Bradford opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1874-1881, 1877-10-13
FARM, GARDEN AND HOUSEHOLD.
Fairs, Neees.

Farsi Nesss.
The fattening time OF tho year ID
especially At this season, when the csol
air OF autumn seems to give new life IA
oil animal nature On II the forces TO-
leased from activity In the plants were
given 10 animals TO use. Animals oil
every kind will gain most rapidly In flesh
now il provided with proper food. A COW,
OK orhorse will Withstand the cold Of win.
ter much better II in good flesh than
otherwise. Those desired to be fattened
will respond readily to liberal feed Of
good hay and grain. Indian corn meal,
and oil meal, are the standard fattening
grains. A few quarts OF roots daily will
assist the thorough digestion Of hay and
similar carbonaceous fodder.
Root crops attain their best growth
after the light frosts come. The cool
weather seems to affect them 30 that they
become solid and compact, and form
sugar, under lis influence. So do not
fear the effects of frost on the turnips
and mangolds, but rather welcome it,
and do not harvest till just before the
ground freezes. Potatoes. however,
should be dug Ms soon as the tops wither,
ID they gain nothing thereafter, and are
apt to rot under the action Of fall rains
after ripening.
Manure, of summer and fall accumula.
ton, should be carted to the fields and
deposited in large heaps in convenient
spots on level land. Any refuse capable
Of decomposition and conversion into
manure, may well be Incorporated into
these heaps. A thin covering Of earth,
compacted somewhat, will prevent too
rapid heating and consequent loss. The
shoveling over Of such manure does not
serve to forward the decomposition,
only to control it 4; but the same pur-
pose is accomplished more easily by the
earth covering. One shoveling over
in spring to pulverize it may be Of nd.
vantage.
The refuse OF the harvest fields, weeds
ETC., should be gathered in distinct
heap, mixed with it's bulk of stable
manure and left to decompose. II will
make good manure, and If thoroughly
composted there is little danger of the
weed-seed retaining their vitality but
to insure this complete decay the CON-
post should be made by itself, and re.
ceive special attention. This is better
than burning, for it saves the heterogeneous
and most valuable portion. But the
brush and very coarse weeds (of which
there should be none) which will accu.
mulate on every farm, must be burned.
And it is far better, and gives the place
much neater appearance to get rid of
all such refuse, than to let it lie around
till spring. Well is it, too, to have gen.
eral picking up scrape about the home
and farmstead, of all the bits of wood
and other litter, thus keeping things
neat and trim.
How to Fntten Chickens.
Tt is hopeless to attempt to fatten
chickens while they are at liberty. They
must be put in a proper coop, and this,
like most poultry appurtenances, need
not be expensive. To fatten twelve
fowls, coop must be twelve feet long,
eighteen inches high, and eighteen
inches deep, made entirely of bars. No
part of it solid, neither top, side nor
bottom. Discretion must be used &C.
cording to the size of the chickens put
up. They do not want room indeed,
the closer they are tho better-provided
they can stand up at the same time.
Care must be exercised to put up such
as have been accustomed to being to-
gether, or they will fight. If one is
quarrelsome it is better to remove it at
once, as, like other bad examples, it
soon finds imitators. A diseased chicken
should not be put up. The food should
be ground oats, and may either be put
in trough or on fat board running
along the front of the coop. 1t may be
mixed with water or milk the latter is
better. 1t should be well soaked, form
ing a pulp as loose as can be, provided
that it does not run off the board. They
must be well fed three or four times O
day-the first time as soon after day
break as possible or convenient, and
then at intervals of four hours. Each
meal should be as much and no more
than they can eat up clean. When they
have done feeding, the board should be
wiped, and some gravel may be spread.
1t causes them to feed and thrive. After
a fortnight of this treatment, you will
have good fat fowls. If, however, there
are but four to six to be fattened, they
must not have SO much room as though
there were twelve. Nothing is easier
than to allot to them the proper space
it is only necessary to have two or three
pieces OF wood to pass between the bars,
and form partition. This may also
serve when fowls are put up at different
degrees OF fairness. This requires atten-
tion, or fowls will not remain fat and
healthy. As soon rs the fowl is suffi-
GENTLY fattened it must be killed, as 9th.
erwise it will not still get fat, but will
lose flesh. If fowls are intended for the
of course they are or may be all
at once but if for home con-
it is better to put them up at
such intervals as will suit the time when
they are required for the table. When
The time arrives forl killing, whether they
are meant for market or otherwise, they
should be tasted, without food or water,
for twelve or fifteen hours. This enables
them to be kept some time after being
killed, even in hot weather. London
Cottage Gardener.
What the Mails Contain.