314 NATURAL INCUBATION AND BROODING 
the hen. This will depend largely upon the ihtelligence and experi- 
ence of the man caring for the hatch. (2) Artificially brooded 
chicks need more attention than those brooded by the hen. The 
hen as a mother is left out of consideration, and the poultryman 
must use his judgment in supplying conditions which will be the 
best adapted to the growth and development of the chicks. (3) 
All things considered, artificially brooded chicks are more liable 
to disease; or, it might better be said that, owing to the large 
number handled, they do not get the individual attention which 
they do in natural brooding, hence the chick with low vitality 
succumbs to infection much more readily. (4) The percentage 
of loss is usually greater; but, with more accurate knowledge of 
brooding requirements and good care, this loss while brooding 
should be reduced greatly. 
Summary.—If one wants early chicks in considerable quantity 
and has the time for their proper handling and brooding, he should 
get an incubator. On the other hand, where only a few chicks are 
wanted, or the poultryman has only limited time to give them, the 
old hen is the best. 
Artificial methods rarely pay if one has less than fifty hens, 
except in those cases in which it is desirable to hatch the whole 
yield of eggs for breeding or broiler purposes. 
On an egg farm for laying breeds exclusively, an incubator is 
a necessary part of the equipment,—much more so than where 
general utility breeds are raised. 
Broodiness.—Natural incubation is dependent upon a natural 
instinct which fowls possess in greater or less degree, and which 
is called “broodiness.’’ It is an entirely natural phenomenon, 
dependent upon the physical instinct of all animals to reproduce 
their kind, but it has been demonstrated that this instinct gradu- 
ally diminishes, where the tendency is continually to breed for 
heavy egg production. The natural period of broodiness follows 
the laying of a certain number of eggs; this number depends almost 
wholly upon the individual and breed. Sometimes hens that 
have been persistent layers will become broody immediately after 
laying but few eggs, while others will lay many eggs between 
periods. The egg breeds rarely ever develop this characteristic to 
any marked degree. It is called a breed characteristic, and is 
especially marked in the heavy breeds, less so in the lighter ones. 
The natural period of broodiness is in the spring, after the 
birds have laid their first clutch of eggs. In northern climates 
