GENERAL INFORMATION 
it is difficult to state general rules with any degree 
of accuracy. All females lay more eggs during 
The their first and second seasons than 
» Profitable they will any year after that time, but 
Age for some hens lay enough eggs after their 
Laying Hens 
second year to make their further 
retention profitable. Few hens pay a profit above 
expenses after their third season, and the excep- 
tions to this rule are so scarce that it is always 
best for the beginner to keep his flock under three 
years of age. This is true, of course, only where 
the hens are kept for the eggs they produce 
alone; an exhibition hen that has proven her worth 
as a show bird and breeder may often be profitably 
retained as long as she will lay at all, as a dozen 
of her eggs are often worth several dollars. Gen- 
erally speaking, however, it is best to keep the 
flock young and vigorous. Young fowls are almost 
always more active, more thrifty, more hardy, and 
more attractive than old ones. 
The egg production of different flocks varies 
greatly. The most common egg yield is probably 
Whatisa the one which averages from five to 
Good Egg ten dozen eggs per year from each 
Yield? hen, although the ordinary American 
farm flock, or the flock in the hands of a beginner 
or a careless attendant, often does even poorer 
work than that mentioned. A very excellent egg 
yield is from ten to fourteen dozen eggs per year 
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