The Birmingham age-herald., 1904-03-17
EXPERIENCE IN RAISING
 THOROUGHBRED POULTRY.

Edwin R Hayssen of Chunehula, Ala contributes the following interesting ar ticle on poultry to the Southern Fruit Grower:
 My experience with poultry has taught me many lessons, some of which I will try to state here in as few words as pos sible to make it plain to the ordinary man or woman who wishes to raise fowls
 To commence with, when we set a hen (we use ineubators mostly) we nearly al- ways set two or more hens at the same time, and are sure to pit the hens in some secluded place where the other hens can't bother them. We make the nests of clean soft straw or other material in some dark place. and place the eggs in the nest during the day; but we never put the setting hen (cuck) on the nest till after dark and then only as quietly as possible thus seldom having a hen de- sert.
 By setting two hens at the same time we can put all the chicks with one hen thereby saving GOODS. etc, and we can reset the one if necessary We have often had one large Plymouth Rock hen take care of thirty or forty chicks and with good success When raising only few chickens with hens, and the hens are allowed free range. there are but few suggestions to make on feeding chicks. as 1t Is as near to raising them naturally as wished for: but when they are matched and raised in lots of a hun dred or more in incubators and reared in breeders as we mostly do too much care cannot he taken to feed the little ones just right in order to raise a good percentage.
 Give No Food.
 The first twenty-four hours after the chicks are dry we give them no food whatever. but grit in the form of coarse sand, fine charcoal or some other mate rial Is put where they can get at it at all times. Then after twenty-four or thirty-six hours, we give them water and dry food in the shape of millet seed. pin head oats fine cracked corn and stale dry breadcrumbs. We used to feed them stale food. but found by experience that we lost ten chicks to one where we fed them dry food only the first ten days, and are following the dry food rule now Never feed more than they will eat up clean. so they will be hungry and ready to eat their next meal with relish.
 We have lost more chicks through neg lect of care in feeding than any other cause Especially do I know that whom fed mashes the chicks would eat too much and the food sour and finally the little ones died from indigestion and bowel troubles After they are two weeks old I feed the chicks a crumbly mash once a day and give them dry food in the form of small grain in litter to in- duce scratching for 1t and giving them exercise.
 Protect the Chicks.
 We always keep the chicks where they are absolutely out of danger of rats and other vermn, by means of wire screens. etc. and watch particularly that none of the little ones get wet or chilled by the early spring rains
 There are a number of good plans for feeding poultry. but most of the large poultry raisers differ on the subject have tried nearly all plans myself to test the best way and have decided on the following plan; Grain in the morning in the form of oats, wheat or cracked corn etc, Is scattered in litter of straw. leaves. etc. so the hens must scratch for what they get and at night feed them mash. about an hour be- fore dark, of the following mixture: Corn meal. ground oats, bran, middlings and beef meal together with some boiled pota- toes, turnips or the like. At noon I feed then. a lunc of grain; oats is very