Amongst the Poultry

Star (Christchurch), Issue 17352, 17 May 1924, Page 26

Amongst the Poultry

NEWS AND NOTES BY “ GAMECOCK.”

Christchurch Poultry Club —May ID and 26. i New Zealand Utility Poultry Club — I May 20. i United Pigeon Fanciers’ Club —May ! -JB. j NOTES. Entries for the Christchurch show should be made to-night. Late entries will be taken up to next Saturday, but an extra Is per pen will be charged for these. The New Zealand Homing Derby was flown to-dov and the entry is tiie -best lor any race in New Zealand. 1 hope to give results next week. Exhibitors at all shows when not attending to their own birds should see that the rules are observed and make the address and pen number and class plain and clear, so as to avoid delays and mistakes. The Sydenham Flying Club flew a race from Dunsandel last Saturday. Results: -G. Brown’s No. 29. velocity 1141 yards per minute; "Williamson Bros. 11l lvds. K. Atkinson’s Reflection. 1096yds. The air line distance is cwentv-four miles and the race was for young birds. “Poultry Woman” writes: “I see 2.000,000 chilled eggs will shortly be for sale. Are they imported or are they New Zealand eggs, and bow do they

come here if imported?” 1 understand that the eggs referred to are the surplus that was .stored in the summer. ' My correspondent need not fear that l they are imported. The Custom authorij ties would see to that. Some of the northern entries for the i Christchurch show are already to hand. Mr W. Wood, Grey Lynn, Auckland, has entered eighteen runner ducks, fawns and whites; Mr Findlay. Gisborne. a number of canaries; Mr C. Fogden and Mr J. Harvey, also of Gisborne, fantails ; Mr N. Rea, Wanganui, white wyandottes in both open and utility classes; and Mr .T. Hurle, of New I Plymouth, a lot of frills. | Plymouth Rocks are never mentioned in Australasian tests but they appear to lay well in America. A barred rock at the Kentville experimental station n\ade a run of 104 eggs in as many consecutive days. This is as good as any of the White Rocks-Cum-Leghorns have done. My notes about the magpie have caused a fancier to ask is there not a muffed variety ? There is. The crested and muffed magpie tumbler is also of German origin and on the Twer Oder where it is largely bred it is called Der Schwedter Schechk. Mr Geo. H. Bradford, the new president of the New Zealand Utility Poultry Club, is an old fancier. His “all white” poultry farm contained Lady West and some relations of Lady Sonstant. the famous Bendigo hen. Air Bradford has imported largely, particularly baldhead tumblers, and he once said that lie derived more pleasure from his balds than from his world’s record White Leghorn hen. Mr Sproat. the head of Messrs Sproat and Co., poulterers, London, is ' in Australia, and has been telling the j Press what sort of birds are wanted in London. Well-fatted chickens 2£Vbs to 4ilbs each, Pekiu and Aylesbury ducklings. Runner ducks and White Leghorn cockerels no market. Muscovy ducks are not well-known in England

ana wouia need a trial shipment. Such are briefly Mr Sprout’s views. I may add that during the war South Australia sent a small shipment of Muscovy ducklings to England and a torpedo sent them to the bottom of the sea. An Australian paper devoted to the fjncy says:—“The utility fowl should be a beautiful symmetry anti true to type and bred on laying lines. Many, utility men know little about breeding, selection, or' culling.” A meeting of the Greymouth Poultry. Canary and Cat Club was held last Friday week, Mr T. E. Y. Seddon presiding. Arrangements in connection with the Inangahna Show, to be held in the Greymouth Drill Hall on July 25 and 26, were advanced another stage. The chairman reported that the South Island Association had promised assistance, and had suggested that it appoint the judges to officiate. Outside districts, and Canterbury in particular, would send forward many entries. It was resolved to dra«* up a catalogue, and chib rules and regu- j lations for the show were approved. My recent # note about West Coast shows disclosed # my identity to an old fancier who would love to have a chat with me. he says. Well, 1 may get over to the Grey Show and have the pleasure of meeting him. Within the last few weeks I have also had letters from Nelson. Taranaki and Sydney expressing similar sentiments as' my West /Coast friend, and the goodwill is much appreciated. Hats are a great worry to fanciers and poultry-keepers. Those who have a good dog are not troubled so .much. Ihe spring trap is very useful. After each catch it should be well washed with soap and water. The bait is better hidden with paper clippings. Here is still another use for the newspaper. \\ here bait or poison is laid it is a good plan to attract the rats with a few- drops of oil of rhodium nmslc or .aniseed. Rats ;irc foml of the smells of these things, and the smell of aniseed has much favour with birds. The cottager who intends going in tor breeding a few chicks must consider his stock birds. If they have he«- n cooped up all the year in a small lion house they won’t prove the' best ot parents. Birds lit for the stud reiriie plentv of exercise and hard feed. Fat and soft birds are as bad as weedy b:nn have a daily flutter in it.. Just there is nothing to put in the warden bar weeds and insect pests I he fowls w ill wipe them out and cot fit iu doing so. Tf they flv over the fence and rouse the ire of Mrs Jones cut their wings or get a heavy breed, and a dark coloured one for choice.

