128 THE CALL OF THE HEN. 



little learning is a dangerous thing," is an old saying applicable 

 to this case. When a man says, "Don't kill that laying hen," 

 he should furnish you with an X-ray outfit that will enable 

 you to comply with his request. 



The writer has used the pelvic-bone proposition for over 

 forty years in selecting the laying hen, and has found the fol- 

 lowing to be a very good method in selecting the hen that is 

 not laying: 



The hen that scores 130 eggs her first laying year would 

 measure about 7 /s of an inch between her pelvic bones after 

 she stops laying for the season. The hen that scores 150 eggs 

 her first laying hear would measure about 1 inch between her 

 pelvic bones after she stops laying for the season. The hen 

 that scores 200 eggs would measure about l : /4 inches between 

 the pelvic bones after she stops laying for the season. The 

 hen that scores 250 eggs would measure about V/z inches be- 

 tween the pelvic bones after she stops laying for the season. The 

 250-egg hen does stop more or less after her second and some- 

 times after her first season, if not cared for right; but if feed 

 and environment are right, she may continue to lay more or less 

 until 3 years old, when her frame may become set. When 

 she is done laying her pelvic bones may remain 2 inches apart. 

 As hens grow older their pelvic bones become thicker during the 

 winter months when they are not laying. The thickness varies 

 according to their type, the typical egg type changing little or 

 none, while the more pronounced the meat type becomes the 

 more the pelvic bones change, owing to the increase or decrease 

 of flesh on the abdomen (flank) of the fowl as it takes on or 

 loses flesh, as indicated by her breast-bone. 



CHAPTER XIX. 



FINAL REMARKS ON CONSTITUTIONAL VIGOR AND VITALITY. 



As we have now reached the end of "The Call of the Hen," 

 I wish to impress upon the reader's mind the importance of 

 the five propositions that govern the Selection, Breeding, and 

 Profitable Keeping of Poultry as follows: Capacity, Con- 

 dition, Type, Prepotency, and Vitality or Constitutional 

 Vigor. 



