FOODS AND FEEDING 
seeds scattered in the litter. With the beginner 
there is danger of overfeeding in following this 
method, as it really is giving the birds two meals 
at one time. 
Two good mashes, for feeding alternately, fol- 
low: 
Composition of the Mash. (1) equal parts 
of cracked corn or cornmeal, ground oats, wheat 
bran, and middlings; (2) two parts bran, one 
part cornmeal, one part ground oats and three 
parts fine cut clover or alfalfa hay. Table 
scraps and refuse from the kitchen may also be 
mixed in with the mash. If ground beef scraps 
or other similar material is to be used, mix with 
this soft food—about one pound for twenty-five 
hens. 
A pinch of salt added to the mash makes it 
more palatable, and, besides, salt seems to be de- 
manded by the fowls in greater quantities than is 
supplied in ordinary foods. A little linseed meal 
in the mash every week or ten days is a good thing 
for fowls, while it may be fed every few days with 
beneficial results to molting birds or young chicks 
growing feathers. 
The best way to prepare the mash is to mix it 
thoroughly, in a pail or tub, with boiling hot 
water; cover with a heavy blanket, and then let 
stand several hours before feeding. If it is to be 
fed in the morning, prepare the mash the previous 
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