N.Z. UTILITY CLUB. Ff X A NCI A L POSITIO N. The report presented at the annual ; meeting of the New Zealand Utility J Poultry Club indicates that the club I is sulkwing from a weakness which is j with most of us. The meeting de- , ! eiaed on a little economy, and when 1 I °ne looks at the wages bill one. must agree that when £465 is met not- much is left for the club to pay interest on plant and have a little over. It would take double the number of birds to give a profit, and one could hardly look after that number at Papanui. , ; One of the members was confident the r 1 Govei liment would assist. But bet,j j ter far than being confident- of Governr. nieut assistance would be the advice of i a sound financial expert and n little e j more effort on the part of members—- , (1) to reduce the expenditure, and (2) : * to bring forward a scheme to secure i more cash. Air Lee says the wages | account was £383, plus £B2 for secreL, | tariai work. There is also a matter ?. of £4O yearly interest on loan. No .. 1 club of the kind can stand this financial * strain.

ARTIFICIAL INCUBATION. ITS ORIGIN. Artificial incubation was known and practised in ancient Egypt, Rome and China. The incubators were huge mud ovens with shelves covered with sand, on which were placed the eggs. Ihe attendants seem to have known their job, for one writer says that every egg was hatched, while others allowed 80 and 9t) per cent hatches, and that takes believing. The fuel used was animal manure well dried. Sir John Mandeville. who travelled in the Fast about 500 years ago. writing of Egyptian incubators. says:— “ And there is a common house in that city that is full of small furnaces, and liithey bring women of the town their eyren eggs—of hens, of ggeese, and of ducks for to be put into those furnaces. And they that keep that house cover them with heat of horsedung without heat of hen, goose, or duck, or any other fowl. And at the end of three weeks or of a month they come again and take their chicks and nourish them and bring them forth, so that the country is full of them. And so do men there, both winter and The Chinese methods are thus described by a more recent traveller: “The building is merely a strawthatclied shod, at the side, generally, of a cottage. Straw baskets are ranged along the ends and one side of the shed and plastered with clay to render them incombustible, and a till forms the bottom, beneath which a small fire burns. A straw cover is placed over each basket during the. process. In the centre are wide shelves over each other, to receive the eggs at a certain stage of the operation. These being placed in the baskets, a, fire is lighted, and a steadv heat between 95 and 102 degrees, but; regulated by no better thermometer than the sensations of the attendant, is kept up. As in the Egyptian process. the eggs are taken ‘up. afterundergoing for a few days the first heating process, one by one. and the infertile ones rejected’. After nine or ten days more, the fertile eggs are removed from the baskets and spread

on shelves covered up with cotton or some similar substance, but without fire underneath, and thus they remain during fourteen days more, when the ducklings hurst their shells; and in two days afterwards they are sold and carried off.’’ One- can well understand how goose, duck and hen eggs could he successfully hatched in the big rooms used in Egypt, but no one would expect these eggs to hatch together in a modern machine. At the end of the fifteenth century we read of Egyptian methods being tried at Ambroise by Charles VIII. ot France, and again about a centurv later by Francis T., and again in 1740 by Reaumur, the naturalist. The first English trial we hoar of was made by Moubray in 1782. Moubrav wrote much on poultry, and was the first -.nglisb author on domestic poultrv. Since BonningtonMoubray’s time manv trials were made in England and America before the present perfect machine was attained, but there is still much progress to lie made, although at tunes splendid results are obtained witlr all makes of incubators, whether heated with oil, gas, electricity, or hot water. That artificial incubation was practised in ancient Rome one can understand because the Italian and Spanish breeds are non-sitters. But in the East it is different, for the Asiatic

breeds are the best of sitters. That being so, the artificial incubation indicates a big trade in poultry. Anyhow in these days one who goes ; largely for egg production or for table poultry, or the supply of dav-old chicks, must use one or more machines. Even though sitting breeds were kept in large numbers, they could not be robed on to become broody at the time when wanted. BIRD COMPETITIONS. INTERESTING FACT'S. The history of bird keeping tells of a number ot tests. C ock fighting is of the greatest antiquity, dating back to the days of Mann the Hindu lawgiver, who lived about a thousand years

