AMERICAN POULTRY CULTURE 



the fanciers of this country are engaged in the 

 business as a side-line or hobby, and not as an 

 exclusive occupation. You may ask almost any 

 fancier why he breeds standard-bred poultry, and 

 he will tell you that it is mainly because he likes it, 

 because the work gives him much pleasure as well 

 as profit; that the competition of the exhibition 

 hall is exciting and gratifies the sporting blood that 

 is in him and in almost all people to a greater or 

 lesser extent; that the acquaintances and friend- 

 ships formed in the show room are often valuable 

 additions to one's social life; that the work in the 

 breeding yard develops the powers of observation 

 and calls for close attention and deep study to con- 

 trol the influences which are ever present in the 

 work of shape and color production in their best 

 forms. 



The standard-bred poultry business has been one 

 of the three or four leading factors in what is, 

 The to-day, universally conceded to be one 



Importance of Q America's leading industries. Hun- 

 the "Fancy" . , f , , . 



Poultry dreds of poultry shows are now being 



Business held in America every year, and each 



one of these is a great bureau for the dissemination 

 of poultry news and matters, especially those rela- 

 tive to standard-bred birds. Six thousand birds in 

 competiton at one show is a recent record. 



At the show the fowls are found in long rows of 

 neatly arranged coops, and each one of the hun- 



182 



