but a few miserable, sickly things
we're left, with scarce life enough
in them to crow up the morning
The difficulty was not in wan
Of food, nor care. But from tn,
necessity Of the case, they were
; crowded in their roosts; they wer,
disturbed by each other in thei
nests, and had not room enough
any where, even with the outsid,
range Of an acre Of land. TIL,
truth is, that to flourish, hen,
! must have their liberty, wheI
kept in large numbers. They
want to range the fields by day
and not be crowded at night
They want a rariety Of food
and to help themselves to it
: They need exercise, pure air, ant
} enough Of both. / know on,
: man, or rather the mans wifi
} in the Scioto Valley in Ohio, VIII
kept five or six hundred fowls
: that is, she told me she had tina
maryland ] don't doubt il, 10
the whole territory, for acresabou
! the farm, was speckled with then
by day, and the trees, and tn
corncribs, and the barns, and th,
: sheds were filed with them a
night. They had a great bi,
. farm Of a thousand acres, or NOR
and full corn cribs for many rod
in length, where the hens went a
pleasure, and made nests undo
the trees, and among the bushe
! and all about the buildings, AM
in the back kitchen, and jus
! where they had mind, TO: an,
they sat on their eggs, and hutch
ed out their chickens at will
, selfsustaining poultry establish
ment, in fact. This plan worked
+ but as to the profit of it, | doub
> whether the old lady could Civ