The 
Secret 
o 
£ T 
urkey 
R 
aism 
Part IT. 
C OOl’S FOR THE YOUNG.—One of the most 
important features of the successful raising of 
the Hook depends upon the coops, a thing usually 
overlooked by the majority who try to raise turkeys. 
It is absolutely necessary that we provide a shelter 
for the young birds that is strictly waterproof, for 
dampness in any form is one of the fatal points. 
Yon must confine the young for at least a few days 
before they are strong enough to stand the all-day 
tramp and the early dew. If you are going to try 
raising your young with the mother turkey (and 
this is the best way) you will need a larger coop 
than would be necessary if you use 
hens for mothers. 
HOW CONSTRUCTED.—Our coops 
are built about four feet long and three 
feet wide, high enough to give the tur¬ 
key hen plenty of head room. Do not 
try to confine an old turkey in a barrel 
or any other contrivance that will not 
allow her to stand up straight. If you 
do she will worry, trample around 
in a bent-ove 1 * fashion and kill the 
young. \Ve have a frame made to fit 
the door, with the top half covered 
with fine mesh wire, and the bottom 
part of boards, through which are two 
holes for the young to go in and out. 
Small slides cover these holes, so that 
they are easily and quickly closed when 
wanted. In the rear, or side of the 
coop, about IS inches from the ground, 
is another small door (cut in after the 
coop is finished) hung on hinges so it 
will tip down. This door should he 
just wide enough so that you can pass 
in a dish for feed or water, and is high 
enough from the floor so that the small 
turks can’t fly up and out. as everyone 
who ever tried raising turkeys knows 
liow hard it is to keep them in when 
you go to feed while they are confined. 
They always make a rush for the open¬ 
ing. if at the bottom, and some will 
crowd out in spite of you. which makes 
trouble to cateli and return them to the 
coop. This extra door is a thing I 
could not get along without, and once 
you have tried it you will agree with 
me that it is an absolute necessity. 
FlIiST CARE OF TIIE YOUNG.— 
We will now assume that your little 
turks have hatched. They should first 
of all be kept in the nest for a few 
hours, or until all are well dried off 
and strong. Remember they grow 
•strong under the mother; her body heat 
puts the new life in them, and they are 
already well supplied with their first 
food, which is the yolk of the egg that 
is absorbed into the system, Nature’s 
own way, and serves for their first 
meal. Do not feed for at least 2-1 
hours. The food that they would eat 
before this time is harmful, and they 
must first digest what they already 
have within them before they can make 
use of other food. Remember this—it 
is all-important, and you want to be 
successful. After they are strong, and 
'•'om to be hungry, we begin with a 
bitle bread moistened with sweet milk, 
mid squeezed quite dry. Into this is 
"fixed a little coarse sand or gravel. 
t Id.DING RULES.—Feed on a clean 
* oarrt: w ® new shingles, and wash 
ihem every day. It is work, but you 
"‘imt keep them clean or there is soon 
meal. This, remember, is blended carefully in equal 
parts and fed dry. You will be surprised how much 
they will eat of it after they are a week old. Also 
keep a dish of gravel constantly near them. The 
first week of their lives I usually keep them in the 
coop, but if the weather is very warm it won’t hurt 
to allow them a run after three days old. We do 
not feed bread and milk after a week has passed, 
but gradually transfer them to some good brand of 
chick food; this, of course, is always fed in a dry 
state. 
GREEN FOOD.—Aside from this, wo food everv 
others mentioned to feed you will have better results. 
OUTDOOR EXERCISE.—As soon :is your birds 
are strong on their legs let them out to run every 
day, unless wet weather prevails, in which case they 
must be kept in. Always keep fresh water before 
them; fresh water, and keep it fresh. They soon 
foul a drinking cup, and this is the root of many 
evils. After two weeks old an ordinary shower sel¬ 
dom hurts, as the old hen will hover them; and T 
have found it is better to leave them aloue than it 
is to start after them when you see a shower 
approaching, unless you saw it in time and were able 
to get them all under cover before it 
came. It is a mighty hard job to catch 
a brood of young turkeys and put them 
in a basket ancUget them in when it is 
raining; you will usually do more harm 
than good, and they will probably he 
wetter than they would had you left, 
them entirely alone. Each night, if the 
ifill hens fail to bring them up at sun¬ 
down, we go after them, bring them 
to the house and feed both hen and her 
brood. They soon learn this, and after a 
little will come up of their own accord. 
TURKEY MOTHERS.—Do not put 
more than 20 young with a hen: that 
is all she can cover properly, and they 
need more warmth than chickens. We 
always save our old turkey hens that 
have proved the best mothers. There 
is a big difference in them: when you 
have found a careful old hen that is 
tame and gentle keep her. It will pay 
you. and they will lay and breed well 
for a great many years. Old hens 
always lay larger eggs that hatch 
stronger turkeys and are more apt to 
lie fertile than young hens. We have 
hens in our flocks over 30 years old 
that are just as good producers as we 
have. 
GENERAL CARE.—When the young 
are a month old they will start to run 
and fly each morning as soon as they 
are liberated. When they do this you 
will know that all is going well, and 
that they are receiving the right care; 
hut if you note some that seem strag¬ 
gling along behind, with little desire to 
follow up in the front line, you will 
know something is wrong. In this case 
look for lice. Turkeys are very suscep¬ 
tible to lice, and I have forgotten to 
mention that we dust the sitting liens 
every week while sitting. This Is all- 
important—don’t neglect it. Get good 
fresh Persian insect powder and give 
them a careful dusting, but do not put 
any on the eggs. A little dry sulphur 
is also good, but they must not he 
allowed to become wet after it. As 
soon as they show a desire to roost in 
the trees we encourage them to do so. 
When they are two months old they 
prefer the trees to the coops, and it is 
much better to keep them in the open, 
for they liave then passed the danger 
period and are as hardy as the old 
birds. In conclusion let me ask you to 
observe carefully the following points: 
Always feed moderately; never all 
they will clean up at a time. 
Always food green food while in the 
coops, before they are old enough to 
stay on the range all day, hut after 
that the green food can he omitted. 
case of b owel trouble, and you don’t 
viiow u hat is the cause. Feed only a 
"""ill amount of bread and milk at a time. Kc 
Horn hungry. This is one of the draw backs-if y 
‘u too much you kill them with kindness. Wh 
11 " 'vild state they never get a full meal all 
’ U 18 a bllf? here, a worm there, and a blade 
\ solue I’bice else, and so on the day throng 
in ' 1 y <l tiuie au( * °tteu Is what you must ke 
om- bead. Aside from the above feed, we ... 
tl ' ' lbh and ke °l' before them all the time a mi 
'■ui. corn meal, wheat middlings and 
Cll 
Fcctlintj Time for the Turhein*. Fiji, 
morning plenty of finely-chopped green food. I have 
experimented for years with the green feed question, 
and have come to the conclusion that there is nothing 
so good l'or tliis purpose as nettles. This may be new 
to you. but you will find after a thorough trial that 
the little turkeys will leave almost anything else for 
this feed after they get to eating it. which may take 
a few days to acquire the appetite. Dandelions are 
also excellent, and lettuce is good. We used to feed 
plenty of onion tops, hut if you can get any of the 
Always feed gravel in the bread and 
milk. 
Don’t put too many in one coop or brood. 
Keep all the dishes clean and scald drinking cups 
every day. willet kandaix. 
The Best Corn for Silage 
EFERRING to John G. Ellis’s very interesting 
letter on “Tests of Silage Corn,’’ which appeared 
on page 900, the great question of course is not aloue 
weight of silage per acre of corn, hut the value of 
