136 
ELEMENTARY AGRICULTURE 
set it near the hen’s nest, she will take a-dust bath and 
keep herself free from lice and mites. 
In feeding broody hens, whole grain such as wheat and 
corn is best. Place the grain in straw litter near the nest, 
in order to make the hens take exercise while eating. 
In case the hen breaks an egg in the nest the shell 
should be removed, the soiled eggs washed in tepid water 
and new nest material put in. 
Dust the hen two or three times during the hatch with 
some good insect powder to destroy and prevent lice and 
mites. Do not dust after the 19th day of incubation. 
The eggs should not be disturbed after this time, and the 
powders may be harmful to the newly hatched chicks. 
Testing Eggs.—Hen eggs will incubate in twenty- 
one days. It is profitable, however, to test the eggs on 
the seventh and fourteenth days and remove all infertile 
eggs and those with dead germs. There are several prac¬ 
tical ways of testing eggs during the process of incuba¬ 
tion. If you have access to electric lights, place an oat¬ 
meal box with an opening cut in the side about the size 
of a silver dollar, over the light globe. Place the eggs 
before the opening. If they are clear, after incubating 
seven days, they are infertile and should be removed and 
saved for feeding the baby chicks. Another practical 
way to candle eggs is to take a shoe box and cut a hole 
in one end about the size of a silver dollar and another 
in the lid about the same size. Stand the box on the end 
and place a lighted candle on the inside. Put on the lid 
and tie a cord around it. 
Artificial Incubation of Eggs.—There are several 
makes of incubators on the market today that have been 
successful in the hatching of baby chicks. If you intend 
setting an incubator, it is best to secure a copy of the 
directions for setting up and operating the kind of ma- 
