The Lee County journal. (Leesburg, Ga.) 1904-19??, 1908-09-11
Southern Agricultural Topics.
Modern Methods That Are Helpful to
Farmer. Fruit Grower and Stocl1man.

lure placed them, ana thenc2, win q
natural mother, and natural food,
they thrive.
And now. with these thoughts in
mind, and in looking back over. the
past, and gathering together the data
whether Of success or failure, we
can see in such review, that our
best luck, as it is termed, or, our
greater success, has been attained
when we kept most in line with ma
ture in the feeding and the care of
our young chickens. And, in this
vista. of the past, we see standing out
like mile posts to our ignorant man
agement, the long series of broods,
and the hundreds and hundreds Of
little down innocents that were sac
rificed to warm, soft, sloppy mixed
foods. We can recall the dysentery
and the other forms Of bowel trouble
that carried them off, until from a
brod Of ten to fifteen, we would raise
only two or three.
This was killing chickens with
kindness, coupled with inexperience.
We cooked for them, and we made
hot mashes, and we succeeded in
making some of them sick, and the
disease spread and we lost them by
the tens and scores-and nature out
ragged. And then we tried another
way, and it was more natural way.
1t was less troublesome and more
expeditions. We stopped feeding soft
mashes, and resorted to cracked
grain, small seeds, and coarse dry
meal, and we put this sort of food
where the chickens had to work to
get it out. Now, this is an old story
this scratching for living 1T is
almost threadbare, you know, and yet
it is really the basis for keeping the
chicks healthy-of keeping disease
out of the brood. For, the little
chick that has nothing but dry food
to eat, and has to scratch it out of
litter, or trash-the chick that has to
wander about and pry in here and
there for the stray insect or worm
this is the healthy chicken The hen
that scratches with her chickens
that dusts and wallows with them, is
the healthy hen, and the hen with the
healthy brood. That's the key to the
thought. We need to keep close to
nature in raising the chickens, to
have good success.
Practically, and to definite plan
put each hen in small run, with
coop to herself, so as to Individual
ize her and her particular little fam
lily. Then feed her and her chicks
dry food only; small seeds, cracked
grain, oat meal, little rye, corn
meal, and let them work it out of a
litter which has a sandy, gravelIy
base. This is natural combination,
and 1t will not be taken up at a gulp,
but the mixture will be worked out
gradually and in different parts at
different times. This will take the
greater part of the day and it will be
all the better for it. 1t will result In
keen-eyed, alert, active and fast
growing chicks, and healthy, active
mother 1t will keep off disease, and
it will lead to greater per cent. of
matured chickens per brood than any
other system. It's good plan to
have and to follow early in the season,
and 1t is equally practicable. and
available for best results all summer
and far into the fall. In fact, by
keeping the hot mashes from our
little chicks, and in working them as
suggested, we may raise from thirty
to fifty per cent more than under
the old system of coddling, and stuff
fing with mixtures that are more or
less injurious in their effects.-By H.
B. Geer.