Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1881-04-16
POULTRY AND PROFIT.
What Women Have Done. and Cal

I
hundred dollars in money. Friends,
after the fashion that friends have at
such times, advised her to "put the
children ont, and perhaps she could
support herself by sewing or teaching,
but, like the plucky New England
woman that she was, she made answer
"My children shall not be separated
while 1 have health and strength to
work for them"
She rented house with few acres of
land adjoining, invested the greater part
of the three hundred dollars in poultry,
feed and fixtures, and went to work.
The friends predicted speedy failure.
"Did she expect to support family
of five on the profits from a few chick
ems ?"
eyes, expect to do just that" she
answered. "When I was a girl 1 al
ways managed the poultry on fathers
farm, and as / made it pay then, L see
no reason why l cannot make it pay
now."
You'll see," said the wise ones.
"It's our opinion that you have thrown
away the little money that you had
Five dollars for a rooster !" and eyes
were rolled and heads shook over the
shiftlessness of the woman who paid
five dollars for rooster" Last win
ter met this woman at a poultry show,
and she told me of her success. She
had educated her children, paid for her
little farm, worth $500, and had $500 in
the bank.
Another woman, whose husband fell
from a building and was crippled for
life, took up poultry raising because it
was the only thing she could do at
home that was thirteen years ago, and
to-day she owns fine farm, well stock
ed, has money in bonds and in the
bank.
A young woman, whose health failed
in the close confinement of the school
room, went to raising poultry because
she was obliged to do something for a
living, and because the doctors advised
mental rest and as much outdoor exer-
else as possible. In two years her
health was firmly re-established, but i'll
the meantime she had found poultry
keeping So pleasant and profitable that
she refused to teach again. She had
been In the business five years, and is
now earning fortune as fast as ever a
pair of woman's hands earned one.
Last year the writer made a clear
profit of almost 81, 200 ON a breeding
stock of some 200 chickens, ducks and
turkeys. I do not publish this to boast
over my success, but to show other
women what woman can do under the
most favorable circumstances. The IA
vorable circumstances in my case were
a splendid stock of breeding fowls,
healthy location, thorough knowledge
of my business in all its branches, and
nearness to first-class market.
OF course, some doubling individuals
stand ready to declare that it is impos-
sible to make five dollars profit on each
adult fowl kept but, if they will stop
and consider that / get spring chickens
into the market in the months of April
and May, when they sell readily for one
dollar each that I sell ten and twelve
pound capons for thirty cents pound;
that manage to have eggs to sell in
winter, when can get from thirty to
thirty-five cents dozen, and that sell
a few trios of exhibition birds every
year, they will see where the big profit
comes in.
Now don't stop right here and give
up all thoughts of raising chickens just
because you cannot get such prices in
your locality, but wait until give you
a few hints from my experience.
I have kept poultry in the West,
where eggs sold at the stores for eight
cents dozen in summer, and poultry
sold in the fall for seven cents pound,
live weight, but [ made it pay. We
lived on a line of railroad, 200 miles
from a city market, but l soon found
out that all the poultry and eggs from
our place went to the city, and could
not for the life of me see why could
not ship such things just as well as the
merchants, so l sent thirty-dozen
package of fresh eggs to commission
house IN the city they sold readily, and
there was a call for more. "These
small packages of eggs, every one war
ranted fresh, are just what We want, ;"
wrote the commission man. did some
more thinking and then put on my good
clothes and went to the city. Once
there, it did not take me long to find
grocer who wanted thirty dozen of fresh
eggs week, so shipped the eggs d.
rect to him, and saved the commission
merchants profits. In the fall l sold
poultry the same way.
There was no thoroughbred poultry
in the vicinity except that in my yards,
and when people began to find out that
my chickens were superior to the COM
mon mongrel fowl, they bought great
many eggs for Matching. There was
not one pair of any of the improved va
rieties of ducks in the county. sent
thousand miles for pair of Pekins, and
within a month after they arrived every
body had the duck fever, and 1 was
overrun with orders for ducks before
single egg Matched. I also procured
some bronze turkeys, and sold every
egg that could spare and every turkey
that raised at good prices.
Every woman who goes into poultry
raising may not be able to get in these
"extras," but every woman who desires
to earn money by raising poultry, and
goes into the business with the deter
mination to succeed, will be sure to
make it pay, even if she sells every egg
and every chicken at market prices.
Hor AND CoLD.-A lady in Dorches-