30 MY POULTRY DAY BY DAY 
near Rugby. One died, and seven of the remainder turned out 
to be cockerels, leaving seven pullets. 
“T have a letter from my father, dated the 5th May, wherein 
he records the fact that his seven pullets have laid 610 eggs in 
five months of their first year. He has, of course, kept a very 
careful record, it being his particular hobby. 
‘‘It really is a marvellous record, taking into consideration 
the locality in which the birds exist, although, as I say, they have 
had every care and attention. My father himself built their run 
and night-house on the intensive system. 
“R, Leonarp Davey.” 
The experience of Mr Davey is no isolated one. I could fill this 
chapter with remarkable results achieved by those who keep fowls 
in town. I would point out that it is not in poultry-keeping alone 
that bad management is seen. There is a right way and a wrong 
way in all pursuits, and while one can earnestly advocate the 
keeping of fowls in back-yards, it is always to be understood that 
to gain success care and cleanliness are among the first essentials. 
Let us assume that the town dweller has the necessary space in 
his back-yard, garden or plot. Let us assume also that he has built 
his house with an open front and a wooden floor on the lines I 
have suggested. 
He has, I presume, the house well littered with clean straw, 
peat moss or wood shavings. For town dwellers perhaps the 
best and cheapest scratching material is not straw or peat moss. 
If he can obtain cedar-wood shavings, and as a rule they are not 
difficult to get, he will have the best possible material. Not 
only do the cedar-wood shavings give forth a nice, lasting, pungent 
smell, but they are largely charged with anti-insect quality. 
They will certainly tend to keep down some of the parasitic pests 
to which fowls are prone. 
Only the birds are now required to make the establishment 
complete. 
The question that next presents itself is, “‘ What breed of fowl 
shall I buy ?” 
