250 POULTRY BREEDING 
beginner knows exactly what kind of stock his fowls are 
bred from. From two hens and a cock it is entirely pos- 
sible to hatch 100 chicks during the season, without be- 
ginning too early or continuing too late into the summer. 
Of these one-half would be cockerels and probably one- 
half the pullets would not be good enough to breed from, 
but they would be as good for laying as any. Counting 
the chicks worth 25 cents each the day they are hatched, 
which is a fair price for chicks from good stock, the be- 
ginner can afford to pay $25 for a trio of fowls, and this 
amount should procure a very good trio with which to 
start. 
With $25 to invest the beginner can buy from 100 to 
200 eggs for hatching from reliable breeders. Of these 
it is safe to count on about two-thirds hatching with the 
same reductions for cockerels and inferior pullets as in 
the case of buying fowls. As fowls mature and come into 
profit-making within six months from the time the eggs 
are laid, the matter of making a start does not much 
matter. If either method is chosen the beginner will 
begin to receive returns before the end of the first year 
and the rapid increase among fowls makes it possible to 
build up a large flock within the limits of two seasons, 
and as the difference between the two methods is not 
enough to be of first importance the beginner may safely 
adopt either without fear of going far wrong. If cir- 
cumstances point to one method as being more con- 
venient than the other the more convenient should be 
followed. 
POULTRY DROPPINGS.—Discussing the fertilizer 
value of poultry droppings the New Hampshire Experi- 
ment Station says: “As is well known when poultry 
droppings accumulate under the roost and when they are 
