The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1893-07-05
AN ELDER DUCK FARM.
One of Frigid Iceland's Leading Indus
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| Iceland. There are cities which have
| reached point somewhat nearer civic
| perfection than it can boast of, but
those who take the trouble to journey
thither will find much to interest them.
The city-for its cathedral authorizes
| the use of the word--consists OF strag-
| Cling collection of wooden houses,
! which remind the traveller of some small
| and desolate village on the west coast
| of Scotland. A large square building,
! like some giant barn or mammoth
county constabulary. first strikes the
eye. This is the governors house,
| almost the only stone building IN town
All the availa bic space on the shore not
| taken up with houses is covered with
| Goldfish, drying in the sun, and giving
out an intolerab BILE stencil. All the rocks,
| palings and even the roofs Of the houses
| themselves are covered with these
| cleaning testimonies of the city's chief
! occupa ton or trade. Other products
| of the place are elder down, horses and
| hot water. One of the larger elder
| duck farms is situated on small island
in the bay, and, with the permission of
| the owner, can be visited by strangers.
The scene, as pictured by writer in
! the Globe of London, is not without
interest. Behind, far away on the hori-
zontal line. rises the snow-capped peak
of the Snaefel Jokuls, nearly six thou
sand feet in height, which, though more
than sixty miles away, glistens and
shines like silver in the morning sun.
In front lies Reykjavik, the civil and
ecclesiastical metropolis of Iceland.
Not much agricultural Ia Dor or ingenu-
ity is expended by the elder duck farm
er upon his property. 1t consists for
the most part of large open field of
stunted grass, which has been blown by
the wind and worked by the action of
the weather into round hummocks, such
as may be frequently met,with all over
the barren and devastated country of
Iceland. In the recesses and holes and
cavities between the hummoclIS the
elder ducks may be seen setting on their
nests. OF these there are several scores,
and the birds themselves when sitting
are perfectly tame, some of them even
allowing stranger to stroke them
with the hand. They are not all
Matched at the same time, and many
are still in the egg when others are
hatched and swimming about in the
sea. The drake, as is SO frequently the
case with the male bird is a handsome,
SNOWY creature, with much white in his
plumage. He is excessively shy and
wary, while the female, whose plumage
is brown and glossy, is. on the contrary,
10, Nd l.,
five to six eggs at the beginning of
June, and it is no unusual thing to find
from ten to sixteen eggs in one nest,
together with two females, who sit
either at intervals, or, if necessary,
both together at the same time, and,
strange to say, seem to agree remark
ably well with one another. The
period of laying lasts some six or seven
weeks, and the birds are in the habit
of laying three times in different
places. From the first and second of
these both the down and the eggs are
taken away, but from the last it is very
seldom that the farmer removes either
Should he do SO with any degree of
persistency the birds would desert the
locality, and he is not such a fool as to
destroy the duck with the golden eggs.
In some cases the owner resides on
or near the farm. In this particular
instance he visited the island from the
mainland once week at the least. So
soon as he and his men arrive at the
nest they carefully remove the female>
and take away the superfiuous down
and eggs. The duck Immediately be-
gins to lay afresh, and covers her egg
with new down, which she plucks from
her own breast. If the supply is mad
equate the male comes to her assist
ance and helps 10 cover the eggs with
his down This being white is easily
distinguished from the brown covering
which the female supplies, and is not
SO good in quality. The nest is now,
as general rule, left until the young
ones are Matched. There is not much
callowness and helplessness about
these youngsters. About an hour after
they are out of the shell they quit the
nest together, when it is once more
plundered.
The best down and the greatest num-
Der of eggs are obtained during the
first three weeks of the laying period,
and it has in general been observed
that the birds lay the greatest number
of eggs in rainy weather. The female
is a close and persistent sitter, and so
long as she is sitting the male, with
commercial Bile constancy, remains on
the watch hard by, but so soon as the
young are Matched he considers his re-
IL
to their own devices and the care of
their mother. 1t is a curious and pretty
sight to see how the latter looks after
her brood. She leads them out of the
nest so soon as they creep out of the
eggs and precedes them to TIE water.
while they toddle after her. When she
reaches the waterside she takes them
on her back and swims with them for a
few yards: she then dives, and the
Young ones are left floating on the
water like yellow corks. and heneeforth
are compelled to look after themse, yes |
Indeed, the farmer seldom sees his
flock again till the next breeding sea-
son, for they become comparatively !
wild and live out among the damp
rocks in the sea, where they feed upon |
insects and seaweeds and other like
vivers. Some idea of the value OF the |
crop may be CLEANED from the fact that |
one female during the whole time OF |
laying generally gives half pound OF |
down. which is, however, reduced one
half after it IS cleaned.
This down is divided into thang-lann |
or seaweed down. and gras-dunn or
grass down The latter is generally |
considered to be the best in quality. /