Norwich bulletin., 1914-09-26

Written Specially for The Bulletin) I don't profess to know very much { about hens. Once in While sel little swelled head when they are iay- ing eggs to beat the band, ana 1eei m cfined to brag. But invariably some thing happens within a fortnight to Knock my budding self conceit galley west. Then I'm glad didn't open my [ mouth when Sam Jenks and Pete Sny- E der were swapping lies m t1e1 slo5e ! about what their Domlpics ana Rnooe i, Island Reds were doing.
 : we keep about a couple. Of dozen in inc little henhouse, and get what eggs we need for home use. a lew 70 nelp ! out a neighbor with. now and then, and a dozen or two young roosters, every year, to eat. On great occasions, when the hens are unusually palrlotlc i and tlIst hump themselves. we sell a ! few dozen. {, You can't run a truek.patch and I keep hens at the same time on the f same ground. That was iorclDiy .a T pressed on me many years ago. 50 ! cut down on the cacklers and put Tn Ernore cabbages. which I know more {; about-or think I do. With me, nens are confessedly a side issue, ana l rather suspect that if some or our DE observe my methods they would set .tme down as a long way behind the times
 Therefore, I'm not going to give any bsort of a lpcture about How to get fwinter eggs" or ssdow to make $40, 900 Ia year from a hundred hens in the back ward" But it has occurred to me that !some farmers who, like myself. own up to not being professional hen men, might be little surprised, as Twas. Ito learn the extent and importance or the hen crop in this country.
 E Of course, 1909 was quite a bit back, fand things have changed a good deal since then, But Uncle Sam took his last census in 1910 and had to collect sd909 figures on hens as well as other things.
 American Hen was going some. She was cutting fairly wide swath in the horticultural field. There were 404, ,468,- 1854 of her in the country, and she was worth s202,506,2f2. She laid that year .1,591 ,311,371 dozen eggs worth S306,- i6SS,900. i
 Kindly notice, right here, that $2e2.- : f0O0, ,000 worth Of hens laid $3O6, ,0o0, 900 lworth of eggs. That sounds, like a tpretty fair return. There are mighty flew men know of who earn more in ithe course of a single year than they q eyalue their own neckS at. But Mrs. Hen did it. And keeps right on doing it.
 When we talk about millions and bill lions of things, we're simply using big words. There isn't one of us who is able to appreciate what such figures tmean, until we compare them with gsomething else that we can conpre- ahend.
 A western hen fancier has been pworkng out @ few such comparisons pin this egg matter. He finds, for ex- Asav, 1rnI 4ho+ A>T~ Ihouses, each 80 feet by 80. and N feet ito the caves. to hold one years eggs Epacked as if in crates. It would take tA1,440 freight cars to transport, them Sn ordinary 30-dozen crates. Such { freight train would reach from Bostol fto Washington. If 1t were cominf sfrom the west. when the engine drev Fin at Norwich the caboose car wouIt fbe at Buffalo. N. Y.
 {. And this train would carry jus feggs. No broilers No spring chick Nothing but just eggs. eggs, eggs. An, sgood eggs. at that. Not cold storag scoliections of some previous year o .century. The hen isn't responsible fo :bad eggs. They're the product of hu fman recklesSness or greed
 The Great American Hen Is abov acting like a human egg dealer. Sh fwouldn't stoop to anything of the sori xShed bust her ovaries first and giv tup her jobl
 The total value Of all the pouItr sproducts of the United States in 190 was s570 0,000,00o. The total value of a Fthe gold produced in all the world tha year was $474, S3,3, ,268.
 <. Talk about gold minesi They're nc An it with hens. They're poor sec
 ond in the race.
 
 One of the great advantages (
 farming is that it has so many ave
 .nues of occupation. One farmer ma raise wheat and another potatoes, an
 another colts and another strawberrie
 and another sheep and another cucurr
 bers and another chickens. They're a
 Farmers. just the same. The farms
 isn't compelled to restrict his activitie
 to any one line of work. He may-ar
 should-do that which his natur
 abilities best fit him for and his COT
 ..