152 Missouri Agricultural Report. 



"Squab Industry," by Miss Kinney, brought out the fact that 

 the popularity of this business had waned, because of the exagger- 

 ated statement made about its possibilities in the beginning, which 

 the squab-raiser did not realize. She especially liked them be- 

 cause the male parent took as much family and domestic responsi- 

 bility as the female. They paired for life and her oldest were 

 eight years of age. The young were fed by the parent bird from a 

 deposit known as "squab milk." Four to five or six weeks was 

 required to bring the squabs to marketable age, and they are drawn, 

 leaving the heads, for shipment. The sex of the bird could only 

 be decided by watching their actions at the laying season, when 

 the male bird drives his mate about for exercise before she lays her 

 egg, this being necessary to that result. They require a quantity 

 of water and always drink after each meal, dipping the whole head 

 under water. 



Prof. H. L. Kempster, in answering the "Question Box,'* 

 thought that the embryo in the eggs of the incubator indicated the 

 amount of moisture required, but at all times the sand tray should 

 be moist. He gave his opinion of a fireless brooder, but did not 

 recommend it. In moderate weather it may be used with reason- 

 able success, but at all times it requires constant care. He thought 

 from 18 to 28 days sufficient time to keep the breeds of chickens 

 from running together. The health of chickens depended largely on 

 the care given them. He said the larger varieties of birds were lazy 

 in their habits, the smaller kinds being more active, therefore better 

 layers. He thought it depended on what other rations were given 

 little chicks whether bran should be kept before them. He also 

 thought that raw corn meal was bad for chicks and would give 

 them diarrhoea; baking the meal improved this. Commercial 

 rolled oats spread on top of straw was recommended, and milk, both 

 sweet and sour, fed not alternately, was fine. 



Meeting at two o'clock opened with a talk by Mr. 0. R. John- 

 son on the farm management department of the University. Mr. 

 Johnson told of things which would simplify home management 

 and save work and time. To find exactly the expense of the farm, 

 home accounts must be kept too. To simplify this, he thought 

 classifying the labor of the day would help ; also a record of expense 

 of buying articles for the home, using a classified list. 



Dean Mumford, in his talk on the "Social Institutions of the 

 Country," said that he believed the Home Makers' Conference was 

 the most important which met during Farmers' Week, The chief 



