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H. CECIL SHEPPARD

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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MEMORIAL POULTRY LIBRARY

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THE GIFT OF
J. M. GWIN

ALBERT R. MANN LIBRARY

NEw YorK STATE COLLEGES
OF
AGRICULTURE AND HomE ECONoMICS

AT
CORNELL UNIVERSITY_

 

university (Oe rae
Cornell University Library

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$4,223.00
in One Year ona

Town Lot

BY

H. Cecil Sheppard
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COPYRIGHT, 1912, BY
H CHECIL SHEPPARD
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
PREFACE

Several parties have come to my place and sought information
regarding my methods of conducting my chicken business. Some
have told me they would pay $5.00, others as high as $25.00, if I
would tell them how I run my business. I have told them that I
have no secret, but it would take considerable writing and time to
give them a detailed description of my methods. I decided to
write it up and put it in a book so that anyone can have it fora
reasonable price.
ON A TOWN LOT.

CONTENTS

CHAPTER 1—THE ROM) TO: SCCCUSS. «5 ccceneeney ney geeeees leis Biiavaydar dias
Practical information—Scelecting ihe breed—Start on small seale—
Pigeons—Buy good stock to start with—At the poultry shows—
Advertising pays well—Importance of advertising—Doubled my ca-
pacity cach year—Selecting the vaviely—My actual experience step
by step—Living on a town lot—A little para@ise in five years.

Caiioor TIA ACUBATOUS 28% DINGOTIUS, cuscugees auks és 5212465498
Placing the eggs in the ineubateur—Importance of cooling the eggs—
Running the incubator the right temperature—Kcep the broader clean
—Dreparing the brooder for the chicks,

 

CHAPTER TLI—CARE (OW) GHICIN Si sactie eGo: tese or mumsncnddeaies dnstimeil atlas Mahesh Biv oh easintenied
Don't chill the young chicks—Right temperature the third and fourth
weeks—F ceding the young chicks—Green food necessary for young
chicks—Charcoal and grit important—Sprouted oats a great eg;
producer—Perfect winter quarters—Automatic feeders for growing
stock—Don't force the breeders.

GCHAPEDR: SEVP OUD... THOUS TES et ccc ai. ao devise nesaaiarean tahini hae ate @ epee aes Nae
Open air houses most sutisfacto Birds singing in zero weather
The ideal chicken park—The necessity of cleanliness—My first eggs
four months—Imported the best stock obtainable—How I commenced
advertising—-My first order for hatching eges—Chickens laying all fall
and winter—Increasing advertisiny increases business—Good results
at end of year.

  

 

 

CHAPTER, VWH=PLEASURE: AND: PROPER. «20 a6 oxscnniiacnmenedciane sso aa aatdoes
Sales $9,515.00 sixth year—Gives up everything for chickens—A
square deal for everybody—Building up a good character—The science
of salesmanship—The four stages of salesmanship—Good stationery
and catalog important—Found it necessary to move to a farm.

 

CHaPTeR VI—WIIAT TO DO EACH MONTII OF THE YEAR.............
Care of young stock—Ilouses thoroughly cleaned and sprayed—Orders
and shipments—How to ship the birds—Birds need extra care in
November—Getting the birds ready for the show room.

CHAPTER: VIT—MATING STOCKH eqnevaweees in pase ese epee yiaees
The male is half the breeding pen—Catalog and mating list—shipment
of eggs and baby chicks—How to ship baby chiecks—<A colony house
from a piano box—June end of hatching season—The pleasant smile,

 

CHAPTER: VIII—THE AALS RICAN (QUIS Ni 0.63 5.6.05 wereea nine ees Aw ea ne ty
Good time to get interested in poultry—VDossibilities of the hen—
Poultry business offers grand opportunities.

 

Crpren TNR ORIGEN G1" NCO NS s ciccdicuecerariesa a sda an tae timentetidinsstig £e-008 al neat
Color of the Ancona—Sbhape—lIlabits—The fancier’s fowl—As a
utility fowl.

19

23

31

33

45

51

59
CHAPTER I

The Road to Success

HE figures on the cover of this book may look large
to you. They are large, and especially to one who,
like myself, was working for a modest salary. I
hear you say, ‘““Well, these figures are too big for
me to reach.” I see no reason why that should be
the case. You can probably do much better. You
are a man or woman of ordinary intelligence, I
am sure, and I contend anyone blessed with the

average intellect can succeed in the chicken business if the ideas

contained in this book are followed. I am no wizard. I started with

a very limited knowledge of the chicken business and with a limited

capital. By using a little common sense I succeeded. You can do

the same. You may not develop your business as rapidly, and, again.
you may do much better. For the first five years I carried on my

chicken business as a side issue while I was on the road as a

traveling salesman. I soon discovered that returns from my side

issue were much larger than my salary, so I resigned my position
on the road and am now devoting my entire time to my chickens.

 

 

Practical Information

I desire to give you practical information from a practical stand-
point, and not theories advocated by someone who has not had actual
experience in raising chickens. I shall not give you advice as to
how you should manage your chickens, as the supply of advice is
generally greater than the demand. I shall tell you in a plain way the
manner in which I have managed my chickens, and you can take
what appears practical to you. I do not expect you to agree with
me in every detail. On the principal questions I think you will
find that my methods are thoroughly practical.

Selecting the Breed

Having decided to keep chickens, you will no doubt hesitate
before you select your breed. There are a number of splendid
breeds. You may decide to start with several breeds, as I did.
I kept four the first year, and at the end of the first year I found I
had three breeds too many, and decided to keep just one. It did
‘not take me long to decide on the breed to keep. The first year I
1 $4223.00 IN ONE YEAR

found it very profitable to be getting a good yield of eggs during the
cold winter months, when eggs were high and when my neighbors
were not getting any. In cutting down the number of breeds I kept
the breed that produced eggs abundantly during the winter months.
This is one of the secrets of the business—to get a breed that will
produce eggs practically all the year round, and especially when the
price of eggs is high. You will find there is a tremendous demand
for chickens of this kind, and if you have them your neighbor wants
them and is willing to pay you a good price for a setting of eggs or
for a pen of birds.

Start on Small Scale

I have told you the importance of selecting the proper breed.
Now you ask whether one ought to start on a small or on a large
scale. The commercial agencies will tell you that ninety per cent
of the business houses fail some time during their lifetime. Probably
the principal reason for this is because they start on too large a
scale. I[t is like a boy learning to swim. If he jumps in deep water
he drowns, but if he stays in shallow water until he learns he then
can go into deep water with safety.

Pigeons

I started in the pigeon business a few years ago. When I decided
to go into it I wrote a man in Michigan, who was an experienced
pigeon raiser, for information. He wrote me, “Don’t go into the pigeon
business. If you have any money to burn, don’t burn it; send it
to me.” I was informed by others that the earning capacity of a
pair of pigeons was two dollars a year, and I figured a thousand
pairs would earn two thousand dollars a year. It looked good, so
I started in on a large scale. My failure with pigeons was made
certain by commencing on too large a scale. My pigeons were an
expense from the start, and in a short time I had lost five hundred
dollars. It is needless to say that I soon got rid of them. I wish I
had taken the advice of my Michigan friend.

Buy Good Stock to Start With

On the other hand, I started my chickens on a small scale, and
from the very beginning they were paying for their keep and a little
more. I found it better to have the chickens working for me than
for me to be working for them, as was the case with the pigeons.
I would suggest that you start in a small way and buy good stock
to start with. You will find that it pays. There is always a demand
for good stock, while the demand for poor stock is limited. It is a
ON A TOWN LOT: 3

common error to invest in expensive chicken houses and buy cheap
stock. Whatever breed you buy, go to some reputable breeder and
secure good stock. Remember that it is quality of stock that pays
the large dividends, and not the expensive poultry houses. You can
raise good birds from good stock in a cheap building, but you cannot
raise good birds from poor stock, no matter how good your buildings.
If you have twenty-five, fifty or one hundred dollars to invest, buy a
pen of five birds in place of a dozen.

I made the usual mistake beginners make by buying ordinary
stock to start with. I went to a certain breeder and bought from
his utility flock, and from other breeders the same quality. At the
end of the first. year I found I had made a serious mistake, as I had
lost a year’s time and had nothing but utility birds—something that
intelligent chicken peopie don’t want. It taught me a lesson, how-
ever, and I resolved to get the very best birds money could buy.
At the end of the first year I had discarded my other breeds and had
secured the best stock that money could buy of my favorite breed.
At the end of the second year I had a flock of strictly high-grade
birds, and found I was on the right road to success.

At the Poultry Shows

I commenced showing my birds at several shows, both small and
large, and was fortunate in winning the major portion of the prizes.
I soon ceased to exhibit at the small shows and sent birds only to
the largest shows. I found it was fine sport, besides being a good
advertisement. At the first show I visited I remember my experience.
I was showing King William I., a handsome cockerel who had won
first at the great Dairy Show, London, England, and was naturally
proud of him. A man admired him very much and asked my price.
I told him one thousand dollars. It was fortunate for me that he
did not buy him, because he has been the foundation of my flock
and he has been worth not less than ten thousand dollars to me.
It does not pay to sell your best stock. I never price my best birds.
They are always to be found in my breeding pen. By doing this I
have been able to keep improving my flock, and when my customers
want eggs from prize winners they get them.

Advertising Pays Well

After getting a splendid show record I commenced to advertise.
J wanted to burn into the mind of the buying public the merits of
my chickens, to make it understand my breed was without a peer.
This is the prime object in advertising, and the simpler the story
can be told, the stronger will be the impression made. Every
14 $4223.00 IN ONE YEAR

unnecessary detail only befogs the essential fact. The granite of
public indifference cannot be pierced with a blunt tool; we must
use the keenest of points and keep pounding away if we are to
successfully penerate it. Concentrated, consistent endeavor brings
results in this as in everything else. Scattered effort has been the
weakness of modern advertising. When possible, illustrate advertise-
ments, as pictures speak louder than words. They tell their stories
with the least possible demand upon the mind of the beholder, and
speak to the American, the German and the Chinaman alike. Printed
letters are in fact symbolized pictures through which ideas are
expressed by the making of words.

Importance of Advertising

I found advertising paid well, although I did not get big returns
the first year. The second year I advertised more and was pleased
to note that the returns increased in proportion to the extent I
advertised. Each year I spent more money for advertising, and
have always found the returns justified it. I want to impress upon
you the importance of advertising. “It pays to advertise.” This is
a hackneyed expression, but nevertheless it is true. It pays to
advertise generously. Don’t be afraid to spend a few dollars adver- ~
tising in the poultry journals. The money will come back and a
great deal more with it. Do you know a successful poultry man or a
successful business man who has not been a generous advertiser?
I was not advertising long before I was shipping stock to Europe,
Africa, and the remotest parts of the earth. My advice is, first, get
good stock; second, advertise it; third, give your customers a square
deal, and you will succeed. Don’t become discouraged in case you
run across a customer occasionally that you cannot please, no matter
how hard you try. You will have such experience, no matter what
your business is. I discovered that long before I went into the chicken
business.

