Show ATTENTION TO POULTRY IN THE SCHOOLS 1 A PR during the past few years several at the states have had under conald the question of including in the regular courses a branch devoted to poultry culture this has been met with favor in some parts of the coun try but the idea has not been tried out enough yet to prove whether or not it will be of value to the pupils t should be understood however that the main purpose of such clursea la to benefit only those who intend to go into or poultry farming upon completion of their school education the general plan Is to include such K course in the last two years of the pupils grammar school education by the time that the pupils have reached these grades it is presumed that they are ready to absorb the more material things of life and to more readily reap the benefits from such a course there Is one place however in the schools where poultry Is not receiving the proper amount of attention this Is in the rural schools where the alce of poultry keeping should be taught to every pupil in the school nd should form a part of the regular courses and an important one too we can readily understand that all the teachers in these school have all that they can do to keep up the regu lar work of the pupils the plan given below however it started with the right idea in the minds of the pupils bill not result in any more work on the part of the teacher other than a careful watch on the progress of the t contest interest in the work may be lost at times and this is the only ihling that the teacher will have to watch to avoid any lagging and to keep the pupils keyed up to the proper point of interest in their work in the fl at place the matter should tie taken up with the entire school and the proposition put up to them they should be told that the scheme la to allow two groups of pupils each to have a pen of about six hens and a rooster it there are eight grades in the school the grades would be dl elded equally BO that the first third fifth and seventh grades would have one pen and the second fourth sixth and eighth grades would have the other pen A small prize of some kind would be offered to the group whose pen made the best showing during the school term it being understood that each group would have entire charge ot the birds in their pen and would take care of them one ot the older pupils would be appointed to keep track ot the eggs laid and ot the money spent for teed tor each pen cheap colony houses could be built for the pens and they should be separated from each other so that the hens from one pen would not go into the other house to lay the teacher could see that sensible coops were built tor the birds and after the contest was started all att would have to be done would be to hear the weekly reports from each pen in order that corn petition should be kept up among the these reports would be read at the close ot school each friday by the person mentioned above appointed 0 o keep record of the pens P the idea of such a contest proved popular with the pupils it Is probable that the parents ot some of them would be glad to loan them the chick ens to carry out the contest it Is also probable that the eggs received from the pens could be taken to town by some of the older people and the teed purchased by them as well the financial part ot the proposition how ever should be left with the pupils and it would be necessary tor them to first raise a small fund tor the cost ot teed and the necessary lumber un lesa they are fortunate enough to secure a couple of large packing boxes which would be good enough to answer all purposes tor such small flocks |