PROFITABLE EGG FARMING. 
than for anything else. And breeders who have 
such stock to sell will find that they can sell it 
to the best advantage by advertising its practi¬ 
cal qualities most, just because an advertise¬ 
ment that does not attract attention to those 
qualities of the class it should reach. If a man 
advertises, “ Stock mated for best results,” or 
“Winners wherever shown,” and trusts to his 
circulars or to correspondence to make known 
the excellencies of his fowls, he makes a mistake. 
His circular and letters go to people incited by 
his ad. to make further inquiries, and people 
who don’t find what they want mentioned in the 
ad. don’t generally make further inquiry in 
that direction. And a man must have what he 
advertises. He must deal honestly with every 
one. An advertiser’s sins are not long in 
finding him out. A breeder might advertise 
his stock as good utility stock when it was not, 
and for a little while catch trade that way. 
He would soon be found out, and would find it 
difficult to sell stock on any representation; if, 
indeed, he could still find poultry papers willing 
to take his- advertisements. 
For the class of stock we have described there 
is a good demand. We believe that the demand 
is largely in excess of the supply, even while 
we are sure that the actual supply is much 
greater than the visible supply, i. e. the amount 
of stock for sale by those advertising it. If you 
have what the people want, tell them so. You 
cannot do business with them unless they know 
where to find you. —Farm Poultry. 
Rewards of Success. 
The rewards of success in poultry work are 
most satisfactory and come in the shape of a 
liberal profit for eggs and poultry sold, and 
a comfortable living. It is “the living” that 
we are all after, and it is safe to say that there 
is not one branch of farm work which gives a 
comfortable living more easily than poultry 
raising. The market is sure; the great con¬ 
suming public is calling for more and more 
choice meat and selected fresh eggs, and is able 
and willing to pay. The public will do its part 
if we will but do ours and produce the goods 
most wanted. The successes chronicled in 
this volume are only a few of those that could 
be described; they have been selected as typical 
of what can be done by intelligent, persevering 
effort, with the thought that the story of the 
success of others will encourage those just 
starting in poultry work to push on to the goal. 
Conditions of Success. 
The reasons why poultry is still thought 
nothing of upon many farms are not far to seek; 
but the curious thing is that they pay the wosrt 
just on that system of “ a few round the home¬ 
stead ” so recommended by certain writers. 
In days when other branches of farming paid 
well, a few fowls were kept just to supply the 
house, and left to the women; thus the farmer 
never knew anything about them, and never 
thought of them as having money in them. 
Any outlay was never thought of, or return 
for it believed in; the fowls were kept on till 
very old, left to breed together indiscriminately. 
The stock was mostly of bad layers, and half 
the eggs were stolen by the farm hands. All 
this must, of course, be changed if profit is to 
be realized. A paying stock must be selected 
and thereafter bred for laying or for table; 
necessary food and expenses must not be 
grudged; and eggs especially must be syste¬ 
matically collected and marketed promptly. 
As to the stock, it is doubtful if a hen or 
pullet that lays less than 100 eggs in a year 
pays at all, while it has been proved .over and 
over again that beyond 150 is perfectly attain¬ 
able; while many farm-hens lay under 60, and 
do not account for all of these. All old stock 
must first be got rid of, and then selection must 
follow. There are strains now bred and 
advertised for laying properties, as distinct 
from mere “fancy” points, from which a good 
start can be made in breeding stock; but if 
any farmer has a prejudice against “pure 
breeds, ” there is another course. Let him 
watch any neighboring market, and get birds 
or eggs from any neighbor who brings in a good 
lot of eggs in winter. After that he must select 
for himself, hatching chickens only from his 
best layers, and crossing his pullets or hens 
with cockerels also from the best layers, and so 
on. It is simple as ABC, and in this way the 
average—that is, “ the thing his hens lay on ”— 
will be infallibly raised. If he or his people 
cannot watch the birds sufficiently to know 
the best layers, he can still do much by the 
three simple tests of which lay early in winter 
or spring; which are down earliest from the 
perch; and which lay earliest in the day. 
Broadly, these tests will at least pick out the 
better layers, and enable him to discard the 
really bad ones. 
From Wright’s New Book of Poultry. 
126 
