120 MRS. BASLEY'S WESTERN POULTRY BOOK 



"A diet of part corn agrees with chickens, but I have never yet 

 fed corn in any form to young turkeys but that sooner or later they 

 would give up the unequal contest. A little neighbor girl that had 

 a great deal of the care of turkeys said the -least little bit of corn 

 meal makes them die. She had learned this by watching them as 

 she fed them." 



1100 Gleaning Wheat 



It was my privilege to visit a turkey ranch in the San Joaquin 

 Valley some time ago and what I saw there made me wonder that 

 there are so few large turkey ranches in California. 



There were over 1100 beautiful turkeys gleaning the wheat over 

 many acres of stubble. These great turkeys had been hatched near 

 the barn in shed-like coops, under turkey hens. They were kept 

 in the yard until about five or six weeks old, when they were driven 

 out with their mothers upon the wheat stubble to rustle for their 

 living, to pick up the wheat that would otherwise be lost. All these 

 turkeys roosted in the open air and to this and the simple life, 

 working for and finding their own living, may be attributed their 

 healthiness. 



There are many beautiful valleys in California where turkeys 

 may be grown to great advantage by the hundreds and even thou- 

 sands, but even on small ranches a few may be kept. 



MORE ABOUT TURKEYS 



There is no need for any sickness amongst turkeys whatever in 

 California, if they are properly cared for, and I think eventually 

 California will supply the Eastern States with their Thanksgiving 

 and Christmas dinners, for they have there a disease among turkeys 

 which is so serious that it is decimating, and, in some places, wiping 

 out whole flocks of turkeys. The disease is called "Blackhead," as 

 the head in some instances turns black or dark colored before or 

 at the time of death. 



The Oregon Experiment Station has recently issued Bulletin 

 No. 95, by E. F. Pernot, on Disease of Turkeys. This bulletin con- 

 tains information of very great importance to the turkey raisers of 

 the state. It treats the subject of Blackhead, explaining the cause 

 of this disease, the symptoms, and treatment. This bulletin, which 

 may be obtained free on application to the Experiment Station, 

 Corvallis, Oregon, should be in the hands of every turkey breeder 

 in the state. 



In sections of the East, Blackhead has almost wiped out the 

 turkeys, and the same thing is liable to happen in this state if 

 proper measures are not taken to prevent it. 



I give here a brief summary of Prof. Pernot's bulletin : 



