Mexico weekly ledger., 1903-03-12
GOLD MINE IN POULTRY YARD.
Breeds and Varieties for Practical
Purposes Turkeys and Geese
Are Given Some Attention.


Correspondence OF the Ledger.
MEXICO, March GAS to the best
breed of chickens to keep for practi-
cal purposes there is a wide difference
of opinion. 1t depends largely upon
what you want to keep chickens for.
If for the purpose Of selling stock,
either as broilers and frys or as
matured birds, Of course some of the
larger breeds are better. 100 pound
OF chickens a be produced at a con-
siderable less expense than 100 pounds
of beef or pork. AS a rule, the chick
ems will bring more per pound than
the beef or pork. Broilers and frys
will bring two or three times as much,
SO then 1t is profitable TO raise chick
ems for market. For that purpose the
writer favors the Light Brahma. II
eggs are the object some of the medi-
UNI or small Deeds should be chosen.
AS an all-purpose chicken the Plym-
outh Rocks and Wyandots are the
popular breeds among the medium
size breeds, while the Leghorns are
largely chosen as the best of the small
breeds. The writer prefers the medi-
UNI size breeds and has been partial to
the Wyandots for many years. They,
perhaps, are no better than the Rocks,
except that they are about a pound
lighter in weight, thus maturing
about a month earlier and conse-
quently begin laying earlier. That is
no small item when We are breeding
for profits. Another breed has recent
ly come into popularity, viz: the
Rhode Island Reds. They are COM
p~aritively new In the West, but have
been bred for alb ut twenty years 10
New England and especially Rhode
Island, where they got their name.
They seemed to originate among the
farmers who bred them expressly for
their reproducing qualities and
their value as a market fowl. Their
color is as the name indicates, a
red; not a dark buff, but a genuine
red. That gives them a very hand
some appearance. In size, they are
about a pound lighter than the Wyan-
dots, thus giving them the advantage
in maturing and consequently in COM
mencing laying, over the Wyandots as
that breed has over the Rocks. The
Rock pullet will begin laying at from
6 to I months old, the Wyandot from
s to 6 and the Red from Al to 5. In
the writer's experience the Reds will
excel all other breeds. In the spring
Of 1901 had one yard Of IL red pullets
which laid an AVERAGE Of 9 eggs a day
for 8 months. In May Of that year l.
shipped 127 eggs from that pen to
Michigan, a distance Of over 500 miles,
and they Matched 1913 strong chicks.
That seems Incredible to anyone who
has had experience in poultry breed
ing, but We can substantiate it. The
Bronze turkey is the popular breed,
owing to their large size. II Is ouite
common for the toms To reach 40
pounds and not unfrequently does one
reach 50 hounds. The white Holland
turkey does moi attain sooreat weight
but thew have many desirable onalt.
ties and are much more bome.bke and
less liable tn straw away than the
other breeds. The White pekio dnct
is more largely raised than anv other
and is the best for market. They are
more profitable in the East than in
this State. The Indian Runner duck
is the greatest eep-producer Of all
aomos.,e $50 9t = - u