Ashtabula weekly telegraph. [volume] (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1853-1873, 1871-04-29
All About the Hen.

The editor Of the La Crosse Leader, who
seems TO be well posted, gives his readers the
following particulars of the 'hen tribe" in Il
rather flowing and comical style:
At this season Of the spring time, the
hen is a busy bird. The fruit of her Ia
bors fills the marts of commerce and
gratifies the palate OF those who gather
about the breakfast table.
The hen has many traits of character
which commend her to our respectful re-
gard, and in her early life she has corpo-
real qualities which make it pleasant for
us to press her breast into our own.
But as virtue is better than beauty,
and the qualities of mind are more en-
during than the destinations of flesh, let
MS first turn our serious attention to Il
contemplation of the exalted virtues and
strict moral integrity of the hen.
The hen is very steady worker
When her winter vacation is over, and
she opens up business in the spring, she
is pretty certain to produce an egg n
day. No persuasion can induce her to
accomplish more, and she seldom fails to
do less. This task she performs in the
early part of the day, and usually gives
the afternoon to meditation and repose.
Many people think the hen to be Of a
grasping, avaricious aud speculative ma
ture, because the price of her products
varies so much. But this is doing an III
Justice to her. The occasional high price
OF eggs is the fault of the "meddle men,"
who stand between the hen and the 0uy-
er of her fruit, and who gather up the
hens and hold for n rise. In the spring,
when the eggs are consumed very soon
after being finished tor use, they seldom
cost more than Is cents per dozen,
which, allowing fair profit to the deal
er in them, does not leave over cent
apiece for the hen. No hen, whose time
is worth anything at ali, can afford to
work for less than one cent a day, if she
expects to keep in good order. Let any
man who is dissatisfied with the hen, uu-
dertake to do her work himself!
Why, if he had the egg itself furnish
ed free of charge, he could not buy the
lime and make the shell and put it on
properly for the same money for which
the hen turns out the completed job
The hen knows her business, and as long
as she is steady and industrious she need
not be afraid of competition.
The domestic virtues Of the hen are
of very high order. Her capacious
breast is Just crammed full of paternal
instincts. Naturally timid, in defence of
her little family she is brave to rashness,
and will pour out an unintelligible jar
gon which is very distressing to hear
There is something touching in the mat
ronly manner in which she will lead heI
little brood into neighbours garden
and then scratching up good lot Of
provender, even though hungry herself
she will pretend TO be looking away al
something else, while the busy little
chicks pick it all up.
When at evening, or on rainy after
noon, the careful hen gathers her tender
brood beneath her sheltering wings, it il
piciure-pardon me, kind reader, fo1
the presumption of even thinking of des
crioing il, for even as write, remem
ber that One, whose name i will no
mention here, has lifted this picture ou
cf common lite and made it forever me
morable as the symbol of the yearnine
love of his own more than human heart
Candor compels me to pay passing
tribute to the hen as a mother-in-aw.
will not enlarge upon this excelling viz
tue, but merely remark that her adOpte'
chick is evidently cared tor with tn
same affection as her own, and if we, bi
peds OF larger growth, would emulat
her example, orphan asylums would b
rarer, and the sum of human happines
increased.
The hens brother, the rooster is no