The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1875-07-24

i nc lOI weather is al nanu Wnen poultry,
both Old and young, needs as careful atten-
ton as at any other season of the year. One
thing all need and must have in abundance,
and that is good, clean water to drink. Well
water is preferable to soft or cistern water
unless the latter comes from cistern built
and cared for as a substitute for good, deep
well-as in this case it is not likely to be al
lowed to become foul or unwholesome for
drinking purposes, as so often happens with
Cistern water designed only for washing pur-
poses. But even with best and purest clstern
water at hand we would prefer, for poultry
at least, the hard or well water, because of its
impregnatlon with carbonate of lime.
BY no means allow your fowls and chicks
to supply themselves from stagnant pools, or
even the drip from the horse or cattle water
ing troughS but give them fresh supplies
every day.
Select few places on the premises, if the
chickens are permitted to run at large, con-
venient Of access to them, and protected from
the hot sun. Here station drinking vessels,
and see that they are daily replenshed with
good water The cheapest and most conven-
lent vessels, perhaps, are made out of oyster
cans, opened on the flat side. The side is
trimmed out to within a quarter of an inch
of the edge and the margin battered down to
Stitfen the rim of the shallow pan thus form.
ed. In order to keep the fowls from stepping
into or overturning these pans, and also to
keep the water clean, shallow wooden trays
should be made, holding from three to six
pans each, placed side by side. On esch
corner of the tray is tackled strip OF lath
which serves as leg to raise the tray an
inch or two from the ground. These same
laths extend above the upper edge Of the tray
some three inches, and from the top of one
to another are tackled other lathS, thus form
ing a frame on which a board is laid for a
cover to shade the water in the pans beneath
as well as to keep the fowls out of them; the
water being reached only from the ends and
sides beneath the cover.
These tin pans are more easily kept clean
and pure than wooden vessels would be, and
there is no danger of their being broken in
handling as stone or earthen vessels often are.
Neither can they be bursted by water freez-
ing in them in winter, for even when frozen
solid a few raps on the bottom and sides
With hammer will shatter the ice from them
with little trouble and leave them sound and
good as ever tor future use. To those who
think it needful that drinking vessels should
be scalded out occasionally, these small tin
pans will be found very convenient. We
think, however, there is little use in going to-
this trouble, if the vessels are rlnSed each
time they are reflled, and especially If the
mixture of sulphatc OF iron is used now and
then.
In case an epidemic disease breaks out
among your poultry you will find an advant-
age in having the fowls accustomed to drink
such water only as you provide for them,
since remedies or preventions may often be
administered by merely indicating the
drinking water.
For young chicks still with the hens, low.
er vessels, and more easily reached by them
must be provided. We like nothing better
than the bottr fountain which is simply
n quart bottle ;lverted in small frame
The bottle is fl, i with water and then turn.
ed quickly into The frame with mouth down,
the mouth reQc ing to shallow dish or pan,
such, for cXa!. e., as the lid of a backing
box. As the water is used by the chicks
from the shal.DY vessel more descends from
above, thus X" ping up an even supply be-
meath 50 long the water in the bottle lasts.
Such an arran" cement is quite desirable in
the case of very Oung chicks, and particu-
larry 80 with young turkeys, as they are very
apt, unless some such especial care is taken,
TO get into the water bodily, both to the dam
age OF it and Of hcmselyes.-Prairie Far.
HieF.