Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1902-04-10
EGG PRODUCING CHICKENS.
r.. +. Potter Tells How He Makes II Sue
cess of the Business.

iIs Il. IOtttr IeiiS HOW lie MHkes SuC-
cess of the Business.
AT present the matter of egg pro-
ducing chickens is the all absorbing
topic with many farmers and other
people. II. p. Potter Of this city is one
of the most successful egg producing
chicken raisers in this locality He
sends the following to The Gazette:
II send you the record of my IS
hens for the past two months. In Feb
ruary they laid 263 eggs, nearly 9l2 per
day. or 81 per cent. In March they
laid 385, about 1915 per day, or 50 per
cent In Every Evening of February
18th was published my December and
January record, which averaged "a per
cent. We gathered 635 eggs from 10
hens, and in February and March GAS,
making an average for the four winter
months of 81 per cent, The record of
Mr.. Brosius Smedley, as published in
Every Evening of March 29th, for three
months, up to March 24th, was "a per
cent, and that of Mrs. Bently 10 per
cent, therefore so far as heard from we
claim the banner for egg producers.
My success one year ago was nearly as
| good
Now, if you will allow me space, /
will give my methods for the benefit of
others, having had many inquiries for
| it. In the first place | find there is
not SO much in the breed as there is
| in the feed and in the way the hens
are fed and sheltered OF pure breeds
| have two black Langshangs, four
black Minorcas, five brown Leghorns,
| two barred Rocks and the other five
are Mongrels, but they all seem to get
| down to an equality when it comes to
laying. In fact, they have all been so
engaged in business that only one out
of the IS has had time to think Of
propagating her species. | feed only
at morning and noon and always whole
grain, mostly wheat, with u little
buckwheat added. This is thrown in
the straw in their scratching pen,
where they will work perfectly con
tented for hours. | also give little
millet seed and an ear or two of corn
everyday is thrown in their yard.
My henhouse is about AXIS feet,
half for scratching pen, the other half
for roosts and nests. A door is closed
| between them at night This house
is well protected on two sides but the
north and west sides are of rough
boards with stripped joints. The roof
is of matched boards covered with tar
paper no lining of any kind being used.
My flock always has access to dust
box, ground oyster shells and pure
water warmed in cold weather in the
morning. They are fed all the table
scraps, sometimes warmed up and pep
| pered. Bones are cut fine, with a
hatchet; also they get an occasional
head of cabbage. They are given nc
ground feed, clover, meal or any OF
1 coll lnl Itnt
| whatever. They have access to yard
70 feet square in fine weather. We
have spent about 15 minutes each day
in their care, have paid out 81 for theii
feed and have gathered about 107 dozen
eggs the past four months.
ANY flock of hens with indifferent
care will produce eggs as soon as spring
appears and eggs go down in price, but
winter prices are the paying ones.
Many farmers have fed as much grain
per hen this winter as have and they
got but few, if any, eggs. What have
done the past two winters others car
do making success instead of Q
failure of winter poultry. The idea
prevails that Il small flock will dc
better than u large one. Ii that is
true then divide up into small flockS
and treat each one us such. There is
no reason why each separate pen will
not do as we'll as mine has done. There
are many good breeds from which tc
choose. My fayorite at present is the
black Langshang The cockerels wher
nine months old weigh Il pounds anC
the pullets eight live weight Wher
one of these is dressed for the table We
can easily imagine we are having q
turkey dinner.