The Feathered World.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume VIII, Issue 390, 13 January 1898, Page 17

The Feathered World.

I have been expecting a Black Wyandotte for some little time, and now the manufacture of such a variety has been accomplished by Mr R. M. Francis, a Wyandotte fancier of North Melbourne. This gentleman has, for years, been an admirer and a breeder of Silver, Golden, and White W yandottes, and being anxious for fame of some sort or other, set about establishing a black variety. I see it is surmised in Australian papers that the Black Hamburg and Black Orpington have been used in proceeding. I should say that the Black Plymouth Rock is a much more likely cross for Mr Francis to have tried. In that bird the yellow legs and red earlobes are both present to a certain degree, and it is a very easy thing to get Black Plymouth Rocks with rose-combs. So that if a Black Wjandotte is desired, I do not think there would be much difficulty in establishing such a bird. But after all, where does the necessity come in ? The silvers and the goldens at present seen leave plenty of room for improvement, so there is “plenty of room at, the top” of the roll of exhibitors ; and the man who can breed ind show a really first-class Silver and Golden Wyandotte is doing more for the fancy than the man who by giving a fancy name to a cross-bred, brings himself into an ephemeral notoriety. Then again, we do not want another black fowl. The Minorca is one of the very best fowls to keep for all round usefulness, the Orpingtons are said to be excellent in all respects, but, as I have never tried them, I cannot vouch, the Langshan I know well, and admire immensely, the Black Hamburg is an excellent layer, and a pretty bird to look at, and the Black Spanish has numbers of admirers who strongly advocate its claims to be the bird to keep. With all these well-tried varieties, there is no room for another black bird. Black Leghorns have never been a great success, owing to the difficulty in getting good yellow legs. The same difficulty must come in with any black-plumaged bird. Yellow legs do not agree with a black feathering, it is a contradiction of nature. Now and then a bird may be bred with very good yellow legs, but it is the exception that proves the rule. Poultrybreeders, therefore, will do well to stick to the known black breeds that have served them well for a long time past. I am glad to see Mr Henderson advocates the use of good sound heavy oals as one of the best foods for laying hens, for this is the grain that 1 have always believed to be the best for constant feeding. Oats, 401bs and over to the bushel, are excellent, but below that weight there is too much waste material. Wheat should be used too, a feed about twice a week, with oats as the other hard grain will give much better results than if the birds are fed on maize or barley. Maize I do not like at all for laying hens, for they put on so much internal fat when fed on this grain that it becomes impossible for them to produce eggs. Barley is good as a change now and then, but as a staple food give me good heavy oats.

The following account of apple-fed chickens from the Stoclclceeper, may be of use to New Zealand orchardists, who may yet make a profit out of their apple trees in spite of the codlin moth, by turning young chickens into the orchards and letting them feed on the fallen fruit: —We do not remember ever having noticed apples having been so strongly advocated as a food for poultry as has recently been the case in a letter addressed to our transatlantic contemporary ‘ Farm Poultry ’ by a breeder in a large way who giv< s his experiences. This gentleman was given permission by a neighbour to run as many birds as he desired on an enclosed orchard situated some distance from his house, and in due course transferred 2QO Plymouth Rock chickens, selected haphazard from his flock, the time being the end of August, when quantities of worm-eaten appleslay about. Very soon afterwards he discovered that the appetites of his birds had become lees so far as their consumption of grain was concerned, and consequently he only fed them once a day; in fact, they were entirely left to their own devices during his three weeks’ absence from home, owing to his having forgotten to give any directions for feeding them. On his return he visited the outlying orchard in fear and trembling, fully expecting to find his birds half starved, and bitterly reproaching himself for having forgotten to arrange for their being fed. It was a pleasant surprise, therefore, for him to see they were all flourishing, and from that time he never troubled to give them any extra food. Now comes the most remarkable, if not incredible, part of the story. The owner of the birds supplied by weight 100 chickens, all taken from his home yards, to a contractor in the neighbourhood, the 100 chickens scaling 3501 b exactly, or an average of 3|lb apiece. The purchaser, being well satisfied with them, applied for another 100 birds at the end of the week, and these were supplied from the orchard flock, their total weight being 5751 b, or sflb each. 'lbis is certainly a prodigious difference in the weights — so prodigious, in fact, as to appear incredible, or at all events, very highly- coloured. Yet the owner of the birds gives his name openly, and also supplies full information regarding the purchaser of the two lots of chickens, and there can be no doubt therefore that the last hundred birds were, at all events, considerably heavier than the first. Very likely it may be argued that the fowls subsisted largely upon worms, of which there were plenty in the orchard, and other grubs, but the fact remains that they consumed large quantities of wind-fall apples. At all events, as a leading American poultry journal publishes the letter, it might be interesting to poultry breeders on qhis side to experiment with apples,' which are cheap enough in some counties to encourage them to try them as a food. We certainly do not expect that the results achieved by the American gentleman will be gained, but on the other hand it would be valuable to discover that apples form a nutritious diet for poultry.