98 The Hen at Work 



In all locations where the air is moist at times, 

 as it is in the Far West and all the Eastern States, 

 it is really important to clear out as much manure 

 as possible, which is always offensive in damp 

 weather. 



The droppings themselves, when kept pure, or 

 mixed with crude potash or rock phosphate, are 

 highly valuable as dressing in the garden, and are 

 easier to handle well in this state than when 

 scratched into the litter. The dropping boards 

 come up close beneath the hens and make their 

 sleep more comfortable, shutting off most of the 

 moving air on cold nights. 



Eggs which are laid at night, and many are laid 

 from the roosts, seldom break, and are seldom 

 touched by the hens on the dropping boards. If 

 they fall to the litter below they are almost stu-e to 

 break, where the hens will find and eat them in the 

 morning. Here is the starting point of the egg- 

 eater. Nothing gets on the nerves more than the 

 habit of egg-eating. Hens always eat broken eggs, 

 and if they get the taste, soon begin to break them 

 for themselves. The dropping boards are impor- 

 tant for this reason alone. 



Dropping boards give an extra space for fowls 



