FANCY POULTRY AS A PASTIME 109 



possible advantage and so will not force his breed- 

 ing stock for eggs. He will, on the contrary, try 

 to keep his hens in the best possible condition, so 

 that the eggs will have a high percentage of fertility 

 and produce robust youngsters. 



Matings should be made soon after the first of 

 January and only a few hens kept with each male. 

 While the utility poultryman may keep his fowls in 

 a single large flock, the fancier will need several 

 pens, so that it will be easy to keep his matings 

 separate. It would be a calamity if occupants of 

 the different pens should become mixed, even for a 

 day. 



After the breeder acquires something of a repu- 

 tation, he finds it an easy matter to sell his eggs 

 for hatching purposes and at a much higher price 

 than they would bring in the market. Hundreds 

 of amateurs with no more than a local reputation 

 have no difficulty in disposing of a considerable 

 number- at a dollar for thirteen. Indeed, if a man 

 has a flock of particularly good looking hens of an 

 attractive breed, he usually finds a local demand for 

 hatching eggs, even though he does not pretend to 

 be a fancier. Indeed, one dollar a sitting is com- 

 monly paid for eggs from a strain bred solely for 



