AUTHORS' PREFACE 



book has been written for the purpose of furnishing the farmer and poultry 

 raiser with a convenient and effective source of information by the use of which 

 he may greatly multiply his poultry profits. 



Very few realize the magnitude of the poultry industry. There are about 

 600,000,000 fowls in the United States, or about 100 for each farm. These are valued 

 at about $250,000,000. The egg production is nearly 2,000,000,000 dozen annually, valued 

 at nearly $500,000,000. In Canada the poultry is valued at about $10,000,000 and the 

 annual egg production at about $20,000,000 an industry second only to the corn crop 

 and one which each year amounts to enough to build two Panama Canals, or nearly 

 $700,000,000. However, there is an exceedingly large and ever-increasing demand for 

 poultry and poultry products, both at home and abroad, for which reason the poultry 

 business has become so profitable that no farmer can afford to lack the latest knowledge 

 necessary to substantially increase his profits. Of all live stock, the poultry flock is 

 most often poorly cared for and misunderstood. The material used in this book is 

 entirely practical. In its preparation an earnest effort has been made to lay the 

 foundation for a still greater poultry industry. 



It is the opinion of the author that if the farmers realized the value of this great 

 industry and the profit in it, when managed in up-to-date methods, they would give 

 the matter far more attention. Surely if every farmer knew that the average hen 

 is only half producing, if he knew that this three-quarter billion dollar industry could, 

 with a little more care and management, be made into a one and a half billion dollar 

 industry, he would feel like doing his part and make his share of the profits. 



I have long realized the great need of education among farmers on the scientific 

 breeding, feeding and handling of poultry. The farmer should fully realize that the 

 hen bred for a purpose is just as much a necessity on his farm if he would get the best 

 results from his poultry as is the bacon- hog in his pasture or the cow bred for a purpose 

 in his barn; that the pure bred hen is no more subject to disease than the speckled 

 hen of his forefathers. While the latter hen may possibly lay 60 eggs a year, the modern 

 hen bred for egg production will more than double that yield with no more care. 

 Artificial incubation and the scientific selection of breeds adapted to a specific purpose 

 have wrought wonders in the development of the industry. 



It has been my aim to gather together the most practical knowledge gained in my 

 own experience and 1 put it in such plain, simple language that everybody would enjoy 

 reading it, and in such a form that the points may be easily found. Although 'getting 

 a large number of these ideas from my own personal knowledge and experience, I have 

 freely read and consulted the works of other well-known authors, and here I want to 

 acknowledge my indebtedness to the following men for the splendid ideas obtained 

 from their writings: Prof. James E. Rice, of Cornell University, Ithaca, N. Y.; Prof. 

 James Dryden, Jr., of Oregon State Agricultural College, Corvallis, Oregon; E. J. 

 Wortley, E. P. Clayton, of Mississippi State Agricultural College, and Miller Purvis, 

 Sunnycrest Farm, Wendell, Idaho. Besides the works of these authors, I have had 

 access to the leading poultry journals of the country, the splendid information put out 

 by the Government and the International Harvester Company; also that gained from 

 the farmers and poultrymen from all over the United States and Canada. It might 

 be well for me to state to my readers that I answer inquiries every week from poultry 

 raisers all over the country. These inquiries are answered by personal letter as well 

 as through our large papers and journals. 



Because of my many years of practical experience on my large poultry farm here 

 at New Decatur, Alabama, where I am now actively engaged in the poultry business, 

 and from the many inquiries I have received from the farmers and poultry raisers all 

 over the country, I have had the opportunity to discover the practical needs of the 

 average poultry raiser. For this reason and on account of the insight into the needs 

 of the industry gained as a judge at many of the largest poultry shows of the country, 



