66 PROFITS IN" POULTRY. 



one year of age being mated with two-year old hens. 

 The eggs of the second lot were from hens that were 

 mated with a brother, and the flock had been bred in for 

 three years. The consequence was that while there was 

 life in each egg there was not sufficient vitality in the 

 chick to enable it to break out. 



There are numerous reasons for not expecting full 

 hatches. Eggs from pullets do not always hatch, nor do 

 those from hens that are very fat; yet such eggs may be 

 fertile. Eggs that have been chilled will sometimes con- 

 tain chicks that have advanced to the stage of ten days, 

 when placed in an incubator; besides, frequent handling, 

 or delay in placing them in the incubator, may also 

 affect the result. Hence, the first and most important 

 matter is to use eggs specially secured for the purpose. 

 The hen that steals her nest, by running at large, and 

 having all the privileges and advantages of exercise, 

 hatches nearly all the eggs, for the reason that if one 

 hatches all should do so, as they have the same parent- 

 age, while we are compelled to use eggs from different 

 hens, but few of them being alike in any respect. The 

 hen deposits her eggs where they are seldom disturbed, 

 while we subject them to frequent handling and change- 

 able temperatures. It is doubtful if any farmer would 

 consider himself unlucky if he succeeded in raising 

 seven chicks out of every ten hatched; yet this propor- 

 tion is equal to a loss of thirty in every hundred. If, 

 therefore, an incubator be used, this should be consid- 

 ered, and when the loss is apparently heavy, a compari- 

 son should be made with the work done by hens, which 

 will, as a rule, be in favor of the incubator and 

 brooder. 



Having stated what the conditions should be, so far 

 as the eggs are concerned, the next step is to consider 

 the defects existing in many of the incubators that are 

 placed upon the market; and as I am not a manufac- 



