368 QUEENSLAND AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL. [1 May, 1898. 
germs are weak, without any such explanation being at hand. Frequently itis 
found that the male bird is out of health, perhaps suffering from’ some 
incipient, and therefore unsuspected, disease. The eggs are fertilised, but lack 
of strength necessary for full development and perfect hatching. Under 
these circumstances there is nothing to be done but replace the cock by 
another. ’ 
It has been suggested that reduced vitality in the male bird is freq uently 
caused by want of sufficient food, but of this I have had no personal 
experience. Cocks are as arule very gallant, calling the members of their 
harem to feed, and not helping themselves until the hens have had enough. 
Where birds are kept in confinement, or when the ground is hard with frost, if 
the food is taken away so soon as the hens are satisfied, without seeing that the 
male bird gets his share, he would be underfed, which must result in enfecble- 
ment of constitution, with consequent infertility of eggs or weakness of 
embryos. As a rule this state of things is more to be met with when fowls ara 
kept in confined runs than if they have full liberty. 
RENEW THE MALES. 
A further cause is due to keeping the male bird too long with his hens, » 
and probably this is the solution of the trouble during the past season. During 
a mild winter the functions of both cocks and hens are stimulated into earlier 
activity, which would not be the case in an ordinary cold season. Hence eggs 
would be fertilised much sooner than usual, and nearly all breeders know that 
towards the end of a season eggs are less fertile and germs weaker than pre- 
viously, doubtless due to the reason here given. The plan of running a male 
bird all through the year is wrong in principle, and those who, about midway 
in the breeding period, place down a fresh cock, removing that running with 
the hens up to that time, are doing the best thing possible to secure strong 
vigorous chickens. It is needless to.enlarge upon this point. The fact stated 
must be obvious to all who study Nature’s laws and operations. What should 
be done is to break up the pens as soon as all breeding eggs have been secured, 
keep the male bird by himself or with other cocks, and only put him down with 
. the hens about a fortnight before the eggs are to be used for hatching. In 
case a cockerel is to be mated up, he should be allowed to grow size and vigour 
as long as possible, and_add him to the pen he is to rule at the time already 
named.— Agricultural Gazette (England). 
PRESERVED EGGS. 
In Germany systematic experiments haye recently been made for the purpose 
of securing the most rational method of preserving eggs. Twenty methods 
were selected tor these experiments. In the first days of July 400 fresh eges 
were prepared according to these methods (twenty eggs for each method), to 
be opened for use at the end of the month of February. Of course, a most 
essential point for the success of preservation is that only really fresh eggs be 
employed. As the most infallible means of ascertaining the age of the eggs, 
the experimenter designated their specific weight. With fresh eges, it is 
from 1:0784 to 1:0942. Ifthe eggs are put into a solution of 120 grammes 
(423 oz.) of common salt in 1 litre (1:0567 quarts) of water, the specific 
weight of which solution is 1-072, all the eggs that swim on this liquid 
weigh less, and consequently are not fresh. Only those eggs that sink are to 
be used for preservation. When, after eight months of preservation, the eggs 
were opened for use, the twenty different methods employed gave heterogenous 
results :— 
1. Eggs put for preservation in salt water were all bad (not rotten, but 
uneatable, the salt having penetrated into the eggs). 
2. Eggs wrapped in paper, 80 per cent. bad. 
