Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1882-03-20
For the MONITOR.
SOMETHING ABOUT HENS.
BY DAVID HILL.

BY DAVID HILL.
ga subscriber wishes to know
what will cure hen from eating her
own eggs without having to kill the
hem
Easy enough. Give her the eggs
from some other hen. If that won't
work, feed her with lime. Lime, you
know, has tendency to thicken the
shell. / have heard of lime-fed hen
that laid eggs with shells so thick
that they couldn't be cracked with a
sledge-hammer. This was not only
a powerful barrlcade against the hen,
but also the housewife; and with
eggs at thirty cents dozen, or there
about, it proved great financial
success.
A very simple remedy, and one
that can be easily tested, is to muz-
zle the hen. If this is not conven-
lent, administer chloroform before
she leaves the nest. You can then
remove the egg without danger of be-
ing tomahawked. Don't stand by a
hen till she lays, and then think to
steal the egg. 1t won't work. un-
dertOok it once, and carried the scars
for six weeks, besides being nearly
annihilated by the rooster.
Zone of the most effectual rene
dies" said farmer, speaking to me
upon this subject, sis to shame the
hen. This can be done by placing
food the most tempting to her appe-
tite around the nest. / knew of a
hen," said he, $50 ashamed by this
simple reminder of her faults, that
she left off the habit at once, and be-
came good, respectable fowl" "
Whether the above named receipt
will work in all cases or not, | can't
tell; but all are at liberty to try it.
Don't think to drive a hen. 1t
can't be did. have seen them duck
ed, whipped, tied up by the thumbs,
blindfolded, and placed upon short
rations for the vile habit of setting
but it didn't work worth a cent. If
a barrel was placed over the nest,
they would set on top of the barrel ;
if a bucket was set on top of the bar
rel, they would set on top of the
bucket; and if a stick was set on top
of the bucket, they would manage
somehow to set on top Of that. This
shows how obstinate a hen is after
her mind is once made up. 1t is the
same in regard to eating eggs. II
she gets anidea into her head that she
must not, and shall not eat them, she
will 90 through 'em shells and all, il
it takes leg. Somehow, in this re-
spect, a hen is like a woman; she
can't be drove. Persuasion conquers
better than force, even though chock
full of deceit. Therefore, treat 6
hen kindly. Lead her upward from
her evil ways through the weight OF
argument. l knew of hen that was
cured in fifteen minutes in this way
by lawyer, who rehearsed a politi
cal speech within hearing of her nest
1t may be necessary to state, how.
ever, that the hen died.
The best remedy / ever saw, anC
one that has proved the most bene
fetal in all cases, is called the ''Pat
ent Egg Dropper.' 1t is arranged
with an exit at the bottom of the nes
for the eggs to drop out of sight
The hen, on discovering no egg il
the nest. will think she has made ;
mistake, and Immediately lay anoth
er egg. This is continued with onl,
short intermissions, until there ism
any hen to lay. / was so taken u
with this novelty when I first saw it
that | bought two dozen at a dolla
apiece. l will sell the lot for twenty
five cents, postage paid, in order t
introduce them throughout the coun
try. The greatest, and / might say
the only fault there is with this ma
chine, it takes too many hens to keel
it in working order.
For further information relating t
this subject, read the great He
Act'' passed in 1881 by the Vernon
| T TaUiSlaturp