POULTRY FOR PROFIT 33 
that only enough of this first solid food should 
be fed that they can clean up in a short time. 
Keep them hungry, and remember that it is 
much safer to under feed than to over feed. 
For the next week, or so, a scratch ration, 
composed of cracked corn, pinhead oatmeal, 
I 
cracked wheat, together with a little grit, and 
finely ground oyster shells can be fed. This 
can be fed in the litter, so that the chicks have 
to exercise to get it. In fact, that is just what 
we mean by a scratching ratiop; one composed 
of whole or cracked grains, mixed in with the 
litter, so that the chicks will have to scratch 
for their feed, and thereby obtain the exer¬ 
cise necessary to their health. If a little green 
fed of any kind can be added, so much the 
better. Green grass is excellent to throw into 
the chicks. 
After two weeks or more of this kind of feed, 
it is well to supplement this ration with a dry 
mash. A dry mash is a feed composed of 
ground feeds, that require no work on the part 
of the bird to grind. Feeds like wheat bran, 
ground oats, corn meal, etc., are good examples 
of such feeds. Wheat bran is especially well 
liked by these young birds, and it is r^com- 
