No. 4.] POULTRY KKKPING. 51 



iu isiiiall uiiinbers uu the average Now Eiigiaiid farm, they 

 require but a small expenditure for their maintenance and 

 care. Much of their living in sunnuer time can b(^ obtained 

 from the fields over which they roam. During winter, pro- 

 vided with suitable housing to protect them from cold and 

 dampness, they are able to utilize as food much that would 

 be of little use to other kinds of farm animals, and return 

 in product a larger income for their care and food than 

 other farm stock usually does. 



The magnitude of the poultry industry as a national en- 

 terprise is astounding. At the risk of being tedious, I be- 

 lieve it will pay us to briefly consider some of the figures. 

 It is to bo regretted that we have no later statistics for the 

 whole country than those contained in the twelfth census. 

 These ha\e been collated by George F. Thompson, and pub- 

 lished in the Year Book of the United States Department of 

 Agriculture. In the consideration of these figures it is to 

 be remcinl)ered that they apply to the jxniltry ke[)t upon 

 farms, and in no way relate to that part of the industry 

 represented by the interests of suburban ])oultry keepers, 

 which constitutes no inconsideralile part of the total income 

 derived from this branch of our agriculture. 



In 1000 there were in the United States 5,739,057 farms 

 on which poultry were kept. The total ])oultry population 

 on these farms, including turke3^s, ducks and geese, nund)ered 

 no less than 250,681,593 individuals, thus allowing an aver- 

 age of 42 birds to each farm. The value of these birds 

 amounted to $85,794,990. The value of their product in 

 poultry was $136,891,877; in eggs, $144,286,370; plus the 

 value of the fowls themselves, $85,794,996 ; making a grand 

 total of $366,073,243. 



The leading State in the industry for the year covered by 

 the census was Illinois, with a jxiulti-v and e^s; product val- 

 ued at $20,250,000; Iowa came second, $19,508,526; Mis- 

 souri third, $17,840,623; Pennsylvania fourth, $16,231,- 

 968; Indiana fifth, $15,614,937. 



Our own jNlassachusetts, intermediate in the list, although 

 not to be considered an agricultural State when compared 

 with some of those of the west, nevertheless makes a credit- 



