Chicken Clippings

We have seven hens and a rooster – our first chickens ever, and are amazed at how personable they are.  We are keeping them for eggs, not Sunday dinner.  Anyway, having chickens has made me more sensitive to clippings about them.  Here are some from my book Chicago Clippings:

Joseph Schubert admitted charge of his landlord that his chickens were eating cement floor under his store and said they laid hard shelled eggs because of their diet.

Rev. G.A.T. Cornelius, Los Angeles, while feeding chickens, came on egg with his initials on it.  This may prove something but we don’t know what.

A. Greer, Asheville, N.C., refused $500 for bulldog which he has trained to keep chickens in coop until they lay their quota of eggs.

Maltese cat hatched 15 chickens from eggs of hen belonging to Peter Donlin, Pittsfield, Mass., which died.

A Columbia, Conn., hen is said to have laid an egg bearing a picture of Col. Roosevelt. This is the ultimate in campaign press agent work.

Gary, Ind.–Judge Huber interrupted court until he went home and got chickens out of rain.

New York.–In mix up of suitcases on steamer Robert Fulton, Mrs. Hull, Brooklyn, lost one containing $600 worth of jewelry and received one filled with broiled chickens.

Bristol, Pa.–Mrs. Ellen Buck, chicken fancier, as an experiment, made flannel coat for rooster, whereupon 65 other chickens followed her around until they all got coats.

Bloomington, Ill.–Lady Show You III, champion hen, has been sold to J.A. Bell, Chicago, for $800.  Has record of 82 eggs in 82 consecutive days and 281 eggs for last year.

Tarrytown, N.Y.–Hen belonging to Gilbert Brown laid 72 eggs in icehouse last summer.  Brown training other hens to try cold storage system.

Rooster perched on bellcord of N.Y., Bridgeport, express, causing signal for engineer to stop train.  “&@5!*!” being what the engineer said about it.

Boston.––“Freckles,” cat owned by Mrs. C.A. Buzzed, had litter of kittens.  Were drowned.  “Freckles” kidnapped 3 chickens from hen and is raising them.

This chicken story is from a September, 1899 Oregon newspaper:  Three hens belonging to Dr. Shaw, of Russellville, Ky., are high flyers.  They recently ascended 200 feet in the air in pursuit of a hawk.  When the noon whistles blow they quit scratching gravel and hasten home to dinner.