44 
HISTORY OF ANCONAS 
oatmeal to keep up their strength; a 
pinch of sulphur in their food to help 
make feathers; plenty of green stuff, 
especially chopped onion tops; and a 
little iron tonic in the water. Skim¬ 
med milk, if the dishes are scalded 
daily, is excellent from one to four 
weeks old. At this period particular 
attention should be paid to overcrowd¬ 
ing, so that they do not tread on each 
other’s wings, which are somewhat un¬ 
wieldy at this period. 
The cockerels should be separated 
from the pullets at eight weeks, and 
never later than ten weeks. Anconas 
are very precocious and very rapid 
growers, and should never be forced. 
House as you like, but give plenty of 
air, a dry scratching floor, ample 
light, and opportunity for exercise. 
ANCONAS IN NOVA SCOTIA 
(By H. H. Hull) 
Many breeds and varieties of poul¬ 
try are being bred in Nova Scotia, but 
we can safely say that there is no 
breed that has so quickly and surely 
placed themselves in the front rank 
as a layer and profit payer as the An¬ 
cona. Practically unknown in Nova 
Scotia fifteen years ago, today they 
are one of the biggest classes found 
at our shows, and many breeders are 
discarding other birds, that they have 
bred for years, in favor of Anconas, 
for the simple reason that they pay a 
bigger profit. It is no idle claim that 
is made by the Ancona men that they 
can feed three Anconas on the same 
amount of feed that it takes to feed 
one of any of the American varieties. 
They have proved this time and again. 
This allows them to keep a much 
larger number of hens on the same 
floor space, and gives them a corre¬ 
spondingly larger egg yield. 
As a poultryman’s profit is chiefly 
made from the sale of eggs, you can 
readily see what a handicap other 
breeds are under, when competing 
with Ancona, Furthermore, the Nova 
Scotia and particularly the Cape Bre¬ 
ton bred Ancona has established a 
reputation for hardiness and ability to 
stand sudden and extreme changes in 
temperature that is remarkable. Per¬ 
sonally l have seen a flock of Anconas 
during winter housed in an open front 
house that were living under out of 
door conditions night and day. The 
owner told me that he was getting a 
50% egg yield, and to judge by the ap¬ 
pearance of the birds, no one would 
doubt his statement. 
We expect the Ancona in the near 
future to go right to the top in Nova 
Scotia, both as a show and as a utility 
bird. Here you have a fowl that is 
really beautiful, that is a great layer, 
a small feeder, that matures quickly, 
and that will pay a bigger profit than 
any other breed. What more can one 
ask? 
If you have never bred Anconas, 
make a start this season, get some 
chickens hatched in May or June, give 
them ordinary attention and next win¬ 
ter when the snow is knee deep and 
the glass stands ten below, you will 
have the pleasure of knowing what a 
real layer looks like. 
