Breeding. 



food and water in front ; she can dust herself in this 

 coop, and, when the time is up, you can catch her, 

 lower the front flap of the sitting-box (Fig. 5) and 

 place her near it, and she will go in by herself. If 

 an egg gets broken, or bursts, when you have removed 

 the hen for feeding, cleanse the nest, wash the other 

 eggs in warm water, and see that the hen has no 

 mess on her breast, or it will stick to the eggs, and 

 cause further damage. The best plan is to cut off 

 the soiled feathers with a pair of scissors ; at all 



'<. /2 INS 



FIG. 5. FRONT VIEW OF SITTING-BOX. 



events, be sure she is perfectly clean. If she has 

 had a good dust-bath, that will have cleansed her. 



All sitting-boxes should have plenty of ventilation ; 

 the building, or whatever place they are in, should 

 be kept cool, sweet, and clean. It is well to place a 

 little short hay or dry grass beneath the eggs. There 

 is a question as to the length of time it is desirable 

 for the hen to be off her eggs. This much depends 

 on the weather; if very cold, the small eggs of 



