THE EARTH'S BOUNTY 



cious and prolific that even a few on a sitting 

 hen will, if neglected, multiply into an army 

 by the time the chicks are out of the eggs ; and 

 then the little ones are infested with the horrid 

 things, which rob them of health, frequently 

 becoming the unsuspected cause of apparently 

 mysterious disease and death. 



If the weather is very dry and hot during 

 the time of incubation, the sod is sprinkled 

 with water, once a week, whilst the hen is off 

 feeding. When the term of incubation is al- 

 most completed, two guinea fowl eggs are 

 boiled hard and slipped into the nest, to keep 

 Biddy still for a few extra hours, after the 

 quail eggs are hatched, which insures the 

 babies being thoroughly dry before leaving 

 the nest, and gives them strength before ex- 

 ercising or eating. 



The birds require no food for thirty-six 

 hours after hatching, because the yolk is ab- 

 sorbed before the shell breaks, and must be 

 assimilated before other food is taken, or the 

 digestive organs are overtaxed. Ignorance 



252 



