626 THE COMPLETE GRAZIER. BOOK vn. 



luents for the prevention of jarring, which is so destructive to the embryo. 

 Those made by Messrs. Freeth & Pocock, of London (fig. 178), are among 

 the best we have yet seen, and fig. 179 represents a box in which layers 

 of wood wool or hay are used, made at the Depot of the National Poultry 

 Organisation Society, Glastonbury. 



When it is intended to set several hens it is preferable to give them 

 their nests two at a time, and if it be found on the seventh day when 

 they are examined that about half of each setting are infertile, all can 

 be placed under one hen, and the other hen given a fresh nest. Some 

 old-fashioned people do not believe in examining the eggs, but we never 

 yet heard a convincing argument against the practice, and the 

 advantages are obvious. No harm can be done to the eggs; those 

 infertile are saved either for culinary purposes for which they are quite 

 goodor for feeding the young chicks, and, as we have shown, the 

 energies of the hens are not wasted by sitting on barren eggs. 



The process of testing eggs is a veiy simple one. When the hen is 

 off the nest remove the eggs into a dark room or closet, in which a 

 lamp or candle is placed. Take the egg in the left hand, holding it 

 between the first finger and the thumb, and shading off the light from 

 the eyes by the right hand. If the egg is then brought in a direct 

 line between the eyes and the light, and about six inches in front of 

 the latter, its fertility or otherwise will be at once detected. A barren 

 egg at the sixth or seventh day will be perfectly clear, except a very 

 slight shadow like a thumb-mark in the centre; whereas a "live " egg 

 will be opaque very black in the centre, gradually getting somewhat 

 transparent towards the edges. The former should be kept out, and 

 the latter returned to the nest, and the poultry-keeper need have no 

 doubt as to his judgment in the matter if our directions are followed, 

 as a clear egg is very easily known, and can never contain a chick, no 

 matter how long it may be sat upon. Some people use a piece of 

 thick cardboard, with a hole about the size of an egg cut in the centre, 

 and this is very effective, as the light can only pass through the egg to 

 the eye. There are also egg testers, sold at reasonable prices, which 

 are excellent ; one of these made by the Jersey Co., is illustrated in 

 fig. 180. By means of the cardboard or the egg-tester an egg can be 

 tried by day when the light is admitted into the apartment by one small 

 window. But though the method is not of great moment, we strongly 

 urge breeders to examine their eggs on the seventh day. It is quite 

 possible to tell whether an egg is fertile about 48 hours after sitting 

 commences, but this needs considerable experience, and should only 

 be resorted to by those who have incubators. For all practical pur- 

 poses; the time we have mentioned is the best. Testing is particularly 

 desirable when the sitting of eggs has been obtained from an outside 

 source, and the poultry-keeper has no knowledge of the degree of 

 carefulness exercised for insuring that they are fertile. It often 

 happens that sittings for which high prices have been paid fail to yield 

 a fair number of chicks, and sometimes they prove almost entirely 

 barren. 



After this examination has taken place the eggs need not be looked at 



