622 



Missouri Agricultural Report. 



means you are able to select your heaviest laying pullets, and if 

 they come up to the standard in size, type and color, carry them 

 over for the next breeding season. While two-year-old hens 

 are rarely so productive of eggs as in their first year, they are 

 our strongest breeders. Too many make the mistake of dis- 

 carding all their hens and retaining only the pullets, and there 

 are also those who keep their hens long after they have out- 

 lived their usefulness. Here again the trap nest pays, for 

 there is no economy in feeding a hen which does not lay. 



It is not always practical for farm wives with their numerous 

 cares and responsibilities to trap-nest their hens, but where 

 this practice can be carried on, at least during the breeding 

 season, you will find it most satisfactory. 



We are no longer satisfied to give to our birds what we m.ay 

 have at hand and accept in return the best the hens can make 

 of it; but by close and careful study, and, perhaps, a few experi- 

 ments of our own, find just what food is best adapted to heaviest 

 egg production, for after all it is eggs we want whether we are 

 devoting our attention to the fancy or utility side of poultry 

 culture. We must of necessity have a certain amount of utility 

 along with the fancy or we make little progress in either line. 



It has been suggested that the women of our State under- 

 take an egg laying contest in their own home under the direction 

 of the Missouri home makers, and I feel this will very largely in- 

 crease the interest in farm poultry and thereby bring about 

 better conditions. 



