POULTRY. The term poultry is, strictly speaking, applied to the gallinaceous tribe. The French poule signifies a hen, and poulet a chicken. The Italian polla a chicken, and pollame poultry. In Latin pullus is a chicken, or other allied young animal. In its broad sense it is now used to designate all barnyard fowls, including clucks, geese, Guinea fowls, turkeys and pea fowls. Since the days of improved breeds of poultry the industry has been vastly augmented, and various schemes have been devised for keep ing them on 71 large scale, few of which have proved to be paying investments, and principally from the fact that the gallinaceous tribe, espe cially, require a wide range and plenty of exer cise and pure air to keep them in health. An other class, who buy up young birds and fatten them for market, have succeeded better, and this would seem to be the true policy, since more than from 100 to 300 birds can not be profitably kept on the same range unless so divided up tbat they do not come in contact with each other. Even then they must be allowed to range partly at will, in which event they will be found to be great exterminators of insects, especially the young chicks. Particular care, however, must be taken with the young birds. They must be fully fed and the weaker ones protected from the stronger, else no after amount of stuffing will increase their frames. In relation to profits and increase two committees of tbe Massachusetts Agricultural Society, some years since, reported as follows: The Middlesex South committee give the following statements: Fifteen liens, mostly Leghorns and Black Homburgs, laid in ten months 191 dozen eggs. Profits on eggs sold, chickens raised and sold, etc., $89.81; expen ses, twenty bushels of corn, $24; net profit, $65 81. Fowls were al lowed to run at large, and were fed well three times a day, Another lot of fifteen hens and one cock, mixture of Leg horn and native breed, laid 181 dozen eggs, which, with sixteen chickens, brought $66. 78 ; expenses nine bushels of corn and six bushels of barley, $18.75; net profit, $58.03. Fowls run at
large, fed twice a day in winter and once in sum mer. A flock of 113 Brahmas, in September, 1866, increased to 163 in one year, besides sup plying • eggs to the amount of $232.80; fowls sold, $75.28, making, xvith the fifty increase in flock, $408.08; expenses, $14-5.03; net profit $263.05, taking no account of tbe droppings of the chickens. The Bristol Central Committee recommend the Brahmas and Dorkings for the table; the Leghorns and Hamburgs for eggs; the Games and Dorkings, where all qualities are required of a high degree of excellence ; and if pure breeds are not wanted, at least a game, cock to improve the stock of every yard. When large numbers of fowls are to be kept, at least an acre must be allowed to each 100 hens, and if this is covered partially with brush so much the better. Constant care and vigilance are required, when keeping poultry in large numbers is followed. Tegetmeier, upon the subject of keepingpoultry says: Fowls are either kept for the table or for eggs In the former case, the object is to pre pare the young birds so as to be fit for market at the earliest possible period. It is evident that they are not only better in quality, but that they realize a larger sum, if they are well fed; and as young birds have consumed a smaller amount of food, on account of their shorter lives, they must of necessity return a larger profit than older ones. Eggs, again, can only be produced by the hens out of the materials furnished by their food. AL scanty supply of the former is therefore the inev itable result of a short supply of the latter. In winter, when eggs are most valuable, this is par ticularly shown ; for as there is then no insect or other food to he obtained by scratching, the pro duction of eggs diminishes remarkably, unless the fowls are very well fed. As regards the number of times the stock fowls should be fed, we believe the most economical mode, when fowls have a free range, is to feed twice a day.