Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1899-04-21
A Plea For Leghorns.

ing supremacy of popularity, it is
very hard to determine which has
the right of being called the most
popular, We find many admirers
of them all, and we ourselves hold
that any one of them, if kept up to
their best position, have a just
right to be popular, but if there is
any choice to me, as carefully
consider, on all sides, their true
value to the practical poultry keep
err, it is the single Comb Brown
Leghorn. That, some will say, is
very poor choice, as they are la
BILE to suffer from frosted combs,
but hold that they or no other va
riety with small combs should be
subjected to such a temperature as
to make it possible for such a
trouble to occur. A properly con-
structed house will protect the lar
gest comb on the coolest night. /
have S. c. B. Leghorn pullets
Matched in April that are support
ing a flock of June Matched chicks
by their eggs, and can any other Of
the most popular varieties boast OF
more. 1t is very easy matter to
make pullets of this variety lay
when four months old, and | have
had Brown Leghorns lay until they
were nearly bare from moulting and
then begin again before they fairly
had their new coat, and / think sta
tistics will bear me out in saying
that for number of eggs laid per
year they, as breed, hold the rec
ord. After experience with nearly
all of the most popular varieties, l
can truly say they persist in cack-
ling for first place as layers and as
a market fowl they are not to be
surpassed, as they are ready for
eating as soon as any breed, and if
properly fed their meat is of the fin
est. An expert was once put to the
test in regard to the quality of S.
c. B. Leghorn meat in comparison
with that of the Dorking. The
yearling hen of each variety was
pepared in precisely the same mar
ner and ready to be served. The
gentleman was blindfolded and Civ
ca a portion of the breast of each,
and he decided in favor of the Leg
horn. l do not claim they are SUI
perior to some others as a table
fowl, but i think if the eater was
blind-folded when he ate he could
not distinguish the Leghorn from
the best of any other variety, and
any priv ate family, as rule, pre-
fers chicken to weigh from four to
five pounds dressed to one that
weighs more, and nice plump S.
C. B. Leghorn will weigh that. An
other thing in their favor is the
certainty of fertile eggs if properly
mated and also the great hardness
of the chicks. Some breeds will
take on fat too readily if not fed
with extreme care, but the Leghorn
will produce IN eggs sufficiently to
need no "anti-fat' remedies, and if
rightly fed their eggs will be of
large size. While we are about to
stop praising them as a practical
fowl, we hear someone say But
they are non-sitters.
Well, / own and know of as finely
bred S. c. B. Leghorns as anyone
could wish, and can say by expert
ence that with a flock of 90 strictly
fancy (Bonney strain) yearling
hens, enough of them set to supply
that number of prime pullets Tor fol-
lowing year, besides as many cock
erels, and they make very attentive
mothers. Their sitting depends
largely on their feed and care, and
where is prettier sight than a
flock of Single Comb Brown Leg
horns, STANDARDIZED, with their
appearance and snowy combs, look
ing for a seasonable repast from
the hands of their attendant? Yes,
they are popular, as the number
being bred by the fancier, farmer
and pleasure seeker indicates, and
think anyone who has had expe-
rience enough with them to know