Doubled My Capacity Each Year

The demand for hatching eggs and stock was more than T could
supply after I commenced advertising. Each year I have doubled
my capacity, and, to my surprise, the demand has more than doubled
each succeeding year, and during the past season I have returned
more money for orders for both stock and eggs than ever, although
I increased my flock considerably. The demand was so great that I
found it necessary to get much larger quarters, so was forced to
abandon my town lot and move to a farm, where I have erected
modern and commodious quarters for large flocks of breeders. I am
ON A TOWN LOT, 15

now breeding them by the thousand, and hope to be able to suppiy
the rapidly increasing demand for these wonderiul layers.

Selecting the Variety

I do not wish to use these pages as an advertising medium, so
later I will mention the names of the breed that has made money
for me—the kind that lays eggs almost the year around, and especially
during the winter months, when the price of eggs is high. The
breed is a new one and a breed that may not be familiar to you. I
would not recommend them to you because they are a new kind, but
because they are such wonderful layers. “By their works ye shall
know them.” By their wonderful laying records they have proved
themselves the greatest layers the world has yet produced. They
are the business hen and are the real twentieth century egg machine.

My Actual Experience Step by Step

I shall start at the beginning and tell you my actual experience
in the poultry business, step by step. I shall tell you how my business
grew from $160.00 the first year to $9,500.00 the sixth year, on a
town lot.

I lived in Cleveland for a number of years. My health was not
very good. It looked to me as though it were a choice between
going to the country to live, or of joining the ranks of the countless
slumbering army before I was ready. I resolved to go to the coun-
try and was not long in selecting a location. After looking over
a number of places on the southern shore of Lake Erie I decided to
locate in Berea, where conditions were ideal—good schools and
colleges to educate the children, and all modern conveniences.
Located as it is on three trunk lines of railroads and a splendid
electric line, shipping facilities are excellent. I leased the property
for two years. At the end of six months I liked the location so well
I bought the property.

Living on a Town Lot

We moved to Berea the latter part of March, 1906. It was a
revelation to me. There we were, living on a nice town lot, the air
pure and sweet, and as the Spring pressed on and as Nature budded
forth in all her beauty, the grass grew green and the air became
redolent with perfume from a wilderness of fragrant blossoms. The
songbirds returned and added greatly to the surroundings with their
cheerful and sweet songs. As the weather became warm, we (my
wife and children) commenced fixing up our lawn and preparing the
soil for a garden. After the ground was nicely cultivated we com-
*yoo}s Sanok sox ooeld [vopr wy ‘pazeryo.sro oy} UL dour0d Apeys W

 
ON A TOWN LOT. 17

menced to set out trees, berry bushes, grapevines, sow the garden
seed, and set out the plants. By the first of June everything seemed
to fairly jump out of the ground to meet the warm rays of the
Summer sun. Midsummer found us enjoying luxuries of our bounti-
ful harvest of fresh vegetables from our own garden. It was quite
a contrast to what a city man had been accustomed. It was not only a
crop of good vegetables, but a crop of gladness and joy as well. Our
eity friends envied our good fortune. My wife could prepare an
excellent meal from the garden, with a few nice springers added to
the bill of fare. A little later our flowers blossomed forth in all
the colors of the rainbow. The next season we enjoyed a generous
crop of red raspberries and strawberries. Two years later our plum

 

A shipment ready to start on their long 8,00(-mile voyage to South
Africa. Have made many shipments to foreign countries—some going to
the remotest parts of the earth.

trees began to bear. The next year the peach trees bloomed out in
their superb style and joined the plum trees in giving us a nice lot
of delicious fruit. The next year the cherry trees began to bear.

A Little Paradise in Five Years

In five years we were living in a little paradise. It was surely
a delightful change away from the smoke, noise and bustle of a great
city. I was always loath on Monday mornings to pick up my grip and
start on the road, but never did it seem such a hardship as when it
meant leaving these surroundings which invited so loudly to stay. I
18 $4223.00 IN ONE YEAR

mention this happy experience to show you there is something besides
chickens that will claim your attention to good advantage. I found
it was not only profitable but a great joy to maintain a nice lawn
around my home, have a nice garden of vegetables and flowers, and
care for a lot of choice fruit trees. My lawn not only added greatly
to the appearance of my home and surroundings, but furnished a nice
place for croquet and tennis. Besides being very profitable to furnish
green feed for both my chicks and laying flock. I mowed my lawn
while the dew was on it, and fed the clippings to the fowls the first
thing in the morning; or I sometimes kept them in a basket in the
shade and gave it to them for their noonday meal. The dew on the
grass kept it fresh. I was careful not to tramp it down in the basket,
because it was apt to become heated and would not be as good for
the chickens. In making my lawn I sowed about sixty per cent
clover, as this made the best feed for my birds. My berry bushes
and fruit trees were much enjoyed by the entire family, and espe
cially the children. It was a source of great joy to see the little
ones made a bee-line for the plum or peach trees the first thing in
the morning as soon as they were dressed, and come in the back
door with a great large luscious peach or plum in each hand, and
start to eat them before the morning meal was ready. How yeu will
smile when you take your basket and return to the house with it
full of berries, peaches or plums taken from your own trees! Then,
again, remember, every time you set out a shrub, bush or tree you
enhance the value of your property.
CHAPTER II

Incubators and Brooders

OON as we got settled I decided we must have
some chickens, so ordered an incubator at once.
A few months previous I had visited a little poul-
try farm. I was much attracted by the beauty of
the fowls, and the more so when I went into the
laying houses in January and could scarcely be-
lieve my eyes to see the hens at work. Some
were busy in their nests, others were trying to

crowd them off, while others were cackling after laying. It repre
sented the beehive appearance to see the industrious fowl so active
in midwinter. It is useless to say that it made an impression on me.
I resolved then that I would secure eggs from these fowls and imme
diately placed my order. They arrived in Spring, a few days later
than my incubator. I placed my incubator in the basement, and
after getting the machine regulated so that the thermometer regis-
tered 102% degrees I operated the machine two or three days, to
be sure that I had it well regulated before the eggs were put in. I
filled the lamp with the best oil I could procure and was careful not
to fill it full, in order to allow for the expansion of the oil. I started
with a moderate flame until after the heater was warmed through,
because a new wick will cause the flame to creep up, and if the
wick is turned too high on the start the lamp is likely to smoke and
accumulate soot on the burner. It will then burn with a large
flame until the burner becomes overheated and a puff of gas blows
it out. Should the burner be overheated so much as to blacken the
metal it should be scoured bright or replaced with a new one. The
heater drum should be cleaned out thoroughly. I was careful to
follow the directions that accompanied my incubator, and saw that
the chimrey or heater fitted closely to the burner.

 

Placing the Eggs in the Incubator

After allowing the eggs to settle for twenty-four hours, I placed
them in the machine with other eggs of different varieties I had
purchased. I took care to see that none of the eggs were standing
on end and that all were lying flat. Being on the road, I enlisted
the services of my faithful servant to run the incubator in my
absence. Like all novices, we were much interested in the develop-
20 $4223.00 IN ONE YEAR

ment from day to day. At the end of the third day the eggs received
their first turning, and the next morning we turned them again and
cooled them for about ten minutes. The tendency was for the
temperature to rise the third week, when the chick had commenced
to throw off animal heat. By slight adjustment of the regulator we
had no trouble in keeping the desired temperature. We cleaned and
filled the lamp each day and trimmed the wick. In starting the
machine, do not overlook the importance of starting the lamp with
a small blaze, so that the blaze will not crawl up and smoke the
incubator pipes. Should this happen you should not neglect to see
that the pipes and heater drum are cleaned before putting the eggs
in the machine. The eggs should be laid flat, and under no circum-
stances allow them to be piled on top of each other. You will get
much better results by operating the machine in the basement,
because you can maintain a much more uniform temperature. If your
basement or cellar is dry, then place a pan of water under your
machine to furnish sufficient moisture.

Importance of Cooling the Eggs

The cooling is done by allowing the eggs to remain out of the
machine until they have cooled. If the weather is severe and the
room is cool it will not take them long to reach the desired tem-
perature. A good way to tell when they are cool enough is to place
the eggs to the lid of your eye, and if they feel neither warm nor
cold they are at the proper temperature to return to the machine.

We continued to do this until the nineteenth day, when the eggs
began to pip. When we saw the first egg pip we closed the door
and did not open it again until we saw the hatch was well over.
The first week we ran the machine at a temperature of 102% degrees,
and the second week 103 degrees. At the end of the third week the
temperature went up to 104 degrees or a little more, but we did not
allow it to go over 105 degrees.

Running the Incubator the Right Temperature

If the hatch goes over the twenty-first day it is because the
machine has been run a little too cold or the eggs cooled a little too
long. If the hatch comes off before the twenty-first day it is because
the lamp has been run with a blaze a little high. At the end of the
nineteenth day the eggs began to pip, so we realized that we had
run the machine about right. At the end of the twentieth day the
chicks had begun to appear, and at the end of the twenty-first day
the hatch was completed anc we were proud of the results. We had
ON a TOWN BOT, 21

hatched eighty-nine lively little chicks. It was difficult to conceive a
more fascinating sight.

Keep the Brooder Clean

The brooder had arrived and was made ready to receive the little
flock. I was always home on Saturday and Sunday, and took great
delight in keeping the brooder clean. We raised them all but two.
One died a natural death, the other was killed by accident.

After the first hatch was taken off I reset the machine and
hatched ninety chicks. It was early in July. The weather had
become very warm and they died off rapidly because I hadn't sufficient
shade to protect them from the hot July sun.

  

= ef - a ~ =

 

Type of brooder used wheu I commenced. These brooders prove very
satisfactory. Have been replaced by the Modern Brooder System, which
is illustrated on another page.

