252 



BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



[Pub. Doc. 



This work, together with a correspondence course, or a system- 

 atic reading course, and a few live poultry journals, does much 

 to fit one for independent poultry farming. The immensity of 

 back-yard poultry farming in Massachusetts can readily be 

 realized from the fact that 5,000 people within the city of Bos- 

 ton applied for a license this winter to keep poultry. If these 

 applicants keep, on an average, 20 hens each it means that 

 there are 100,000 hens in the city of Boston alone. If 100,000 

 hens are kept within this congested area imagine what the 

 total must be for all the cities, towns and villages of the State. 

 The profits made from these flocks are often astonishing, as the 

 following data from three poultry raisers will show. 



Not long ago I was introduced to a boy twelve years of age 

 who had the reputation of being a good poultryman. He told 

 me of his wonderful success, and I asked him to send me com- 

 plete data on his poultry work. As he complied with my re- 

 quest I have all the principal facts at hand. He bought 9 

 pullets and 1 male June 13, 1913, and sold out January 29, 1914, 

 seven and a half months later. During that time he made a 

 net profit of $55.17, not counting labor. He should have given 

 each hen credit for 18 cents' worth of poultry manure. The 

 profits were made by selling eggs for table use and hatching 

 purposes, baby chicks and half-grown stock. 



Data on 16 Pullets for One Year. 

 Income: — 



Eggs (3,259), S130 17 



Hens, 16 00 



Droppings, 5 60 



Gross income, ^151 77 



