RAISING TURKEYS. 259 



be taken that she returns in time twenty minutes. A 

 better plan, however, is to let her have her liberty, only in a 

 confined run of grass. Besides her daily feed, a water vessel 

 and some soft food should be always within her reach. No 

 one must visit the hatching-house but the regular attendant, 

 or the hens will get startled, and probably break many eggs, 

 which easily happens from the great weight of the birds. 



The chicks break the shell from the twenty-sixth to the 

 twenty-ninth day, scarcely ever later. The day but one 

 before the hatching is expected, the hen should be plenti- 

 fully fed, the nest cleaned of any dung or feathers during 

 her absence, and an ample supply of food and water placed 

 where she can reach it, as she must not again be disturbed 

 till the chicks are out. There will rarely fail to be a good 

 hatch. The egg-shells may be cleared away after hatching 

 has proceeded some hours, but the chicks should never be 

 taken away from the hen, and never be forced to eat. 

 Water or milk may be given, however, by dipping the tip 

 of the finger or a camel-hair pencil in the fluid, and 

 applying it to the end of their beaks. 



And now for the chicks. These are often fed on oat- 

 meal, etc., like the young of other poultry ; and it does not 

 answer. Nearly all the young birds which die otherwise 

 than from wet, do so from a strong tendency under our 

 artificial feeding to diarrhoea, or other inflammatory irrita- 

 tion of the intestines, which has always to be watched 

 against. The constant maintenance of eager appetite, with 

 plenty of exercise, is one great means towards this. Ex- 

 perienced rearers feed for the first few days on hard-boiled 

 egg, mixed with some stale bread-crumbs and a little of 

 some kindi of salad, and sometimes after the first day with 

 milk-curd, which must, however, be squeezed very dry. 

 The best green food right through for young turkeys is 

 dandelion leaves, chopped fine at first ; and where they are 



