The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1914-04-05
Europe's Expert Explodes Many
Theories Which Have
Been in Vogue.
RAPs INTENSIVE METHOD
Trap Nesting Alluring, but
This Method Also Has Its
Weak Points.

AiherlCe 10 rsurOpeb 8TedteSt utiuty
expert, writes as follows on PHASES of
and Fashions In Utility Poultry:
Progress never works on a straight
line. come one has written. This 10 In
conformity with general experience. A
Russian Gear may rule on the map the
route Of a railway. regardless Of physical
conditions. as did the Emperor Nicholas
when the Moscow-st. Petersburg line was
projected. and It had to he done In that
way, even though many towns and i'm
portant centres were thus missed. The
zigsas. or spiral, il generally the more
successful, so long as the Ultimate goal IL
kept In view.
THAT has certainly been the case with
the utility side Of the poultry Industry.
the gyrations Of which. whether at home
or abroad. form an interesting study.
Perhaps some consideration OF these may
not be out OF place. and he helpful for
the future. The tendency Is ever toward
narrowness of outlook. to the Imagination
that one system or phase embodies the
entire solution. and that alone When
It Is a mere fashion the result Is seldom
good. When II Ia n phase there is gen
orally some contribution OF permanent
knowledge and an addition to useful
experience.
''The direction in which what is here
set forth has manifested itself to the
greatest extent is with regard to breeds.
wherein fashion has counted for much.
My own memories do not 60 back az far
a. the Coo hin mania OF more than sixty
years ago, though have often talked with
those who shared in that bubble. To read
some of the statements made a. to that
breed ono would imagine that perfection
had been attained. that IL was the dernier
cn In poultry. both for eggs and flesh
production. II was thought that flock
Of these birds meant speedy wealth The
hens were said to frequently lay two
knowledge we wonder how any one could
believe such to be the case with that
or In fact any breed. That the original
types OF Cochin and Brahma were at first
better layers than at any later period
may be accepted. unless the Ananias spirit
WAS more pronounced in the middle Of last
century than IL now evident. What has
now been learned. and IL still seldom re-
allied. Ia that change OF conditions and
better treatment are often temporarily
cumulative in. many cases. and that ac-
climstisation leads to resumption OF the
normal.
What was true Of the Shanghai! has
been repeated again and yet again. Nearly
every new breed introduced or manufac-
tured has repeated on a smaller scale the
same phase. Those races which have
maintained. even to limited extent. tie
counted upon the fingers. I nearly said OF
one hand though that would hardly be
correct. Some few breeds there are which
have stood the test OF time and have re-
sponded to the tYorts OF breeders, even
improving in productive qualities.
Success with utility poultry Is not de-
Sermned alone by the breed kept. What
has to be found out is how far does It
conform to special and local conditions7
We cannot, therefore. depend upon breed
alone. At one time II WAS thought BY the
majority Of people that mongre!s or cross
breds were always the more productive
and profitable. So long as ordinary poul-
try keepers had no other source Of supply
to draw upon than the highly bred stocks
OF fanciers for fresh blood that was largely
true in practice. WIKI the advent OF
utility poultry farms. and especially those
which deserve the name of farms by the
amount OF land occupied, great chance
has taken place. although from the OBJ
servation OF Prof, James Dryden as TO his
record 3O3 egg hen we ON to be in some
danger Of reversion to the original idea.
What undoubtedly has been forced upon
the minds OF farmers and others Is that
There are as many days FOR q poor hen as
for good one and that the former COSTS
az much 10 keep as the latter. while the
tendtnc towards recession appears 10 he
greater In mongrels than pure bred stock,
functionally as well as In external charac-
tiers. History repeats Itself In many ways.
Novel ideas and fashions OF one gene ra-
ton are seldom new. These are usually
rebirths OF what had been tried and aban-
Goned before That Is true In respect to
intensive methods, although the form has
varied somewhat In the early days Of
Industrial poultry, keeping small runs and
ofg f1ocks We're equally tried by many.
Some OF the statements made by writer's
OF articles and letters and books forty to
hfty years ago might almost be repro
duced verbatim and few would know that
these were not penned In 1914. At pres
ent the pendulum has swung on the In
tenslve side How much vii! continue
when the reaction begins remains TO oe
seen. II is, however, all In the cycle OF
progression. Ny hop. Is that some at
least OF these intensivists viii become
permanently attached to the industry, even
II their methods are modified. You cam
not make dog happy by merely wagg.nx
his tail. There is "A considerable amount
OF tail wagging at present on many sides.
Housing has passed through various
phases. At one period this aspect of the
business was disregarded. Fowls were
thought to know their own requirements
and were left TO select their quarters.
Then came the stage when 1t was i'm
agined that they must be kept warm to
induce productiveness. The era OF close
and crowded quarters had arrived. Hap
PLY We have learned by experience that
this Is not the way of success, though OF
late there has been some "Reminiscences
of tho same notion. Scientific investiga-
lions as well as practical working have
shown that abundance OF fresh air 10 es-
sentlal 10 health and vigor without which
production cannot be permanently main
tained. The open front system as applied
to poultry houses has been arrived at
after many zigzags. The same 10 true a.
to the size OF poultry dwellings. Ex-
70 n 10 rl,a,, It,.