by every farmer's wife, and therefore little need be said here respecting it. But when we consider the vast quantity of fowls and poultry of all kinds which is annually consumed,* and the immense produce of eggs which are daily brought to market, the subject is obviously one of considerable importance; and it is quite certain that the rearing of poultry will not be overlooked by the prudent farmer, nor their management be unattended to by the thrifty farmer's wife.

The number of geese, ducks, fowls, and turkeys kept in the farm-yard, should be proportioned to the quantity of grain likely to be scattered, and which would be lost were not these animals kept to gather it up and prevent the waste. It is this circumstance, which allows poultry and eggs to be sold at such low prices; for were all their food purchased, or taken at its actual value, their cost to the farmer would be greatly increased, and so by consequence would their price in the market to

the consumer.

Fowls. The several sorts of fowls which are kept in this country, are generally much mixed, and often deteriorated, but the common fowl is perhaps nearly as valuable as any. The grey Dorking, and the black Spanish sorts, are however to be preferred to all others, when they can be gotten pure. Both these kinds are good layers, give large eggs, readily fatten, do not stray far, and command a high price in the market.

All fowls having white legs are to be preferred; but the game sorts, with green or yellow legs, are to be avoided as being too delicate; whilst those with black legs are not so marketable, their flesh being often dark coloured. Long-legged fowls are not worth keeping.

Fowls fatten best when confined, and they also then require less food; but they must be kept warm. If allowed to range about, they rarely get fat, however abundantly they may be fed.

The value of fowls consumed in London alone, it is estimated, amounts to upwards of 100,000l. annually.

Eggs.-The nests should be placed in the hen-house, and as far removed from the roosting-place as possible, that the hens may not be disturbed either in laying or hatching. Baskets are better than boxes. A little straw only is necessary, and let it be always kept fresh and clean; for if this be not attended to, the eggs will become tainted in a few hours after they are laid.

Nothing contributes more than warmth to the hen's laying plentifully, and a good short-legged hen, if well fed and kept warm and undisturbed, will produce 150 eggs, besides bringing up a brood of chickens, every year. Keeping too many half-starved fowls is bad economy, three or four well-fed ones being worth more than double the number otherwise treated; and if six hens be kept to one cock, they will be more prolific than when the proportion of females is greater.

Warmth being of the greatest importance, the henhouse should have a southern aspect, and be free from damp; and if possible it should be so built, that the warmth of a flue or chimney may have access to it.

To preserve eggs fresh and good, they should, immediately they are laid, be put into dishes of lime-water; or else be rubbed over with a little lard, mutton-fat, or butter, and placed upon their ends. If laid on their side, the yolk will adhere to the shell, which spoils them when kept long. Those rubbed with fat, should not be above a fortnight without turning and wiping them over but lime-water is the least expensive, least troublesome, and best mode of preservation; and the eggs thus preserved will keep good for six months, if turned occasionally.

The Duck.-If there is a pool or stream in the vicinity, ducks should certainly be kept. They are great layers in spring, and rear their young with very little assistance but the ducklings must not be allowed to go much into the water till they are about a week old, as they are apt to die from cold. Except attention for the first few days, they require little feeding or care afterwards; and if a pool, meadow, or common be near, they

will shift for themselves, worms and insects being their favourite food. Six ducks would be of more use to a poor man's family in spring, than the best goat, and they would be comparatively of no expense, nor give onehalf the trouble. One drake is enough for six ducks.

Turkeys, are valuable birds, but they are tender and require care in rearing, and are great feeders. If you set the eggs under a common hen, and keep her confined, allowing the young birds to run about, and vary their food by feeding them upon chopped nettles, buttermilk, curd, and oatmeal, they will thrive well; but they must be protected from wet as much as possible, as indeed must all birds when very young. To get curds at any time, you have only to boil a small piece of alum in the quantity of milk desired, and it will soon turn to curd and be ready for use.

Geese, require little care, but they are very mischievous in the corn-yard, by pulling out corn from the stacks, &c. Where there is water, or a common for them to feed on, they may be profitably reared and with very little trouble, and the feathers are always valuable.

When first hatched, do not let them wander far, but the old goose must not be shut up. A yard or empty barn is the best place for the goslings for the first week, letting them out two or three hours each day to feed on grass. When fattening for the market, put them on your stubble, and at home feed them on raw turnips chopped, and water, with very little corn.

It has been often remarked that cattle are rarely unhealthy where any considerable number of geese are kept, for the geese will eat and thrive upon certain weeds and grasses which are more or less unwholesome for cattle, and which are mingled with the herbage in most pastures. Most farmers are aware of this, and a sickly cow or bullock is not unfrequently turned into a field where geese have been allowed to range, with the

view of its deriving benefit from the change. The grass on commons, on which geese are kept, is always fine and sweet.

It may be observed, in conclusion, under this head, that poultry are by no means undeserving of attention. A considerable sum may, by good management, be turned over every year by a careful farmer's wife, with little labour, and at a small outlay. The birds, the eggs, and the feathers will all find purchasers; and the produce will serve to procure many little comforts and conveniences for the family, which might not else be attainable.

THE DAIRY.

The Dairy, is an important appendage to every farm. It should have a northern aspect, and should always be kept cool and airy, and scrupulously clean. All the dairy utensils should be scalded, scrubbed, rinsed, and dried every time they are used. If they are made of wood, oak or lime is the best material; and if of metal, zinc is to be preferred to lead.

Glazed pottery is not considered desirable for dairy purposes; the acid of the milk acts upon the glazing (which is generally an oxide of lead), and converts it into an active, although in this case extremely diluted poison. Wooden vessels are perhaps, on the whole, preferable to any other for dairy purposes; but they are liable to become tainted with the acidity of the milk, in which case they can only be thoroughly cleansed by boiling; and when this fails, a little soda added to the boiling water will effectually destroy the acid. The vessels must afterwards be immersed for two or three days in water, which should be changed occasionally.

Milk. Treat your cows with kindness, and avoid harshness, even of language, particularly at milking time. Always draw the teats after the calf has sucked,

so that not a drop of milk may remain. No practice can be worse than leaving milk in the udder, for the more you leave, the less each time will you have; and the last milk is always richer than what is first drawn, the richness continuing to increase to the last drop.

The general practice in this country, is to milk the cows twice a day; but when they are fed in the house, and liberally supplied with succulent and nutritious food, it is necessary to milk them three times a day, viz., very early in the morning, at noon, and at night; for if only milked twice a day, they will yield a much smaller quantity of milk in the twenty-four hours, than if milked three times. A cow in these circumstances will give nearly as much milk at each time of milking, if milked three times, as if she were milked only twice. In Flanders and Switzerland, where the cows are housefed, they are always milked thrice a day.

The cows should be milked close to the dairy, so that the milk may be set by without getting cooled, or much shaken. The milk must be strained through a hair sieve, and the greatest neatness and cleanliness should distinguish all the dairy operations. In case of the milk acquiring a taste from turnips, cabbages, or other food, a small quantity of saltpetre will generally destroy the taint, and render it tasteless.

Milking should always be performed very gently, in order to prevent its being painful to the animal. Instances occur in which cows will not let their milk down to a harsh, hasty, cross-grained milker, but will yield it freely to a mild, good-tempered dairy-maid. When cows are skittish, which will sometimes be the case, they should be treated with soothing gentleness, and never with harshness or severity, which only makes them worse. When the udder is hard and painful, it should be tenderly fomented with warm water, and rubbed very gently, by which means the pain will be relieved, and the cow will then yield her milk freely, and without restraint.

That part of the milk which comes first is always thinner, and not so good for butter, as that which is