216 . MASSACHUSETTS AGRICULTURE. 



step down upon the eggs and break them, or may crush the 

 chickens as they hatch. It is well, as we have said, to put a 

 little earth below the hay, as it tends to preserve a regular tem- 

 perature and seems to exert a favorable influence upon the 

 shell. 



If an egg is accidently broken it should be removed, and if 

 the others liave been soiled they may be carefully washed in 

 warm water ; but this must be done with extreme tenderness, 

 so as not to jar the egg. 



Food and fresh water should always be kept near the nest of 

 a sitting hen, lest she should stay away from the eggs too long- 

 when she comes off for food, or, on the other hand, should sit 

 too long at a time for the want of food where it will be handy. 

 A box of earth for her to scratch in should also be near by. 



BROODING. 



Some hens will sit so closely that it is necessary to take them 

 off by hand, which may usually be done, in a quiet and cautious 

 manner. We have found no difficulty in handling hens in this 

 manner, and it is a practice which promotes their health and 

 vigor. 



It is impossible to have much success with the hatching of 

 chickens unless some care is taken to have everything in and 

 about the nest and its patient occupant in proper condition. 

 There must be more or less nursing, especially when the chickens 

 begin to come out. 



With suitable treatment chickens may be successfully raised 

 from the first of March until August. "Before this period a nest 

 of eggs and a brood of chickens causes too much trouble and 

 expense, and after July cool weather comes too soon for the 

 endurance of a brood raised at that time. 



SEX OP EGGS. 



Some writers have undertaken to determine the sex of eggs, 

 which would certainly be a great gain to the fowl-fancier, as he 

 might then fix the proportion of his laying hens before incuba- 

 tion. But all indications are uncertain and not to be relied 

 upon. M. Genin, in an address before a scientific society in 

 Paris, states that eggs containing a male germ are of elongated 

 form, with a partially raised or ringed surface around the small 



