The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1894-12-07
WHITE LseAoRNs.
Experience With This Prccocious and Prof
liable Breed


table Breed.
havo at this writing, says New
Jersey correspondent OF Farm Poultry, /,
a pen of 20 pullets, Matched March 81,
laying five or six eggs daily, first egg
gathered Aug Is.
These pullets have made rapid growth,
weighing now from 2 d to 2 q pounds at
months and 8 weeks old. sold, June
10, 81 broilers (cocl1erels) from this
hatch, weighing to l u pounds, and
ten days later closed out eight more ct
Is pounds. Thus many weighed l y
pounds at l weeks of age.
These birds were Matched in Prairie
State incubator and raised in Mr..
Rankin brooder. Meat meal and Sher-
idan's powder formed their chief slim
ulating diet, with usual grain food of
baked johnny cake, cracked corn, barley,
wheat and buokwheat, feed as saw fit,
with "a little cut green bone for relish
now and then. find this breed preco-
eious, having continually taken pains to
mate only largest and most vigorous
stock for breeding, and by constant
watchfulness in this direction we may
in time reach the desired point of fair
weight, great egg production and the
greatly priced lin our market) white
ness of eggs Give us well bred stock
for business and not for fancy purposes.
My 100 hens have laid IL, 070 eggs in
nine months ending Sept. l, and in Oc-
tober were laying rs to 30 eggs daily.
Only IS out of entire lot have not cast
their feathers, many having finished tho
molt and laying again.
My hens weigh from three to four
pounds apiece (latter being weight of a
score or SOY, and three pounds, some a
little less and above, for the rest.
If farmers would only watch their
focks q little and get to know them so
as to be able to say, "There, see that
hen? Well she has laid right along since
last fall, never offered to sit, good size,
good eater" etc., he would find score
and over out of every 100 come up or
nearly so to those points Now put them
in pen by themselves, take good care
OF them, and when breeding time comes
no will know just where heis.
l find it is unwiso TO kill off all year
old stock, for nearly IS per cent Of them,
if'handled well, will lay very soon after
molting
If you SEQ hen in the midst of the
mott With nice red comb and lively
gait. good appetite, and cheerful, she is
the one that with little stimulant and
plenty Of heterogeneous food in her ration
will hardly stop laying and will begin
inside Of three weeks to lay steadily.
On the other hand, if you see a hen
with comb very pale and shriveled, dull
look, doesn't eat, stands around, etc,
even if she has completed her mott, the
market pen is the place for her-and do
not think you will get her laying soon,
because it will not be until January or
later before she picks up.
OF course all breeds have some draw
back and none perfect and | find this
one so. Ny pullets began laying at
little less than months, but their
eggs are small, weighing only 15 ounces
to tho dozen, while hens eggs weigh 30
ounces and over.
Thus, you see, it is better not to force
your pullets to laying under 6 months
or so, as such small eggs are not mar
ketable. Let us hear from some of our
Leghorn breeders what they think Of
changing pullcts from pen to pen until
or months old. / think this will
check their laying until eggs are better
size. Or is it best to start them early
and dispose Of eggs at low price until
they become marketable?