THE FANCIER.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1190, 21 December 1894, Page 26

THE FANCIER.

POULTRY.

Edited by Red Cap,

FEATHERS.

Messrs Huntly and Palmer, and Peek, Frean and Co., the two largest biscuit manufacturers in England, had so many troubles with Italian and French exporters that they now give their orders to a London firm, which has several English commercial travellers for collecting and packing their eggs, in France, Italy, Russia, Belgium, &c. This loss has been so great lately to Italian exporters that the Foreigh Minister in Italy requested the Italian Consuls to procure some information, and find out the remedies to a decline of one of the staple, industries of Italy. The result is published in the Bolletino di Notizie Ccupiniercic^iM io which some details were added in a report by the Italian Consul to the Chamber of Commerce at Cunco. If it was not a consular report forwarded officially to the consuls of other nations, the information would look at first like a “Yankee joke." The process in practice by the'English firm of importers, is, in fact, to take the eggs out of a drum through a tap, exactly as if it was beer, and sell them per gallon. The eggs are broken, and the contents, yolk and white, are poured into strongly made tin drums, airtight. There is the required appliance at the bottom of each drum to fix a tap on it. This tap is provided by the firm to each consumer, who has only to fix it himself to take out of the drum' the quantity he wants for actual use.. The risks of broken eggs by railage, cartage, and handling are done away with, and the workmen whose business in the factories it was to break .eggs all the year round, are done away with also. The risks of transport are entirely avoided, and the eggs are said to keep splendidly for months —the report says indefinitely. Advice is given to the Italian exporters to follow the example of their competitor if they wish to keep the trade in their hands. The drums contain 1000 and sometimes 1500 eggs. The average weight of an egg is 2oz. As said before, the white and yolk, without the shell, are poured in, but the eggs must be absolutely fresh, as only one bad one will spoil the full contents of a drum. The aperture through which the eggs are poured in the drum is sealed with wax. For protection against the heat and rough handling the drums are packed with plenty of straw in barrels, or wooden boxes, which have to bear the words “ Russian produce "or “ Italian produce," according to the English laws.

Nearly all the ailments of fowls are due to a lack of grinding material in the crop. Always keep broken glass, pounded crockery, or sharp flint gravel within reach of the fowls. Cold draughts of air blowing across them or down on them, will cause swelled head and eyes, and finally lead to roup.

The temperature at which ducks’ eggs should be kept in an incubator lias frequently been discussed, and as evidence upon this point we may place on record some experiments made by Mr Charles Hearson, of incubator fame, which that gentlemen has been conducting. The periods occupied in hatching were as follow : -

Duck eggs kept at 104 degrees, hatched in 25 and 26 days. Duck eggs kept at 102 degrees, hatched in 27 days.

Duck eggs kept at 1,00 degrees, hatched in 29 days.

This shows that greater heat induces early development, and would indicate that

about 103 degrees would give inost nearly the natural results. It is interesting to note, however, in relation to the question whether duck eggs should be sprinkled or hot, that the greatest success was achieved when the heat was maintained at 100 degrees and the eggs were daily Sprinkled. A point suggested by these experiments is, whether cluck eggs hatch as well under hens as ducks, and if any duck breeders can throw light thereon their observations would doubtless be of interest to many of our readers.

An English poultry fancier, Mr HoWarth, is troubled greatly with eats. But he has managed to circumvent them. A capital trap catches them alive, without injuring them, and he next places a tin of sulphur in the box, and in a few minutes pussy has gone to her long home. The sulphur is made into cakes with a fuse attached, and burns readily.

The equipment of a duck farm is simple in the extreme (says Dr Frean in the journal of the Royal Agricultural Society). One or two low wooden sheds, each with a run in front, are sufficient. The classification of the ducklings is determined by age. They are, accordingly, divided into “ flocks " of one week old, two weeks old; and other ages. At a week old a flock of Aylesbury ducklings is an extremely pretty sight. Each bird is a little ball of yellow fluffy down, furnished - with a bill of delicate heliotrope colour. The youngsters are very nimble, and keep together as they run up or down or across their limited range, uttering continually the plaintive call which falls upon the ear almost like a plea for protection. As age advances, the feathers turn white and the bills grow paler. Very commonly the run i 3 littered with straw, upon which the little creatures will peacefully nestle on a drowsy sunny afternoon. As an example of economy in small things, it may be noted that the straw is periodically gathered up, shaken out elsewhere to dry and sweeten, and then strewn again upon the run or under the shed. In one case where a large shed is used for the ducklings, the straw is taken out daily, and the mud floor swept, sprinkled with a weak solution of carbolic acid, and dusted with lime before the straw is put back again. Great care has to be exercised in keeping the ducklings healthy, and cleanliness is necessarily a first consideration. In the spring of the year a duck-rearer near Tring lost 1000 ducklings, and attributes their untimely death to a species of louse, caught from the brood hens, he opines, fastening on the back of the neck. It will be understood that the young birds destined to be killed as ducklings are never allowed to roam at large, nor do they go on the water, the object being to reduce the wear and tear on the muscu lar tissue to a minimum, so that as much as.possible of the food may be utilised in adding to the weight of flesh upon the bird. As the ducklings are never kept for broading purposes, this somewhat unnatural mode of life can have no ill effects of an hereditary nature. Such water as the ducklings are allowed access to is supplied to them in small troughs or shallow vessels and they use it for bathing purposes. The duck-rearers are very particular as to the kind of grit which is given in the drinking water. Where a large number of birds of the same age are kept together, it is usual, except when they come to th'e front to feed, to partition them off into small “flocks" of about 100 birds each. This is easily done by means of planks about one foot wide, set on edge, so as to divide the ground space into a number of rectangular areas. The object of this is to prevent the birds from overcrowding, and possibly killing the weaker ones by overlying. As the birds return from feeding, they are successfully partitioned off as fast as a sufficient number enter the shed. When the birds get larger with advancing age, it is found expedient to confine fewer in each pen—say, two dozen or so.