32 POULTRY FARMING 



a surer income, year after year, on the money invested than any 

 other business with which the farmer is connected. The time has 

 passed when it was the unanimous opinion that poultry does not 

 pay. There are too many men actively engaged in it and making a 

 comfortable living, as well as too great a number with yearly incomes 

 well up into the thousands, for there to be any doubt in the matter. 

 It has been proved over and over again that failure cannot be laid 

 to the business, but to the man at the head of the business. 



There is no danger of the business being overdone for many 

 years to come, because the demand is greatly ahead of the supply 

 and is constantly on the increase. The United States is compelled 

 to import millions of dozens of eggs, besides other poultry products, 

 each year to keep up with the demand. There have been times 

 when the prices would fluctuate out of season, due to speculation 

 in cold-storage products, but with better laws governing the storage 

 of products this becomes less possible. There need never be any 

 fear of large combines being formed to " freeze out " the small 

 producer, because the industry is composed of thousands of small 

 units, and the middleman or dealers must have their products. 



It is possible to make enormous profits from the poultry busi- 

 ness, some of our noted breeders making $30,000 or over in one 

 year. On the other hand, there are men who, to all outward 

 appearances equally as well fitted for the work, have lost that 

 much on poultry in a very short time. 



Great mistakes are made by the uninitiated in figuring profits 

 on paper. The enthusiastic amateur will usually work it out as 

 follows: One hen will lay twelve dozen eggs a year, which at 

 twenty-five cents a dozen will bring in three dollars. It costs one 

 dollar to feed her, which will leave a profit of two dollars per hen 

 per year. If five hundred hens are kept, they will return a profit 

 of $1,000, and if one thousand hens, $2,000; and so on until he 

 knows he is to be a millionaire. This is not meant to show that 

 this rate of profit cannot be realized. In fact many of our experi- 

 enced poultrymen are doing better, but it is only after years of 

 experience. Therefore, the best advice to the amateur would be 

 to start in a small way and find out by actual experience just what 

 can be made out of the business. In this way experience may be 

 gained without having to pay dearly for it, as would be the case 

 in a heavy first investment. 



Profit depends largely on cost and methods of feeding. The 

 cost of poultry feed has risen considerably during recent years. 



