10 
The Bulletin 
Sodium sulphate is a cathartic and is readily absorbed into the blood.. 
It also causes diuresis. 
Potassium chlorate in concentrated form is an irritant. It does not 
appear that we have here any compound which is from 0.5 to 1.5 per 
cent should be caustic or excessively irritant. 
The action of salts on the body is determined, not by the action of 
chemical compounds or its molecule, but by the action of the ions which 
are dissociated when the salt goes into solution. 
Objects of the Experiment 
It can be seen from the foregoing that the proper kinds and quan¬ 
tities of mineral elements are essential to the proper well being of the 
bird. These are essential for the proper construction of new tissue 
and of eggs in laying hens; for proper functioning of the various organs 
of the body; for an aid in the transfer of both useful compounds to 
the various tissues and cells of the body and for the taking away of the 
unuseful or waste products. 
For these reasons it is essential to know just what mineral elements 
are essential and in what quantities they are needed for the purpose 
for which the bird is being fed; that is, whether for mature hens for 
egg production, for broilers for growth and development, or for fatten¬ 
ing fowls. 
These problems in their different phases will require much study. 
This bulletin discusses only one phase, that of medium broiler produc¬ 
tion—the raising of the chick from hatching to eight weeks of age, at 
which time the flock averages should be one and one-half pounds each. 
Outline of Experiment 
As stated, the object of this line of experimental work is to determine 
the amount of mineral required in broiler production. Profitable broiler 
production begins with the baby chick and extends over a period of 
about eight weeks, at the end of which time the birds should weigh, 
as a flock average, approximately one and one-half pounds each. 
The first object was to determine the amount of mineral per unit in 
the bodies of the baby chick, and of the one and one-half pound broiler; 
to determine the mineral content of the southern poultry feeds; to 
prepare proper feed mixtures from the standpoint of protein, car¬ 
bohydrate, and fat; to determine the mineral content, and finally 
determine if the mineral in the feed mixtures was in sufficient quan¬ 
tities for the greatest possible rate of growth. 
The baby chicks were produced from a single flock of pure bred 
Single Comb White Leghorns, bred on the Station and College Poultry 
