THE GENERAL PURPOSE FOWL.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume VIII, Issue 2242, 12 March 1886, Page 2

THE GENERAL PURPOSE FOWL.

To-day if you start out to visit the comfortable surroundings of our rural kings you will find their yards dotted mostly with pure-bred fowls of some leading variety. Here you will meet the Brown Leghorns—the queen of egg-producers—-there you will discover the stately Bramha —the king of table fowls—and again the bread-breasted Cuchins, the Langshans, the Wyandottcs, the Javas, tho Plymouth Rocks, or the Hamburgs, and many other worthy breads, but it is generally found, nowadays, that the farmer has learned to appreciate the advantage of having only pure stock, whether it be in horses, cattle, hugs, or chickens, First as to egg producers, the Leghorns, from experience, seem to stand at the head of tho list, closely followed by the Spanish and Hamburgs. For a purely meat fowl the Cochins, Bramha3,andLangshansseem to till tho bill to perfection, while thoy are also good layers, and better winter layers than the lighter breeds. Although they do not lay so well "all the year round," yet from the time they are three or four months old they are always ready for the table, and make a full-breasted, fine roast. But for tho,"general purpose fowl," as 1 understand it, we want one which shall combine, as near as possible, the best qualifications of both layers, marketers, and sittors, Now I think these merits are combined in most desirable proportions in the Plymouth Rock and Wyandotte, both essentially American breeds, and both having come rapidly and boldly to the front on account of their many practical traits. In the first place they are a hardy fowl, well able to stand the various climates of America, They develop rapidly, begin hying very swm, and lay almost equally well in the winter as in the warm weather. They are faithful, but are not the most persistant sitters. They make good mothers, ever careful and attentive to their young broods, and willing to relenbuish them at the proper time. For marketing and for table use they cannot bo surpassed and the coluur and flavour of their meat is excellent. They grow to a good size, averaginp from six to nine pounds, and make fine broilers at threa to four months old. Tliey aro easily kept, as they will eat nearly everything, aud are tamo and tractable Nor will they fly over a high enclosure. In a word wo recommend them as the ..true, "general purpose fowl," and especially aB tho " ideal" fanners' fowl.-J, 0, Hakris, in the Ohio farm.