The state herald., 1902-03-28
HALF A MILLION HENS
THE INDUSTRY OF a CALIFORNIA
r. TOWN.
Hatehinss Of $4,000 Chicks and SO, 900
Paid for Feed.

Paid for reed.
The town of Petnluma is ruled by
100000 hens. But for these half mil.
lion of hens the town would never hive
been what 1t now is, and the egg and
poultry raising industry of Petaluma
would never have Matched, so to speak,
and reached its present immense pro.
portions. The hens know it, and hence
there is no spot In the place that is for.
hidden to them.
They greet the visitor us he steps
from the train and they cluck at him as
he departs-that is, II he doesn't stay
and go into the poultry business in this
favorable spot, which many finally do.
Twenty-three years ago there were not
more than hundred or two chickens
to be found In or around Petaluma.
Now more eggs and poultry are ship.
ped from that point than from all the
other towns of the state combined, and
the poultry ranches vary In size from
n back yard to n hundred acres OF
more. No person having scrap OF
land to spare is without flock of hens.
The few figures following make the
egg business appear very much more
dignified occupation than 1t is popu-
iArly supposed TO De:
The shipments from Petaluma last
year were 2,60O,0O0 dozen eggs and 3O,.
600 dozen of poultry As high as H.,
900 dozen eggs have been shipped out
In one day from the Pitaluma market
alone.
The poultry industry has been the
means of making much otherwise
worthless land much more valuable
The big Cotad rancho of 10000 acres
has recently been sub-divided and sold
out in small holdings. To drive through
1t now is to find u veritable poultry
city.
The White Leghorn fowls, among the
best layers known, are kept to nearly
the entire exclusion of other breeds foi
the egg business is really more promis.
ing here than the poultry side of the
industry.
1t is pretty sight Mt the feeding
time Of 6,OOO or 1000 hens on n many.
ncred ranch. Perhaps the chicken
houses, each with Its nearby colony of
100 or $50 chickens, are scattered over
many acres, sometimes amid the green
of foothill orchard.
There is n rush and nutter of liv-
ing cloud OF white as the man starts
out from the feed house with horse and
sled and makes the round OF the tiers
Of houses. scattering feed and gather
ing the harvest of eggs as he goes. The
length of this trip varies, of course
with the amount of land occupied but
the feeding sled sometimes makes n
circuit OF n mile.
The hens are fed generally only once
day. with the addition OF n lunch of
green feed at night. The sled is loades
with four barrels of water. five sacks
Of wheat, and mash composed OF
three sacks of coarse mlddllngs
and forty pounds OF either cut
green bone or ground fresh
meat, which Is mixed with skim
milk that has been allowed to sour.
On big ranch 1t takes from q a. IN.
until IL o'clock to complete the feeding
and watering and sufficient quantity
Is put out TO last twcnty-bours. Sew
enty-five hens are roasted In each
house. and the houses are built on
runners.
An interesting feature OF this open
colony system IL that each fowl knows
and goes uncrrlngly TO It's own par
ticular colony house for roosting at
night
In 1900 $4,000 was spent with the
merchants of the town for chicken
feed. This was outside and above the
feed stun which some OF the large
poultry rnisers import from San Fran
cisco. Small oyster shells are bought
In this town of hens 10y the schooner
load to furnish the blddles with the
lime wherewith to produce proper
cggshell. The cost Of feeding one hen
well. and strike the happy msilum of
success In feeding. Is about 65 cents
per year-from that to 81. The average
profit per hen is 81 To si.50 net per an.
mum. One man about three miles from
Petalumn has succeeded by special
care. neatness and good selection Of
fowls, In making his hens pay tribe
over 81 each per nnnum.-From the
san Francisco Call