The sun., 1902-03-09
HALF A MILLION HENS.
4 Lively Town in California where SOC. .OO(
CacklerS Live.


The town of Petaluma is ruled by b000 900
hens But for these half million OF hens
the town would never have been what =
now is and the egg 0ud poultry raising in
dustry OF Petaluma would never have hatched.
| so to speak. and reached it, present immense
| proportions The hens know it, and hence
/ there is no spot in the place that is forbidden
/ to them.
They greet the visitor as he steps from the
train and they CluCk at him as he departs
that is, If he doesn't stay and go into The
poultry business ia this favorable spot. whioh
many finally do. lwCnty-three years ago
there were not more than hundred or two
chickens 10 he found In or around Petaluma.
Now more eggs and poultry are shipped
from that point than from all the other towns
Of the State combined, and the poultry ranches
vary IL size from a back yard to a hundred
acres or more. No person having a scrap
OF land to spare is without a flock of hens
The few figures following make the egg
business appear very much more dgnifed
occupation than It is populary supposed to
be.
The shipments from Petanma last year
were 100000 dozen eggs and 5000 dozen Of
poultry, As high as 1900 dozen eggs have
been -hipped out in one day from he Petaluma
market alone.
Pctaluma proud position as the egg centre
OF the Pacific coast is not the result OF accident
but is due TO combination. viz: right soil,
cool summers and favorable location. Near
ness to the san Francisco market and tho
extremely low freight rates afforded by
reason Of tine competition between water and
rail transportation are other important
factor, in rs development.
IT," poultry industry has been the means
OF making mach otherwise worthless land
mg more valuable Tho big Cotati rancho
OF 10000 acres hiss recently been subdIyided
and sold out IN small holdings To drive
through II now Is to fiud a Nertable poultry
Ctv
The White L"ghorn fowls. among tho
Nc-t layers known. are kept to nearly tho
entire exclusion of other breeds for tho
egg business i really more promising here
than the poultry side OF the industry
II Is a pretty sight at the feeding time OF
a. 900 or 1000 hens on a many-acred ranch
Perhaps the chicken houses. each with its
nearby colony of 100 or iaO chickens. are
scattered over many acres, sometimes amid
tho green Of b.. ioOfhiU orchard
There j. a rush and nutter OF n living
tho feed house with horse and sled and make
the round OF the tiers OF houses. scattering
feed and gathCring the harvest Of eggs az
ne goes Tue lcuEth Of this tTip varies, Of
course. with the amount of land occupied
hui IN" feeding sled sometimes makes oircuit
The hens nre fed generally only once q
day. will the addition OF q lunch OF green
f'ol ni might The sled is loaded with four
barrels Of HHicr. fly" sacks Of wheat and q
rna-l composed Of three sacks Of coarse mid
ding and forty .pouuds Of either cut green
Win skim mix that has been pllowed 20
sour on big ranch H. takes from AIN.
watering md sufficient Quantity is put
ont 10 last tUouty-four hours. Seventy.
I've. hens are roasted IN each house. and
tho houses ufo built on runners
l'hn colonies nrc from I0o o 800 feet apsrt,
and the hens being we'll supplied with feed.
.r. content aud do not wander from one
COLONY 20 gUu' nor
An interesting feature Of this open COZ
orv -vstcm l- that each .ovl knows and
uuv house fur roostirg NJ night
IN 1900 S.uWb was spent with the mer-
vas OUTSIDE and above the feed stun which
some Of the lafg" poultry laisers impors
ab rro bos S IN 'ly% FL. town Sq of heE. SE.'{ BY shs
schooner load to furnish the hiddie- with
s e TRSrS%n c 81 e. icdS gST%5uSS one hen PrSps We'll
and st-ikc tho happy medium Of succese
Va f'"dns. is about O. cents per yeor-trom
lu'1H Hnd buy sjur worth uI chicken feed
and pay cash FOR % as readily and perhaps
more so, than he would buy liz vile silk
Tia. host arrurout as TO rroN,s Is the
fact that everybody IN the town j. IN the
poultry business 90 some form. and they
al stay IN i and enlarge Zach veal. The
AVERAGE pro0t per hen q. 81 80 ~ 50 net per
rellun1 hHs -gour"dcd bv special care.
nrutnc-- and good selection al fowls. In
pr 1nnim II thc ' cr.-heiiis Wcrc only 40
valuable A. 'he egg, vh1i % duplicate store
hfid % hf NSIa S%Gd bcGa GGHI hem p m"N rS pSmb.r
Of ,hci's WI ~ rrr c,rt.f 7wav nv tNc wagon
aud Ted 10 their near relHtiyc-, the chicks,
ao~ ''' gdd T Ey the ,el. lett by 'P 100 90 chicks
ncltnS, they resembled case Of huge pso-
corn. r.