The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1918-09-20
WEEKLY NEWS NOTES
(By County Agent Glenn S. Hensley)
Poultry Culling Schools

fOuttry Sulnng SCHOOLS
Careful culling to weed out the low
producing hen is absolutely necessary
to profitable poultry raising. Nature
marks the poor layer so that it is
easy to pick her out once one has
learned how. There are certain indi-
cations which nearly always prove
true as to what hens in a flock will
| lay best during the winter months.
Since there will doubtless be a big
shortage of eggs this winter and the
price of feed will be unusually high,
the Farm Bureau is planning to hold
school of instruction showing farm
ers and poultrymen how best to Gull
their focks this fall so there will be
no free boarders among them. We
consider this poultry culling school to
be one of the most practical and ben
efcial demonstrations that can pos
sibly be given. The proper culling of
poultry is not understood by the ma
jority of people raising poultry. If
you are interested in finding out how
you can produce more eggs during
the winter on the same amount of
feed, come to Mr.. w. E. Matkin's farm
Tuesday afternoon, September oath,
at o'clock and see Mr.. T. l.. Towns
ley from the Extension Department of
the College of Agriculture, Gull MIR.
Watkins entire flock. Mr.. Townslcy
is one of as good poultrymen as there
is in this State. Mr.. Townsley will al
so Gull the State Hospital flock We'd
nesday morning, September 25th, at
$50 o'clock, and Mrs. T. B. Chand-
ler's flock Wednesday afternoon, Sep
TENDER 25th, at l: 80 o'clock. Visit
ors will be welcome at either of these
places should it be more convenient
to them than Mr.. Matkin's.
st. Francois County Sends Canning
Team and Stock Judging Team
to Sikeston Fair.
The Sikeston Fair Association, rec
ognized the educational value of the
Boys and Girls club work and its
practical value to farm boys and girls,
offered to pay the expenses of four
girls to constitute canning team,
and four boys, a stock Judging team
in attending, the first two days of the
Fair. Representatives of the Boys
and Girls Club Department of the
University will be there to take charge
of these boys and girls, While there
they will compete with canning and
stock judging teams from eight other
counties in Southeast Missouri. After
the contests are over, the Boys and
Girls Club representative will take
them over the Fair grounds showing
them all the classes of live stock ex-
hibited and through the Floral Hall
where the field products are on dis
play and explain to them why certain
exhibits are given first place over
others. The two days work which
these boys and girls will have at the
Fair will be of much educational val
ue to them. The following girls will |
represent st. Francois county on the
canning team: Virginia Strayhorn, AL
ma Baldwin, and Lizzie Rinke. Miss
Meta H. Given, teacher of Home Eco
Monies in the Flat River High School,
will accompany the canning team to
Sikeston. The stock Judging team is
made up of the following boys: Mil
ton Menge, Fred Best, Everett Rion
and Harry Young.
Corn Stalk Poisoning.
DR.. d. F. Luckey, State Veterinari-
an, authorizes the following state
ment:
The recent drought has stunted the
corn, kafir corn and sorghum more or
less all over Missouri. When these
plants are stunted in their growth
they generally develop a poisonous
principle more or less deadly to hors-
es and cattle. Unless extreme precau-
tons are taken to avoid trouble there
is bound to be heavy loss of stock
this fall. Trouble has already oc-
Cured in some sections Of the State.
In one place the owner saw his cow
getting through the fence into patch
of kaffir corn. He rang the telephone
and called the veterinarian and then
rushed to drive the cow out. The vet
erinarian Immediately jumped into his
automobile and rushed to the farm,
but the COW was down and so far gone
that he could not save her.
This illustrates the extremely poi
sonous nature of some patches of sor-
ghum and kafir corn. 1t is possible
that, with late fall and plenty of
moist warm weather, this poison may
largely disappear from these folders.
By observing the following direc-
tions a lot of trouble can be avoided:
Put as much of the corn as posi-
BILE into the silo. This will make it
absolutely safe.
Where no silo is available. cut the
corn up into shock fodder, and, if pos
sible, put it in dry sheds. The fodder
will lose the poisonous principle SOON
err or later, after being shocked, pro-