Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1900-11-14
A Turtle Farm.

Conn, has started a turtle farm.
Mr.. Todd started in the turtle
farming in small way by catch
ing the placid creatures and pen
ming them up and fattening them
until they were large enough to sell.
Now he has many hundred turtles
of all ages. He encourages their
breeding in captivity, he adds to
the number all that he can capture,
and he sells only such turtles as
have arrived at satisfactory age
and averdupOis. They are about
eight inches in length when he dis
poses of them. His turtle farm is
a three acre field on the south side
of his house. This contains a lit
tie pond with no outlet, which he
keeps filled with water from a con-
venient spring. The pond is lined
with mud and there the great fam
lily of peaceful, glossy backed tur-
ties lie and revel in the sunlight,
with their heads perpetually stick
ing up, SO continuously are they
on the alert for the energetic old
turtle farmer to appear and dis
tribute a fresh supply of ratiOns
among them
AS will be noticed Mr.. Todd is
not at all secretive regarding his
queer business. He says the main
trouble with it is that one cannot
produce turtles enough. He de-
clares that turtles never die, and
he says that he once saw one in
the town of Milford. which had the
figures 1905 carved on its shell, in
dicating that it was probably a
good sized turtle on that date.
During all his experience as tur-
tie farmer, he has never found a
turtle dead about his premises from
natural causes so he is positive
that they are long lived. They
are also hearty eaters, he says. He
feeds them on anglewOrms and
raw chopped meat, and, during
the summer, they catch large num-
bers of flies to add to their diet.
He also keeps vessels of sour milk
sitting about the turtle field. The
turtles, he says, are fond of this
and it is very fatening for them.
In selling his crop of turtles Mr..
Todd begins to dispose of them
soon after the breeding teasOn has
ended and he continues until his
stock is exhausted. In some sea
sons he says he has hatched out
and caught in neighbOring brooks
over 500 young turtles to be plac-
ed upon his farm as reserve stock.
The turtles usually spend the first
portion of the day i'll warm wealth
er in taking air baths in the sun
shine. After this they all, sooner
or later, make their way to the
pond for dip. Then they bask
in the sun again or else take a con-
stitutional around the field. The
afternoon is given up chiefly to
waddling, fly catching and bask-
ing. The turtles eat their largest |
meals in the early evening.
The turtles are the common, in
offensive, fresh water variety with
a marked penchant for mud. In
fact they are called mud turtles,
but in his capacity of an educator
of the public up to his stand point,
Mr.. Todd calls them ''red- legged
Nothing that I have ev-
er gone into has paid me quite so
well as my turtle farm" says he:
IAN in nothing did l ever have
less trouble to eddicate the MASSES
than this turtle business. For,
YOU see, | dOl't have to explain
matters TO everybody in selling |
turtles. / put in my work with
the market men an the caterers,
and they do the rest. An the
public eats the turtle. That saves
me lot of trouble.
Ye see," went on Todd, ''this |
here red d-legged terrapin. as ! call
him, takes the place at from 81 to
81 a dozen of the real diamond
back terrapin from the brackish
waters of Virginia, which cost per
haps $40 a dozen. AN l can tell
You" he went on. theirs a good
bit of money in this line of work.
for anybody that wants to igo into |
ii. but somehow l amt struck |
much company yet, although I've
been a -takin from 5000 to $500 a
wear out Of it every spring an sum
mer for eight years past. Still,
suppose competition is bound to
come"