EGG RECORDS. 143 



itself in place by its lower edge strikiiiLC the lit;'1it end of a wooden 

 latch or lever pressing it down and slipping (jver it, the lever 

 immediately coming back into place and locking the door. The 

 latch is five inches long, one inch wide and a half inch thick, and 

 is fastened loosely one inch from its center to the side of the 

 box, so that the outer end is just inside of 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 clos- 

 ing 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 very likely to crush her egg by standing upon it. 



One experiment which has been undertaken and which 

 requires a long period of time in preparation is the attempt to 

 establish families of hens that shall excel as egg producers. To 

 do this, reliance upon the laws of inheritance and transmission 

 must be coupled with selection. Selection will depend upon the 

 actual production of the birds taken for foundation stock. From 

 offspring of the foundation stock will be selected — by use of the 

 nest boxes — the greatest yielders of desirable eggs. 



The male birds will be bred from dams of known capacity and 

 quality. Only by use of nest boxes and leg bands can we 

 expect to control the work. Two hundred and sixty females, 

 from three distinct breeds, are undergoing test for the foundation 

 stock. One year's time will be required in the selection. From 

 among them it is hoped may be found a few birds that are suited 

 for the founding of the families. The breeds employed are 

 Barred Plymouth Rock, White Wyandotte and Light Weight 

 Light Brahma. 



