Rensselaer Union, Volume 3, Number 41, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 6 July 1871 — The Rearing and Fattening or Chickens. [ARTICLE]

The Rearing and Fattening or Chickens.

Fob nearly twenty lour hours after hatching, chickens require no food at all; aud though we do not think it best to leavu them quite ao long as this without •it, we should let them remain for at least twelve hours undisturbed, We say undis turbed, because it ii a very common prac lice Co take those first hatched away from the aud put them in a basket by the fire until the whole brood is out. When the eggs varied much in age, this coursemust be adopted; for some chickens will be perhaps a whole day or more behind the others, and the hen, if she felt the little things moving beneath her, would not stay long enough to hatch the rest. But this should not be, and if the eggs arc all fresh the chicks will all appear within a few hours rtf each other. In that case -they are much better lft with their mother; the heat of her body appears to strengthen and nourish them in a far better manner than any other warmth, and they are happy and cententcd, instead of moving restlessly about as they always do whilst away from her.

Our own plan is to set the eggs In the evening, when the chicks will break the shell in the evening also, or perhaps the afternoon. Then at night let the state of the brood be one* only examined, all eggshells removed from the neat, and ihe hen, if she be tame enough to receive it. given food and water. Let her afterwards be so shut in that she cannot leave her nest, and all may be left safi-ly till the morning. Ity that time the chicks will be strong and lively, quite ready for their first meal; and unless some of the eggs are known to be very stale, any not hatched then are little likely to hatch at all. If this he so, the chicks may be removed and put in flannel by the fire, and another day patiently waited, to see if any more will 'appear. We should not do so, however, if a fair number hail hatched well; for they never thrive so well away from the hen, and it is scarcely worth while to injure the healthy portion of the brood for the sake of one or two which very probably may not live after all.

The first meal should be given on the nest , and the best material for it is an equal mixture of hard boiled yolk of egg aud stale bread-crumbs, the latter slightly moistened with milk. Let the hen be allowed to partake of this also—she needs it; and then give her besides as much barley as she will eat, and offer her water, which she will drink greedily. To satisfy the hen at first saves much restlessness and trouble with her afterwards.

There is a stupid practice adopted by many, of removing the little horny scale which appears on every chicken’s beak, with the idea of enabling them to peck better, and then to put tood or peppercorns down their throats, and dip their bills in water to make them drink. It is a mistake to say that if this does no good it can do no harm; the little beaks are soft and tender, and are often injured by such barbarous treatment. Leave them alone. If they do not eat or drink—and chickens seldom drjnk the first day—it only shows they do not wish to; for to fill an empty stomach is the first and universal instinct of all living things. The brood having been fed, the next step will depend upon circumstances. If, as we recommend, the chickens were hatched the night before, or will be upon their legs, arid the weather be fine, they may fit once be moved out, and the hen cooptd where her little ones can get the sun. If it be- winter, or settled wet weather, the hen mhst, if possible, be kept on her nest this day also, and 'when removed be cooped in a dry shed or outhouse.

The best arrangement, where there is convenience for it, is a shed six feet square, to be reared against the wall, with a southern exposure, and the coop placed under it. This coop should.be made on a plan very common in some parts of France, and consists of two compartments, separated by a partition of bars; one compartment being closed in front, the other fronted with bars like the partition. Each set of bars should have a sljdiDg one to serve as a door, and the whole coop should be tight and sound. It is best to have no bottom, but to put it on loose dry earth or ashes, an inch or two deep. Each half of the coop is about two feet six inches square, and may or may not be lighted from the top by a pane of glass. The advantage of such a coop and shed is, that except in very severe weather, no further shelter is required even at night. During the day the hen is kept in the outer compartment, the chickens having liberty, and the food and water being placed outside;.whilst at night she is put in the inner portion of the coop, and a piece of canvass or sacking hung over the -bars of the uniter -half. If the Top bn glazed, a little food and the water vessel may be placed in the outer compartment at night, and the chicks will be able to • run out and feed early in the morning being prevented by the canvass from going out into the cold air. It will only be needful to remove the coop every two days for a few minutes, to rake away the tainted earth and replace it with fresh. There should, if possible, be a grass plot in front of the shed, the floor of which should be covered with dry loose dust or earth.— Practical Farmer.