Democratic Sentinel, Volume 16, Number 1, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 22 January 1892 — THE POULTRY-YARD. [ARTICLE]

THE POULTRY-YARD.

Hay Seeds lor Chicks. When you have a brood of chicks, try giving them the sweepings of the hayloft in which to scratch, and you will be surprised to notice h&w busy the little fellows will be, and how industriously, writes a poultry raiser, they will work to secure the seeds. There is nothing that will tempt little chicks like small seeds, and they will scra/tch from morning until night if they''can find theqi. This scratching will do more to keep them in health than anything that can be done for them. It makes them keep warm, compels thedi to feed without filling their crops too rapidly, prevents lng weakness, and assists them to endure cold. Their appetites will also be greater and they will eat anything else provided, with avidity. If chicks are fed four times a day when young, and given hay chaff and leaves to work in, they should grow rapidly. They must be kept in a warm place, having plenty of light, and careiuily fastened up at night A Dreaded Diseana. Among the diseases described that come to us from readers, says Farm and Fireside, is one' which is very common. The heads of the hens swell, and lumps appear, both on the heads and sometimes in the throats, and the eyes are also swollen and closed. The trouble is roup, and the symptoms described aje due to exposure to draughts of cold or damp air at night There are different kindS of roup, but the form of roup mentioned is always the result of exposure. It is difficult to cure, hut the sick birds should be kept in a warm place, and a few drops of a mixture of one part spirits of turpentine and three parts sweet-oil used as an ointment on the face and head. Feed Mont Be lieffulated* When green things disappear the feeding of poultry must be regulated accordingly. If it has been fed entirely «n corn up to that time and baa

done well, it is uot to be wandered at, because there has been an abundance of grass and insects to balance the ration. To counteract the heating effect of the corn food until the new growth of green things, poulterers who expect the best returns from their fowls will see to it that food rich in nitrogen is supplied in connection with the corn. This should include meat scraps, clover hay cut and steamed, chopped vegetables, bran, barley, oats, and cottonseed and linseed meal.