1907- ] DISCUSSION. 91 



I suppose there are good many here who have made a start 

 at poultry raising. There may be some of you that are think- 

 ing of starting in to raise poultry, and it may not be amiss for 

 me to say a few words as to the best way to get started. One 

 of the first questions is whether it is best to buy eggs or to buy 

 fowls. If you pay five or ten dollars for a setting of eggs it 

 seems like a good deal, and, of course, you have got to take 

 your own chances on raising the birds. Of course, the time 

 of year makes a great deal of difference. Some people object 

 to attempting to raise chickens late in the season. No matter, 

 however, when you start, or how good the birds are that you 

 get, in about three years your birds are going to be exactly 

 what you make them. Let me repeat that, for it is an impor- 

 tant thing to remember; your birds are going to be what you 

 make them. They are going to be good layers, they are going 

 to be of uniform color, or they are going to be a miscellaneous 

 looking lot, and it will depend to a very large extent upon the 

 way in which you select and handle your stock. In the fall it 

 is cheaper to buy the birds. You can buy very good birds then 

 cheaper than you can buy them in the spring. 



Question. Do you think that a mechanic's wife, or the 

 wife of a professional man, can take up the breeding and rais- 

 ing of fowls for the utility side the best or for the fancy side 

 of poultry? 



» Mrs. Monroe. No matter who undertakes the rearing of 

 poultry there are certain elemental things which have got to 

 be learned and practiced in order to be successful. A great 

 many physicians now recommend ailing women to take up the 

 care and rearing of poultry so as to give them an employment 

 out-of-doors and get the benefit of the outdoor exercise. But 

 let me tell you something. No woman should do it unless she 

 likes the work. Unless you have a liking for this work, never 

 touch it. You must do it every day in the year, and when you 

 take up the utility or market side of poultry it is a question of 



