FARM ANIMALS 329 



fifty-one cents; for Wyandottes, eighty-eight cents, 

 and for Leghorns, $1 . 12. In comparing the weight 

 of eggs of different breeds it was found that Wyan- 

 dotte pullets laid eggs weighing one and a half 

 pounds per dozen and Leghorns one and thirty- 

 seven hundredths pounds per dozen. 



The breeds of fowls which we have to deal with 

 in this country are classified according to their 

 original geographic origin. Following this system 

 the American breeds include the various kinds of 

 Plymouth Rocks, Wyandottes, Javas, American 

 Dominiques and Jersey Blues. The French class 

 includes Houdans, Crevecoeurs, and La Fleche. 

 The Asiatic class includes Brahmas, Cochins and 

 Langshans, while other classes have been estab- 

 lished to include the Polish, Hamburg, English and 

 miscellaneous birds. The best practical classifi- 

 cation divides fowls into general purpose breeds, 

 which include the American breeds; meat fowls, 

 which include the Asiatic breeds; and egg breeds, 

 which include the Mediterranean class of Domin- 

 iques, Leghorns, Minorcas, Andalusian and Black 

 Spanish. According to this system of classification 

 all other breeds would be referred to as ornamental. 



Incubation. The chief advantage of incubation 

 by artificial means is that the eggs may be hatched 

 earlier in the season than hens can normally be 

 induced to sit and the business can be conducted 

 on a much larger scale than is practical with hens. 

 It requires far less time to watch an incubator 

 holding two hundred eggs than to care for enough 

 hens to cover the same number of eggs. In fact 

 in South Carolina it has been found that the cost 

 of feed alone for the hens is greater than the cost 

 of managing incubators for the same number of 

 eggs. Incubators should be kept in a cellar or 