Preparing the Brooder for the Chicks

Soon as the eggs began to pip—which occurs on the nineteenth
day, as a rule—I commenced to prepare my brooder for the chicks.
Most all of the standard make brooders come “knock down,” or in
parts, with directions to put them together. It took but an hour or
two to put our brooder together and set it up in good shape; then I
was ready to start the lamp. I filled the lamp with good oil. It is
important to use good oil in the brooder as well as the incubator.
22 $4223.00 IN ONE YEAR

I trimmed the wick daily, as recommended by the manufactuier of
the brooder, and started with a small flame. As the brooder got
warm the wick was turned up a little higher. By following this plan
when the brooder is first started there will be no chance of having
any of the trouble I mentioned in connection with the incubator.
I have had trouble a few times, which caused me to be more careful,
as the job of cleaning the soot from the drum and pipe was not an
agreeable one. While my brooder was getting heated I saw to it
that it was sitting level on level ground. I then banked it up around
the edge with earth to keep the wind from blowing under the bottom,
and placed it facing the east, so that the chicks could get the early
morning sun. Next I hung on the wall of the brooder a hopper
containing fine grit, charcoal and beef scrap, then put about one-half
inch of coarse lake sand on the brooder floor. The next day I had
the temperature registering 95 degrees, which is about the right
temperature for the brooder to receive the chicks. I ran the brooder
from one to two days before the chicks were ready to occupy it and
found that I had little trouble in maintaining*a uniform temperature,
excepting when the sun was shining brightly, then I turned down
the wick. It is always a good plan to run a new brooder, as well as
a new incubator, a few days, to get it regulated before the chicks
are put in it. The chicks hatched on the twenty-first day, and, as
the weather was cold, I left them in the incubator another day toa
get well dried. Later in the season, when the weather was warmer,
they were removed to the brooder as soon as the hatch was well
over, as the confinement seemed too close for little chicks when the
weather was hot.
CHAPTER III
Care of Chicks

PART from the ccarse sand on the floor, they
require no food for the first two days, except
water with the chill taken off, when they are put
into the brooder, as Nature has provided for their
wants by the absorption of the yolk of the egg in
their bodies. I was amused to have a young man
write me “that he had a good hatch but had lost
a little chick. On examination he found it had

swallowed the yolk of an egg, which had killed it.” If the chicks are

fed too soon the yolk of the egg does not become absorbed in time,
and the natural result is that the chicks become droopy and die.

After the chicks had picked at the sand for a few hours I placed

clover chaff or chopped clover hay under the hover for bedding.

I use this because if they eat any of it it will not injure them. If you

use sawdust or something similar the chicks are apt to eat more or

less of it before they distinguish the difference between that and
what they should eat, and it is liable to harm them.

 

Don’t Chill the Young Chicks

If the weather permits, I allow the chicks on the ground for an
hour or two for the first time about the fifth day, or when they are
six days old. If the weather is mild they can remain out longer.
In cold weather care should be taken to see that they can find their
way back into the brooder, and not allow them to stand on the cold
ground and get chilled through, which is likely to prove fatal or stunt
their growth later. After they learn the way into the warm hover
of the brooder they will run in whenever they get cold. If the weather
is cold they should be tempered to the cold ground by degrees by
allowing them tc stay out longer each succeeding day for three or
four days.

Right Temperature the Third and Fourth Weeks

It is a good plan to keep the chicks in the brooder in the morning
until the grass becomes dry. They should be given green food of
some kind from the start. In case that green clover cannot be
secured for them from the lawn, some sprouted oats will make a
good substitute. On a subsequent page you will find directions for
24. $4223.00 IN ONE YEAR

sprouting the oats. As the chickens grow older the flame can be
turned down and the heat reduced by degrees. The second week
$0 degrees is about right for them, the third week 85 to 90 degrees,
and the fourth week 80 to 85 degrees. If the weather is warm they
will commence to desert the hover when they are five or six weeks
old and remain in the exercising room of the brooder. During the
early Spring months give them 80 degrees until they are six or eight
weeks old, and after they are ten or twelve weeks old the weather
has moderated sufficiently to take them from the brooder and place
them in a piano-box colony house that is described on page 55. I

 

 

Cut of brooder made from a piano box.

keep them in these houses until they are taken to their quarters.
The cockerels are separated from the pullets when they are taken
from the brooder. [I have the parks containing these brooders plowed
and cultivated every Spring and sowed with rape seed. This pro-
duces a splendid green feed up until the snow flies, and it also makes a
splendid shade. It furnishes them with lots of bugs and worms,
which are generally found on such plants. At one end of the park
I planted two or three dozen hills of sunflowers, which make excel-
lent shade and give a crop of seeds. It is in here that they have
ON A TOWN LOT. 25

their best times and flourish. When the cockerels are two or three
pounds in weight I sell off the culls to the market and the balance
are kept in these colony houses until the late fall, when they are
taken to their Winter quarters. After the pullets are four months
old they are put in their Winter quarters, in order that they will
not be disturbed when they are getting ready to lay.

Feeding the Young Chicks

From the beginning the chicks should be taught to work by
feeding them in litter, and it should be continued as long as they
live. On the third day I feed them hard-boiled eggs (boiled twenty
minutes) mixed with bread crumbs thoroughly dried, or corn bread
will make a good substitute.

At the beginning it is a good plan to mix the chick feed in lake
or any other coarse sand. This will teach them industry, and as they
scratch for their living it develops the muscles in their legs and
bodies and naturally makes them stronger chicks. For the first day
or two chicks should be fed every two or three hours. For the next
week, four times daily is sufficient, and then three times daily. It is
very important that the chicks are not overfed. When away from
home I found it a difficult matter to get anyone to feed the chicks
without overdoing it. It is better to underfeed them than to overfeed.
There is not so much danger of overfeeding when the chick feed is
mixed in the sand where they have to work for it. It is not necessary
to overfeed nor underfeed, if you will notice to give your chicks or
fowls all they can eat up clean. After they are a week old a hopper
should be placed before them containing beef scrap, bran, fine char-
coal and grit, a section for each. After the chick is two or three
months old a few handfuls of wheat can be added to the chick feed,
and the wheat can be increased by adding more every week until
they become accustomed to the whole grains. If cracked corn and
kafir corn can be obtained, feed a mixture of three parts wheat, two
parts cracked cern, and one part of kafir corn. This will make
excellent growing feed for them until they are four months old, when
any cther grains may be added that can be secured in the market,
such as buckwheat, oats, barley and any other grains that the chickens
will eat. A good formula to go by is to use about 50 per cent wheat
where three kinds of grain are fed and 40 per cent where more than
three kinds are used. The wheat can be easily secured in most
places. The grain is small, easily digested, and is rich in protein
and mineral matter. Corn when fed alone has not enough protein
and too much fat. Buckwheat and barley are also rich in fat. During
the Winter months corn ought to be fed in larger proportions and
26 $4223.00 IN ONE YEAR

should constitute at least 50 per cent of the feed during the cold
weather.
Green Food Necessary for Young Chicks

Green food should not be overlooked when chicks are small. In
the very early Spring sprouted oats make a splendid green feed for
them. As soon as possible, sow a bed of oats, cover the top of it with
one-inch poultry netting, which should be placed about six inches
from the ground. ‘The chicks will eat the tops off and they will
grow up again. Take six-inch boards and stand them around the edge
of the bed, driving sticks in the middle to keep the wire from sagging.
The wire can be nailed on the top end of the board, which will
make a good arrangement for this purpose.

The little fellows prefer this green feed to anything that you can
furnish them, and it is always there for them to work on. By the
time the oats are through growing the chicks will be large enough
to eat any green feed that is supplied them.

Charcoal and Grit Important

‘As the chicks grow larger it is important that they are furnished
with plenty of charcoal and grit of a larger size than they required
when they were smaller. The charcoal and grit can be secured in
three sizes—one size for the baby chick, a medium size for the
growing chick, and a large size for the matured fowl. Their Winter
quarters should be provided with a hopper containing bran, beef
scrap, oyster shell, grit and charcoal, a section for each. During the
Winter months, when the hens are confined, they should be fed
green bone, about three pounds to a hundred hens per day. Skimmed
milk, curdled thick, makes a good substitute for green bone. I get
splendid results without feeding mashes. But mashes are good if
not too wet. A mash moistened with milk makes fine feed for hens.
To insure the proper amount of exercise during the Winter months
it is best to put the grains in litter and compel the hens to scratch
for them. Green food must not be overlooked. When it is not con-
venient to feed sprouted oats, alfalfa meal, cabbage or mangels are
splendid.

Sprouted Oats a Great Egg Producer

Sprouted oats is the best green feed obtainable, and makes a
good cheap feed and is a great egg producer. The fowls are fond
of it. Feed at noon as much as they will eat up clean. To prepare,
take a pail half full of oats, soak in water for about one day, drain
water, and empty into a box with half-inch holes bored in the bottom.
Sprinkle night and morning with hot water. When oats commence
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28 $4223.00 IN ONE YEAR

to sprout, spread them out into other boxes two inches thick, anda
sprinkle twice daily with warm water. Keep oats well stirred
each time they are sprinkled, and in about a week or so they will
have sprouted. The length of sprout will depend on the temperature
of the room. When sprouts are two inches long commence to feed
to the hens, and by the time the sprouts are four to five inches long
you will have them all fed, and in the meantime have another lot
ready to feed.
Perfect Winter Quarters

You will bear in mind that the most perfect Winter quarters are
those that have conditions nearest to Summer. I do not mean that
the temperature shall be as warm as Summer, but to have other
conditions as near like what your fowls are accustomed to in the
Summer as practical. The sprouted oats, a generous box of gravel,
plenty of dust in their box, clean quarters, fresh air, and no drafts
can be had with little expense and trouble, and will make conditions
Summerlike to them to a large extent. If it is convenient, throw a
basketful of old plaster in one corner, and it will be surprising the
amount of this they will consume, and it is good for them, as the
lime is needed for them in the formation of the egg shell. This will
make a good substitute for oyster shell.

Automatic Feeders for Growing Stock

The automatic feeders are a fine thing for growing stock, or
breeders in the Summer time. When the flocks are confined to their
Winter quarters I would much prefer to feed in litter. The chickens
must be kept active to get the best results, and I find the best way
to keep them active is to keep them working in a good supply of
litter on the floor. Hopper feeding is all right to a certain extent.
The mineral matter such as oyster shell, grit, animal matter such
as beef scrap, and a dry mash may be fed them in this manner.
Keeping the fowls supplied with a dried mash in the hopper insures
them always having enough to eat. In case they are not fed suffi-
ciently in the litter they will finish their meal at the hopper.
If the chickens are always ready for you when you enter the pen
with the feed pail you will know that they are not being overfed.
If they are hungry they will flock around as soon as you enter. If
they are indifferent when you go in you will know that they are
being overfed. So it is time to cut down on their rations.

