The Buchanan County guardian. (Independence, Buchanan County, Iowa) 1858-1864, 1859-05-26

mense building, cruclform IN shape, witt
a cupola like an academy, indicates
where the pork of the Astor House il
raised. Here six hundred hogs are an
nually raised for the slaughter. Eacl
hog has his parlor, his yard and sleeping
apartment to himself, while being corr
fed and ready for the market. Attached
to the house are seven acres of land, dot
ted with small houses, into which th,
pigs may run and be safe, and here The
broods luxuriate on hill and dale, hea
and shade. A railroad car runs from the
house where the food is cooked to the
pens. and the food is trundled in on the
rack, and by simple contrivance all the
hogs are compelled to wait till the food
is served, before they can help themselves
The swill from the Astor House is taker
away before daylight each day, so nc
one is annoyed. A cart perfectly tight
stands in the yard of the Astor House
all day, and receives all that is placed in
it. Another, its fellow complete, is driv-
en- at early morn, all sweet and clean. and
the full one is taken ont and the empty
one left in its place.
This swill is taken to the farm, and in
an immense vat is cooked for tie swine
In the process, all the fat and grease that
rises is taken off. Gen. Stetson has kept
the Astor House twenty-one years next
July. The swill from the house has been
sold and removed for the sum of $500
per year. The farm has made this dis
covery, that the greese that rises from the
food of thu hogs. independent of the food,
is worth annually the sum of $1,000
Pigs noble and plebian are here pigs
English. pigs Chinese, and pigs Siamese.
A smoke house completes the porkery of
the farm. A man is employed to take
care of this department-he does nothing
else-and house and grounds are given
to him.
Next we advance to the poultry house
probably the most perfect in the land
The building is 24o feet long, and is two
stories. The roost is divided into four
apartments the roost frames are sassa-
fras, to keep out vermin ; apartments for
laying, setting, &C., are in great perfec-
ton. A perfect system is adopted each
setting hen is removed, and her nest
cleansed each day. and at regular inter-
walls she is compelled to take an airing.
About 5000 eggs per day are ready for
this house. and with the system of warm
ing the building, the hens lay in the
dead of winter, and fresh eggs can be
had at any one season of the year as well
as another. Attached to the hen house
are seven acres Of land, carefully in
closed, where the chickens and their as
sociates have the liberty of the yard
Each hen with brood has a house in
the field, exclusively her own, and each
day the house is removed, as that re-
moval makes the rats and other yermin
think it is trap. and SO they keep out
of it. Here $4,000 poultry are raised
year. The chicken department is in
the charge of a gentleman trained in
England under Lord Northup. and the
fifteen years experience in the old coun.
try is well used here. The lofty hall over
the roost, is devoted to the final feeding
of capons for the table. Each of the
2OOO fat capons that are honored with a
revolution ON the spit of the Astor House
kitchen, have here their final preparation
" on the corn of the land" Here, also.
is to be placed an incubator, of the new
est model, where, by the means of hot
water, chickens are cheated into life, and
after they come out, they are clapped in.
to another machine. called the mother ;
where. for the second time. they are aw-
fully deceived with the idea they are un-
der the motherly care of an old hen. Six
hundred eggs can be hatched at one time,
and the total of chickens that will prob.
ably see life under this novel method, is
not far from 10000 per year.
The turkey yard comes next, from
which 800 turkeys per year come forth,
and then an immense tract--fye acres
watered by running brook, eminently
suggestive of trout, is called Duckville,
in which the ducks and geese. in count.
less numbers, are fattened for the table.
Besides, there are acres of strawberries,
which are picked at the rate of one cent
per basket; and good picker can real
'se one dollar per day. All the luxuries
of the hot beds, all the flowers. fine
herbs, celery, grapes. pears and apples
that may be needed for the table-with
acres of potatoes, corn. beets, and all the
roots used for food, grow on the farm.
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