The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-04-25


 Copyright. 1915.
 Poultry raising looks so easy to the city man that he contemplates II as a
 sort of country pastime to bring in biz
 money returns.
 Many city business men feel entirely l competent to run a poultry plant profit
 ably by reading up on the subject. They
 often learn they are blessed with more
 money than brains, but not until it has
 proven an expensive venture
 Poultry raising is as much a business
 as banking But it can be started in a
 small way and the man satisfied with such a beginning can learn valuable les sons that will help him when he Is ready to expand The following article Is ad- dressed to this class of poultrymen. Probably no branch of live stock keep
 ing has suffered more by reason of the
 inexperience of those who enter into this
 industry than that of poultry keeping.
 The slogan of "back to the soll has had
 its influence upon all classes of workers,
 both men and women, and the majority of these have decided that their particular
 case will be improved by entering into
 the field of poultry culture.
 Persistence and patience are bound to
 bring success in poultry keeping. provid- cd the operator follows the rules which
 are the result of experience and thousands
 of dollars expended during the past few decades by the foremost poultrymen in
 the world.
 The universal opinion of these men
 points to the fact that 1t is from B small start that the greatest measure of sue cess Is to be gained-in fact 1t is the
 back yard poultryman who usually at tains the most success. and later. Is the best informed in the industry. Most of the failures in the poultry in- dustry may be attributed to too much money and a lack of experience. The call of "back to the soil'' has been heard by men who have been successful in other lines of business and have amassed a mod
 crate fortune. They have answered the call by disposng of the successful busi- ness and embarlSng in the poultry indus try on a large scale. Many of them lost sight of the fact that they practically
 grew up with their former business from the humble position of an office boy or shipping clerk, and. in the course of many years they became acquainted with and
 mastered the details necessary to meet competition and eventually place them in an Independent position.
 They forget that their start was lnada on very small capital, and that 1t re- qured persistence and patience for them to meet their obligations. but neverthe- less, when they answered the call. back to the soil" they took large portion of their incomes and plunged into new field with modern equipment, but littls
 practical experience.
 Instances of Failures There are many instances of these fail
 ures where large plants have sprung up | in a short space of time, and modern | buildings and equipment have been in- stalled. but the owner. not being desirous of giving it his personal attention and directing the operations from personal knowledge has been compelled to employ experienced help at large salaries. The | heavy expense thus entailed was more | than the plant was able to stand For the prospective poultryman a lack of capital is rather more helpful than q detriment. It forces him to begin in a small way and gradually acquire knowl- edge with the moderate increase of his
 stock. He is more able to appreciate the value of his equipment It teaches him | to dispense with many useless and ex- pensive appliances and to use only those which will assist in saving labor or those which will add to the health and pro-
 ductiveness of his focks.
 There is no one best breed of fowls, nor is there any particular variety of poultry which will assure a profitable in- vestment It is mostly a matter of pref erence on the part of the operator and 1t usually takes more than one season for him to determine which breed or va riety is best suited to his desires or requirements.
 There is no better way to take up poul- try keeping than to begin in a small way-preferably in the back yard of tho dwelling where the fowls will be easy of access and where the equipment will in. volve the least outlay of capital. Take 1t up as a hobby with purpose in view. Study the various results of the differ ent methods of feeding and the best
 means of maintaining health in the flock. How to Start
 Secure a trio of fowls of the breed or variety which most appeals to your ideal
 There can be secured from these enough
 eggs in one season to make sufficient in-
 crease in the flock and at the same time
 1t gives you an opportunity to study the various characteristics of the par entage of the future flock.
 If the females of this trio are carefully
 trap-nested. considerable information
 may be gained regarding the egg pro duction of the flock. Select the best eggs for matching. This may be done either by a sitting hen or small incubator
 In case an incubator is used, it will be necessary to provide brooder. and then all that Is required Is to properly feed the chicks till they grow to maturity.
 The lessons to be learned in this initial stage of the poultry industry are usually the hardest. There are many failures and disasters met while raising a small flock, but these will be beacons to steer you clear of further disaster when there is a greater amount of capital involved
 While the flock is increasing and the ,poultryman is acquiring practical exper- ences. 1t is also the time when he is most profited by reading and studying current poultry literature It gives him an opportunity to learn methods used by others. most of which have proven suc- cessful to them. but are not always suc- cessful to the novice. Be careful of too much radical experimentation. It may be alluring to institute new methods, but 1t will be found that the greater number of these have at some time or another been given a trial and found wanting.
 too quickly, as the gradual increase in number of the flock will be commensu. rate with the knowledge gained
 Very often at the beginning of the sea- son, there is every indication of success but many unforeseen conditions will arise to the detriment of the growth and health of the flock, and make 1t neces- sary to resort to radical changes in or- der to avoid disaster.
 During the advancing stages of the flock there will be afforded an opportunity to study the various markets and market conditions. as. after all, this Is the prac- tical side of the poultry industry
 market which will insure a handsome For