B.( . Pigeons were used as messengers about the same time that we hear of cock fighting, and doubtless the sporting instinct made fanciers indulge in racing, but it is not until the eighteenth century that we have records of the sport. The Modenians practised a form of high flying as far back as the fourteenth century, but it is not until the middle of the last century that I can find amy record of Tippler and Cumulet flying. Poultry shows as we know them are less than a century old, but it is certain that poultry were exhibited at the old agricultural shows such as at Otlev. which has well passed the century mark. There is also evidence that the special clubs held shows in the popular taverns, or, in more common parlance “ pubs.” It is many years since I road of canary singing contests in Germany, rst which leading musicians were ' the judges of solos, duets and choruses. Later canary singing tests and finch tests were held in Britain and a few years ago T read of cock crowing tests held in both Belgium and France. Egg laying tests on private farms were held long before the public tests took place. The English Utility Club

opened the ball in 1897 with a four months’ competition. Tn 1902 the Sydney “ Daily Telegraph ” inaugurated the famous trials at Hawkesbury College. These were the first over twelve months, and they were followed three years later by the New Zealand Utility Poultry Club. The egg-laying competitions are now held in England, Scotland, Ireland, Germany, France. Roland. Canada, United States. South America. South Africa. India ibi all the Australian States and in both the South and North Islands of New-. Zealand. Victoria leads in the oversea dominions as regards numbers. Last year there were five or six lists held in Victoria.. Last year a friend sent- me an account of a squab test held in Melbourne. The prize was for the highest monthly weight and the biggest squab was 32j ounces. Last year a chicken rearing test was held in England, and at least one table poultry test, which was given State assistance. The idea was to note the cost of rearing the host table varieties to a given weight, an dalso to observe bow long it took a variety to attain the weight. EGG-LAYING COMPETITIONS PAPANUI. The following: are the results of the leading birds in each of the various tenta

for the fifth week anded May 10 for 35 days) : SINGLE HEN OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP.

• Weekly Gra.nd | Total. Total. Black Orpington*— L. A. Wadharn * »* * T 32 O. E. flraham . . G •T. V. Drewitt . , S •29 White Leghorns— U. Williams . . G 31 29 H W. Bock . fi 2R W. Spence i . . 5 28 Mrs F. Gorinski . . 6 28 HEAVY BREED SINGLE HEN CONTEST. (Three Bird Teams.) Weekly Grand Tot a 1. Total. F. Henderson No. 2 . .6 31 G. A. Grainger No. 3 . 7 G. A. Grahieer No 1 . 30 •T. P. Drewitt No. 2 . •28 G. A. Grainger No. 2 . 6 ‘26 ANY OTHER VARIETY White Wyandotte— C. Bennett No. 1 . 28 Ane B a nn<?tt N °' 8 * •24 B. Pearce No. 1 . . 24 LIGHT BREED SINGLE HEN CONTEST. Weekly Grand Total. Total. TT. Williams No. 2 33 . : 30 30 W. Harrell No. 1 30 W. Spence No. 3 , 29 G. E. Moody No. 1 •29 •29 •T. S. Ainsworth No. 2 29 A. D. Cumberpatch No. * •2S A. G. F. Ross No. 3 28 •2S Smart Bros. No. 3 •28 FLOCK TEAMS. (Six Birds.) Weekly Total Tot a to date. C W. MBeath . . 27 152 H. Williams . 34 150 148 .1. D MKeehnie 32 1 45 C. Craig . . 28 J. Liggins . . 09 137 SINGLE DUCK CONTEST. Weekly Total Total. to date. R. W. Hawke No. 3 34 R. W. Hawke No. 1 R. W. Hawke No. 2 31 O. E. Barnett No. 1 31 W. Nimmo No. 3 31 H. P. Slater No. 2 R. H. Hawke No. a 33