LESSON XV 



Incubation 



It is natural for a hen to lay twelve or fifteen eggs and 

 then to become broody. By selection and careful breeding, 



Fig. 47. — Hatching box. 



hens have been brought to lay many more eggs than this 

 number ; Imt most hens, sooner or later, want to sit. If it is 

 desired to hatch chicks, a hen should be removed to a hatch- 

 ing box as soon as she becomes broody (Fig. 47). This box 

 should be arranged with a runway in front of the nest 

 so that the hen will be able to get some exercise, and to reach 

 the food and water placed there for her, without bothering 



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