The record-union., 1894-05-18
FARM And ORCHARD.
There are Three Classes Engaged
in Poultry Breeding.

Broom-Corn as a Crop-How to Pre-
pare the Ground and Sow the Seed
Upon Each and Every Farm-Dried
Oltyes-Fresh Water for the Fowls.
We trust there are few persons inter-
ested in poultry who are so short
sighted as to think for a moment tnat
fancy" poulty breeding is necessarily
harmful TO the business of rearing good
fowls for market. There are three
classes engaged in poultry breeding:
First. the fancier, pure and simple. who
does not figure carefully the question OF
profit and loss. but who keeps 1oWis
simply for the pleasure of it, 'the fun OF
the thing''; he enjoys having his line
birds TO look at, to rear and care for, TO
show to his friends, 10 exhibit at shows.
He likes hens or pigeons, so he keeps
hens Or pigeons, as, ii he likes dog, ne
has one, no matter if hens or pigeons do
eat something, and there is tax on dogs.
We know many tancier who has spent
two dollars for every one his fowls or
pigeons brought him in but who never
thinks of giving up breeding on this
account. He isn't breeding Tor the
money there is i'll it, but for recreation.
The class he belongs to is larger than IS
commonly supposed. Many wealthy
men are mum hered i'll it, but many work
ing men as well, for mechanics and
clerks. and others who earn every dollar
they receive, know that there are good
many more Wasteful ways OF spending
money than they follow in their poultry
keeping. What they pay out tor fowls,
grain, coops, ETC., they may not get pack
again in hard cash, but they have III their
..extravagancies' harmed neither brain
nor Drawn, wronged no man. and per-
haps have helped themselves more than
they know.
We know of invalids who have been re-
stored to health in the poultry-yard,
drunkards who have been led from their
cups by the interest they took III THIS
fascinating pursuit, and many whose sole
pleasure in life seemed to be conferred III
their fine fowls or beautiful pigeons.
Now there are hard-hearted, practical
men who always overlook this class in
the fraternity, and who praise nothing
but 1.-The business chicken" that lays the
most eggs and makes the best poultry.
Handsome is as handsome does'' they
pertinaciously eXclaim, forgetting that
there are things in this world OF more
value, even TO poor man, than few dol
lars, and that money invested i'll healthy
endowment may bring in rich dividends
unex pectedly, perhaps linperceptlDly.
The second class is represented by the
man or woman who combines business
with pleasure; he is both real fancler
and shrewd manager OF his flock. lie
makes his poultry keeping pay, and ut
f1 has n l.
his breeding operations, and all that ap-
pertains thereto. Probably one-haH the
fraternity come into our second division.
They represent American thrift and en-
terprise which likes to gather shekeIs
and pleasure from the same tree.
The third class belongs the market
poultry man, who cares only that his
fowls pay him good proht. he may
keep ten or a thousand hens, but he
looks sharply after what, to him, is
merely a business for making little or a
great deal of money. His hens are to
him SO many machines, expected to do
so much work. If he could make more
al hogs, he would as soon keep hogs. He
Is not, in any sense, fancier, does not
pretend to be enc, and if he succeeds he is
worthy OF hearty congratulation.
Now, these three classes make up the
whole fraternity. Ono should not be de-
rided more than another; each is entitled
to praise for the success 1t honestly
achieves; what is one mans meat is an
other mans poison" Because we admire
and breed Black Polish, is that any reason
why you should try TO make US change
our fancy to Plymouth Rocks, because
they are fine market fowl. the best busi-
ness chicken? No, sir, we have our
fancy, you yours, and the man who
breeds for market knows what he wants
so let us all look beyond our own nose,
and we shall see that it takes more than
one strand to make rOpe.-Pacific Coast
Fanciers' Monthly.
BROOM CORN AS A CROP.
Forty years ago broom corn was grown
to quite an extent in the Connecticut
Valley, and the H2dley broom was we'll
known article of commerce in the New
England States. With the opening of
rich land in the more recently settled
portion of the country, the center of pro-
duction of this plant moved to the West.
It has almost disappeared from the sea-
board, but is a profitable crop in some OF
the central Western States.
II it receives suitable attention at the
right time. broom corn is not difficult
crop to produce. While late planting is
to be avoided, it is not we'll to 90 10 the
other extreme and do this work while
the ground is cold. A well-prepared seed
bed is of great importance, and it is good
plan 10 plow the ground some time before
the planting is to be done. This will
cause the seeds of weeds and grass which
NAV be in the land to germinate before
the preparation of the surface soil is
made. a thorough pulverization of the
surface just before planting will destroy
these intruding plants, and will thereby
greatly aid in keeping the crop clean. AS
the plants of broom corn are rather weak
and make only slow growth during the
first few weeks after they appear, the
providing of clean and mellow seed
bed is a matter of considerable conse-
quence.
Planting in hills. which was at one
time almost universal, has largely been
superseded by drill culture. The old Gus
tom was TO make the hills from two to
two and one-half feet apart, in rows from
three to four feet from each other. A lib
eral quantity of seed was used. This
made it necessary TO thin the plants at
the second hoeing, and involved great
deal of very hard work. If good ma
chimes are used and properly gauged,
just the right quantity of seed can be
planted. When care is used in selecting
seed this is by far the best way, as thin
ming the plants is both expensive and
tiresome. On ordinary soil the stalks
may stand three inches apart in the
drill or two stalks together every six or
seven inches. Either very thick or very
thin planting will seriously injure the
quality of the brush. In case dwarf
variety is grown, the planting can be
much closer than the distances above
named.
Cultivation should be commenced as