South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1918-02-16
UNIFORM POULTRY
RAISING IS j ICE
American Poultry Association
Proposes Standards That
Will Bring More Meat.

sta ndard poultry, as the phrase is
commonly used in America. is poul-
Try bred to the standards establish
cd by the American Poultry associa-
ton.
The object Of making standards
Tor poultry IS the same as the object
OF making standards of weif "a. vol
ume, or quality Tor any proG Ict or
commodity. that Is. 10 secure uni
formity and establish a series of
Srades as a basis Of trading in the
article.
In making standards for poultry
which apply in the process Of pro-
duction the principal points con-
sidered are size, shape. and color.
Breed Characters.
Size and shape are breed char
acters and largely determine the
practical values Of poultry. Many
standard breeds are divided into
varieties differing in color but iden-
tlcal in every other respect.
Color is not primary utility point
but as a secondary point often
comes in for special consideration.
For example. a white variety and a
black variety OF the same breed are
actually Identical in table quality,
but because black birds do not dress
for the market as clean and nice
looking as white ones. il often hap
pens that they are not as salable.
When "A flock OF fowls is kept for
egg production only. uniformity in
color is much less important than
approximate uniformity of size and
type. yet the more attractive ap-
pearance of a flock OF birds OF the
same color justiies selection for col
or as far as it can be followed with
out sacrificing any material point.
When a poultry keeper grows his
own stock year after year he ought
by all means to use stock OF a wen
established popular standard breed.
BY doing so and BY selecting as
breeders only as many of the best
specimens of the flock as are need
ed TO produce the chickens reared
each year, poultry keeper main
tains in his flock "a highly desirable
quality and with less extra care and
no extra cost can have a pleasing
uniformity in color.
Each Breed Has Its Place.
To the novice in poultry keeping
IL often appears that there is no
real necessity for so many breeds
and varieties as have been stan
dardized in America. Further ac-
quaintance with them. however,
shows that although color differ
ences are in most cases made mere
Is 20 please the eve of persons hav-
for
the differences i'm shape and size
which make breed character have
been developed with a view 10 adapt
ting each 10 particular uses or par
ticuiar conditions.
Leaving out OF consideration the
breeds kept as novelties, most Of
which originated before industrial
progress created a large demand for
poultry products, all the standard
American breeds of fowls have been
made and developed on the gem
cral principle OF practical quality.
the foundation OF breed. character.
and value
classification OF Useful Breeds.
In harmony with this principle
the common classification Of breeds
according 10 their place in the geg-
eral scheme of poultry production
divides them into three principal
classes. namely, laying breeds. meat
breeds, and general-purpose breeds
that is, breeds that are not as
ready and persistent egg producers
as the laying breeds, and not as
meaty and as easy TO fatten as the
meat breeds, vet com bine I'm one in
dividual fowl very good laying ca
pacity with very good table quality.
The Leghorn. MinorCa. Andalusian.
Ancona, and C8mpine are we'll
known breeds Of the laying class:
the Brahma, Dorking, and Cornish
of the meat class. the Plymouth
Rock, Wyandotte. Rhode Island Red
and Orpington OF the general pur-
pose class.
characteristics Of Egg Breeds.
The breeds mentioned as of the
laying class, with the exception OF
tue MinOrca. are relatively small.
very energetic and lively mature
early, and are easily kept i'm good
LAYING condition. The MinOrca il OF
larSer size and modified somewhat
ln rhe other particulars mentioned.
set has more che character OF the
layins class than OF any other.
characteristics OF Meat Breeds.
In the meat breed there Is not
The same uniformity OF type that is
found iu the laying breeds. The three
mentioned are an quite different.
The Brahma is most popular be-
cause 10 lis az the same time the
largest and the most rugged in con-