55 



connection with the door. The door promptly swings down 

 and fastens itself in place by its lower edge, striking the light 

 end of a wooden latch or lever, pressing it down and slipping 

 over it; the lever immediately coming back into place and lock- 

 ing -the door. The latch is five inches long, one inch wide and 

 a half inch thick, and is fastened losely one inch from its cen- 

 ter to the side of the box, so that the outer end is just inside 

 the door when it is closed. The latch acts quickly enough to 

 catch the door before it rebounds. It was feared that the noise 

 arising from the closing of the door might startle the hens, so 

 instead of wooden stops pieces of old rubber belting were 

 nailed at the outside entrances for the door to strike against. 

 "The double box with nest in the rear end is necessary, as 

 when a bird has laid and desires to leave the nest, she steps to 

 the front and remains there until released. With one section 

 only, she would be likely to crush the egg by standing 

 upon it." 



Nest Boxes in Position. 



