ARTIFICIAL INCUBATING AND BROODING 



THE BEST VARIETIES FOR BROILERS 



The best broiler chick is one that is 

 tens readily, is fine-boned and plump, 

 full breasted, has a rich, yellow skin, 

 and the strong constitution that will 

 stand forced feeding. Undoubtedly 

 the American breeds most nearly fill 

 the bill. The white and buif varieties 

 have the added advantage of freedom 

 from dark pin feathers. A prominent 

 broiler raiser lays strong emphasis 

 upon the necessity of strength and 

 vigor in the parent stock if we would 

 have chicks that would live and grow. 



"There is no question that many 

 of the failures in broiler raising have 

 come through improper tools with 

 which to work, and a general misun- 

 derstanding of the best means to the 

 end aimed at, which in this case is the 

 plump, yellow and juicy little chick, 

 which weighs from one and one- 

 half to two pounds when dressed, 

 or two to two and one-half 

 pounds alive. Heavier birds 

 may be used, but these are 

 the weights which are best 

 suited to the demand and sell 

 most readily, which means, of 

 course, at the best prices. 



"How to get these plump, 

 yellow chickens is the problem 

 which we shall try to solve. In- 

 stead of beginning with the egg 

 which is to produce the chick, 

 we should go farther back, even 

 back of the hen which lays the 

 eggs, and find the health and 

 strength of her ancestry. In other 

 words, we examine her family tree. 

 If, on due examination, we find the 

 hen which is to lay our eggs is the 

 offspring of some generations of strong, 

 healthy birds, we may safely depend on 

 her giving us the proper material on 

 which to build our broiler structure. 

 There never has been, and never will 

 be, a successful broiler business built 

 up on eggs from other than stock in 

 perfect health and of strong vitality. 

 The reasons are plain to see. In or- 

 der to get your quick-grown, juicy 

 broiler, there must be a forced growth 

 from the very hatching, and the 

 chicks must have the stamina and 

 the vitality which alone come through 

 inheritance, and which enable him to 

 stand the hardest feeding and keep 

 him busy and happy. The chickens 

 from poorly fed, ill-developed parent 

 stock, of hit-or-miss breeding, cannot, 

 and will not, fill the bill. 



"Next, after the strong, vigorous 

 ancestry, we look for shape and color. 

 Shape first, as on shape depends the 

 ability to lay on flesh in the right 

 place and in the proper proportions. 

 Any of the American breeds will 



ROILERS J ^ 



gi'^^r^ckly Ml 



IP 



answer this purpose. The oldest and best known is the Barr- 



1,^ f3(-_ ed Plymouth Rocks, and they, when rightly bred for this use, 



are splendid birds. Strong, hardy, 



and active, they grow quickly, and 



are good feeders. The Leghorns, while 



ai-h-ocated by some, are too small 



l>oned and too sprightly to get up 



t'j weight quickly enough. The 



Asiatics are generally too large framed 



and too angular, when at the right 



eiglit, to satisfy a fastidious market. 



The Wyandotte family, as a whole, 



)in>\)iles the best means to the broiler 



1 . They are fine boned, yet with 



tlie Ilium pest breast development of 



any uf the suitable breeds, and have 



stiiut , wide-apart legs and yellow skin. 



"With these natural structural 



ualities, the Wyandottes unite the 



ility to fully assimilate the strong 



teecliiig which goes with all attempts 



tn firnduce suitable chickens for this 



|iurpijse. Of the varieties of Wyan- 



ottes either the Buff or White would 



certainly be preferable to the Laced, on 



accoiuit of the freedom from the dark 



l)in feathers found in the others. 



This same reason, aside from the fact 



of tlieir longer establishment as a 



breed, would give the Whites 



the preference." 



Visits to the great market 

 poultry raisers south of Boston 

 reveal many varieties of stock 

 used with the Light Brahma 

 most in evidence; this is pro- 

 bably due to the fact that while 

 raising broilers for market they 

 are by no means exclusively 

 broiler raisers, but grow large 

 numbers of soft roasting chick- 

 ens and capons. Next to the 

 Light Brahmas a cross of B. P. 

 Rock male on Light Braluna 

 female is popular, and the well 

 known market poultryman, Mr. 

 J. H. Curtiss, places the White 

 Plymouth Rocks at the very top 

 of the list for all-round utility 

 iualit ies. The same can be said of the 

 "i\Iay R. Poultry Plant," while the 

 j\Ir. Twining quoted above grew his 

 broilers from Barred Plymouth Rock 

 eggs bought of farmers living in his 

 neighliorliood. In all cases excepting 

 possibly the "May R. Poultry Plant" 

 the stock described is "farmers" 

 stock of the varieties, and would no 

 doul it be found lacking in some points 

 essential in show birds. 



DIFFERENT KINDS OF BROILERS 



Frequent mention is made of 

 b broilers," and yet we do not 

 ever seeing them quoted in the 

 market reports. Generally the squab 

 lii(jilei-s are little six or seven weeks 

 old chicks that weigh, dressed, three 

 63-PRiZE DRESSED POULTRY quarters of a pound to one pound 



82 



