The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1893-04-11
rEts GOOSE INDUSTRY.
A Lady Tells How to he Successful With
GooI;1n~s

Lady Tells How to He SuccesstuI WIN
Goslings. 81
Geese usually begin laying about the
middle Of February. AS at this time OF
the year it is usually quite cold in our
climate, care must be taken that the
eggs do not become chilled, though,
having exceedingly thick shells, they
will Withstand more cold than any other
domestic fowls eggs perhaps, yet it is
wisest to provide a warm, roo1ny nest.
They lay very early in the morning,
sometimes going on the nest the night
before and coming off very early the next
morning. The eggs should be gathered
Immediately and placed upon end in a
basket kept for that purpose and turned
over at least two or three times week
until they are set.
The first eggs should be set under
hens. Six eggs are enough for even
large hen like Brah,na or Cochin. -Four
weeks will be required to hatch the gos
lings. Now place them. together with
the mother hen, in coop entirely open
at the bottom, with latticed top, say 8
feet by or 8. light enough to be easily
moved about, for after they are q week
or more old they will require it moved
several times daily. as they will be found
to NOW the tender grass, clover or young
plantain Astounding at that season OF the
year like sheep. Provide them with
only water for drinking, in vessel that
will not admit of their swimming In 1t,
and keep them out of water until the
breast is well covered with feathers.
One end of the movable coop should
be made perfectly tight, SO that it will
shed rain, for the hen to sit under at
night or during stormy weather, for it
usually proves fatal for very young
gosling to be thoroughly drenched. Yet
they are as SILLY as geese" and will
avail themselves of every opportunity to
get wetting. Goslings may be fed upon
!. very coarse food, even from the begin
ming. Corn and oats coarsely ground to-
gether, mixed with bran, slightly salted
and scalded and fed several times a day,
are excellent. Either provide gravel at
all times or mix it in all the food. Corn
meal should not be fed exclusively to
them, as it is too stimulating and fat
tening.
When they are fully feathered, say at
three months they can be turned into
the pasture with ths old geese, but we
prefer keeping them in an inclosure by
themselves. as they can receive better
food and care. After they are several
weeks old three times q day is often
enough to- feed them, providing at all
times they have good pasture and plenty
of drinking water Il these conditions
are complied with, geese can be kept at
a large profit, at small expense of time
and money, while there is always de-
mand for good specimens, especially OF
the Toulonse and Emblem variety, for
exhibition and breeding purposes at re-
munerative prices. Mrs. j. B. Howe IN
Farmers Review.
Cattle Tpo
The chief end of slnAn, agriculturally
speaking, just now seems to be to get
into the hog business. In the excite
ment characterizing the rapid rise in
values of swine The Gazette begs to di-
rect the attention of it's readers to the
undercurrent of strength III cattle. In
summarizing the condition of affairs in
the west one OF our best informed CORE
spondents does not hesitate to say that
there is at the present moment short
age of cattle tandswe don't know itw
Our reports show that good grade cows
and heifers, AS well as stock steers, are
as rule appreciably higher than year
ago, and at the yards the increasing
strength of the market for extra steers
as compared with mixed butchers stuff
must be encouraging to all feeders Of
good bullocks. The best cattle are now
worth fully 90 cents per 100 more than a
year ago. Breeders report a good in
auiry for bulls. and all in all the out
look must he called decidedly encour-
aging.
From King Hog to King Steer may not
be such '.far cry as some people i'm
agine. Gazette.
February is one of the best mouths of
the year in which for calves and lambs
to come. They and their dams get