190 The Hen at Work 



nature, it hardly takes the place of beets or cabbage. 

 The succulent nature of those vegetables is impor- 

 tant. We are passing a high price for green food 

 when we buy alfalfa at the regular price of grain, 

 in the mash, and are likely to get much dust and fine 

 stuff unpalatable to the flock. 



Drinking Water. — The agate pans, as described 

 in the chapter on furniture, should be cleaned and 

 filled each morning. In cold weather the water 

 should be warm, and in zero weather, fresh warm 

 water should be added at noon. 



Permanganate of Potash. — Now and then a 

 doctrine gets spread abroad in one profession or 

 another which is accepted as gospel, advanced 

 by people who should know better, and becomes 

 almost universal before it is discovered to be false. 

 This is the case in poultry culture with perman- 

 ganate of potash as a purifier in drinking water. 

 By adding enough of these red potash crystals to 

 color the water a pink or wine color, we are sup- 

 posed to kill the germs and make it safe for our 

 trusting flock. I have just asked the opinion of a 

 noted authority on bacteria over the telephone as 

 to this matter. His own remarks will be better 

 than anything I could say : 



