CHAPTER IV. 



HATCHING THE EGGS. 



Eggs are close things, but the chicks come out at last. 



Chinese Proverb 



Incubation is the application of the proper amount 

 of heat to the egg under proper conditions. Nature 

 has provided for this by bringing upon hens after lay- 

 ing a certain number of eggs, the brooding fever, 

 which runs its course when its purpose has been 

 fulfilled. 



In some breeds this broody instinct has been bred 

 out to a great extent. This is true of the smaller, or 

 Spanish breeds generally, yet even these will occa- 

 sionally become broody. Nearly all the medium sized 

 breeds, and the larger ones, too, are persistent sitters. 

 Of all the standard breeds, perhaps the Cochins are by 

 nature the most quiet and gentle, and have the moth- 

 erly instinct the most strongly developed. 



Whatever may be the breed, it is best, as a 

 rule, to select for sitters and mothers, medium sized 

 hens, and such as are not too fat and clumsy. It is an 

 advantage, also, to have those that are gentle and will 

 not fidget and fight and break their eggs. Wild, 

 squalling hens are a nuisance ; accustom them to 

 being handled, remove them at night to a room apart 

 from the laying hens, let them sit for a day or two on 

 ijtest eggs, and if they promise well, give them as 

 many as they can cover well. 



