CHAPTER XIII 
GENERAL INFORMATION 
O matter for what purpose kept, the con- 
N dition of the adult fowls lies at the very 
foundation of the success or ultimate 
failure of a poultry plant. If the hens are kept 
merely to produce a large number of eggs, they 
Healthy Stock must be forced with this idea in view 
isa Prime _in order to yield maximum profits, and 
aia no fowl! will stand forcing unless in a 
condition of maximum thrift and vitality. If the 
fowls are kept for breeding purposes, that is, to fur- 
nish eggs for hatching, it is even more important 
that their physical condition be of the best, because 
here the laws of heredity play an important part. 
In selecting breeding stock, the most important 
point to be looked after is to see that the fowls are 
all perfectly sound and healthy; it is not only essen- 
tial that the fowls themselves be healthy, but they 
must have been bred with a well-established habit 
of health. To paraphrase a famous saying of 
Oliver Wendell Holmes, it may be said that “‘ the 
physical training of a chicken should begin with 
its great-grandparents ”’; that is, if we are to pro- 
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