Don’t Force the Breeders

Care should be taken not to force the breeders during the
ON A TOWN LOT. 20

breeding season or any other time. The breeding pen should not
be fed wet mashes, because this has a tendency to produce the fatal
white diarrhcea in the chick. In case that the eggs are not as fertile
as they should be, it will be found that the male is so gallant that
he defers eating until the females have the feed consumed. In such
cases as this it is necessary to feed the male by himself once or
twice a day for a while, and every other day he should be supplied
with a little ground raw lean beef.
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CHAPTER IV

Poultry Houses
Open Air Houses Most Satisfactory

—)HE open air poultry house is now conceded by
nearly all prominent poultry men to be the most
satisfactory for the laying flocks. On page — will
be found illustrated the type of laying houses that
are used on Sheppard’s Chicken Farm. This build-
ing is 322 feet long and can be built any length
desired. It is 20 feet deep. One half of the front
is open. The opening is covered with one-inch
poultry netting on the outside; frames covered with a medium grade
cotton are worked from the inside so that the attendant can raise
and lower them and leave as much space as is desired. During the
fine weather these spaces are left entirely open. During the cold
weather, when the thermometer ranges from zero to 20 degrees below,
the curtains are kept down all the way. They also keep out rain,
snow or strong wind. There is no glass in the entire building,
although there would be no objection to having a glass window
every twenty feet, which would let in more light in case of stormy
weather when the curtains are kept down. There are very few days
that the curtain cannot be raised, and I find it makes a very practical
house without the glass. The foundation is made of cement and runs
below the ground level eighteen inches, and is fifteen inches above.
This stops all drafts and makes a comfortable place for the birds.
For the first two or three years I would recommend the earth floor.
After that it would be necessary to replace the earth with fresh dirt
or put in a wood or cement floor. The roof is made of a good grade
of paper roofing, the sides are built of double V siding and lined
with tar paper on the inside. The partitions are twelve feet apart,
and every fourth section is built solid of boards, air-tight. This stops
all drafts. Like all other poultry buildings, the laying house should
face the south. The front of the building is eight feet in height over
the foundation, and the back of the building is four feet high. The
dropping-boards are put in against the back wall and run the full
length of the building. They are about three feet from the ground.
Cotton curtains are placed in front of the roosts to protect the fowls
in extreme weather.

The studding is put in twenty-two inches apart. A door is placed

 
322 $4223.00 IN ONE YEAR

in the middle of each pen, the width of the studding and the height
of the opening. This door is made of one-by-two strips and covered
with one-inch mesh. It is fastened from the inside to prevent anyone
from entering the building, and is used for the chickens to go in
and out, and also by the attendant for taking the litter in and out.

Birds Singing in Zero Weather

It will be found that in such buildings as these, healthy, vigorous
and happy stock will be raised. I have stood across the fields fifteen
hundred feet distant from the houses in the dead of Winter, in zero
weather, and could hear my birds singing their merry song as in
the good old Summer time. The important features or the most
valuable assets the modern poultry house can have are plenty of
light and fresh air; and the open front is the one that fills the bill.

The Ideal Chicken Park

The chicken parks should be as generous as the ground will
permit. The ideal park would have a southern exposure. It is a
good plan to plant fruit trees in the parks, and these will furnish the
chickens with shade as well as the table with lots of fruit. The
parks should be cultivated often in the early Spring. If the parks
are long enough it is well to fence off the part farthest from the
laying house and sow it with rape. This not only furnishes the
chickens with an excellent green food, but also keeps the ground
sweet and fresh. It is important to have the parks built on high
ground as well as the houses. In case the high ground cannot be
secured, be sure that the parks are well drained, because the chickens
will not do well where they have to stay in parks that are wet for
several days after every rainstorm.

The Necessity of Cleanliness

Do not overlook the necessity of keeping the poultry houses
clean, and especially the brooder. The brooder should be cleaned
nearly every two or three days, and sprayed well with some strong
disinfectant. This will keep them free from insects and keep the
air pure. The litter should be changed often. After the chicks are
a month old it will be found easier to clean the brooder or colony
houses by throwing in some fine earth. This will prevent anything
from sticking to the floors. After they are three or four months old
the roost may be put in the colony houses, and by keeping in a fair
supply of dirt it will not be necessary to clean them more than twice a
week, as the earth absorbs the strong odors. The laying houses.
OF 4 TOWN LOT. 33

should be sprayed once a month during the Winter season. The
roosts should be painted with some good disinfectant every week.
A mixture of slack lime and crude carbolic acid will make protection
against vermin and diseases, but as the lime will affect the color
of the legs, spraying will be found more satisfactory where show
birds are being raised.

My First Eggs in Four Months

My first chicks were hatched May ist. On September 2nd I got
three eggs from my Ancona pullets. It was the first work they had
done, and I certainly was proud of them starting in so early in life.
They were just four months and two days old. I was not expecting
them to lay for some time to come, so naturally was surprised to find
the eggs.

IT had raised the chickens in little parks on the back of my lot
and had just transferred them from the colony houses to the Winter
quarters, which I had just completed. This building was a house
16x32 feet, which cost me four hundred dollars. Before it was
finished I had discovered my mistake. I found that I had built too
expensive a building for the number of birds it would accommodate.
A picture of the house is shown on page 34. There was room for
one ‘aundred and fifty birds, and a house accommodating this number
ought to be built for one hundred and fifty dollars and ought not to
exceed two hundred dollars. I had the building ready in August.
It contained four pens and I separated the pullets from the cockerels
and kept the pullets in a separate pen from the heavier breeds.

Imported the Best Stock Obtainable

I was attracted by the beauty and heavy laying qualities of the
other breeds, so I decided to get the best I could possibly secure.
I at once got into communication with the leading breeders of
Europe and America. After a thorough canvass I imported the best
birds money would buy from a prominent English breeder. I for-
warded my money by postal order for the required amount, and sent
a little extra to secure as good as I was expecting, and, if possible, a
little better. It took almost four weeks from the time the birds were
shipped until they arrived. It was a long time for them to be con-
fined in a small box. They came in splendid condition, and it is
needless to say I was pleased. I was expecting some magnificent
birds and they were even better than I expected.
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ON A TOW SS LOT, 35

How | Commenced Advertising

I now commenced advertising in two poultry journals by using
classified ads. At first I was somewhat disgusted with the results.
I was getting more letters from people who wanted to sell me more
advertising or something else other than inquiries from prospective
buyers. Ha, ha! It was not long, however, before inquiries for stock
and eggs were numerous. I got up my first circular, which was a
little 6x9-inch pamphlet, illustrating it with some cuts of Anconas.
It gave a short description of the breed and listed my pens and priced
my hatching eggs and stock. I started with two pens—No. 1 at five
dollars per setting and No. 2 at two dollars per setting of fifteen eggs.
I mailed my circular in answer to every inquiry, and did not fail to
write a short letter in answer to each inquiry, which read as follows:
“Complying with your request, I am pleased to enclose herewith my
circular, which will give you information regarding these great
layers.” To send a short personal letter with these circulars in a
sealed envelope with a two-cent stamp will be found to pay.

My First Order for Hatching Eggs

I soon received my first order for hatching eggs. The next thing
I was up against was to know the best way to pack them. After
investigating the matter I was informed that the basket was con-
sidered good. I secured a supply of baskets and after wrapping the
eges carefully in paper I packed them in a basket with excelsior
and sewed a cloth over the top. I give you my later experience in
packing and shippings of eggs on a following page.

Chickens Laying All Fall and Winter

I mated up my first pens about February ist. My chickens had
been laying all Fall and Winter, so the eggs were in splendid
condition to incubate early. I set my incubator about February 15th
and had my first chicks hatched from eggs from my own breeding
pens early in March. I commenced shipping hatching eggs the latter
part of February. At the end of my first fiscal year, which ended
August 1, 1907, I found I had sold hatching eggs to the amount of
seventy-one dollars. I sold a few cockerels to the meat market and
two for breeders. Adding these amounts to what I got for eggs which
I sold to the market, I found that my first year’s revenue was about
one hundred and sixty dollars, besides having a fine lot of little
chicks and a breeding pen from the previous season. I had thirty-
one hens and was surprised to learn they had earned a little over five
dollars each.
30 $4223.00 IN ONE YEAR

Increasing Advertising Increases Business

At first point the poultry business looked good to me, so I
decided to do more advertising the next year. By this time I had
stock to sell in the Fall and hatching eggs in the Spring, besides lots
of eggs for the market after supplying an abundance for our domestic
use. With the increased advertising came the increased amount of
business. I commenced my advertising in September. Inquiries com-
menced to come shortly after, and it was not long before I was
getting orders for stock, and as the season advanced the orders
became more numerous. It wasn’t long before I had sold all the
surplus steck. I continued my advertising through the Winter and
Spring for the hatching season. After my stock was sold I com-
menced returning money, and have been doing this very thing every
year since, because the demand was greater than the supply. I pre-
dict that this will be the case for years to come—in fact, it looks to
me as though the demand will grow every year as the people become
familiar with the virtues of these great egg machines. Soon after my
stock was gone inquiries for hatching eggs began to arrive. They
increased as the season advanced. Before the season was half over
I had all the orders for hatching eggs I could fill. I had reserved
enough of my best birds to mate up four pens, and could have sold
all the eggs from three times as many pens, had I had them. I hatched
more chicks the following Spring, as I wanted to get ready for a
greater demand the following year.

Good Results at End of Second Year

At the end of the second year I had more breeding pens than
ever, and many more chicks. I found that my sales had reached a
grand total of $542.96. I naturally began to think the chicken busi-
ness was all right. Before leaving Cleveland I had heard of several
men who had failed. I could see that their failure was due to
mismanagement or by wanting to get rich too quickly and starting in
too heavily. I could see that it was no fault of the chickens. They
were proving that if they were given a chance they would pay
handsome dividends on the investment and for the time spent with
them.
CHAPTER V

Pleasure and Profit

Y CHICKENS gave me pleasure as well as increased
my bank account. I started my third year with
more encouragement, and, as I found the poultry
journals were doing me a splendid service, I again
increased my advertising. I had raised a larger
flock and had no trouble in disposing of it again.
I mated more breeding pens and still found that
my supply of hatching eggs was not equal to the

increasing demand. At the end of the third year my sales figured

$890.51 for the year. In addition to this I had on hand a still larger
flock of chicks and breeding pens.

At the beginning of the fourth year I could see a grand future
dawning for this remarkable breed, so again resolved to increase my
capacity. At the end of the fourth year I found my sales for the
year to be $1,910.10. The demand had steadily increased the fourth
year, so I made still greater preparations for increased business for
the fifth year. I wasn’t disappointed in my expectations, as you will
readily see when I tell you that the sales for my fifth year amounted
to $4,094.00.

 

Sales $9,515.00 Sixth Year

The sixth year my business continued to grow, and at the end
of the year I found that I had more than doubled the preceding year,
and my books showed that my sales amounted to $9,515.00.

