No. 6. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 25* 



A gentleman, Mr. Allen, one of the largest dealers in the city, 

 handling about ^300,000 wor^h a year, told me two years ago that 

 he had an acre of ground on his place, on which he was keeping a 

 hundred hens, and was selling a hundred dollars' worth of eggs a 

 month. Now, if any of our farmers can produce a hundred dollars' 

 worth of eggs in a month from an acre of ground, I would like to 

 know it. 



Now, my reason for taking up your time, gentlemen, is this: I 

 am a member of this Board in the interests of the Poultry Associa- 

 tion, and if I do not say something I shall feel as if I have not done 

 my duty by those who sent me here, and for that reason I ask your 

 indulgence for a few minutes. 



The census report of 1900 tells us that in 1900 1,981,699 cows, 

 valued at |.o6G,375,739, produced |472,276,293, or a value per cow of 

 $29.68, and of dairy products, |24.75 per cow, or 84 cents for each 

 dollar of the cows' value. At the same time there were in this coun- 

 try 250,681,673 chickens, producing 75,783,596 dozen of eggs, and 

 their product was worth |281, 178,035, or an average value of 29 

 cents, making the average product of each chicken worth $1.12, or 

 $3.27 for each dollar of value. There is $3.27 per dollar for money 

 invested in chickens, against 84 cents per dollar invested in dairy- 

 ing. Now, that is taken from the United States statistics. 



Now, then, we take into consideration the small amount of ground 

 that is necessary to support these millions of chickens, as compared 

 with the ground required to support dairy cattle, and we see the 

 gain there, as well. Then, they require only about one-tenth as much 

 expense for feeding and housing as dairy cattle, and our profits are 

 accordingly increased. The hen takes care of herself. Now, each 

 egg is worth at least two cents, and a hen will produce at least a 

 dollar's worth of eggs a year. 



Now, Mr. AVittman has told you — and there is no question about 

 it at all — that there is more nonsense written and put into poultry 

 papers than on any other subject. Now, I do not mean to say we 

 must not read poultry papers; but we must learn to distinguish be- 

 tween the sense and the nonsense. 



Poultry keeping has never received a proper amount of attention, 

 and is therefore not considered — and wrongfully so — as important 

 a feature of farming as dairying, or some of the other branches. 1 

 think the Farmers' Institutes should make it one of their .most 

 important topics, and arouse the interest of the farmers in this 

 remunerative occupation, and I hope they will not fail to do so during 

 the coming year. 



