Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1890-10-11

uated about four miles southeast of the city
on the Upper Stockton road. Through
good management and industry he has
metamorphosed an uncultivated piece of
land into paradise of home. His resi-
dence is surrounded with trees of various
kinds, among which may be seen
olive, lemon, orange, and shrubs
and flowers of every hue and color,
and in the midst of all this is a hand
some bluegrass lawn. The neatness of all
the surroundings is astonishing. There is
no yard in Sacramento that is kept neater
or presents a more attractive appearance.
About the place are several windmills, and
pipes which carry water to any part of the
premises where it is needed.
Although pleased and delighted with
what we had seen we were still more
greatly astonished on being invited into
his barnyard and informed that he had
fine poultry yard filled with all the best
thoroughbred fowls. Mr.. Duden suggested
that be and his wife were both great ad
mirers of poultry and that he went into the
business both for pleasure and profit. AL
business few years, his poultry yard is
known all over the coast, and he has even
shipped birds to British Columbia, and is
constantly receiving orders for birds and
eggs. He has now plenty of eggs and few
hens setting, and soon expects to start his
incubators. He thinks as the early bird
catches the worm, SO will the early chick
take the cake. Of course have not time
TO give a full description of his poultry
wards, which l found on inspection to be
the most perfect and systematic of ally
had ever seen, and being great lover of
the business l have visited many heneries
in the Eastern States and claim to be
good Judge of fowls, etc. He first took US into
his large storehhouse, where he keeps feed,
gravel, etc. Passing out of this storehouse
we found ourself in breeding-pen No l,
where are kept the most beautiful, pure
thoroughbred white Leghorns one ever
beheld. This pen consists of one cock and
five hens. 1 will only describe this yard,
as the yards are all the same in every par
ticular. The yard is "a feet by 40 feet,
nine-tenths of which is covered with al
falfa, which is kept green and about foot
high the year round, and affords the fowls
plenty of green feed. Running through
the yard is row of Russian mulberry trees
which grow like weeping willow tree,
thus atfording good shade, and the
trees are prolific bearers of berries, which
are excellent food for the poultry. The
roosting house is four by six feet, standing
sixteen inches from the ground, and has
portable perches. These little houses are
easily swept out and kept clean
without any trouble. The door stands
open through the day to air
the place. and is closed at night,
air being admitted through screened win
dow. The boxes for the hens to deposit
their eggs in are on the outside and about
three feet long, with partition in the mid
die, thus accommodating two hens, two of
these in each zen. One half of the top is
a door, which may be lifted up when the
eggs are gathered. In each pen is n.y.
drant from which constantly drips pure
cold water into an earthen crock, protected
from the sun by hood. Yard No. con-
tains white-faced Black Spanish, consisting
of cock and six hens, all beauties. Yard
No. 3 contains Brown Leghorns. cock
and seven hens, all hard to beat.
Pen No. 4 consists of cock and
five hens, Light Brahmas, a beautiful
pen. No. 5-Wyandottes, cock and
six hens, all par excellence. No. G.
Plymouth Rocks, the all-round breed
which has no superior, cock and six
hens. No. buff Cochins, cock and four
hense, perfect beauties No. 8-Partridge
Cochins, cock and four hens. 1t would do
you good to look at them No 9-Lang-
of all, cock and four hens. These birds
rival the raven in plumage and the turkey
in size and flavor of meat. No. 10 contains
about an acre of ground, all in alfalfa,
where are kept the cockerels of all breeds,
in the center of which is large roosting-
house. No. II is hen prison, in which
to shut up hens to keep them from setting.
Nos. II, Is, IA, Is and 16 are yards in
which are roosting places for the fowls out
side the breeding pens. At present there
are about 500 of these. No II is the incu-
bator-house, consisting of two incubators
and brooders. Mr.. Duden says there are
four essentials in rearing poultry, viz:
Sharp gravel, pure water, plenty
of green feed and cleanliness, and
that after years of experiment
he has come to the conclusion that the
nine breeds he is keeping are the leading
fowls. Thinking this article is long enough
for the present, 1 will give you further de-
tails of the drive in my next.
AN OLD RESIDENT.
Sacramento, October 6, 1890.