Domestic fowls are very pugnacious, and if there are too many cocks they will be fighting incessantly. The usual proportion is one cock to seven hens; and those hens should be kept for laying which are dark-coloured, as they are not only better layers, but are said to produce richer eggs. When a hen is about to begin laying she makes a cackling noise for several days, when a nest of hay should be prepared for her, and a nest egg put into it, to induce her to lay there. Some hens lay every day, and others only once in two days, or once in three days. The eggs should be removed as soon as laid, as the hen is apt to spoil or break them, by sitting in the nest to lay others. Eggs may be kept for several months sufficiently fresh either for setting or for the table, by dipping them either in oil, or in a mixture of beef suet and mutton fat melted together and used warm. Hens are considered in their prime at three years old, but they will produce eggs for several years; and some hens will continue laying all the year, except during the season for moulting, which happens with young fowls in spring, and with older ones generally in autumn. At this season all birds are ill, particularly at the time when the new feathers have just forced out the old ones, and have their quills full of blood to furnish nutriment for their growth.
When a hen is set, care should be taken that she has only as many eggs as she can cover easily. The usual number is from nine to thirteen; and, when they have been put into the nest, the hen should be placed gently upon them, and covered with a cloth till she seems quiet. When a hen is sitting, she should be plentifully supplied with water near at hand, as she is generally thirsty, but it is reckoned best not to put her food too close to her, as a little exercise does her good. A hen sits twenty-one days, but some of the chickens are generally hatched a day sooner or later. Each is taken from the hen as soon as it has left the egg, and is put in a basket on some wool or flannel, and set by the fire; but no food is given till all the brood is hatched, and returned to the hen. The chickens are then fed with eggs boiled hard and chopped small, and boiled rice and grits; and, when they are a little bigger, they may be given barley meal mixed with milk and water, or, what is better, boiled barley and rice, with a few boiled potatoes crumbled small. They will soon, however, be strong enough to feed with the hen in shallow vessels; as otherwise they are apt to get into the water to drink, and wetting their feet and feathers brings on many diseases. As soon as the chickens are hatched, a little bit of wood, with a strip nailed across it, to serve as a step, should be put from the opening of the box where the nest is to the ground, to enable the chickens to get in and out of the nest as easily as possible; and when they are permitted to go out of doors, which is generally in three or four days, the hen should be put under a coop, to prevent her from wandering, till the chickens are strong enough to accompany her, which will probably be in about ten or fifteen days.