LESSON THIRTY-ONE. 
EGGS AND THE HEN. 
1, Purpose——In most kinds of animals reproduction 
takes place by means of eggs. Mammals give birth to 
and suckle their young. Birds and many of the lower 
species produce eggs. Great variation exists as to the 
manner of reaching adult 
life. With some members 
of the animal kingdom many 
changes occur, the little crea- 
ture on hatching being alto- 
gether different than at 
other stages of its existence. 
The life history of a butter- 
fly or moth is a story quite 
Bippy AND HER FAMILY different from that of a 
snake or fish, and that of a 
bird from that of a tadpole or lobster. In domestic 
poultry, on hatching from the egg, a baby bird is born, 
identical in every way with its subsequent enlargement. 
The egg is for the purpose of reproduction. It is the be- 
ginning and the end of the life cycle. Birds, according 
to their sex, produce eggs or contribute to their fertiliza- 
tion in order that their species may be perpetuated. Egg 
laying is not to provide a nutritious food for the break- 
fast table. 
2. Character of an egg.—An ordinary good-sized hen’s 
ege weighs about two ounces. The weight varies ac- 
cording to the breed, some eggs weighing 214 ounces. 
330 
