HATCHING. 373 



may be taken off one at a time, and left to satisfy their 

 hunger and thirst with the food and water supplied to them, 

 as well as to dust themselves in a heap of rubbish, which 

 should always be at hand, after which they will return to 

 their nests in good time, when the lids may be put down 

 and locked. If, on the contrary, they are slack sitters, they 

 may be taken off and put under a large coop, with food, 

 water, and dust at hand, and at the expiration of the proper 

 time they may be replaced on the nest by hand and covered 

 down ; but unruly hens are very apt to break their eggs in 

 this way, and it is better to let them return of their own 

 accord, if they will do so, but they should be carefully 

 watched. In very warm weather the time should be a full 

 hour, while if it is cold forty minutes will be long enough. 

 To ensure the proper change of temperature in hot weather, 

 some people sprinkle the eggs with cold water, and it is by 

 no means a bad plan, especially towards the latter part of 

 the sitting. 



As the hatching time approacJies, while the hens are off the 

 nest, every egg should be carefully inspected, and if there are 

 several hens expected to come off on the same day, it should 

 be so arranged that one should have all the first hatched, 

 another the second, and so on. This is effected by exchang- 

 ing the eggs as soon as they are seen to be chipped, giving 

 all the first to one hen, who will thus be off the nest with 

 her brood before the others. As soon as all are hatched in 

 one nest, the hen is put under a coop with a small covered 

 run for the young birds, in which they will remain for a few 

 days. It should be made as follows : A pen is made of 

 wood on all the sides but the front, which is of wire net, and 

 lias a space at the bottom sufficient to allow the young birds 

 to pass under but riot the hen (see a b fig. Q4 on next page). 

 To this a small run, c <f, is attached, and also covered with 

 wire net, and in it the young birds are foci. The whole has 

 a boarded floor, which should be capable of being removed 

 at pleasure by means of pins at the angles. 



The rearing commences by feeding the young birds in the 

 above pen or coop, taking care to choose a sunny spot for it. 

 The food should be hard boiled eggs chopped fine, mixed 

 with rice, which should be carefully boiled in plenty of 



