The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1892-02-01
SPRING CHICKENS.
How to Produce the Best Ones in the
Good Old Way.

Good Old Way.
In the middle states it is a good plan
for the housewife to set every hen that
shows desire to sit after the first OF
| March, and continue to do so until she
has provided liberal supply OF CHICKS
for family use, besides allowing herself
the privilege of selecting sufficient
number of handsome pullets to take the
place of superannuated old hens III the
By adopting this plan she will have
most of her chicks come off in April ana
NAV, the most suitable time for them,
and the work of taking care of them Will
| be soon done and over with. If she keeps
one of the three most popular general
purpose breeds-Pl ymouth Rocks, Wyan-
dottes or Houdans-the young cockerels
of the early hatch will be large enough
to begin using them for the table by the
first of June, while the pullets should
begin to lay in the fall, or if they con-
tain strain of Leghorn, during mid
summer.
Every poultry keeper knows that the
earlier he can get his pullets to mature
and begin laying, the greater profit will
there be in his work. In fact, unless
one does gets the pullets to laying well
by September, do not see how it is pos
sible to keep year round engagement
| for eggs, for after the moulting season
sets in adult hens lay very few eggs,
and often none at all for several months
| Taking these facts into consideration,
all keepers of fowls, whether on large
or small scale, will see at once the adj
vantage of feeding young chicks hber-
ally from the start. Keep them grow
ing straight along with no stopping long
enough to get sick A healthy, robust
chick will throw off a disease which
| feeble, half starved little one will sue
cumb to without struggle. Keep good,
wholesome, rich food within reach OF
| them until two weeks old, then feed
thrice daily until six weeks of age. after
| which liberal meal morning and night
is sufficient, compelling them to go Oft
between whites and forage.
Scarcely any two people believe in
| feeding fowls alike, but the following
| is the most successful method | have
tried: For the first two weeks give stale
bread. one-half each of -four bread and
| cornmeal, egg bread preferred. Soften
this in hot, sweet milk and season with
bits of meat chopped fine or dripping,
| adding favoring of red pepper in cool
or rainy weather. For the next four
weeks prepare half their daily ration as
| at first, while the other half may con-
| sist of whole sound wheat and cracked
corn boiled till soft. After this it is
| better that one-half their food shall con-
sist of small dry grain, and the remain
| der of either or both kinds of the soft
cooked foods Remember to give all
their food rather stiff, and let none re-
main to sour or ferment
Some feed dry grain after two weeks,
or, indeed, earlier than that, but there
is always danger that greedy little
/ chick may eat more than he can man.
age, and then it will swell in his crop
and kill him. Scalding the grain over
| night is to some extent a prevention.
| Keep some sort of grit near the coop al
ways; powdered eggshells will do for
the little ones. Supply green food until
they are old enough to gather it for
themselves, and if possible give sweet
milk once day in cool weather and
twice in warm, allowing it to remain
only long enough for them to drink, as
much liquid is unwholesome for very
| young chicks.
Parasites are the most troublesome of
all the little chicks foes, and SO insidi
Gus are they in their approach that we
| 100000 ~ xro-x, xr7ofnbf1,1 RI Oiro11rr,xaf,f
them. Cleanliness is the best precau-
ton, and when first putting out a brood
dust the hen and chicks with insect pow
der LII this cannot be had, rub their
thighs, breast and head with a bit Of
lard. Amounting the chicks in the same
| way when one or two weeks old is also
advised, and if a tiny bit of lard be APP
| piled and the work be done at evening
in clear, mild weather there is no dam
ger.
No matter how loudly the chicks and
their mother protest, keep them in their
coops out of the rain, the dew and the
cold, damp weather, for from whatever
causes gapes accrue, we know that it
seldom troubles chicks that are kept dry,
warm and comfortable. To insure this,
find it best to place the coops of my
early chicks under long shed, which is
open ON one side to admit the sunshine.
Here their feeding coops are also placed,
SO in bad weather the little fellows are
content with a nice dry run and their
mother clucking in the coop near by,
calling them in now and then to nestle
for warmth among her soft feathers
Such a shed as this-mine is 8 by Is
feet, with an overhanging roof and
earthen foor-may be built at very little
expense, and after the season for young
chicks is ovAr it forms an excellent dust
ing place and resting place, too, for the
rest of the flock. H. Q. Dudley in Amer
lean Cultivator.