48 HATCHING. 



one egg on the intermediate days. But the grand secret of 

 procuring an abundance of eggs, is comfortable housing and 

 abundance of food. Early pullets will lay all the winter, if well 

 housed and fed. The laying continues more or less during the 

 summer, until the moulting commences. The older the hen, 

 the later she moults, and, consequently, commences to lay later 

 in the season, perhaps not till April. The air-bag is placed at 

 the larger end, between the shell and its lining membranes ; it is 

 about the size of the eye of a small bird, in new-laid eggs, but is 

 increased as much as ten times in the process of hatching, or 

 when the egg begins to get stale. The air-bag is of such im- 

 portance, to the development of the chick, that if the blunt end 

 of the egg be pierced with the point of the smallest needle, the 

 egg cannot be hatched. The freshness of the egg may be easily 

 ascertained, by the small circle denoting freshness, and the large 

 circle the contrary. The shell of the egg is principally com- 

 posed of carbonate of lime, with a small portion of phosphate of 

 lime, the deficiency of which is what causes the shell of the egg 

 to be thin or soft. 



FOR HATCHING, 



You will recollect the eggs must be rendered reproductive, from 

 previous threading of the cock, as well as being fresh, and not 

 exposed to bad effluvia or moisture, and while collecting, pre- 

 vious to hatching, covered with bran. Some say pointed eggs 

 produce cocks, and round ones hens ; and others, that if the 

 vacancy caused by the air-bag, at the blunt end of the egg, appear 

 to be a little on one side, it will produce a hen ; if this vacancy 

 be exactly in the centre, it will produce a cock. Not having faith 

 in the above, I quote it for the advantage of those who may wish 

 to test its authenticity. If fresh eggs are laid, after the hen begins 

 to sit, they should be forthwith removed ; and if she break any 

 of her clutch, they should be carefully cleaned away, and her 

 feathers, if soiled by the broken egg, made perfectly clean. Old 

 hens are, in general, better sitters than pullets; and middle-sized, 

 plump hens better than the very large ones. The clucking of 

 the hen, when she has an inclination to sit, cannot be mistaken. 

 It is best to have a few valueless eggs to put under a hen, for a 

 few days, to ascertain if she will sit steadily, before you intrust a 

 valuable clutch to her ; wheii you do, give her the eggs intended 

 to be hatched. 



