SUCCESS IN POULTRY CULTURE 
diminished ... by too close interbreed- 
ing. I have made so many experiments 
and collected so many facts, showing on 
the one hand that an occasional cross with 
a distinct individual or variety increases 
the vigor and fertility of the offspring, 
and on the other hand that very close 
interbreeding lessens their vigor and fer- 
tility, that I can not doubt the correctness 
of this conclusion.”’ 
Poultry, or live stock of any kind, that 
has been bred in violation of the laws of 
progress instead of having been bred in 
strict accordance to that law, will be a 
very poor investment to the man who 
wants them for utility purposes; and the 
person who buys them for the show-room 
will as a rule be disappointed; for if 
they have been greatly inbred, they will 
not have the strength and vitality to resist 
the attacks of the many contagious dis- 
eases that they will be exposed to in 
traveling from one show to another, nor 
to withstand the fatigue of the many jour- 
neys they will be called upon to make; 
and then they will also suffer very greatly, 
when changed from one climate to an- 
other, before they become acclimated, and 
156 
