IN THE POULTRY YARD. 177 
There were plenty of hens wanting to sit. After, their summer 
crials and autumn laying they had stopped producing eggs, and 
wanted to take the next step in hen-life. So we cleaned out the 
rooms that we had formerly used for hatching, and packed into it 
as many nest-boxes as it would hold. We succeeded in placing 
12 boxes, containing 48 hens, lut as the weather was cold, we 
gave each hen only 10 eggs, making 480 in all. ‘This was not 
quite enough, so I placed ro more boxes in different parts of the 
stable, and filled them all with hens. With these 4o hens we 
expected to have some trouble, but we thought, that, as they did 
aot have much temptation to run about at this time of the year, we 
might be able to control them. 
It was during the progress of this experiment that I found out the 
mistake I had made in not taking better care of my breeding hens, 
so I was obliged to take such eggs as I could get. By making tem- 
porary arrangements with greenhouse sash, and by selecting some 
of the best laying hens from the general flock, and putting them 
with suitable cocks, I managed to secure eggs enough to gradually 
‘fill all the nests; but of course the hens were not all set at the 
same time, and some of them had been brooding for some time be- 
fore they were set. The latter circumstance was unfortunate, as 
hens that have brooded for some time before eggs are placed un- 
der them are apt to leave their broods too soon. Our success in 
managing the sitting hens was, however, very fair. ‘They were at- 
cended to every morning; fed and watered, and then shut up until 
siext morning. We had three lots which had to be let out at differ- 
ent times; the chickens of the first lot was due the first week in 
February; those of the second Jot during the second week, and 
those of the third lot during the third week. It made no difference 
whether the hens of the same lots returned to the same nests or 
not, but it was important not to mix the lots. We had very little 
trouble, however. It took about two hours to two hours and a 
half every morning to attend to the sitting hens, but all this time 
was not occupied. After the hens had been driven into the outer 
room, the doors of the latter were locked, and the attendant had a 
good half hour to devote to other wark while the hens took -their 
