Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1917-01-12
THE POULTRY YARD
POULTRY ~ A DusiNEss.
BY Ed Weber
TO make a small profit from Keeping

! To make a small profit from keeping
q few fowls as hobby is one thing,
to make a living from poultry is an-.
other. Granted the necessary qualifl-
cations for success; It can be done by
one in whom the commercial Instinct
is a dominant factor. The lobbyist
fancier, altho in most cases his pri-
mary aim is to makeSmoney out OF the
fowls he keeps. can view his non -suc-
cess in this particular with some
equanimity and II he ends his poultry
keeping career poorer in pocket there is
little real harm done. At any rate ne
has the consolation of having added to
his store Of knowledge With the man
who has thrown aside his ordinary vo-
cation to enter the poultry business
with the intention of making living
out of It, things are different. There Is
no turning back or looking upon fail
ure with nonthalance. It is matter
almost of life and death. The business
must be made to pay, and this can
only be ,done by applying the same
strict commercial primo. pes as had
proved Successful in all other trades
and professions,
The management of poultry on the
old haphazard conventional lines is all
very well for the amateur, whose Stake
in the matter is not a'heayy one, but in
the case of the Professional poultry
keeper, such methods can lead only
to one goal-failure. Every step which
is taken must be carefully examined
before hand from one standpoint-th
ocfi inn cf I'll Jpx hic
lies the crGx of the matter the Sc
cret of success.
Fashion Continually Changes.
Breeds which are popular must alone
be kept. The beginner is often advised
to go in for the particular variety
which appeals to his ideas of the beau
tiful and artistic, and while this adj
vice is most excellent in the case Of
the rich amateur or the lobbyist, it IS
nor at all applicable to the man who
intends to make living from his birds
as it is quite conceivable that his tack
might lie in the direction of some breed
or variety which is languishing in
oblivion, one which obviously would
prove an altogether Improbable In
vestment. Personal prejudices and Xix
Jugs must be thrust ruthlessly to one
side, and the most popular varieties
of the day must be specialized in.
Fashion in the world of poultry, as in
everything else, ds constantly chang
ing, and the man whosmeans to sue
coed in the poultry business must
change with it, supplying the breeds
and varieties which the public de-
mand.t If he can, however, go one bet
for ha no cto III
which will enable him to anticipate the
requirements of the public-then will
his chances of success be immeas-
urably increased.
Must practices Economy.
: Economy goes hand in hand with
successes and poultry keeping is busi-
ness in which, 1t is so easy to be ex.
travagant and never know it. One
can-and the beginner often does-fix
up elaborate houses and runs, but 1t
is really unnecessary. Plain, substan-
tiad Appliances will do the work every
bit as well as the most costly. The
hen which does not lay "a modicum OF
eggs sufficient to- pay for her keep
-unless. Of course she is valuable ex-s
hibition or stock Hrd--represents q
distinct loss. Over feeding or unecon-
omical feeding again. Represents q loss:
One can not avoid some waste Of food,
owing to the ubiquity OF sparrows, but
it IL not necessary to keep q whole coll.
ony Of the little food robbers. Food left
lying about on the ground is a stand
ing temptation to birds and other more;
Objectionable vermin. Cockerels re-
tanned too long, 50 that the price they
fakN he no< ~ !
consumed constitute Z regular yearly
loss unless watchful eye is kept on
them and they are marketed at the
proper, time. This, Of course, does not
apply to fine specimens. which realize
a good price at all times but culls.
These are only a few of the points
calling for economical management,
there are many other channels thru
which 1t is easy for the profits to be
drained away. At Its best the poul-
try business is far from being a gold
mine, hence the feet of thrift being es-
sentia4.
Bookkeeping, subject prone to be
ignored by the poultry keeper, is par
ticularly valuable az a means of en-
abling one to find out how profits can
be increased, or>which amounts to the
same thing, how expenses can be cur
tailed. BY an analysis of the yearly
and income it is easy 70
decide what departments are paying
and what are not.
Advertising Indispensable.
In the poultry business advertising
Is an important item, in fact, it can
not be dispensed with. + It is, however,
one, thing to advertise and another
thing to5know how to advertise in or
der to get the best returns Unskilled
advertising will suck up the profits