68 Moiiltinsc — Incubation 



o 



begin to lay till April, producing at last, 

 not more than twenty or thirty eggs. In 

 general, it is most profitable to dispose of 

 hens whilst they are yet eatable or sale- 

 able for that purpose, which is in the spring 



of the third year. Nor do delicate white 

 hens lay so many eggs in the cold season, 

 as the more hardy coloured varieties, re- 

 quiring warmth and shelter, particularly by 

 night. Moult'[ng, or the casting and re- 

 newal of feathers, lasts with its effects from 

 one to three months, according to the age 

 and strength of the bird. Whilst under this 

 natural course, poultry are unfit for the ta- 

 ble, as well as for breeding. It is the 

 same with respect to young poultry, whilst 

 shedding their feathers in the spring. The 

 regular moulting of full-grown fowls begin;^ 

 in the autumn. 



Attejitlon during Incubation. 



There is this distinction in the hen: in 

 some, the desire of sitting or incubation is 



