So ILLINOIS STATE DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION. 



Twelve foot common boards will work right for the sides; cut them into 

 seven and five foot pieces; nail the seven foot pieces on the south side 

 or front, and the five foot pieces on the north side. Your 12 foot boards 

 will cut right for the ends, the slope varying the length of each piece. 

 Good ten foot boards will make a good roof if covered with felt, well tar- 

 red, and overhead inside should be lined with cheap boards, and the side» 

 well covered with tar felt paper. 



Perches, drop boards, and neat boxes can be arranged as suits you 

 best, only allow the fowls the full floor space. Put a board partition in 

 the center with a well fitted door, as part of the house must be for a 

 scratching shed. Chaff, hay, or clean straw, six inches deep, will be need- 

 ed to scatter the grain rations in. The house must be tight at back and 

 sides, as drafts of air, even in warm weather, will do damage. Fowls will 

 not thrive when drafts of air come on them at night. 



The building site is of much importance. It should be well drained, 

 sheltered from west and northwest winds and have a decided slope to the 

 south. Time was when all the glass that could be got into the front or 

 south side of a hen house was thought necessary, but now it has been 

 proved a mistake, and windows for lighting only have been found the 

 better plan. The house must be dust dry, warm, well ventilated, and 

 kept scrupulously clean if you expect hens to do well in egg-production in 

 winter, and for this not only housing but the right kind of 



FEED 



will be required for profit. One great reason why many do not succeed 

 with poultry is because they do not know how to feed them as they 

 should. Large fowls require different management from small ones. 

 They are naturally inclined to be inactive, and unless you feed them in a 

 manner to make them active, they will not keep in good laying condition. 

 Leghorns are not likely to get over-fat and quitt laying. A Leghorn 

 will leave corn on the ground and chase after a grasshopper, or hunt for 

 a bug or worm, while the larger bird will fill up on com and stand around 

 waiting for more. 