I kept about ninety females for my breeding pens, and about ten
males, selling off my culls for table use. I farmed out a lot of utility
stock to farmers. By doing this I was enabled to supply a heavy
demand for utility eggs that came from birds that had plenty of
range and eggs strong in fertility that produced vigorous stock. I
sold many eggs from $2.50 to $30.00 per setting, and raised about
five hundred youngsters. I followed the ideas described in this book.
At the end of the year I found I had sold $9,515.00 worth of stock
and eggs. My expenses, including advertising, feed bills, boy’s wages,
ete., amounted to $5,292.00, leaving a balance of $4,223.00.

These figures do not include the eggs and springers used on my
table. The eggs and stock sold to the market would run about five
38 $4223.00 IN ONE YEAR

hundred dollars. The balance of $9,015.00 was from sales of hatching
eggs, baby chicks and standard bred stock.

Gives Up Everything for Chickens

My first five years’ experience gave me an inspiration to drop
everything and go right into the chicken business. I was on the road
for one house, traveling the same territory for twenty years. Have
many warm friends among the people I visited, and after so long a
term I had a good business and enjoyed a fairly good salary, as well
as the friendship of several of the largest merchants in my line.
When I resigned my position on the road I was not only “passing up”
the rewards of twenty years’ hard work but was also losing the social
visits to all my old acquaintances on the road, and what was worse
still was the severing of my pleasant business relations with my
company. In the long years I was with them there wasn’t anything
that ever came up to disturb ou’ pleasant relations. They were very
good to me and I appreciated it. In fact, all the employees were
treated with consideration, and it seemed like one big happy family.
It surely did seem like leaving home to sever my ties with this firm.
My chickens were demanding more of my time, and I was really
forced to give up my road position or my chickens. I chose the
former and sent my resignation to my house, to take effect four
months later. When I laid aside my grip I wasn’t sure that I could
resist the temptation of making a trip. At first it seemed very
unnatural, but as time pressed on I became so taken up with my
chickens that I gradually became weaned from my former work.
Of course, I missed my old friends on the road who were so generous
to me. If perchance any of them read this book I want to say that I
haven’t forgotten them and shall always have pleasant memories of
them. Across the broad miles I extend the glad hand for a hearty
shake.

A Square Deal for Everybody

Whatever success I may have met with on the road I attribute
to my earnest endeavor to represent my goods just as they were
and try to give every man a square deal. I was taught early in life
that the real measure of a successful life is a good character. Of
what use is it to make gain at the cost of a good character? After
all, did you ever see a man who did not possess a good character
who commanded the respect of his neighbors and fellowmen? I
would not consider life worth living without the respect and fellow-
ship of my neighbor and fellowman.
ON A TOWN LOT. 30

Building Up a Good Character

If we want to be successful in life we should build up a good
character, which is more important than building a bank account.
I am here addressing the young man just starting out in life. The
older man with experience knows that it pays to be honest. The
earlier in life that we find we have something to live for besides
making money, and feel an interest in a customer besides getting
his coin or making a sale, the sooner we start on the road to success.
The more I mingle with the largest and most successful poultry
breeders of the country, the more convinced I am that the average
man in the chicken business is of sterling character. You cannot
build a successful business without giving every man or woman a
square deal. You will always find that it pays to be liberal. I do not
mean to hand over all you have when you run across a customer
who is not reasonable. In my experience in other lines I did not
find it possible to please every customer. The policy of my firm
was to be liberal, but I occasionally found men who could not be
pleased, no matter what kind of a reasonable concession was made.
I am not surprised to occasionally find such men in the chicken
business. They are found in all lines. Do your best to please your
trade, and then failure will not be your fault. As I discuss the
importance of a good character I find myself leading up to another
important qualification of a successful chicken man, which is
salesmanship.

The Science of Salesmanship

The science of salesmanship is as of much interest to a success-
ful poultryman as it is to a successful traveling salesman. This
is a subject that interests all men in nearly all avocations cf life.
The banker has his stocks and bonds to sell, the insurance company
has its insurance to sell, the manufacturer has his wares to dispose
of, the farmer has his products to market, and so on down the line.
There are two ways to make sales: first, by personal interview, and,
second, by letter. The man on the ground finds it much easier to
make sales than the man who has to sell by letter, because he can
talk with and size up his prospective customers, while the absent
salesman has to read between the lines the kind of buyer he is
dealing with. The average experienced drummer knows how to
approach a buyer almost the moment he sees him. With the mail
system this must be acquired by reading between the lines of the
letter. It behooves him to conduct his correspondence to get the
best results. It is here where many a beginner fails.

In preceding pages I have told of the importance of advertising.
 

 
 

FEMALE
42 $4223.00 IN ONE YEAR
Advertising is the forerunner of success. The journals have done
their part. They have brought inquiries to you. They have brought
prospective customers to your desk, and now it is up to you to make
the sale.

The Four Stages of Salesmanship

There are four stages through which every customer must be
taken before making a sale. First, you must have his attention.
Second, you must create an interest in what you have to sell. Third,
having created an interest, you must now create a desire for the
article; and fourth, after creating the desire you must have a resolve
to buy, or, in other words, have your prospective customer ready to
exchange the cash for the article you want to sell. You have taken
him through the first stages of salesmanship by writing a conspicuous
and attractive advertisement, by commanding his attention; and if
your ad is properly written you have taken him a long ways toward
the second step by creating an interest. To say the least, when you
receive an answer to your advertisement you have a reasonable
assurance that he is interested. Your circular or catalog and answer
to his first letter will be instrumental in making the sale, provided
it is properly worded. It will pay you to use a nice grade of stationery
and a neat and attractive letterhead as well as an elaborate circular
or catalog, as your business will justify.

Good Stationery and Catalog Important

While it is important to use a good quality of paper in your
stationery and catalog, it is far more important to have a good grade
of stock and a breed that has merit—a breed that every person wants.
You will then have something to talk about, something that the
other fellow will be glad to hear about—something that the other
fellow wants and will be happy when he gets it. When you have
quality you can talk quality and your good stationery will be in
harmony with that quality and the high standard of your stock.

By building your reputation on high-grade quality you will build
your business on a solid foundation and you will have a trade that
will stay with you. It will not be a difficult matter to take your
customers up the four steps of the ladder of salesmanship when you
have something to sell that is in demand. If you will bear in mind
the points I have mentioned you will find that you will not require
twenty years’ experience on the road to sell chickens and hatching
eggs, and sell all you can raise.
ON A TOWN LOT. 43

Found It Necessary to Move to a Farm

In preceding pages I have told you of coming from the city and
engaging in the poultry business in a small way. Year after year
the demand for these fowls has been so heavy that I have been unable
to increase my facilities sufficiently to supply the increasing demand.
At last I found it necessary to move from my town lot and launch out
onafarm. After looking the ground over thoroughly I found an ideal
location between Berea and Cleveland, on a suburban car line. with
a brick pavement from Berea to Cleveland. I first drained my farm
thoroughly, then commenced the erection of my buildings, and at the
present time I have buildings sufficient to accommodate three thou-
sand breeders, with the capacity of raising five thousand chickens
annually. In addition to this, I find it necessary to hatch chicks
and send them to farmers to raise where they have range of one
hundred acre farms. After erecting my buildings I set out my farm in
fruit trees. The fruit trees not only make an ideal shade for the birds
but are very profitable.
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CHAPTER VI

What to Do Each Month of the Year

HAVE told you of the success of my first five
years. I will now discuss in detail how I conduct
the chicken business for the entire year.

My year commenced with August, so I will com-
mence with the first and tell you what I do each
month. This time of the year is generally quiet
on the farm. I take advantage of this dull season
to prepare my advertisements, and during this month I place all my
contracts for the year for advertising. The chicks are well advanced
by this time, so I can see what I have to sell and what the prospects
are for the coming year. As grains are cheaper at this time of the
year, I buy up all the wheat and grain required for the season. By
doing this I find it very economical, and generally save quite an item
by buying in August rather than in December. By buying direct
from the farmer I also save the feed man’s profit, which is also
quite an item. I have also found it a good time to place my order
for shipping boxes, baskets and other supplies. If I waited until
late in the season to buy these things I might be delayed and might
not be able to get them when I really needed them.

  

Care of Young Stock

I find little to do with the stock during August, except to keep
them free from lice. It is very important that this is watched closely,
and especially the old male birds.

September finds the pullets ready for the laying house. They
should be placed in their laying houses early enough to get accus-
tomed to their new quarters by the time they are ready to lay. The
cockerels have developed sufficiently to admit of judging their quality
intelligently so the poor grades can be sold. It is always good policy
to keep the best for sale and butcher the rest. By doing this early I
have more room for my growing stock. The colony houses that
housed fifty birds comfortably when younger have now become
crowded since the birds have developed. By disposing of the culls
at the market the good birds have a better show.

Houses Thoroughly Cleaned and Sprayed

The houses are thoroughly cleaned, and buildings that are not
40 $4223.00 IN ONE YEAR

sprayed every month should be whitewashed at this time. The dust
boxes are looked after and plenty of dust is put in them. The nests
are cleaned out well and fresh straw put in them. This is done
every month or so, and should be watched closely in the Fall of
the year.

October brings the Fall rains. The litter is now brought in and a
liberal supply of straw placed on the floors. The fowls are glad to seek
shelter from the cold rains, and by having a good supply of litter on
the floor at this season of the year it is an easy matter to keep them
active and busy by feeding them grain in it.

In some sections the weather commences to become chilly early.
and October has placed her leaves on Summer’s grave. This will
remind us that the good old Summer has passed and the cold blasts
of Winter are near. It is time that we are making preparations for
Winter. All the buildings should be put in good repair for the rough
weather to come.

Orders and Shipments

By this time inquiries are beginning to come in, and with them
your first experience in salesmanship. I have discussed this at some
length, so further reierence to it will be unnecessary.

You will probably receive many inquiries before receiving an
order. The early buyer is writing for stock, and probably wishes to
buy a dozen or more females and a male. At last you open a letter
and out drops a nice fat money order for fifty or one hundred dollars.
This will encourage you and you will begin to think that you are
on the right track. Letters continue to come, and for the next few
days no order appears. You may become discouraged and think
that fortune has struck another trail, and wonder why you are not
getting any more orders. Of course you keep on answering your
correspondence and sending out the circulars. When you least
expect it, in comes another nice order. The next day two or three
orders come, and you will surely think that fickle fortune is
smiling on you again. In a few days the inquiries become fewer, and
a week or two have passed with no more orders in sight. You have
again begun to wonder what’s the matter, and the longer you wait
for the next order the more impatient you become. You are just
beginning to think that you have received your share of orders and
are about to conclude that your business is a failure, when the
number of inquiries increase and the orders begin to come regularly.
Every day now you get one, two or threes orders, and you find that
everything is coming your way.
ON A TOWN LOT. 47

How to Ship the Birds

The first order you have received is due for delivery, and the
next thing that you are confronted with is the shipment of the birds.
You probably have not laid in the supply of your shipping boxes and
you are at a loss to know what kind cf boxes to use and how to ship.

