Every large poultry establishment should have a separate house for the sitting hens, and the run that should be provided for their relaxation must be divided from that of the other fowls by wire or lattice work, to prevent any intrusion. Where there is a large number of sitting hens, each nest should be numbered, and the date of setting, number and description of eggs, entered in a diary or memorandum book opposite to the number; and the number of chickens hatched, and any particulars likely to be useful on a future occasion, should afterwards be entered. A separate house and run for each sitting hen is a great advantage, as it prevents other hens from going to the nest during her absence, or herself from returning to the wrong nest, as will often happen in a common house. The run should not be large, or the hen may be inclined to wander and stay away too long from her nest. A separate division for the sitting hen is often otherwise useful, for the purpose of keeping the cock apart from the hens, or for keeping a few additional birds for which accommodation has not been prepared, or for the use of a pen of birds about to be sent for exhibition. "Boxes, of which every carpenter knows the form," says Mowbray, "are to be arranged round the walls, and it is proper to have a sufficient number, the hens being apt to dispute possession, and sit upon one another. The board or step at the entrance should be of sufficient height to prevent the eggs from rolling out. Provision of a few railed doors may be made for occasional use, to be hung before the entrance, in order to prevent other hens from intruding to lay their eggs upon those which sit, a habit to which some are much addicted, and by which a brood is often injured. The common deep square boxes, uncovered at top, are extremely improper, because that form obliges the hen to jump down upon her eggs, whereas for safety she should descend upon them from a very small height, or in a manner walk in upon them. The same objection lies against hampers, with the additional one of the wicker-work admitting the cold in variable weather, during winter or early spring sittings. Many breeders prefer to have all the nests upon the ground, on account of the danger of chickens falling from the nests which are placed above." The ground is preferable for other reasons. The damp arising from the ground assists very materially in incubation. When fowls sit upon wooden floors, or in boxes, the eggs become so dry and parched as to prevent the chicken from disencumbering itself of the shell, and it is liable to perish in its attempts. Hens in a state of nature make their nests upon the ground; and fowls, when left to choose a nest for themselves, generally fix upon a hedge, where the hen conceals herself under the branches of the hedge, and among the grass. In general, the sitting places are too close and confined, and very different in this respect to those that hens select for themselves.