TWENTY-NINTH FRUIT-GROWERS' CONVENTION. 



193 



in as good shape as our father and brothers used to prepare the garden 

 at home. That often means hours of hard work, making the ground 

 smooth, and fine enough to plant seeds in. 



Another of our trials is the fact that our little place is on a well- 

 traveled street leading into town, and our efforts at fence building, 

 gardening, and care of our flocks are of absorbing interest to the 

 passers-by. I suppose it is rather startling to see one woman running 

 a small hand plow through the rows of kale, another hoeing in the 

 garden, while the third pushes the lawnmower; but it is getting to be 

 an old story now, and we do not receive as much notice as at first. 



As our flocks grew we needed more house room. During our third 

 summer we were able to put on about $200 worth of improvements. 

 We had a new brooder house built, which we find very satisfactory; it 

 has two brooders, 8 and 10 feet, heated with gasoline, which we like 

 much better than the oil lamps. 



We moved two houses to the back of the place, and fenced across, so ' 

 that we could use the land up there to better advantage. Four of our 

 houses were old brooder houses, which we have made over, with the 

 help of wire netting, into laying and roosting houses combined. 



We plan to keep 800 laying hens, which, with the growing stock, 

 means most of the time 1200 or 1400. We have this fall our best brood 

 of chicks. We always hatch both fall and spring. We do not know 

 why this flock is the finest we ever had. It may be on account of the 

 good weather, they may have come from extra good eggs, or the feed 

 may have been just to their liking and administered just right. We do 

 not know, but we rejoice with thankful hearts, and shall be happy in 

 the possession of three hundred pullets, and as many broilers to sell in 

 January when they are four and one-half months old. We must have 

 another house built for these pullets, as they will be crowded out of the 

 brooder houses long before the old hens are through with their spring 

 laying and ready for market. And so it goes, always more to be added 

 in houses or fences. 



We take great pleasure in our flowers, have quantities of them, and 

 to people who have lived on a city street where there was nothing green 

 to be seen, our flowers and green lawn seem like a bit of paradise. We 

 do so enjoy seeing things grow, and were fortunate in getting a bit of 

 earth that grows any and every thing. 



We have not made much money, but we have proved that three 

 women can make a good living by raising poultry, if they do not mind 

 hard and rather rough work. 



I want to impress the fact that we are very well located. Petaluma 

 is the place to get all kinds of chicken supplies. We are in the city 

 limits, have city delivery of mail, are a pleasant walk from the business 

 center so do not keep a horse, have a telephone, and feed supplies are 



13— F-GC 



