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Show Till Vi'.ll&n BURNER DUCK ji THE MOST BEAUTIFUL, AND, BY MANY PEOPLE p THOUGHT TO BE THE MOST PROFITABLE N: jjj1 OF ALL THE DUCK FAMILY. . j I , J By Anna Gnllghcr, Ohio. , & - t'b It is only comparatively a few years since the Indian Itunner ducks made their appearance In America- They camo originally from tho West Indies, whero they havo been ralaod for years, , chiefly as egg-producers. They dcrlvo their namo from their native land and racy, upright carriage. Tn color they are fawn and white, with yollow shanks and light-green bill, the latter being sometimes splashed with blaqk. Tho body Is long and narrow and Is carried In an almost upright position. Neck is long and thin, with finely formed head. The Indian Runner Is rather small, fully matured ducks weighing from I to 5 pounds. Drakes from u to 6 I pounds, live weight. But' they grow vory rapidly while young and nro easy to raise What they lack in weight Ib more than made up for In their other good qualities. To begin with, they arc very prolific pro-lific layers, beginning when about C months old. Their oggs arc puro vhlto and a little larger than those of a Plymouth Hock hen. They arc superior in quality to any duck's eggs that we have ever eaten, and as a rule, they bring higher prices In the market. The duckllpgs reach a marketable size when about 1:2 weeks old. When forced, they will weigh 4 to G pounds at two months. The meat of tho Runner is of superior su-perior quality; fine in the grain, Juicy, and excellent flavor. Hotels and ros-taurants ros-taurants pay fancy prices for ducklings. duck-lings. The eggs aro In good demand, also. In winter when eggs are high tho Indian In-dian Runner is "on the Job". Any enterprising person can work up a trade among hotels and restaurants that should prove highly profitable. There is no groat danger of strong competition, as comparatively few poultry raisers have taken up this branch of tho Industry, notwithstanding notwithstand-ing tho fact that nearly all kinds of poultry products are bringing unheard-of prices In the open market. Duck culture, In tho past, has boon moro or less neglected, owing to tho general belief that ducks cannot be successfully raised without a stream or pond of water. The fact Is, how-over, how-over, that tho Indian Runiior requires only sufficient water to drink. They are small foedors as compared with other ducks. One Pekln will con-sumo con-sumo as much feed as two Runners, and then not be satisfied. Unlike tho former, they are great foragers. In summer the Indian Runner when given free range will flnd the groater part of his lhlng In tho fields. But of course when being fattened for mar- ' ' f? kct, they need some grain. It woulfc flj be well to say right hre that for best i ji results the grain should -be either j f ground or cooked. i Vm A great many would-be duck ral.snrs 9. fail, because they Insist upon feeding IjJ the ducks, both old and young, whole R!, grain. Igr, Tho matured birds CRn get along, j but tho young oneH most certainly can SjgL not. Don't try to rniso ducklings on ,, whole wheat, cracked corn and ''chick ' feed". They simply cannot digest It. , Oiyjj About the only kind of grit that a j H-r young duck will cat, Is sand, and j i"c whole or cracked grain requires some- I thing sharper than sand to grind it. j jjjk Thoso who have Indian Runner A&tqh ducks would do well to keep them v"Y Mink j4ffik - 1 Indian Runner drnkc and duck. IJil over winter and see what they will do JJ.P toward keeping the egg-basket filled 42 when biddy Is on a strike. ? Begin by culling out all the surplus drakes and undersized specimens. Tf Jjji tho ducks are expected to furnish oggs f R? next spring for hatching purposes, nov.' tj Is the time to procure drakes from Jr some other flock. ' H It is not a good plan to keep closely i IRc related birds. Ono drake for every j DM1 seven or eight ducks Is about right. Fd' Drakes may bo kept for seven years, YS but ducks will not lay so wll when : ttfj of that age. Few duck raisers care to keep old drakes unions they happen , ' to be high-priced birds. m Jn many sections, Indian Runner H ducks nrp so scarce that food sped- E" men's bring almost nny price asked. H Fresh eggs, poultry, fruit and veg- fit etables form a diet that all physicians "Sj recommend. More chickens and eggs WJr and less red meat should grace the " hj tables of the American epicures. jn! i u3j Have regular hours for feeding your W poultry. Irregular feeding often causes ( (Jit a derangemont of the digestive organs 1 lnl' and this means impaired health and 1 "fifi fewor eggs. 3 - J fu |