Evening star., 1915-03-07
JBURBAN AND COUNTRY LIFE PAGE

morning and an ounce evening per hen
with two ounces of dry mash per
day per hen. The grit, oyster shell
and green feed remains about the same.
Plenty of clean, fresh water-warmed
during cold weather-containinge enough
permanganate of potash to give the
water the color Of claret, must be sup
piled; the water vessels being cleaned
treme cold weather these rations. both
for the light and the heavy breeds.
Will have to be increased somewhat.
while in hot weather they may be
average. and should not be taken as a
| hard and fast rule. There is no fixed
rule for feeding: laying hens must be
led enough to keep them in good con-
not be permitted to become overfat, as
a hen that Is too fat will not lay.
Judgment and observation of the con-
dftion of the fowls in flock are
worth more than whole books Of fixed
| rules.
Question-What is the cause of gapes
in fowls. and is there any cure for the
aiiments?-L. c. w, Maryland
Answer-Gapes are caused by yard
ing fowls on badly polluted soil The
disease-the "gapes"-is due to a small
worm that. picked up by the fowls.
fxes itself in the membranes OF the
throat. the spasmodic gaping of the
FOWL being nothing more than the
birds effort to dislodge and get rid of
this tiny worm. A homely remedy that
has proven efficacious in hundreds of
cases. to the writer's knowledge, Is
equal parts of coal oil and lard. the
lard being melted and the oil mixed
with it. This is to be applied with a
small cameIs hair brush, or the tip of
feather. as far down the fowls
throat as possible. Sulphur busted in
the fowls throat often kills the gape
worm and thus cures the disease. The
dry sulphur should be blown into the
birds throat by means of an ordinary
powder blower, such as may be had for
or 10 scents Removal of the fowls
from the polluted ground to runs
| where the soil is clean and fresh often
results in the speedy disappearance Of
the ailment: while 1t Is certain to per-
sist as long as the fowls are kept on
the polluted soil.
Question-What is the best all
around breed of poultry for a be-
ginner? want to start into the poultry
business on small scale this year. and
l want to raise a general purpose
breed-one that will lay plenty Of eggs
and that will make good sized broil-
efs, roasters and stewing chickens, too.
What would you suggest?-B. L. McM.,
Maryland.
all-around" breeds of poultry as there
are poultrymen. The man who fancies
Rhode Island Reds will declare that no
breed equals his favorite. The Orping-
ton man can see no value in anything
but Orpingtons. The Rock fancfer
feels the same way about his white, or
barred, or Columbian Rocks, and the
Leghorn breeder has little use for any
of the big breeds, preferring his own
slight. sprightly, nervous favorites.
The best breed for any p6ultryman is
the breed with which he has the best
success. and the only way to deter
mine this is to experiment. A beginner
cannot go far wrong If he starts with
any of the breeds mentioned or any one
Of dozen others. 1t will be better.
however. to try one breed at time,
changing if change seems advisable
Question-can poultry be raised sue
cessfully on restricted range. that is,
In a yard Or yards not more than 10x2O
feet outside the house or shelter?-M
P. c., Washington.
Answer-The American originator of
a certain widely advertised System"
Of poultry raising claims that poultry
may be raised successfully in runs
much smaller than the size mentioned.
Such a yard would cut up into two or
three of the yards used in poultry
operations according to this system,
and many persons who have tried the
plan are enthusiastic advocates of the
restricted range. The light. nervous
breeds. like Leghorns, are said not to
do well under this system, heavier
breeds. such as Orpingtons or white
Plymouth Rocks. being preferable.
Persons who have experimental with
the system declare that hens SO
handled lay better than those having
free range. and that chicks mature
more quickly under the system than is
the case when other methods are fol-
lowed. 1t seems to be the opinion of
poultrymen generally. however, that
one or two years of breeding, accord
ing to the mo range SYSTEM" exhausts
the reproductiveness of the fowls, and
that eggs from hens so handled hatch
poorly, resulting in weak chicks that
die off in great numbers. This has
been the experience of half a dozen
poultrymen among the writer's ac-
quaintances. all of whom say that no
attempts should be made to breed from
the second generation of close-yarded
poultry.
II K. NJ. D., Virginia; l.. L. G., Mary
land: W. W. Men, Maryland; B. T.,
W4shington; A. w. c.. Pennsylvania
and G. G., Virginia, will send stamped
and addressed envelopes the informa-
tion they desire will be mailed to them
Business addresses cannot be given in
this column, as will be seen by refer
ence to the note at the head of the
column.