Poultry Profits.

Otago Witness, Issue 1813, 20 August 1886, Page 8

Poultry Profits.

Every winter (says an American contemporary) there appear in the newspapers many extravagant accounts of the money to be made by anybody and everybody out of poultry raising. These glowing accounts lead the young and inexperienced, and often poor widows and orphans who can ill afford the expense, into renting expensive suburban cottages and grounds, and into making costly experiments which almost invariably turn out disappointing and sometimes disastrous. Many of the calculations of large profits are given by persons who are just beginning an experiment in poultry raising and full of enthusiasm in their new enterprise, are counting chickens before they are hatphed—and are leaving out of account fall in price, 'and 'the numerous diseases that invade the poultry yard. Where the accounts of two dollars per annum profit from each fowl are really founded on results covering years, the poultry raiser almost invariably is in receipt of fancy retail prices for his eggs, is very close to his market, and has every facility for ' cheap help. In such a case taking profits from eggs, poultry, etc., under very good management large profits are obtainable. But even in the neighbourhood of large cities, probably not one poultry raiser in a hundred obtains two dollars a year for each fowl. On the farm such profits are still more exceptional the ordinary farmer need not look for more than one dollar a year ; and the suburban poultry raiser, if the experience of Toronto poultry raisers on the average is any guide in this matter, need expect little better. Nevertheless a dollar a year profit is very good, and affords much encouragement to the more extended raising of poultry. On the farm, where there are young people to attend to poultry, or in the snburbs of a city or town where the family is such that the great attention required for successful poultry raising can be given, the business is decidedly profitable. Intelligence is required, and constant watchf ullness and much care in studying economical feeding. Expensive hen houses Ido not pay; nor have the results of poultry raising on a large scale heretofore been encouraging. Fifty or a hundred fowl, when there is sufficient yard room, cheap, warm housing, easy facilities for cheap feeding, and cheap help will almost always be found profitable. But the greatest caution should be used in venturing be-, yond these limits, and especially in making poultry raising the main source of one's income.