66 



should stunt their birds. I would not suggest this. It requires 

 just as much nourishment to make feathers as it does to make 

 flesh. Breed them down in the natural way, and in the end you 

 will be better satisfied. Stunted birds are hot good breeders. 



After you have a nice pen of birds, the next very important 

 matter is to handle them intelligently and keep them clean — in 

 sanitary pens with plenty of fresh air, proper ventilation, etc. 

 If you keep them in pens of the above description, then you will 

 have a healthy, clean-looking flock of bantams, the kind of a 

 flock any fancier can well be proud of. 



In hatching and raising chicks, be very careful. Don't let 



White Cochin Bantam. Female. 



them get wet or have a chill. Don't feed them too much, espe- 

 cially when they are quite small. Don't kill them with kindness. 

 If you throw them an overdose of grain they will eat more than 

 they should, and what they leave untouched will become moldy. 

 They may be hungry before you feed them their breakfast and 

 eat this unhealthy grain. This will harm them more than you 

 would believe possible. Rather than feed too much, keep them 

 a trifle hungry all the time; make them scratch for their "daily 

 bread" and they will thus gain the necessary exercise. 



If you have one or two sick chicks in your flock and if you 



