The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1910-07-27

the Best Of locations.
Poultry farming seems the ideal life
TO a vast number Of people at the pres
emit time, because Ii looks ensy and
sure. To q person in the business, 'etet-
nal vigilance and close application
are the things that are Sure" while
the easy part is easy only by COM
parison. After living In the city for
more than 80 years we have gone back
TO the farm, and as 90 acres is rather
small for dairying, we have installed a
poultry plant Our location is most de.
sirable for the business, the house and
farm buildings being on o sandy, gravel.
" knoll sloping to the east. south and
west, says writer IN the Rural New
Yorker The first year we used some
Of the farm buildings for poultry, but
as our floeks increased new buildings
were necessary, the locating Of which
has taken time and thought
Our ground sloping so many ways
made long or continuous hosue out
Of the question. SO on the westerly side
Of the Hill we ploughed and scraped Level
steep slope, 80 BY 800 feet. This was
an easy task. as the soil was 20 sandy
that even a cut Of five feet was quickly
made. On this terrace we built five
breeding houses, each n BY 38 feet.
leaving a l2-foot driveway along the
east end Of the houses, IN which end
the doors were placed. Our determina-
tlon to keep the cost Of the installation
down and still build in a substantial
manner, has resulted in buildings Of
which we are proud, Even 10 Vermont
lumber costs money, but we got IN on
the ground floor By buying the hemlock
away contracted the cutting and draw
Of the logs TO a mill near the farm, aud
then with our own hands, and handy
man by the day. put up the buildings.
In the soft soil we dug a shallow
trench for Che foundation. which consist
ed Of discarded cedar railroad ties, which
cost Ms the hauling from the road that
bounds one side Of the farm. These
ties are placed end to end IN the trench
on each side and across the ends, they
are leveled up, and two.by-four stills We
cureiy nailed 70 them. Cross sills, placed
six feet apart, tie the building together,
and are the foundation for the partitions
which divide each house into six pens Of
Q By II feet each; twolby posts tx
feet long are placed along the front, SIX
feet apart, while on the back the posts
are al feet long. These posts support
the front and rear plates. No Taftefs
are used, the roof being supported BIZ
two other plates which divide the space
between front and rear plates These
plates are supported by posts act on
each cross sill. and to them the parti- |
tons are nailed.
Roof boards IS feet long, put on cross
wise OF the building and securely nailed /
to each Of the four plates, take the place /
Of rafters The ends, front and rear
Of the building, are boarded up and down |
with rough htmiock boards, which we're
thoroughly dried, over the cracks one by |
two-inch strips are nailed, except on the |
back which is covered with building /
paper and cotton cloth thoroughly tarred /
and which, with the addition Of sana /
forms the roof covering Earth floors !
Of the sand and fine gravel have proveo /
most satisfactory, as II furnishes dust /
in2 even In the coolest Of winter days I
GlazeG sash, % BY 30 inches, slide il I
the south front Of each pen, while above
these Windows sliding frames, Is to So /
covered with cotton cloth furnish ven
tilation The only change we would I
make IN these houses. were We 10 buila 1
a gain, would be to make the cotton COS
cred openings larger, say Is BY 90 IN
ehes.
These houses hove stood the storms
Of winter without tremor. were snug /
and comfortable in all kinds Of wealth
err. and l0C laying pullets Ii each house /
did good work up to February |, when /
they struck a so per cent gait, which 1
they have since kept tor betteredl, ex
sept the break that came when we mat
ed up the breeding hens, putting IL
hens and cock in pen, or rs fowls I
in each house. The inside furnishings Of |
our houses are very simple; dropping |
boards 80 inches wide extend across the l
rear 30 inches from the ground. Mash
boxes, 80 By 10 BY I inches deep, SCI
Dn platform in the partitions on the
same height as dropping boards, and ex.
tending TO IT, furnish also a place for
our water tank, 20 that two pens are |
led and watered at the same time Nest
boxes are under the mash platform, of
the ground, 20 the entire floor space in
The cost Of these buildings Is made
ip 81 1900 feet pf rough lumber. roofing, \
tx windows Sf,20, wire fer doors and
partitions 60 CENTS hardware 81, IN
Sur case the cost Is under so cents per
hen. With lumber at dealers prices,
such houses would cost about G5 cents
per hen, figuring 100 to the hous.
About June / the cooks are removed
rom these breeding houses. and the
lens that have furnished the eggs for
,ur incubators VIII be given free range
IN two acres Of grass and clover land,
md We feel sure they will continue to
pay their way
Haphazard methods or neglect will
make a quick failure Of a poultry farm,
While patient care will bring sure re-
nlts. We can only repeat what friend
aid to lis when We were talking of
tarting poultry farm: start with
/ few hens, and see if you like the bus
ness, for there is lots Of work III rum
ing poultry plant" We know he
vas right, for we have worked but have
10 regrets only that we did not start