The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1909-08-31

FIG. xxIu-CORNER IN POULTRY YARD.
express and refuse to accept them If
the seals have been tempered with.
These precautions are necessary
you would be sure of getting what yo
nav for. A basket with handle is
the best package for shipping eggs, as
1t will be carried instead of thrown.
1t has been found by repeated exper-
iments that eggs Matched with an In
cubator do not produce chicks with as
much vitality as those Matched under
hens. This IS not very noticeable the
first season. but If continued year
after year will seriously impair the
vitality of the flock. 1t is a general
practice among successful poultrymen
to set a few Of the best eggs under
hens and use the chickens thus OBJ
tanned to replenish the breeding flock.
Value Of q Breeding Pen.
The plan of having a breeding pen
from which to select eggs for Matching
is very good one. In this pen doz-
en- or thirteen of the best hens in the
flock are kept If trap nest records
have been ! ept this will determine to
a large extent which hens are to be
put into the breeding pen. With the
meat breeds the size and conformation
of the hens are the most important
points. For a breeding pen of thirteen
hens one M lie is all that is necessary,
but he should be the best that can be
secured. Some breeders practice keep
ing two males, putting one in with the
hens one day and the other the next.
In this way the males are kept In
better condition. and the chickens are
likely to be little stronger. No roost-
ers win be needed in the general flock.
Indeed, the eggs will keep all the bet
ter for not being fortified.
The care and feed of the breeding
flock should be much the same as those
outlined for laying hens in article No.
II. The main thing is to keep them
healthy. Do not overfeed. but keep
them in vigorous condition. If posi-
Bile the breeding pen should be large
enough so rs to include a little green
feed. such as clover or rape. If this
cannot be done little forage cut and
put in the pen every day will be rel
ished.
The sitting hens should have a
small house or compartment to them
selves. This will avoid the great an
noyance Of having nests broken up
and fresh eggs laid in with those al
most ready to hatch. This house
should be provided with charcoal, grit
and oyster shells. A dust bath in
which the hens can roll will help to
keep them free from lice. Oats, wheat
and some sort Of green food make q
good ration. When very expensive
eggs are set it is best to keep each
hen In a compartment by herself, as
there win be less risk of having the
nest broken up. Soon after the chick
ems are Matched they can be marker
by punching hole through the web
Of the toe. so that they can be picked
out from the rest of the flock IN the
fall
Selecting the Incubator.
Although incubators are not well
adapted to raising chickens for the
breeding flo k, they are indispensable
to the poultryman who is raising fowls
for market They are more reliable ans
more easily cared for than hens. They
are ready T. go to work at any time.
so that cary chickens can be raised
in much larger numbers than witt
hens. The broody hens can be broken
up and will soon go to laying again.
Not the least among the advantages of
the incubator is the fact that the
chicks will be free from lice when
hatched
There are two general types Of incu-
bators, the hot air and the hot water
machines. The heat in the hot air
machine is furnished by currents of
warm air which circulate around the
egg chamber and In the hot water ma
chine by hot water circulating through
metal pipes. The hot air machine is
simpler and generally gives better sat
isfaction
The two most important points to
consider in buying an incubator are
the lamp and the regulator, since upon
the efficiency of these depends the
maintenance of a constant tempera
ture In the egg chamber. The lamp
and chimney should be of heavy metal
The reservoir should hold enough oil
for twenty-eight to thirty hours run.
The burner should be of brass, with a
cotton wick which fits snugly and yet
works easily. 1t is important to use
the highest grade of oil that can be
obtained, as a steady heat cannot be
maintained with cheap oil.
The function of the regulator is to
raise or lower a valve over the lamp,
thus lessening or increasing the amount
of hot air that goes into the machine.
OF all the many kinds of regulators
none works more satisfactorily than
the double disk type. The disks should
be four or FIVE inches across. II
smaller they are not sensitive enough.
The regulator should be placed toward
the back part of the egg chamber and
high enough so that 1t will be well up
out of the way. Avoid incubators
that have the regulator lever on top of
the machine. Such lever is always
in the way and is liable to be bent or
displaced A machine that has the
lever at the end or under false top
is much more satisfactory. There is
nothing in the way on top, and 1t can
be used as a table for testing, turn
ing and cooling eggs.
The body of the incubator should be
made Of well fitted hard wood with