Page:Every Woman's Encyclopedia Volume 1.djvu/60

 WOMAN'S WORK HOW TO MAKE MONEY OUT OF DAY-OLD CHICKS 11 By J. T. BROWN, F.Z.S., M.R.San.I. Editor of " The Encydopcedia of Poultry ^^ etc. Modern tastes require chickens at all times of the year— Money can be made therefrom by hatching out in incubators— But begin in a small way, and increase your plant as your market in- creases—When hatched, dry the chicks, and pack them off to the buyers immediately* NO other industry con- nected with poultry- keeping has made more rapid strides than the hatching and seUing of day-old chicks. At one period chicks were mostly INCUBATOR VERSUS HEN The incubator can claim lor itself many advantages over the natural sitter. On the whole, it is more rehable. and it is always ready when wanted — an important consideration during the earlier and The incubator opened when the chickens are hatched hatched out in the earlier months of the year, but to-day there are so many bran:.hes associated with the poultry business that chickens are required all the year round. Hence the majority of such chickens have to be produced by artificial methods, and the place of the sitting hen has, to a large extent, been superseded by the incubator. The old prejudice that once existed against artificially hatched chickens has almost vanished, thanks to the mechanical improvements that have been made in the construction of incubators, and to-day thousands upon thousands of fluffy mites are produced annually and sent to all parts of the British Isles, and even abroad. Many ladies supplement their incomes considerably by devoting their spare or whole time to the business, and it is an occupation eminently suited to the gentler sex. The operation of an incuba'or calls for nothing beyond what fen inine hands can easily accomphsh, and the work is pleasant from the day the eggs are placed in the incubator until the day the little prisoners emerge from their shells. The incubators at work , later periods of the year, when broody hens are scarce. By adopting the incubator, moreover, the dealer in day-old chicks is enabled to hatch out at any time chickens either for ultimate relegation to the laying- houses or for the Christmas or spring chicken markets. A reliable incubator under the con- trol of an intelhgent oper- ator is extremely good- tempered ; it never tramples on valuable eggs or deserts them, a failing that is too Just out