146 City Homes on Country Lanes 



able hobby. He thought if it increased his income it 

 would be all right, but he had no expectation of aban- 

 doning his good trade and salary as a skilled electrician. 

 After a few years he became expert, and discovered that 

 there was a good market for squabs at popular prices. 

 Steamship lines and railroad dining-cars consume a 

 great many dozens daily. They are also in demand for 

 formal banquets — 6,000 of them having been used in one 

 single occasion in Los Angeles ; and first-class hotels and 

 restaurants serve them regularly. When Mr. King had 

 mastered all details of the subject, he was ready to drop 

 his hold upon the payroll and stake his future upon an 

 independent business. 



By the way, he does not think California the best 

 place to raise pigeons. He says New York is the great- 

 est market in the world ; and that the Southern States, 

 all the way from Virginia to Florida, where the climate 

 is mild, and where the markets of the Eastern seaboard 

 may be reached in a few hours' time, offer the finest 

 field. 



But the squab is not the only unusual item that will 

 come upon the luxurious table of the many in the future. 

 There are ducks and turkeys, both readily susceptible 

 of intensive cultivation. It is claimed for the duck that 

 it is untroubled by vermin and not subject to illness; 

 quickly reaches maturity, and always finds a ready mar- 

 ket. It is easy to handle. Fences 24 inches high will 

 confine it safely. Ducks are not largely consumed, ex- 

 cept by certain elements of our population. The reason 

 mure people do not eat them more often is because 

 they <io not get the chance. 



I am sorely tempted here to tell the story of another 



