Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1899-07-16
CURIOUS TRAMP HEN.
She Hnd Ideas About Laying EEgs
and Also a Tender
Conscience.

II was in the Genesee valley in York
travelling groceryman, and went over
to Arnold's place to see how the Won
derful tramp hen was getting along,
and was grieved to hear that she was
dead. That hen beat all. Nobody ever
knew where she came from. Arnold
found her in the yard one morning five
years ago keeping company with the
only chicken he owned at that time, an
other hen. The strange hen was plainly
tramp. No one in all that vicinity had
lost Il hen, and no one had ever seen
this one. She was Il red hen, with
blush cast to her comb, and of breed
uncertain. She settled down in the
Arnold place with such an air of con
tentmcnt and ardent determination to
stay there that Arnold raised no objcc-
ton. Two or three days later the hen
made Il nest on an ash heap and laid
an egg in it. She must have laid the
egg early in the morning, for it was
there at seven o'clock, when Arnold dis
covered it. This was on a Monday. The
hen laid an egg every day after that
until the following Sunday, aud each
egg seemed to be put i'll the nest an
hour later each day. Sunday the hen
didn't lay, but at noon next day she de-
posted an egg in the nest. AS if to
make up for skipping an egg Sunday,
Mondays egg was an unusually large
one and had two yolks.
This remarkable hen kept on laying
an egg daily during that week, the one
that was laid on Friday being deposited
in the nest at Just four o'clock in the
afternoon. Next day she started in
at six o'clock in the morning with her
egg for that day, and on Sunday rested
again and laid no egg. The following
Monday, though, She laid another very
large egg. This, too, was found to have
two yolls. twas laid at seven o'clock
And 50 She went on, dcpositing an egg
in the nest an hour later each day until
she reached four o'clock III the after
noon, when she would resume oocru-
tons at six o'clock i'll the morning. al
ways taking a rest on Sunday and max
ing up for it by laying double-yollScd
egg on Monday. She was so regular and
| prompt on the hour that the Arnold
| family got to depending more on the
hen for the right time O day than they
| did on the clock, but not until one day,
| according to the clock, she had laid her
| egg At ten minutes before 10, and thcv
f.! thought she had made mistake; but
| they found that she hadn't, the clock
| being just ten minutes slow.
at the end of May queer thing hap
pened. The hen skipped week day
without laying an egg. Arnold was
worried, because such Il thing had not
occurred before. All Of a sudden an
idea hit nc.
Say said I. You haven't found
out yet what'a real wonder this hen is.
Yesterday was May 30, wasn't to-
| Yes said Arnold.
! Decoration day said ]. HOLIDAY.
| This hen doesn't work on HOLIDAYS, I
| take it, any more than she does on Sun
| days!'
And that proved to be the case, for
! Arnold kept me posted good while by
| letter as to the doing of the hen When
Fourth of July came round no egg. but
| 4 double-yolked one next day. Then
right along She went again, with an egg
| every day but Sunday, double yoll1 on
| Monday until Thanksgiving. No egg
Thanksgiving. double yol next day.
| NO egg Christmas, no egg New Years
| day, but double-Nolll eggs after each Of
these holidays. And SO she went on as
| regular as the days and Sundays and
holidays came. / hadn't heard any
thing from the hen for a long time, her
| performances having become an aid
thing. SO last week, when / was up in
| the country again. / went over to see
how the wonderful tramp hen was get
ting along.
oh" said Arnold, She's dead
How did it happen?' said I.
We'll, YOU know Christmas fell on
Sunday, said Arnold of course She
didn't lay any egg on Sunday. and, as
we kept Monday as the holiday, of
| course she didn't lay an egg on that
day. Tuesday she laid an egg that was
q sight to see. 1t was as big as goose
egg, and three yolhs! But don't think
she liked doing three days work in one
| and she couldn't conscientiously do
anything else. New Years came along
the same way. Saturday the hen laid
her egg at her regular hour for that
day, and we didn't notice particularly
| until Tuesday morning that she wasn't
| around as usual. There was no egg.
| either big or little, in the nest that day.
| and we became alarmed. We started
! out to look up the hen. We found her
lying under the mangcr dead
THAT'S what Arnold told me, and +
had no reason to doubt II That bo,,ro.