VALUE. OF VISITING POULTRY PLANT5. 85 



the subject much attention. One of the most convenient plants I ever saw finally took shape 

 on a spot that would generally have been condemned as quite unsuited for the laying out of a 

 model plant. The man who planned it was much above the average in intelligence and invent- 

 iveness, but the plan as ultimately worked out did not corne to him all at once. 



So I feel that in a lesson an this subject the most that I can do for a poultry-man of some 

 experience is to tell him what some others have done, and perhaps remind him of a few points 

 he has overlooked. And for the beginner the most that I can do is to give him a general idea 

 of how several good plants have been laid out, suggest for his consideration a number of points, 

 and urge him to go slow, to take his time, not to plan too far beyond his necessities, and in his 

 building to consider how far each part of the plant constructed can be adapted to changes. If 

 the first buildings are of light and simple construction they may either be moved about or torn 

 down and the materials worked over into other buildings with very little loss. If they are 

 expensive buildings of very substantial construction they must either be used as they are or 

 remodeled at an expense which not infrequently is as great as the cost of new cheap houses. 



A most important thing for the person whxTexpects to lay out a poultry plant is to visit as 

 many plants as possible and study them, not so much with the idea of making a model plant, 

 combining the best features of tbem all, but to find out how in the light of the owner's experi- 

 ence each plant answers the expectations with which it was planned. This gives one a better 

 idea of the things that affect operations differently under different circumstances. It also gives 

 one a better insight into the adaptability of different styles of houses and systems of poultry 

 culture to different locations, and of the possibilities of tracts of land containing features not 

 generally regarded as desirable for a poultry farm. 



If one has the opportunity to visit a large poultry farm again and again at different seasons, 

 he can get a very much better comprehension of the good and bad points of its plan. If he is 

 learning the business and can make himself something of a journeyman working for a season 

 on each of several good plants, he should be able, if he is constantly studying the subject for 

 himself, to get something of the best out of each method and plan, and thus bring to his own 

 plan when the time comes to make it a practical combination of good methods and features 

 which it is rarely possible for those who plan without having had practical experience to make. 



