The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-02-27

strong chicks early in spring. JneSe lay eggs in fall and winter when prices
 are high. Artificial incubation, there 1 fore, is of great economic value. Sue cess is possible when a few simple
 rules for running an incubator are car
 rled out These rules apply equally
 well for hot air or hot water incu-
 bators.
 The natural process of matching re- quires vital heat. moisture and air.
 The normal temperature of sitting hen is between l03 and 104 degrees While she is sitting certain amount
 of bodily moisture comes in contact
 with the eggs. Air circulates about the
 eggs through the feathers These are
 the conditions of natural incubation.
 They must be approached very close ly in artificial incubation to secure
 good results.
 PLACE FOR AN INCUBATOR
 Many experiment stations have regu-
 lar incubator cellars for artificial matching. In such place it is easier to keep an even temperature in the ! incubator and to retain the moisture better However, an incubator cellar is not always possible on farms or poultry plants. In that case a clean, light cellar of the ordinary dwelling i portant thing is to see that the place is well ventilated Even if an ordinary cellar Is not available. then room above ground may be used. The pre- caution should be taken that the in- cubator does not stand in draught. | That would be fatal to success, as the heat in the egg chamber could not be kept uniform under such a condition. | Since heat takes the place of vital 1 energy in artificial matching, it is very ! important that the temperature sur form as possible.
 But the best kind of incubator put ! in the best place will not bring sue cess in matching unless the eggs used ! are fertile and the germ is strong.
 Poor results are often charged against I the incubator when tine eggs are en- tirely at fault. Good eggs can only be produced from strong and vigorous stock The first principle in scientific l breeding is that only vigorous stock produce eggs with strong germs. From
 the standpoint of biology there is no 1 doubt about that fact and there is no getting around it in artificial or nat | uraI incubation. Half the means of success exist in the eggs before the | incubator is started at all. If these 1 conditions are fulfilled the matter Of
 running an incubator to get satisfac- 1 tory results in strong chicks and lots 1 of them is not difficult.
 VALUE OF MOISTURE AND AIR l The mother hen is an organism with vital powers When she sits on eggs, the heat of the body throws off mois- ture which is charged with carbon dioxide. An incubator by itself cannot l do this. In the natural process of 1 matching the functions performed are largely biological and physiological; with artificial incubation the process
 is largely physical The vital and chem 1 ical effects are being studied with sit ting hens in order to learn the best
 methods of running an incubator. From practical experience in the handling of l sitting hens, the scientific poultryman | | cubation every season. The time to ap- ply moisture and air to the eggs is now known to have an important ef- feet on the results of the hatch. While oxygen is needed abundantly during | the later stages of artificial matching, 1.-the value of carbon dioxide must also
 not be overlooked during the whole pe-
 riod.
 l In an incubator the heat of combus- | ton produces moisture and carbon d.
 oxide. As In the case with sitting hens, l both of these factors are valuable and necessary in artificial incubation. 1 When this gas comes in contact with l moisture it forms carbonic acid The effect of carbonic acid is to disinte- | grate the egg shell. When that takes place as under natural conditions the 1 chick can break through the shell more readily. When chicks fully formed are | found dead in the shell it may be safe- l ly concluded they have died from ex- | haustion. They were unable to break | the shell because it had not been suf- | flciently disintegrated. The successful 1 incubation is now quite generally rec l ognized.
 These are the conditions which the poultryman who uses an incubator l must strive to initiate closely. If they are followed carefully and if the eggs used are laid by vigorous stock, the l results of artificial incubation may 1 compare favorably with those from | natural matching in the number of 1 chicks matched and in their vitality | These are the results which we are 1 striving to attain.
 l No poultry keeper runs an incubator l for fun. When the value of the eggs
 and the poultryman's time are consid- cred, it is a matter of dollars and cents whether an incubator is run right or 1 wrong. The conditions always to be borne in mind are heat, moisture and ] air The proper control of these fac- l tors will spell success in any kind of 1 well made incubator. The aim of the l operator is to learn how these factors | may be best controlled.
 HANDLING THE EGGS l The first thing is to run the incubas pr l for A hours to see that the heat rd l.
 lator is all right. If no trouble arises 1 from this source. the temperature in the incubator should be raised to 102 or 102ls degrees before the eggs are put in. The, | incubator should be run at this tenn perature for week, then for the second week at 103 degrees. It is always ad-' 1 visable to follow the instructions which, should accompany every incubator sold until the principles are learned by prac-, | tice These rules are usually the result, of experience by men who have devoted much time to this work. A good rule should read about like this: | First raise the temperature to 10z1s de-
 grees before putting in the eggs. Then . U