Methods with Laying Hens 187 



is shipped ready for use in hundred-pound bags, 

 and will cost about a cent a pound delivered in 

 nearby States. It is well worth an effort to have 

 the best grit. 



Shells.^ — In the case of shells we must also make 

 an effort to get the best. Oyster shell is frequently 

 shipped so fuU of dust and fine pieces that hens 

 wUl hardly eat it. There are other shells sold by 

 standard poultry houses that are clean, of good 

 size and shape, and tempting to laying hens. 

 These are usually "recleaned shells." 



Even if you have but a dozen hens you can well 

 afford to buy a bag of shells, in order to get the 

 best. Take pains to procure shells of high grade, 

 and, while you pay hardly any more, the results 

 win be weU worth while. Soft-sheUed eggs are 

 far too common. Hens that eat liberally of shell 

 seldom lay soft-shelled eggs. 



Cracked Bone. — The Maine experiment station 

 has made a careful study of cracked bone as a 

 ration for hens. Comparisons were drawn between 

 the results of fresh bone, and that steamed and 

 dried, which can be kept indefinitely. No advan- 

 tage in favor of fresh bone was found. Dry 

 cracked bone proved a valuable feed for hens. As 