 

 

The above illustrates shipping boxes. These are light and have suf-
ficient strength to stand considerable rough handling. They are described
or another page of this book,

On this page I have illustrated a shipping box such as I use. This
kind of a box is very desirable because it is light and makes a
splendid advertisement for your business.
48 $4223.00 IN ONE YEAR

These shipping boxes I make in three sizes—No. 1 for a single
bird, No. 2 for a trio, and No. 3 for a pen of five to eight. The No. 1
size is ten inches wide, nineteen inches long and eighteen inches
high; No. 2 is fifteen inches wide, twenty-four inches long and
eighteen inches high; No. 3 is twenty inches wide, twenty-four inches
long and eighteen inches high. The ends and bottom should be made
out of white pine or poplar, and the sides out of extra heavy and
extra strong strawboard. The slats across the top are two inches
wide and should be put on about two inches apart. These boxes can
be bought with bottom and ends cleated ready to nail together,
including slats and heavy cardboard sides, at thirty cents for size
No. 1, thirty-five cents for size No. 2, and forty cents for size No. 3.

During the warm Summer and Fall months the fowls should be
provided with water in transit. This is done by fastening a tin can
to the inside of the box. In the cooler days of the Fall and Winter
the water will not be necessary if the birds will be delivered within
two or three days. A good substitute for water is to place a few
apples in the box with them and thus eliminate the danger of birds
having wet straw in their box by the water splashing from their
drinking can. Where the birds are on the way for over the third
day they should be provided with water. In the Fall of the year as
the weather becomes colder it is a good plan to tack muslin on the
top of the box to prevent them from getting their combs frosted or
getting in a draft at some transfer point. A space about two inches
wide should be left for the express company to water them.

Birds Need Extra Care in November

In most sections November brings the cold rains and rough
weather, and in fact in some sections the Winter is well on the way.
Many breeders are careless about their stock at this season, and
apparently do not take better care of their birds than the farmer
who allows them to seek shelter on the south side of a barbed wire
fence. The cockerels should be placed in their Winter quarters before
the weather gets too rough, but of course they can be allowed to
run during the fine days. The changes are sudden at this season of
the year, so it is a good plan to add a little tonic to their drinking
water. There are several good kinds on the market.

The snow generally arrives before December is very old, and it is
time that the birds are now confined to their Winter quarters per-
manently. Fall sales have materially reduced the surplus stock, so
the Winter quarters are not so badly crowded as was anticipated.
The early shows are now at hand, and it is time the exhibition stock
is conditioned for the show room.
ON \ TOWN LOT. 4c

Getting the Birds Ready for the Show Room

There is a great contrast in the work it takes to condition different
breeds. White fowls have to be washed, which is a lot of work in
contrast with the easy manner in which a colored bird is prepared
for exhibition. To condition them, all that is necessary is to wash
off the feet and shanks in water, sponge off the comb, face and
wattles with alcohol, and then apply a mixture composed of two parts
of alcohol, one part of glycerine, and three drops of sassafras and
five drops of sweet oil to each teaspoonful of mixture. This prepara-
tion may also be applied to the shanks after bathing.

I will probably continue to exhibit my birds during January.
The sales have kept up and the surplus stock is nearly sold off.
However, orders are still coming in, but the stock is reduced to
about what will be wanted for the breeding pens,
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CHAPTER VII

Mating Stock
The Male Is Half the Breeding Pen

HE fundamental point in mating stock is to select
good, vigorous birds. The male is half the pen
and should be a bird of good type; the baek
should be long, with a slightly downward slope
to the tail, with no apparent angle at the tail.
The tail should be carried at an angle of about 40
degrees, and don’t be afraid of the tail being too
low. The head, and especially the comb, should be

as near perfect as possible. The comb is the first thing that is
noticed in a bird and is naturally very prominent. The comb should
not have over five serrations; three or four is no serious objection,
because the tendency is for the points to increase in number. It
should stand erect, the blade forming a regular curve and leaving
the line of head and curving upward, free from all side spriggs.
Do not use a male too light in color. He should be dark, with as
little white in his wings and tail as possible. The shanks should
be yellow, or yellow mottled with biack. Females of good shape,
with a long body, with the tail carried at an angle of about 35 degrees,
good head points, comb of good size with five serrations or less, free
from side spriggs and folds, well mottled, with as few white feathers
in the tail and wings as possible. The shanks should be yellow, or
yellow mottled with black. If the male bird has a solid yellow
shank the female may have a little more black on the shank. A
combination such as this will give you splendid results. If the male
bird is very dark the female birds may have more white. By mating
them for a season or two you can determine what results you will
get from light or dark colored birds. The tendency is to breed
lighter, so it is a good fault to breed the birds dark.

The Rose Comb Ancona may be mated the same as the Single
Comb, excepting the comb. The principal point to note is to see that
the male bird is strong in the points where the females are weak.
If the male bird has not a good spike on his comb care should be
taken to secure females that are strong on this point.

Breeding pens to get best results should not have over fifteen
females, and if the male is not vigorous one dozen is better. I have

 
G2 $4223.00 IN ONE YEAR

seen twenty females mated to a good vigorous male with splendid
results, but this is unusual.

Catalog and Mating List.

The last of January the breeding pens are mated up, and the
mating list and catalog are ready to be issued. In compiling the
circular or catalog it is a good plan to give a history and description
of the breed; tell of their winnings and also describe the breeding ~
pens and give the prices of the eggs and stock. This is an easy
matter to do after some other breeders’ catalogs have been looked
over. The more illustrations in the book, the more attractive it will
be and the better results it will bring.

Shipment of Eggs and Baby Chicks

Before the month was over inquiries were coming for eggs and
baby chicks. I had about the same experience with these inquiries
that I had with the inquiries for stock in the early Fall. I found
that the mail had become quite heavy, and much of the time was
occupied answering correspondence. Before February was far ad-
vanced some orders for baby chicks and hatching eggs had been
received. My incubators were set and the brooders ready. I have
discussed the care of incubators and brooders at some length in a
preceding chapter, so will not dwell on it here. The time was due
for the first shipment of eggs, and it was important to know how to
pack them. There are many different ways, and different breeders
are indorsing different plans. The easiest way to ship, and one of
the cheapest, is by the use of the egg boxes manufactured by box
companies. On page 53 is one of these boxes illustrated. All that
is necessary is to wrap the eggs in paper and place in the section
for each egg. Scatter a little bran or chaff over them. Seal the
box and it is ready to go. This will do for a short haul. But if it is
going more than a few miles I would by all means put the box in a
basket and tie to the handle so it will not be tossed out. A little
excelsior or straw placed in the bottom of the basket will be a great
protection against any careless handling at the hands of the express
company. These boxes are more desirable for single settings. I
found round bushel baskets more satisfactory for shipping fifty or
more eggs. When orders run up to a thousand or more these baskets
are just the thing. Each basket will hold one hundred eggs. In
extreme weather I line these baskets with paper. I wrap each egg
in paper before placing it in the basket. The bushel basket should
be well lined with straw by distributing it around the side and
bottom of the basket about two inches thick to make a good cushion
ON A. TOWN LOT, 53

in the bottom cf it so that the eggs will not break. After the straw
is nicely arranged in the basket I start the first layer by placing the
eggs with small end down. This is the best way for the eggs to lie,
because it will stand shipment better than if placed on the side.
After the first layer is placed I scatter a little fine chaff or a little
fine cut straw over the eggs, then put paper on the top before placing
the next layer of eggs. This paper prevents the chaff from working
from the top layer down to the bottom. On top of the second layer I
again place the chaff or fine cut straw, and always place the paper
between each layer. I do not put the eggs too close to the top of the
cover. Room should be allowed for straw between the eggs and the

 

This illustrates the boxes I use for shipping hatching eggs. The one
on top is ready to receive the eggs. The one on the right is packed with
eggs and the cover partly on. The box on the left is ready for shipment,
ard contains 15 eggs.

cover. In former years I have used excelsior for lining the
baskets, but find straw more satisfactory, as it will keep out more
cold and be a better protection for the eggs. On page 56 will be
found the picture of a shipment of these baskets already packed. The
covers are fastened on with basket hooks.

How to Ship the Baby Chicks

The first shipment of baby chicks was due to go early in March,
54 $4223.00 IN ONE YEAR

The first hatch was off just in time for the first order. It was the
first experience in shipping baby chicks, and I was naturally puzzled
as to how to do it. Have received many letters from different ones
asking me for instructions in shipping stock, eggs and baby chicks,
so I am safe in saying that these are matters that bother everyone.
On this page you will find illustrated a box for shipping baby chicks.
This is a remarkable and splendid device for this purpose. It is not
only warm and protects the chicks against the cold, but also is very

 

Fig. 4. Group of day-old chick shipping cases.

strong and has a wonderful resistance against hard usage. These
boxes are made in three different sizes. The smallest size will
accommodate twelve to twenty-five chicks, the next size will hold
fifty, and the largest size will hold one hundred. The fact that
nature has made provision for the baby chicks to live without food
for the first three days of their existence makes it practical to send
these little beauties hundreds of miles with splendid results. I have
shipped them as far as three thousand miles, but do not recommend
ON A TOWN LOT, 55

shipping quite so far. I ship the chicks just as soon as they have
become dry and their down has become fluffy.

The second hatch, which I set for myself, was ready to come
from the incubator. The brooder was put in readiness and they
were transferred to same. It is remarkable to see how they thrive.
The weather was cold and I had to keep them confined to the
exercising room for the first week. They were anxious to get out.
The robins had returned, and with them Spring. When the fine days
come I let them out, as described in a preceding page, into their
sunflower and rape parks.

