The Brookhaven leader., 1886-03-18
The CHICKEN BUSINESS.
A Pastime which ExceIs All Other Popular
Amusements.

Amusements.
1t does beat the Dutch how closely
great men are watched.
BY some means the world has pos
sessed itself of the knowledge that / own
an incubator, and the result is that am
now having excellent opportunities for
compiling a catalogue of persons desir-
Gus of becoming rich in the poultry
business.
Scarcely day passes that / do not re-
ceive letter from somebody wanting .
slice of my golden experienc. in the line
of speculative knowledge, that begins
with an old hen and generally ends in
the poor-house, if persisted in; and to
save hard work and postage have con-
cluded to pad this column with little
information that, if judiciousiy applied,
will stave off old age and keep wrinkles
in the next county.
There is money in chicken-raising il
you know how to 90 about it, but like
every thing else, certain amount OF
know how" is necessary to induce
eminent success to come your way. The
man who can't tell a chicken from n
gosling had better remain behind the
counter, or stay in bank until he
learns something.
Ny advice to the novice in poultry
raising would be: Follow it simply for
pleasure until you acquire knowledge
that will tell you to 90 ahead.
ANYBODY can hatch chickens with an
incubator, but it takes large amount OF
science and eternal vigilance to raise
them. Patrick Henry never said any
thing more true than his memorable all
lusion to the price of spring chicken
and the cost of liberty being one and M
separable. Patrick no doubt kept few
hens himself.
But to the man who goes into the
chicken business simply to find steady
employment and lots of pleasure. | say:
$50 it-you'll get there in both re-
spects." When the motive is not mcr-
cenary the pursuit is an unbOunded sea
of bliss, with islands of pure delight
scattered through it in great luxuriance.
| don't think ever did any thing out
side of religious duty that gave me
greater JOY; though it must be admitted
that made close carrom toward bank
ruptcy while doing it; and joy, although
nice thing to have around when you
want to write poetry, is not equal to salt
pork for keeping man up when he has
hard work to do.
If you want to be happy and get your
pay as you 90 along, raise chickens
unless your neighbor' S division fence IS
bad-but if you want to salt down Some-
thing that can be used as collateral after
awhile, don't do it.
| began bv irving to raise chickens
for sordid gain that could be jingled in
the pocket, and a more miserable man
YOU couldn't have found with consta-
bles warrant. then gave it a whlrl
simply for fun, and felt glorious right
away. 1t makes all the difference in
the world whether your incentive IS
moOnShine or money.
When heard the first chick chirp in
nv incubator. and realized clear down
to nv boots that | was II mother, and
had the documents right there to prove
it. in spite of the cold, unfeelirg fact
that was regarded by the world as a
bald-headed man of much sadness, lfelt
as though | was worth a million dollars;
but when, six months later, | had to
pawn nv Overcoat in mid-winter to
buy corn-meal, felt that | had been
blessed with altogether too much pro-
fuseneSs to suit the size of my flour bar
rel.
| long at times to sit down and mcdi-
tate on things that have made the world
gnaw its beard for ages, but no man
with loaded incubator can take much
time to muse, unless he puts cotton in
his ears, or gets dreadful reckless about
consequences.
An incubator is one of the most re-
morseleSs things outside of boarding
school, and for keeping man from
loafing with the clouds it can discount
both failure of crops and an iron-clad
chattel mortgage.
When YOU see a man with hollow
eyes, haggard cheeks, unshaven face aad
lifeless hair, shambling around in IN
aimless. homeless sort of way, looking
as though he hadn't slept, washed or
combed himself for month, bet every
cent you can raise that he owns an in
cubator, which has Just begun to fire its
possibilities at him with a desperation OF
energy that will kill him if he don't blow
the light out.
That's what it means to monkey witt
hen-roost on scientific principles. ant
as love all mankind | want every body
to know it. When somebody tells you
that the easiest way on earth to get rich
with quickness is to buy an incubator
and plunge into the chicken business
pull down the corner of your eye ant
Immediately give him a front view q
your back.-Lige BrotCn, in Chtcag'