18 THE CALL OF THE HEN. 



To further impress on your mind the difference between 

 poultry and other stock, I would say that while some individual 

 cattle of the various beef breeds will not be a paying propo- 

 sition, the only safe plan is to select your feeders from the 

 beef family; and while some Jersey cows will not pay as 

 butter-producers, still, as a breed, they are among the best 

 for that purpose. Though some trotting horses do not make 

 good, as a rule they will carry you over the road in good time, 

 and though some draft-type teams are not sure pullers, they 

 are a success as a class. 



The same general laws apply to all animal nature. The 

 hen is no exception, only in this respect: that while cattle 

 and horses have been bred so that as a rule novices can 

 select the type they wish by selecting the breed, hens have 

 not been bred that way. We have what purport to be egg 

 breeds and dual-purpose breeds. The first are supposed to 

 be a paying proposition as a whole for egg-production. The 

 latter are supposed to be a paying proposition for both eggs 

 and meat combined; some breeders claiming that their breed 

 will give you the very largest number of eggs per year and the 

 greatest weight of flesh all in one bird. Now, these claims 

 are misleading. It is an utter physical impossibility for any 

 hen to be a typical egg type and at the same time be a typical 

 meat type. It is against the laws of Nature. We have the 

 Leghorns, Minorcas, Spanish, and a number of other Med- 

 iterranean breeds that are called "egg type." While the 

 truth is, that while they have been bred as best the breeders 

 knew how along the lines of egg-production, you can find 

 vast numbers that will not lay eggs enough to pay for the feed 

 they eat. Great numbers in some flocks have all the char- 

 acteristics of the beef type, and will lay about three or four 

 dozen eggs per year and sometimes not over a dozen. The 

 Plymouth Rocks, Orpingtons, Wyandottes, and Langshans 

 are classed as "dual-purpose" breeds, which means hens that 

 will lay a medium number of eggs and give a good large 

 carcass for the table; and while this is true in a majority of 

 cases, I have seen numerous specimens that laid, over two 

 hundred and fifty eggs per year, while some would lay little 

 or nothing. In fact, while I have bred Leghorns for more 

 than forty years, and they are my favorite breed, I must 

 say I have found as good layers (within a few eggs) in all 



