Rocky Mountain husbandman. [volume] (Diamond City, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1876-04-27
THE POULTRY YARD.
HENS THAT DON'T SET.

IL III i " l.
HENS THAT DON'T SET.
The non-sittine varieties OF fowls comprise
the different kinds of Hamburgs, Spanish,
Leehorns and Polands, and also some OF
the French fowls, yet, we often meet with
individuals of the foregoing breeds which
are medium sitters. Non-sitters, if we'll
bred, will not give one confirmed case OF
sitting among fifty birds, though they seme-
times sit for a few hours or a day, but soon
leave off. They often have periods of haV-
ing off laying for several days or a week
These correspond to the sitting fever OF the
incubating breeds. The Instances OF fowls
sitting steadily, although belonging to a
breed of pure non-sitters, shows reyerslon
to the primitive type when incubation was
universal. A cross between two different
breeds of non-sitters will produce a race
that will sit as regularly and persistently as
any fowls. Some crosses between breeds
are very desirable, but non-sitters should be
kept pure, or the trait which constitutes
their principal value will be lost Where
many fowls are kept it is better to have the
larger partconsist of some non-sitting breed.
A great saving may be made in a sitting
breed to produce a few good mothers. The
rest, say three-quarters Of the whole of your
stock, should be of some breed of non-sit-
tiers. 1t is as easy to take care of POO non
sitting hens during the warm season as 100
of a sitting variety.
RAISING SPRING CHICKENS FOR 1885,
Henry Anthony, living near Smyrna, Del,
has a new process Of growing spring chick
ems for the Centennial, which, from present
indications, promises well. He has a house
about twelve by twenty-five feet, with glass
front and ends. He has a stove in it which
he uses when necessary. He set his first
hens sometime in December, and now he
has nearly four hundred little chicks. He
expects to reach five hundred, and be able
to ship his first lot Of ."broilers' in May.
Each hen has her own particular compart-
ment in the house, and the floor is covered
with little pens and thronged with little
chirpers. The house is lined with tar paper
to keep out vermin, and so far this seems to
accomplish all that was claimed for it. The
success in growing chicks has been remark
. able, so far, in the experiment.
THERE IS a vast difference in the flavor of
eggs. Hens fed on clear, sound grain, and
kept on a clean grass run give much finer
favored eggs than hens that have access to
to stable and manure heaps, and eat all kinds
of filthy food. Hens feeding on fish and on
ions flavor their eggs accordingly, the same
as COWS eating onions or cabbage, or drink
ing offensive water, imparts a bad taste to
the milk and butter. The richer the food
the higher the color Of the eggs. Wheat
and corn gives the best color, while feeding on
buckwlleat makes them colorless, rendering
them unfit for some confectionery purposes.
BREEDING FANCY PoULTRY.-A great
many beginners in poultry breeding fail
through continuing their fowls too closely,
keeping one cock in a small pen with one
or two hens. This is the natural result of
trying to breed purely. Beginners usually
have only two or three choice fowls, and
turning these out with a flock of dunghills
destroys all chances of purity. One cock
may be kept with fifteen or twenty hens,
and, by having only this number, the eggs
from the pure breed fowls will be full blood,
while the others will be half breeds, and all
will be more sure of Matching than if fewer
hens were kept with the cock.
PRUNING THE FLocKs.-A correspondent
of the Poultry Nation gives the following
good advice to breeders:
Every poultry breeder should practice