The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-03-04
By MRS. JOHN c. MOSES. Mississinni City Miss.

By MRS. JOHN c. MOSES.
 Mississippi City, Miss.
 Turkeys where there Is plenty of range, are profitable side line upon the general farrn for the cost of raising them is small and the profits large. The number raised in the United States is gradually decreasing, however. This is due to number of causes, serious one being
 the high mortality among the young poults Careful management will greatly reduce this loss.
 The average number of poults raisec under ordinary conditions Is about 50 per cent of those matched out. or about seven poults for every turkey hen. By Tar the greater part of the loss occurs when the poults are under week old Sea- dom are any lost after they are month old unless there Is an outbreak of disease. The high mortality among the poults is mainly caused by exposure to dampness and cold, improper feeding. close confinement, lice, predatory animals or inherent weakness. The last-nameo cause is the result of carelessness in sc- lection of parent stock.
 As soon as the hatch is completed and the poults begin to run around outside the nest the hen and brood are ready to be removed to the coop provided for them The coop should be built to keep out rain; it should be well ventilated, capable | of easy movement, and be suffclentlv roomy for turkey hen to stand erect and walk about. There should be sepa- | rate coop for each hen and brood, ana | the coops should be scattered about the !! farm in such places as are easily drained and where natural feed, such as tender. l green vegetation grass, cover, alfaifa and other green feed), and insects. partlc- ularly grasshoppers, can be round. by moving the coop every day the ground
 will be kept clean and opportunity will | be given the mother hen and poults to pick up fresh, green feed inside the coop. Plenty of exercise is essential if the
 poults are to thrive At all ztimes, when
 rain or danpness does not prevent, the
 pcults should be allowed to run in ana , out of the coop at will. Too much stress
 cannot be given to the necessity Of exer-
 else, and the only way to provide Tor this
 is to allow the poults at every possipis
 opportunity to range for feed outside the
 ccop. During a long-continued rainiS
 season it is better to allow them to run
 out of the coop whenever it is not actually . raining even though the grass os some- what damp. By confining the mother hen to the coop she will always be reaoS | to cover the poults whenever they run tc
 her, which they will do if, they become ! chilled. The greatest care snouiu v | taken to keep the interior of the coor ] dr and for this reason it is advisapis l to choose a sandy slope where the water
 runs off quickly and where there IS aiso I protection from heavy rains.
 Improper feeding, combined with close confinement, has been the cause or many | failures in turkey raising. 1T the range is plentifully supplied with green Iseu; .. ] rra sshoppers and other insects, ana IL | the weather is favorable then the pes' plan is to allow the poults to feed thein' | selves.
 l When. on account of rainy weather or l ,,nfavorable range conditions, it Is adVis | able to raise the poults py the cool method. more care must De given 10 tns'' l feeding For the first two days al,e. el matching, poults require no feed. the yoks of the egg which they absorb peiore bvealxing out of the shell being sufficient | to maintain them for that length or tune Access to clean drinking water anu little coarse sand and green reed 10 pics at is all that Is needed until the thiro | day. Beginning with the third day. the posits should be fed according to the ouantits of natural feed they are able to DICK ui outside the coop. When natural ieeo IS scarce. or when the poults have 10 ps Ikent from ranging outside, they shouio he fed lightly about five times aay If allowed to run outside the coop wher' they can find insects. seeds ana s,eeI feed they need not be fed eoiteher '"" two or three times a day.
 Successful turkey raisers use many df ferent kinds of feed. some of the mos, common being as follows; Hard-boiieo egg chopped fine and cornbread crumn' | for the first week, and then whole whea' and hulled oats; stale bread, soaked 1T milk and squeezed dry, for the first few days and then common chick feed, clah bcr ed milk seasoned with snst ana pepper cornbread crumbs; equal parts of pin head' oats, whole wheat and cracked corn: cracked wheat; cornmeal and whea' bran mixed in the proportion of three tf one and baked into bread; bran or md
 dlings one-haf, cracked corn one-qenr ter wheat and hulled oats one-quarter
 Tn addition to the above, skinned miu