1164 CYCLOPEDIA OF LIVE STOCK AND COMPLETE STOCK DOCTOR. 



contrast in the sexes. So, if the hen is long-backed select a short^backed 

 cock, but if the hen is short-backed, never breed to a long-backed cock ; 

 you cannot well have the back too short. In breeding to color, all self-colors 

 should be as solid as possible, and in parti-colored fowls study the birds 

 for mating carefully, so that you may breed as near to a feather as pos- 

 sible, according to the characteristics of the breed. As a rule, heavily 

 penciled males will get heavily penciled chicks, but if the saddle is very 

 heavily striped, or the neck hackle very dark, the chicks will incline to 

 be spotted ; but cocks with dark hackles, and hens with hackles lightly 

 penciled will produce chickens delicately penciled. 



IX. Breeding upon a Mixed Flock. 



if you cannot afford pure-bred stock, buy a sufficient number of cock? 

 for your hens, or select a dozen hens and mate them w^ith a good cock, 

 from which to raise chickens. Once you Ijegin, stick always to the same 

 strain, and in three years you will have a strain of fowls — if you have 

 carefully selected the chicks, alsvays using pure males — good enough for 

 market purposes and eggs. In the meantime, get a clutch of eggs from 

 pure fowls and breed them separate from the others, and soon you will 

 have the pure breed also. There is no farm stock that it pays better to 

 breed pure than poultry, whether they be land or water fowl. 



X. Incubation of Various Fowls. 



The following table will show at a glance all necessary information m 

 relation to the incubation of various fowls. 



NAME OF BrRD. 



Turkey, sitting on ^ Hen . . . 



the eggs of V Duck • . 



the j Turkey 



Hen sitting on the \Duck. • 

 eggs of the . . . j Hen . . . 



Duck 



Goose 



Pigeon 



PERIOD OF INCUBATION. 



SHORTEST 

 PERIOD. 



MEAN 

 PERIOD. 



LONGEST 

 PERIOD. 



XI. General Management of Fowls. 



In order to raise poultry successfully, proper buildings and plenty of 

 range must be provided. The buildings need not be exi^ensive, and on the 