A Colony House from a Piano Box

May days had come and the chicks had been growing fine. They
were now large enough to separate the sexes. A colony house made
from a piano box such as will be found illustrated on page 24 will
make a comfortable and economical quarters for growing stock. I
removed the bottom of the box, then placed two pieces of 2x6 under
the box, sawed off the corners next to the ground, which will make
it easy to move. These pieces are placed about twelve inches from
the outer edge of the box and the floor nailed to them. I placed a
few bricks under them so that the box can be raised high enough
to afford the chickens splendid shelter on rainy days. I placed the
box on a high spot so that the ground was dry under it, as the
chicks prefer to go under the box rather than go inside during the
daytime in case of any rough weather. After I had the runners
secured I next divided the front, which was the bottom of the box
and is now open, by nailing a 2x4 between the bottom and the top
at the front edge. Next I nailed a 2x4 of the same length against
each side, on the inside flush with the front. This served to hang
the doors on. I made the doors out of 1x2 and covered with one-inch
mesh. If you are likely to be troubled with weasles it would be a
good idea to tack wire cloth on the frames instead of one-inch poultry
netting. This wire cloth can be secured any width and as fine as you
wish. The half-inch hardware cloth is sufficiently fine. These doors
answered the purpose very nicely until the weather became a little
cool in the fall, when I tacked muslin over the wire. After the doors
were on I covered the top of the box with roofing paper, stopped all
the cracks so that there was no draft, and next put in the roosts.
These I placed about ten inches apart, and there was room for three
or four of them. These boxes make splendid quarters for the growing
stock and will be a good place for them until the weather gets cold in
the Fall or until they are ready to be taken to their Winter quarters.

The colony houses can be placed in the parks or in an open field.
‘sido jo yuawdrys s,vup oug

 

 
ON A TOWN LOT. 57

A cornfield makes an ideal location on account of the shade and the
ground being tilled frequently, giving the chickens lots of loose earth
to work in and a chance to get earthworms. I used two parks for
the colony houses, one for the males and one for females. In May I
found the chicks growing nicely, and those of the large males that
did not promise to make good breeders I sold for broilers.

June End of Hatching Season

I continued hatching until June. I do not recommend hatches
after this month. If the season was favorable I hatched chickens
to good advantage in July. Orders for baby chicks commenced to
grow less early in June, but I found that some wanted them as late as
July. I was busy right along with hatching eggs, but the heavy end
of the business for hatching eggs was over June ist. Orders con-
tinued to come until October. Southern customers hatch many chicks
in the Fall. By the first of June I commenced to break up some of
my breeding pens and allowed them to go on free range. For the past
few years I have found it necessary to keep some pens mated until
October to take care of late egg trade.

My mail kept getting heavier from the time my first ad appeared
_ until it reached the climax in mid-Winter, when inquiries commenced

to come for stock, eggs and baby chicks. In the Fall of the year
inquiries were principally for stock. Before the Winter was half
over inquiries came for eggs and chicks as well. This made my
correspondence heavy, and I found it necessary to get some help on
my mail. This was a good idea, because it gave me more time to
look after the birds and ship stock, eggs and chicks. Toward Spring
the inquiries become fewer, and I was able to handle the business
myself for the Summer months. Many inquiries were written on
postal cards, but I found that these are worthy of as much con-
sideration as the ones sent by letter. Many good sales I made to
customers who first wrote on postal cards. It paid to answer all
correspondence as promptly as possible, and if some customers felt
friendly enough to try to put the contents of a newspaper in their
letters I looked pleasant and endeavored to answer all questions in a
careful manner.

The Pleasant Smile

There is nothing that succeeds like success, unless it is the
man or woman with a pleasant smile. The traveling salesman has
the advantage because he is on the ground, and his pleasant smile
indicates his pleasant manner, which 1s appreciated by a customer.
So in writing my letters I endeavored to always show the pleasant
DULILG AP Lal AM VPUDDINIG VY Wille A CUULLTUUD AllLU ABLTOCANLO LOLUTL,
Did you ever go into a store and find a very pleasant proprietor with
a smile that never comes off, and then go across the street and find
his competitor sober and grouchy? You are not surprised to find
the first merchant selling five dollars’ worth of goods to the other
man’s one. This shows what a pleasant manner will do. Since you
cannot furnish the pleasant smile personally, do the next best you
can and write one in your letter.
CHAPTER VIII

The American Queen

HE hen has surely made wonderful strides during
the past few years. The value of the products
of the hen is greater than the value of the entire
wheat crop. In 1900 the chicken industry started
upward with leaps and bounds, keeping up such a
fast pace that today it is only surpassed in value
by the corn, hay, and cotton. The Government

2 reports place the products of the hen at nine
fundies million dollars annually. The day is not far distant when
the poultry industry will be a billion dollar industry and will lead
the live stock and grain growing industries of the country.

The ordinary prophet cannot tell with any degree of certainty
what she will do in the future. There has never been a time when
the demand for fresh eggs and dressed poultry was so great. When
the price of fresh eggs goes up to sixty or sixty-five cents a dozen,
we wonder who will buy them. But still they sell, and the demand
is greater than the supply. There seems to be a market in all the
large cities for more fresh eggs than can be obtained during the
Winter months, when the prices are the highest. There does not seem
to be any limit to the demand. Prices have increased about 50
per cent during the past ten years. People are beginning to believe
that it is better to eat more eggs, even at a high price, than so
much meat. There has never been such a demand for pure bred
stock and hatching eggs from standard bred poultry as at the present
time. The prices that good birds bring are simply wonderful. It is
not an uncommon thing for a good specimen to sell for one hundred
dollars. There was a time when a setting of eggs at one dollar was
considered high. Now it is an easy matter to find many breeders
charging a dollar for a single egg, or fifteen dollars per setting.
They not only ask this price but get it, and the purchasers are satis-
fied that they are getting value for their money. There are a number
of breeders who are getting from two to five dollars each for their
best eggs. They are giving many years of expert breeding in these
eggs, and as a rule the buyer feels that he is getting all he pays for.

      

EXCSO PICA: (e

, ,

Good Time to Get Interested in Poultry

It is good time for every person interested in poultry to get busy.
60 $4223.00 IN ONE YEAR

If you have a place where you can keep a few fowls, make ready for
them and invest in a trio or pen of a good breed. From such a start
quite a nice lot of well-bred birds can be obtained by another year.
Considering the demand for Standard bred birds, it would be well to
get something good in quality. It is not necessary to pay such a big
price, if they are bought from a reputable breeder and he knows what
is wanted and how much is to be invested. If he cannot fill the bill
he will say so.

From this start a good-sized flock will be raised and be ready for
business in another year; then hatching eggs and probably a few baby
chicks, if you have incubators in which to hatch them, can be sup-
plied to buyers. There are always people in every community who
want a few settings of eggs or some baby chicks of some good breed,
and with a good breed some business can be done without much
advertising. Of course, it will be found that it pays to advertise; and
the longer you are in the business, the more this will be appreciated.
With this start you are now in a position to advance, since the first
efforts have been successful, and it is reasonable to suppose that a
much larger business could be handled successfully.

Fresh eggs and broilers can be supplied the market, or a busi-
ness can be made of supplying the demand for baby chicks in the
vicinity; or one could branch out, advertise more, send day-old chicks
and hatching eggs throughout the country, and develop a business on
pure bred stock by selling them in trios, pens, etc. After one breed
has been handled a while, proficiency in judging the merits of the
breed will come. Because of this, you are in a position to select the
best of your stock to fill orders, to make up breeding pens, or fit the
birds for the show room. Here a reputation may be gained that
will put you among the foremost breeders of your variety. This
cannot be done in a day, but persistent efforts are sure to bring their
rewards. There is a mighty advertising influence gained by the win-
ning of the blue ribbons. Some breeders have been so fortunate in the
show room in winning so many prizes that very little advertising was
necessary to sell all their stock.

Possibilities of the Hen.

The hen has possibilities, for you never know where she will lead
you. One thing is certain, and that is hard work, carefulness. and
caution are bound to succeed. I know of one man in particular who
started on a small scale, but who has succeeded year by year until
at present he has a fine plant and is doing a nice business. In fact,
I am acquainted with several men who have started in a small way,
ON \ TOWN LOT. 61

and who by their careful and industrious habits have built large
chicken farms from a very small start. Put the hen against time
and labor and she will never fail. Stick to the hen, and work and
care will be crowned with success.

For twenty long years I traveled for a large wholesale manufac-
turing company and am now delighted to say that I am enjoying a
much larger income and taking life easier. Although I am just as
busy as ever, I am enjoying all the freedom the world affords. In
place of being bound by the obligations an employee owes to his
employer, who pays for his time and efforts, I feel free to go and come
as my pleasure dictates. I dco not wish to infer that the average
employee is a slave bound by harsh ties. Not so. My employers were
very courteous and generous, and were men of splendid character.

I will venture to say that your employcr is equally good to you if
you are trying to be fair with him. I have nothing to say against the
employee who is doing his duty in an honorable avocation. I say,
“Stand by your employer and give him your best efforts, and remem-
ber, you will never receive a good salary until you earn it.” In case
your salary is not large enough to supply the comforts you desire for
your family, don’t become discouraged. ‘Hope springs eternal in the
human breast.’” I am sure that my experience may be an object
lesson to you. I would not advise you to resign your position and
expect to get rich by keeping a few hens. I would suggest that you
start in a small way. Buy the best stock or eggs you can afford.
Don't try to succeed by buying a five-dollar trio and putting them into
an expensive pen. Better buy good stock—if you have to keep them
in a piano box for the first year. ;

Poultry Business Offers Grand Opportunities

After you get started it is an easy matter to improve your build-
ings and add to them as your business grows. I believe there is no
business under the sun that offers such grand ‘opportunities as the
poultry business. Many a man packs his belongings and travels far
away looking for opportunity when there are golden opportunities
rapping at his door. I know of no business that pays as large
dividends on the capital invested as the chicken business. It
affords the busy city man much recreation after his hard day’s work is
over in the shop or office. It gives profitable employment to the
man whose health is impaired and who is not fit for strenuous life that
he was accustomed to in his younger days. Many a good housewife
has found the chicken business a great help in assisting her invalid
husband in making a living. Many a mortgage has been paid off a
62 $4223.00 IN ONE YEAR

home by the husband raising chickens before and after working hours
and at the same time enjoying pleasant recreation.

Opportunity comes to every man and woman once. To some it
may come twice or even oftener. Do not fail to make the best of
opportunity, as it may never return.

I will give you a short history and description of my favorite breed,
and will also discuss their habits and their utility and fancy qualities.
CHAPTER IX

Origin of Anconas.

HE first history we have of this remarkable breed
is from Ancona, which is a large maritime town
of Italy, on the Adriatic Sea, 134 miles northeast
of Rome. It is noted for its fine harbor adapted
for building and repairing ships. It is said to have
the finest marble arch in the world. Last, but not
least, it is noted as being the original home of
this great and noble breed of fowls. About half a

decade before this town became a part of the Italian kingdom they
were first introduced into England, in the year 1852, where they
have gained great prominence. In about 1890 they were imported
into America. They have made wonderful progress against the
strong competition of other breeds. :

The origin of these birds is not Known definitely. There is a
difference of opinion on this subject. Some claim one thing and scme
another. Most breeders agree that they have Black Leghorn blood.
To the average fancier it matters little what blood lines they have,
so I will not discuss this matter any further. It is results that
count, and it is their remarkable qualities we wish to discuss more
fully, and which I will refer to later.

