We will close this discussion on breed characteristics with a few words on the meat breeds. There are four generally recognized meat breeds. These are the Brahams, Cochins, Langshans, and the Cornish Game, with their several varieties. The adult meat bird usually weighs about eight pounds, but the male birds weigh even more than this, sometimes reaching twelve pounds or more. These birds are rather awkward and clumsy, in fact, so much so that they make poor sitters, as their awkwardness often causes them to break the eggs in the nest. They have an abundance of feathers and meat on their body, which makes them easy to winter. Generally speaking, the heavier the bird, the poorer the laying ability, and this is true with the meat breeds. They do not lay a very large number of eggs during the year, being raised mostly for their flesh, which is unsurpassed for table purposes. As is the custom with heavy animals, the meat birds are lazy and sluggish, do not roam far for their food, and consume a comparatively large amount of grain for this reason. The meat breeds take a longer period of time to gain maturity than any other class, the average time being about eight months. As has been said, they are primarily a meat breed, and it is for this purpose that they are mostly used. They do lay eggs, however, and about 100 eggs per year is a good average. They, like the general purpose breed, lay a brown shelled egg, while the egg breeds lay a white shelled egg, which brings a higher price on every market in the country but the Boston market. The brown shelled egg brings the higher price on the Boston market. CHAPTER III. GETTING A START We have now discussed quite minutely the good and bad points of the three main classes of birds. Each class, and each breed has its merits and demerits. The one who wants to make a start in raising poultry should choose the breed that appeals to his likes the most, and the one that he can realize the most success with, under the conditions that he will have to raise them. There is no best breed, whether it is chickens, cows, or hogs. They all have their good points, and their weak ones. It is up to each individual to pick the breed that appeals to him the most. Granted that you have pretty near decided the breed that you want to use, let us see how we can secure our first birds, if we have none as yet to start with. There are generally three different ways in which we can secure our foundation stock. The first way is by buying adult birds and mating them, and raising the resulting chicks. Another way is by purchasing hatching eggs, either from a neighbor or from a regular breeder or hatchery. The third way is by buying day-old chicks from the various hatcheries, and raising these to maturity. Let us consider each of these methods separately, and thereby inform ourselves on the advantages and disadvantages of each method.