CHAPTER II 
THE NEED FOR POULTRY 
some for profit. Happy is the man who takes up the 
business for both purposes. One may succeed in an 
undertaking in which one has little or no interest, but it helps 
one immeasurably when inclination enters into the scheme of 
things, when interest and self-interest grow out of the same stem. 
‘Only those who love their profession can do it full justice. 
The man to whom every call in business is in the nature of a trial, 
to whom every action is a task, is fettering his feet with chains. 
Poultry-keeping for the amateur is well worth considering. 
Regarded as a hobby, it has one advantage over most other 
hobbies; it is not only self-supporting, but it can be made to 
realise a profit. Gardening is to many a delightful hobby, but 
it invariably costs money and often yields small results. Bee- 
keeping is said to have its fascination—and its stings—but of late 
years Isle of Wight disease and other troubles have played havoc 
with the honey layers. Vegetable-growing, fruit-growing and 
market-gardening is one continual fight against weather, slugs 
and pests of various kinds, while the results even in a favourable 
season are not exactly lucrative. A man may love flowers, and 
get into a kind of personal relation with his garden, but he can 
hardly get on intimate terms with bees or vegetables. 
Now poultry make an appeal to most people. They present 
so many aspects to the owner that his interest is never allowed to 
Slack. Fowls are interesting in themselves, apart from anything 
that may be got out of them. There are so many varieties, so 
many different breeds, such a wea'th of glorious colourings, such 
a multitude of characteristics. They may be made a light or a 
profound study, and they will richly repay the labours of the 
18 
Se people embark on poultry-keeping for pleasure and 
