THE POULTRY” 
275 RUN 
they are floorless, and are moved frequently, 
either by team or by a pole-pry. By this 
method the droppings are distributed directly 
on the soil without the usual laborious work 
of scraping the dropping-boards. 
In the poultry field some green crop is kept 
growing as much of the year as possible. Asa 
general rule a crop cannot get a start in a poul- 
try range, and so a plan of rotating the chickens 
in two or more fields, is desirable. No more 
profitable combination of “small’’ farming can 
be found than that of rotating poultry with 
the leafy vegetables (lettuce, spinach, cabbage, 
etc.) which utilize to the greatest advantage 
the rich, nitrogenous manure. Under this sys- 
tem, the hens are fed grain, chiefly corn, and 
beef scrap in hoppers, and water is supplied in the 
simplest way possible, preferably from a running 
brook. The chief point to be kept in mind is to 
cut down the number of necessary visits to the 
poultry houses, thus reducing the labor cost. 
The custom of raising chickens on fresh 
ground every year is of value to the farm, 
but the one disadvantage has always been the 
expense of fencing. In a recent issue the 
Rural New Yorker told of the plan of one 
wide awake chicken raiser which can be fol- 
lowed by anybody. His plan is to sow sun- 
