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and that was, whether it was best to use artificial means 

 in the production of chickens, or be content to follow the 

 old and natural method. This depended whether the 

 raiser wished to produce poultry for the early or late mar- 

 ket. The speaker in referring to the best breed of fowl, 

 said that he preferred the middle Aveights, such as the 

 Plymouth rocks, as they were better for early birds. 



If it was desired to raise for the late fall market, the 

 larger birds were preferable, say those weighing five o^^" 

 six pounds dressed, as they brought a larger price in the 

 market. If poultry was raised for egg production, the 

 smaller birds should be preferred, because as a rule more 

 egsrs were obtainable from them. 



The greatest number of eggs which had been found in 

 embryo in a hen was 750. If a hen did not deposit her 

 full quota, it was a question whether it was best to force 

 her to do it. One of the greatest obstacles we had to 

 overcome was in breeding. We should get rid of our 

 Growers every fall and get some from a distance. He sold 

 eggs every spring for hatching, and this helped out the 

 expenses of the hennery very much. His favorite breed 

 was the Plymouth rock. Mr. Butler cautioned all against 

 going into the poultry business on a large scale. Begin 

 in a small way and then the great essential for success — 

 experience, would be secured. Every poultry raiser should 

 thoroughly understand the incubator before using it. 

 Poultry needed two sets of buildings, a summer house 

 and winter house, with plenty of yard room. The build- 

 ings should be high and roomy. The roof of the winter 

 house should slant toward the sun to make it warmer. 

 Carbonic acid gas was as dangerous to poultry as it was 

 to people and there is nothing that will create so much 

 carbonic acid gas as a hen. Ventilation should, of course, 

 be from the bottom of the hen house, and the speaker 

 thought the best way to secure it was to have conductors 

 run from within a few inches of the floor to an opening 

 a' the eaves.^ind the draft would take out the impure ait 



