8 BIGGLR POUIvTRY BOOK. 



have received the widest recognition by all interested 

 in the poultr}^ indnstry. I could do nothing better 

 than to draw largely upon him, augmenting his prac- 

 tical information with trimmings from my own obser- 

 vation and experience, and with suggestions from the 

 women folks and from Tim. 



Great pains have been taken with the illustrations, 

 and those having charge of this feature of the book 

 deserve much praise for the skill, taste and originality 

 displayed. They certainly have done wxll. The beau- 

 tiful and life-like pictures set off the l)Ook in fine 

 style and raise it far above the level of the common- 

 place. 



The paintings for the colored prints were made 

 from life from birds in the yards of l)reeders or on 

 exhibition at the poultry shows, by Louis P. (Traham, 

 a young Philadelphia artist possessing a high order of 

 talent. They are as true to nature and the ideal 

 bird as it is possible to make them. 



Few people have an adequate idea of the impor- 

 tance of the poultry business in this countr}-. It is 

 estimated that there are in the United vStates over 

 three hundred millions of chickens and thirty millions 

 of other domestic fowls. There are produced in one 

 year nearly one Ijillion dozen eggs of an average 

 worth of ten cents per dozen, making the annual 

 value of the total egg product one hvxndred million 

 dollars. If in addition to this the yearly product of 

 poultry meat is considered, the importance of this 

 branch of rural economy will l)e more fully appre- 

 ciated. 



A pound of eggs or a pound of poultry can be 



