SECTION I. 



THE MATURE FLOCK 



CHAPTER I. 



HOW TO START. 



A WELL KNOWN American humorist once said, "The 

 way to start is to begin," and that applies as well to 

 poultry keeping as to any other enterprise. There is 

 no rule or set of rules for starting in this business which, if 

 followed, will guarantee success, or which, if neglected, is sure 

 to be followed by failure. How well one applies himself to 

 the details of the work and how well he understands the busi- 

 ness is far more important and necessary to his success than 

 that he start at any particular time or according to any particu- 

 lar plan or system. 



Selecting the Breed. Undoubtedly the first thing to do is 

 to decide on a variety which has a special appeal to the person 

 about to take up the work of breeding standard-bred fowls. 

 If he decides to breed Plymouth Rocks, he has his choice of 

 all the varieties of that breed which are described in this vol- 

 ume and all of these will give perfect satisfaction if properly 

 bred, housed and cared for. As all varieties are required to 

 have the same shape, the matter of choice is merely one of 

 color. As it is a generally accepted fact that a breeder will do 

 best with the kind he likes best, it is by all means advisable to 

 select the variety of Plymouth Rocks which appeals most to 

 him on account of its plumage, bearing in mind that in selling 

 eggs and stock for breeding purposes, and stock for exhibition, 

 there is more demand for the popular varieties than those that 

 are not so popular. 



While many contend that the first thing to do is to build 

 and properly equip quarters for fowls or chicks, it is true that 

 there is no real poultry keeping or poultry breeding until one 

 possesses the chicks or fowls. Many a poultry breeder who 

 now occupies a prominent position in the poultry world started 

 by buying a setting of eggs at a time when he possessed no 

 more equipment than a sitting hen and a box in which to make 



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