 

Color.
Color of the Anconas

Their feathers are black with a white tip. The ideal feather
must be of a greenish sheen, dark to the skin, with a V-spangled white
tip, the white portion being clear and distinct. The defective points
most common have been white feathers in tail and wings, with light
undercolor. By scientific breeding these objections have been greatly
reduced in many of the better flocks. In fact, splendid birds with
dark undercolor, dark wings and tail are becoming quite common at
the largest shows. In these specimens the predominant fault is the
lack of mottling in some parts of the body, generally on the back.
The old Standard required a white tip on each and every feather.
This has been a very difficult point to produce. It is objectionable
on account of too much white having a tendency to make the birds
too light in color, which detracts from their beauty. The revision
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ON A TOWN LOT. 65

committee has changed the Standard to read a white tip on every
fifth feather. This will enhance their beauty and will doubtless meet
with the approval of a majority of the breeders.

Like all black varieties, purple barring is found and is objection-
able. The beak should be yellow, with black or dark shadings. The
iris of the eye is a bright orange red with a hazel pupil. The face
and wattles are of a bright red, with the face free from white. Ear
lobes are white or creamy white, although some red is found in the
ear lobes of nearly all flocks. The English breeders favor yellow
mottled legs. The American Standard calls for yellow or yellow mot-
tled. In some flocks where good dark birds are found I have noticed
that the mottling on the legs is a little uneven and a trifle dark, but
I have seen some very handsome dark birds with elegant yellow
legs, which is very much desired.

Shape.

They belong to the Mediterranean class. There are two varie-
ties: Rose and Single Comb. The only difference between the two
is in the comb. The latter variety was the first to be imported to
this country, hence they are more common than the former. The
Rose Comb variety are meeting with popular favor.

The true Ancona shape is similar to that of the Leghorn, with the
exception that the body is somewhat longer. This feature gives them
the advantage as egg producers. The male is very alert and strikingly
erect in carriage. His neck is long and nicely arched, while the
female’s is medium long and carried well up. Breast is full, broad,
and carried well upward. The male’s tail is full and carried low,
while the female’s tail is neat and carried well out. The proper
angle has been a hardship for the majority of breeders to obtain.
The inclination has been for tails standing too erect, which is espe-
cially true with the males, to such an extent that their high tails
bordered on the dreaded “squirrel” tail. I am glad to say that this
objection, like other faults, has yielded to skillful breeding. We now
have many beautiful males as well as females with tails at an angle
of about 45 degrees, which is considered ideal. The English fancier
has been breeding a comb with five to seven serrations, the blade fol-
lowing the lines of the neck. On this point the American breeders
differ more than any other. The ideal comb in this country has five
serrations, with the blade leaving the neck at the head and curving
upward.

Habits.

You ask, ‘What are their faults?” We know all breeds have their
66 $4223.00 IN ONE YEAR

faults, and Anconas are not without theirs. Their worst fault is
their tendency to wildness. This has been discussed and dwelt on
at such length by Ancona writers that it has been largely exaggerated.
Would you consider any fowl that can be successfully yarded with
fences five or six feet high very wild? You say, “No.” I have seen
dozens of flocks and haven't seen any yarded with a fence over six
feet high, and many lower.

A doctor in New York state wrote me on receipt of some birds
that he was surprised to find them so tame. This goes to show that
the general public has a misapprehension as to their wildness. I do
not wish to infer that they are tame like Brahmas, but I do wish to
correct the general impression that they are extremely wild. They
are active and can fly, but are not the wildest by any means. They
seem to promptly recognize the presence of any strangers in their
parks and are apt to resent the intrusion with a demonstration that
would be in great contrast, had the attendant entered alone with his
feed pail. On such occasions they are so friendly that they frequently
fly upon their attendant’s arms or feed pan and insist on eating
out of the pan.

During my visit to a city in the western part of Ohio I met a
prominent attorney. He invited me to go with him to see his
chickens. After driving out of the city for a mile we arrived at his
summer home. I found a delightful spot located on the Miami River.
The house is built on the river bank, facing a large apple orchard.
It was a hot Summer afternoon, so the shade was greatly appre-
ciated. We dropped down on the grass under the shade of a large
apple tree. We hadn’t been there long before the chicks came up to
get acquainted. In a few moments quite a large flock had gathered
from over the orchard. Presently a beautiful cockerel was perched
upon the lawyer’s head, and seemed to feel right at home. After
being up there a few moments he concluded that he would be more
friendly, and took up his abode on his owner’s arm, and from there he
walked down into his hand, where he remained until he was pushed
off onto the ground. When he was on the attorney’s arm I reached
over and stroked him on his back, which the cockerel seemed to
enjoy. He reminded me more of a pet lamb than a chicken. I
remarked that he was quite a pet. The lawyer replied, “Oh, yes! I
have several others in my flock as tame as he.” I suggested that the
actions of his birds didn’t indicate that Anconas were very wild.
“No,” said he, “they are the tamest fowl that I ever owned, not
excepting my Plymouth Rocks.” Continuing, he said, “I wanted a fowl
that was attractive and one that would lay plenty of eggs, and have
found these two splendid qualities in this breed. I am so well
ON A TOWN LOT. 67

pleased with them that I have decided to discard my Rocks and
breed nothing else.”

When I started to breed these fowls my wife was not an enthusi-
astic fancier. The beauty of these handsome birds has attracted her
attention, as they appeal to the refined and higher nature of all
members of the gentler sex. As months and years have passed, her
admiration has grown for our beautiful birds. She now enjoys an
occasional visit in the parks, and is capable of pointing out high-
scoring birds. She always takes much pleasure in visiting them in
their Winter quarters. When King Winter reigns supreme, and has
driven our songbirds to the Sunny South, away from the cruel, cold
blasts, our chickens sing merrily on in the Northern clime, regard-
less of how hard the cold wind blows. Their Winter home is one of
activity, presenting a beehive appearance, scratching in the. straw,
and singing away, when not busy in their nests.

As my wife steps inside of the pens she has been amused to see
some of the more friendly ones perch themselves on her arms and
shoulders. Now, my dear reader, do these little incidents I have dis-
cussed at such length sound to you as if these birds were wild?

A prominent Cleveland fancier told me a few days ago that he
has been experimenting with eight or ten different breeds, to ascer-
tain which was the best layer. After careful tests he is convinced
that Anconas are the greatest eggs producers.

At a county fair I was admiring a large exhibit of these birds.
One of the exhibitors was a farmer and was a warm friend of them.
I asked him how he liked them. He smiled and said, “I have kept
many different kinds of fowls on my farm during the past twenty-five
years, and haven’t found anything to compare with them as egg
producers.”

They are meeting all the requirements of the city fancier and
the farmers as well. I do not have to refer to the experience of
others, but can speak from my own. When the price of eggs is
high, I find my neighbors’ large flocks have gone on their vacation
some time back, while my faithful flocks continue to fill our egg
baskets very generously. Such work has been bringing the breed
rapidly to the front, until they have won favor with hundreds of
fanciers and owners of egg farms throughout the land. They are
fast replacing other breeds on large Eastern egg farms.

The demand for them has-been greater than the supply. Al-
though I have been doubling my capacity in both stock and hatching
eggs, I have been unable to supply the heavy demand. Each and
every season since I have been breeding them I have had to return
a great many orders I have been unable to fill.
  

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On account of their hardiness, the general fertility is strong. I
have shipped eggs three thousand miles which hatched 90 per cent.
I frequently get 100 per cent from eggs hatched near by.

They do not eat so much as the iarger breeds and lay many
inmore eggs. All writers and breeders agree that “it’s the hen that
lays that pays,” or the profit in our poultry comes from the eggs.
Occasionally we may find a farm paying dividends that makes a spe-
cialty of raising table fowl. While it is a rare case to find an egg
farm that doesn’t pay a profit. Where ohe man makes money selling
table fowl you will probably find ten making money on laying
flocks.

Tt has been demonstrated that this breed requires less attention
to produce eggs than other fowls. Many owners of small flocks
spend considerable time in feeding, by mixing hot and cooked mash,
frequently adding dope to force egg production. This is objection-
able for two reasons—first, because it is not practical for owners of
large flocks to mix and feed warm mashes, because it takes too much
time; secondly, because forcing is a violation of the laws of nature,
and injures the laying organs of the fowl. Almost any breed will
produce eggs under these conditions.

These fowl do not make such extravagant demands on their
owners, but will produce eggs liberally without mashes. They stand
confinement and cold weather well. Cold weather seems to have
little effect on their egg production.

Fancier’s Fowl.

From a fancier’s standpoint they are in great favor. The con-
trast of black and white in their plumage makes them very beautiful.
They are very alert and striking in carriage, and are very graceful.
They present such a splendid appearance that they seem to be on
dress parade at all times.

As a Utility Fowl.

All varieties (Rose and Single Comb) are hardy and prolific.
The females are non-settlers, few of them showing a tendency to
broodiness, being especially valuable as egg producers. They are con-
ceded to be the greatest layers the world has yet produced. They
are known as the egg machine. They lay a large egg. Pullets fre-
quently lay at four and one-half months. Four hens have the won-
derful record of laying nine hundred and twenty-eight eggs in
twelve months. By proper breeding they have increased their egg
record since then to the wonderful figure of two hundred and seventy,
70 $4223.00 IN ONE YEAR

which is a positive trap-nest record. In foreign government tests they
rank first.

Captain James W. Perrin, of Alabama, wrote me a few weeks
ago as follows:

“A pullet I purchased has laid sixty eggs in sixty-one consecu-
tive days, and seventy-eight eggs in eighty-two consecutive days, and
is still busy.” I am informed by the editor of a prominent poultry
journal that this is the world’s record.

A fancier in Minneapolis wrote me that after trying seven or
eight different breeds he has come to the firmest conclusion that
they have it on all others as to egg qualifications.

G. W. Idle writes: ‘‘Pullets hatched from eggs purchased of you
have laid an average of two hundred and fifty-six eggs for entire
flock for year.”

H. M. Lathrop writes: “The pullets hatched from the eggs I
bought from you last year commenced to lay in October and have
been steady layers since. They have been 400 per cent better layers
than my flock of Leghorn pullets, which were hatched from eggs which
came from the pens of the most noted breeder of this section. By
careful measurement they have eaten 15 per cent less feed than the
Leghorn. It is needless to say that I am more than pleased with
the result.

“Tam thankful for the fair treatment I have received from you.
Our neighbors are having the common experience of getting no eggs
at this season, when eggs are at their highest price. It has given
mea great deal of pleasure to show them my pen of birds and the
results.”