Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1915-03-13

two or three days before putting eggs
in IL. He should be sure that he can
maintain the temperature without
more than a degree variation in "a
hours. The thermometer should be
tested with a known thermometer to
insure its correctness. A clinical ther-
mometer. which can be borrowed from
a doctor or druggist, can be used for
this test. Place ethe two in water
gradually" adding warm water, and
note any variation. Be careful not to
run the heat up above the capacity OF
the thermometer or it will break the
bulb.
AS soon as the egg chamber of the
incubator is heated up TO the desired
temperature, usually 102 y to 103, ac-
cording to where the thermometer is
placed, the regulator should be ad-
justed so as to raise the damper or tin
disc slightly off the lamp f1ue.
Select Good Eggs
The best of incubators and care will
not hatch poor eggs. In selecting eggs
for Matching they should be fresh, not
over ten days old. They should be of
uniform size, shape and color. All ir-
regular shapes, such as over-large or
understood, rough or uneven shell,
should be discarded. 1t is not advis-
able to incubate eggs from different
breeds in the same incubator.
Eggs should come from strong,
healthy. vigorous stock. Eggs from
fully matured hens. at least year old,
will hatch. better than those from pull
lets. The eggs should come from hens
that have been mated with a male
for at least ten days before they can
be expected to be fertile. Eggs that
be allowed to rest twelve hours before
being put into the incubator
In placing the eggs into the incuba-
tor trays, they should be laid on their
side rather than on their ends. with
the small end slightly downward.
After the eggs have been placed in
the machine it will take some time for
the temperature, possibly "a hours, to
regain the normal degree of heat re-
quired. The lamp should not be
turned up or an attempt made to rush
up the heat, but it should be allowed
to come up slowly and normallyN The
degree of heat at which the machine
is to be operated varies from 102 to
103. according to the make of the ma
chine. location of thermometer, etc.
For the first two to five days a lower
degree is maintained than for the bal
ance of the hatch. AS the animal life
develops in the eggs the heat gradu-
ally increases. This will have a ten
dency to increase the temperature in
the lHCupalOE dS the lldtCHlnS lllIle dp-
proaches, and this must be counter
acted by turning down the fame or
the regulator.
If the temperature goes up to 104
or 105 degrees during the last week
of the hatch it will not be so injurious
as it would be during the earlier
stages of the hatch. If by chance the
heat at any time during the first two
weeks of the hatch goes over 105, the
incubator doors should be opened. the
trays and eggs taken out, and allowed
to cool.
1t is not necessary to turn and cool
the eggs during the first two days of
incubation. During the first two days
the egg trays should be taken out of
the machine. reversed and put back.
If the machine contains two trays,
their position should be transposed
when returning the trays to the ma
chine. This is done so that all of the
eggs may be subject to the same con-
dition every "a hours.
Turning Eggs
On the third day and every day
after that until the eighteenth day
the eggs should be taken out, and
turned twice a day. The quickest and
easiest method of turning eggs is to
take a few out, lay them aside, and
then gently roll the rest around in the
tray. After the first week the eggs
should be cooled a little longer than
it takes to turn them. If the tenn
perature of the room is 65 to 20 de-
grees they should be cooled longer
than in a room that is 80 to 60 de-
grees temperature. The cooler the