placed others, to make nine. These began laying for spring in 

 February. From then till Aug. 23 they laid 920, an average of 

 102 plus in about six months. He comments : "You see, if this 

 first duck did her part, she has rubbed the 250 mark pretty close.' 

 Again, he says : "As I have not seen our way of feeding in any 

 book, it may interest you. Mrs. D and myself have always fed 

 everything dry. I take, when first hatched, 2 quarts shorts, ? 

 corn meal, 2 flour middlings, 2 Dow's chick feed, 1 of sand. 

 Mix well, put in a dish and let them help themselves at all times. 

 In two or three weeks I drop out the chick feed and add 1 of 

 beef scrap or bone meal. Later, I drop out the corn meal and 

 put in about 4 of cracked corn. For layers, I put two of beef 

 scrap or bone meal, and add cut clover, fed dry, with plenty of 

 water close by. I think it a great improvement over wet mash 

 as it will not sour or freeze. 



"My last hatch was 76. I put them all in one brooder and it 

 has been very hot and dry since they were hatched, until three 

 weeks ago. When they were five weeks old, I caught ten and the 

 weight was 1 1-4 pound each. I think there was 40 that would 

 go 1 1-4 pound each. They are seven weeks old today and I 

 have 73 of them. Not bad, is it?" Such is Mr. Hammond's 

 faith in the Runner and desire to have the best that he says : "I 

 intend to have the three varieties until I find out which do the 

 best with me, and then I want only white eggs. I think the 

 green just as good, but as long as the trade think different, we 

 must bend to their whims." Here is a plain man who is thinking 

 things out for himself and we do not find him complaining about 

 the Runners not doing their part. 



The two objections I have heard to dry mash are that much 

 is likely to be wasted, and that the ducks are more inclined to get 

 choked. With water privilege, I think the last might not count. 

 Personally, I do not urge those who have not range and water 

 privilege to rush into Runners; although they thrive splendidly 



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