These little creatures exhibit some peculiar habits and
traits of disposition. Amongst others, the cocks are so fond
of sucking the eggs laid by the hen that they will often drive
her from the nest in order to 'obtain them; they have even
been known to attack her, tear open the ovarium, and devour
its shell-less contents. To prevent this, first a hard-boiled, and
then a marble egg, may be given them to fight with, taking care,
at the same time, to prevent their access either to the hen or to
any real eggs. Another strange propensity is a passion for
sucking each other's blood, which is chiefly exhibited when
they are moulting, when they have been known to peck each
other naked, by pulling out the new feathers as they appear,
and squeezing with their beaks the blood from the bulbs at the
base. These fowls being subject to a great heat of the skin,
its surface occasionally becomes hard and tightened; in which
cases the hard roots of the feathers are drawn into a position
more nearly at right-angles with the body than at ordinary
times, and the skin and superficial muscles are thus subjected
to an unusual degree of painful irritation. The disagreeable
habit is, therefore, simply a provision of nature for their relief,
which may be successfully accomplished by washing with warm
water, and the subsequent application of pomatum to the skin.
The Bolton Gray. — These fowls — called, also, Dutch Every-
day Layers, Pencilled Dutch fowl, Chittaprats, and, in Penn-
sylvania, Creole fowl — were originally imported from Plolland
to Bolton, a town in Lancashire, England, whence they were
named.
They are small sized, short in the leg and plump in the
make; color of the genuine kind, invariably pure white in the
whole cappel of the neck; the body white, thickly spotted with
black, sometimes running into a grizzle, with one or more black
bars at the extremity of the tail. A good cock of this breed
may weigh from four to four and a half pounds; and a heu
from three to three and a half pounds.
The superiority of a hen of frhis breed does hot consist so
much in rapid as in continued laying. She may not produce
as many eggs in a month as some other kinds, but she will, it
is claimed, lay more months in the year than, probably, any
other variety. They are said to be very hardy; but their eggs,
in the judgment of some, are rather watery and innutritious.
' The Cochin China. — The Cochin China fowl are said to
have been presented to 'Queen Victoria from the East Indies.
In order to promote their propagation, her majesty made pres-
ents of them occasionally to such persons as she supposed
likely to appreciate them. They differ very little in their
qualities, habits and general appearance from the Shanghaes,
to which they are undoubtedly nearly related. The egg is
nearly the same size, shape, and color; both have an equal de-
velopment of comb and wattles — the Cochins slightly differing
from the Shanghaes, chiefly in being somewhat fuller and
deeper in the breast, not quite so deep in the quarter, and be-
ing usually smooth-legged, while the Shanghaes, generally, are
more or less heavily feathered. The plumage is much the
same in both cases; and the crow in both is equally sonorous
and prolonged, differing considerably from that of the Great
Malay.
Page 174
Presented as published in 1883. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
AI-modernized reading of the original text
These little creatures exhibit some peculiar habits and traits of disposition. Amongst others, the cocks are so fond of sucking the eggs laid by the hen that they will often drive her from the nest in order to 'obtain them; they have even been known to attack her, tear open the ovarium, and devour its shell-less contents. To prevent this, first a hard-boiled, and then a marble egg, may be given them to fight with, taking care, at the same time, to prevent their access either to the hen or to any real eggs. Another strange propensity is a passion for sucking each other's blood, which is chiefly exhibited when they are moulting, when they have been known to peck each other naked, by pulling out the new feathers as they appear, and squeezing with their beaks the blood from the bulbs at the base. These fowls being subject to a great heat of the skin, its surface occasionally becomes hard and tightened; in which cases the hard roots of the feathers are drawn into a position more nearly at right-angles with the body than at ordinary times, and the skin and superficial muscles are thus subjected to an unusual degree of painful irritation. The disagreeable habit is, therefore, simply a provision of nature for their relief, which may be successfully accomplished by washing with warm water, and the subsequent application of pomatum to the skin.
The Bolton Gray. — These fowls — called, also, Dutch Everyday Layers, Pencilled Dutch fowl, Chittaprats, and, in Pennsylvania, Creole fowl — were originally imported from Plolland to Bolton, a town in Lancashire, England, whence they were named.
They are small sized, short in the leg and plump in the make; color of the genuine kind, invariably pure white in the whole caple of the neck; the body white, thickly spotted with black, sometimes running into a grizzle, with one or more black bars at the extremity of the tail. A good cock of this breed may weigh from four to four and a half pounds; and a heu from three to three and a half pounds.
The superiority of a hen of this breed does not consist so much in rapid as in continued laying. She may not produce as many eggs in a month as some other kinds, but she will, it is claimed, lay more months in the year than, probably, any other variety. They are said to be very hardy; but their eggs, in the judgment of some, are rather watery and innutritious.
' The Cochin China. — The Cochin China fowl are said to have been presented to 'Queen Victoria from the East Indies. In order to promote their propagation, her majesty made presents of them occasionally to such persons as she supposed likely to appreciate them. They differ very little in their qualities, habits and general appearance from the Shanghaes, to which they are undoubtedly nearly related. The egg is nearly the same size, shape, and color; both have an equal development of comb and wattles — the Cochins slightly differing from the Shanghaes, chiefly in being somewhat fuller and deeper in the breast, not quite so deep in the quarter, and being usually smooth-legged, while the Shanghaes, generally, are more or less heavily feathered. The plumage is much the same in both cases; and the crow in both is equally sonorous and prolonged, differing considerably from that of the Great Malay.