WATER AND FEED 55 



losing the order for breeding stock either of the woman in 

 Santa Cruz or of the gentleman in Cleveland, but we wrote to 

 both that they ought not to go into the squab-raising business 

 if they were to be dependent on us for grain, that it was too 

 far to send and that if they would look around home they 

 could get what they wanted. 



Here in New England we feed to pigeons cracked corn, red 

 wheat, hemp-seed, Canada peas, kaffir corn, the foregoing 

 as a rule, and sometimes, when cheap, buckwheat, millet and 

 barley. 



It was formerly thought that whole corn was not a good 

 food for pigeons, on the theory that the old pigeons would eat 

 the large kernels and then, perhaps, feed them to squabs, 

 choking them. In practice, not one case in one hundred like 

 that will be found. Whole corn is much relished by pigeons. 

 They will eat it before they will eat anything else, except 

 hempseed, and there is no danger in using it. In many 

 sections of the country, we find, good cracked corn is not so 

 easy to procure as good whole corn. The grain dealers take 

 their poor whole corn, sometimes, and work it over into 

 cracked corn. Good whole corn speaks for itself and when 

 you buy it there is no doubt about it. 



All the time people write to us and say they never heard of 

 red wheat. More write and say they don't know what kaffir 

 corn is. Others are puzzled by hemp-seed, they have never 

 seen any. That is surprising to us here in New England, but 

 no doubt we would be just as surprised if we were in our 

 customers' places. 



Let us see if we cannot level up the whole country on this 

 question of feed for pigeons. As a rule, we say, feed the 

 grains which are nearest you. This country has its corn belt, 

 its wheat belt, its section where millet is raised. Buckwheat 

 is plentiful in another section. For your leading grain, 

 your staple, feed corn. The point to remember is to feed a 

 variety of grains. Keep this word variety in your mind all 

 the time in dealing with your pigeons. Their appetites do- 

 not grow keen on a monotonous diet, they will not lay the 

 eggs they should, and their health will not be good on it. 

 Vary the diet. 



In order to find out what grains are convenient to you, go to 

 your nearest grain dealer or country general store. The 



