Weekly graphic. [volume] (Kirksville, Adair Co., Missouri) 1880-1949, 1886-03-26
Poultry Keeping as a Business.

There is an increasing number |
who desire to enter upon poultry |
keeping as business. Their in
tention is to devote themselves
exclusively to this business, and
to depend upon the profits derived
therefrom as a means of livelihood.
They wish to keep a large number
of fowls and dispose of the
profits of a market prices. The
business is an honorable and
legitimate one, and requires for
its successful pre- secution a.
peculiar capacity. To the man who
possessed of the necessary bust
ness qualifications it offers favor
able opportunity for earning an
honest livelihood, and for making
provision for ga rainy day."
a distinction should be made at
the outset between what, for con-
venience, we may denominate a
breeder and araiser. The poultry
breeder depends for his profits
upon the sale of eggs for Matching
at prices ragning from two to five
dollars dozen, and upon a sale
of fine fowls for breeding or
exhibiting at prices varying from
two dollars to one hundred dollars
each. The breeder is contented
to own a limited number of fowls,
two or three yards of his chosen
variety perhaps, but each fowl
must possess the various Standard
requirements and be of unGues-
tionable purity. He is an adver-
tiser in the various poultry publ
cations, and frequently is an
exhibitor at the several poultry
shows. His profits, seemingly
very large, are maternity reduced
by his extensive advertising and
his exhibition expenses, together
with the greatly increased amount
of care bestowed upon his focks.
The poultry raiser, on the other
hand, is primarily interested in
the egg and meat production of
his fowls. What he desires is not
SO much beauty as utility, not so
much Standard points as large
productiveness. He has no adver-
Using bills to meet, and no exhibit
ton expenses to pay. To a certain
extent the occupation of a breeder
and raiser may be combined, as
they are successfully in some in
stances with which we are familiar
but the qualities that are needed
for the one occupation are different
from those required for the other.
When these different qualities are
united in one man there is nothing
to prevent the union Of the two
occupations, but it will generally
be found that the gratest success
will be attained by the man who
devotes himself to the one occupa.
ton to which, by nature and edu
cation, he is best adapted. What
then are some of the qualities
necessary to success for the poultry
raiser?
Enterprise is very essentia
quality. An enterprising MAJ
is one who takes paines to inform
himself upon the relations of hi
business to the needs of the public
and then makes use of this infor
nation in the prosecution of hi
business, He ascertains what tn,
public wants and at once proceed
to supply that want. He finds
market for his goods by furnish
ing the class of goods that hi
market calls for. He allows N
prejudice to prevent his adoptio
n to his market. If he lives nea
j Boston, and Boston prefers dar
y colored eggs; he supplies dar
colored eggs, if he lives near Ne
York, and New York prefer
pearly white eggs, he supple
pearly white eggs. Whether dar
colored or pearly white eggs al
really the better is a matter of n
Importance to him; all that he
concerned with is the questio
which color will yield him th
largest profit. And SO in the ma
ter of dressed poultry; if his mar
ket demands a yellow-skinned an
yellow-legged fowl he supple
just that kind of a fowl. It ma
be that a white skinned and whit
legged fowl is really better for til
table, but he cares nothing abou
that. 1t is not for him to CONVEX
the public to taste for what h
prefers, but to furnish it wit
what it, ignorantly it may b.
thinks it likes.
Economy is a very essentia
quality. The man who is sellin
eggs for twenty-five cents doze
must SO manage his business as t
pay his expenses and leave maj
gin of profit. This can be done
every day, but it is possible onl
by rigid economy. There must b
economy. There mast be econom
in buying and in selling. Fee,
must be bought when and wher
I. II