Oxford Democrat., 1921-11-22
One rooster. 8 pounds.


Thrift is considered q desirable thing
Thrift is (providing one is earning liv
ing) the art Of going without half of II
so as to lay up the cost of the Other half
The super-thriity try to have their
living and thrift too by saving waste and
other things. These people always keep
hens. The writer wanted to be In this
class 90 followed suit. There are sev.
eral things necessary In order to keep
hons. One must have Q building to
keep them In and back yard twenty BY
thirty feet, or multiples OF these mum
bers, where one usually raises thIstles,
docks and other like things.
The writer started ct the bottom with
one old black and white broody hen and
thirteen eggs. BE did not ask for this
number Of eggs-he asked for setting
or q sitting, whatever one calls It, and
was given this unlucky number. Nc
wonder trouble always follows brood
of chickens.
The old hen probably was as good al
one could expect. She bad been love.
ly pullet, SO 1t was said, In q shower
feather hat with q bright red bow In
front and black and white suit, the
colors arranged In harmony; also steel
blue pumps and stockings to match; bu,
life bad soured her. To begin with she
had laid five hundred eggs and had
never had one for herself; and she had
had three husbands. If that wasn't
enough to sour hen what could do iti
So to get back at the world she became
broody. She wouldn't lsy-only set,
and cluck and pick the hand that fed
her. Because of this We got her at Q
bargain; but the eggs wasn't of the
bargain counter. Eggs the farmer sold
the grocer for thirty-seven cents q dozen
be compelled the writer to pay one dol
lar and half for.
Well, after we had suffered all kinds
of indignities at the hands, or rather the
beak, OF this old hen, she came of with
twelve chickens. I never could abide
that thirteenth egg and 1t seems the old
hen couldn't either. Anyway she STEP
ped on 1t one day and smashed 1t into
smithereens, whatever they may be. II
appears I and the old hen want the
only ones who did not like the thirteenth
egg or the thirteenth anything, for every
body said / and the old hen had had q
good hatch.
Well, those twelve chickens began si
twelve little spots Of yellow down and
for about three weeks, we, that is, l and
the old hen, had continuous Easter
At the end Of that time
they began to sprout pin feathers here
aud there which put their beauty out oi
They were a good dea
like children who had arrived at tht
school age and were sent TO the schoo
house to learn their letters along with
cuss words and other bad things. TheiI
talk up to this time had been q pleasant
peeping, unless they happened to ge
lost, when they would put in note o.
fear and beseecbing; but now coarse
nees crept in. They were like boys WHIT
didn't know whether they were going tt
sing tenor or bass.
Up to this time they were just chick
ems. We couldn't tell whether the.
would be roosters or pullets. They hat
no sex; but straightway they began II
develop-what there were left of them
for two had been good chickens and diet
early. On taking account Of stock VI
found we had six pullets and four roos
ters. The pullets early rounded out In
TO henhood. Two of the roosters grew
wooed the pullets aud made life miser!
to the other two roosters, which wer'
ti.men. The titmen focked togethe
away from the others and all their day
we're cold and dun. The two rooster
which matured early died early ant
were cremsted, or nearly so,-that is
they became broilers.
Thsh the titmen braced up. All Q
once they became important. They ha'
always been friends but there could b
but one cock of the walk,-one lord o
the barem-so they fought to see whic
should be 1t. They fought just for hens
Helen of Troy wasn't In 1t beside thes
hens, and the one that conquered, hoV
he crowed. We had to name him Robin
son, he crew 30, and the other poor fel
low had to 60 the way Of his brothers t.
save him.
Thers 10 q good deal of responsibilit
in bringing mp chickens. When "
thought we had everything all right
scientists told us We were inbreediDe
That there was q law on the statut
book prohibiting mating with brother
or fret cousins. Yes, Robinson nigh
be brother, or ct least first cousIr
| II was impossible to tell which hens ha
laid any of those thirteen eggs. 70
see unwittingly l had made criminals q
those pullets. You see / ought to hav
imported o mate or else brought thel
mn in single blesseduess. Well, ther
wasn't but one way ont and that was t
make widows of them. So that Va
how Robinson came to 60 into the bake
for Thanksgiving. He was . juicy. tel
der bird, but the hunger Of the feaste'
Was somewhat dulled because he ha
been . pet rooster, and the fact that
had been hstched simply to be hstohe
ed was not highly exhilarating.
AQUARIUs.