228 



OUR DOMESTIC ANIMALS 



as much as any other modern instrument of 

 husbandry. The fact that Europe, especially 

 the Netherlands, is importing, for the im- 

 provement of its breeds, American fowls, 

 — the Wyandottes, Plymouth Rocks, etc., — 

 proves that poultry incubated artificially does 

 not yield in any manner to poultry hatched 

 naturally. Where shall we find, except in the 

 United States, hens able to hatch, on an aver- 

 age, one hundred and eighty eggs a year ? Do 



eggs the hen wi 



give us fifty chickens, while 

 the machine will give from eighty to ninety. 

 Complaints, however, are often made of in- 

 ferif)r machines, and justly. Persons are led to 

 buy incubators without any knowledge of their 

 value, and are often deceived. But what infer- 

 ence can be drawn from that .' Nevertheless 

 those who have thus been victimized remain 

 ever after the adversaries of artificial incu- 

 bation. If they had been better informed 



iNcrn.^TORS 



the large, solid Wyandotte and Phmouth Rock 

 hens have a sickly exhausted air ? No, on the 

 contrary they are robust animals, capable of 

 resisting the effects of all climates. 



We base these remarks on our own experi- 

 ence, which leads us to declare conscientiously 

 that neither natural nor artificial incubation has 

 any distinct or special influence under normal 

 circumstances. With eggs well fertilized a 

 good hen will produce good chickens. A good 

 machine, well managed, will give the same and 

 even better results, for out of one hundred 



or had consulted experienced breeders, they 

 could have obtained good results and been 

 partisans, not adversaries, of this useful inven- 

 tion, without which the raising of poultry could 

 never have attained its present development. 

 We could never in this country have gone so 

 far in raising poultry if we had not made use 

 of the artificial incubator. 



A good incubator having been purchased, 

 the next thing is to find a suitable place for 

 it. This should be airy, but sheltered from 

 currents of air, and the temperature should be 



