vol,. XIX. NO. la. 



AND HORTICULTURAL REGISTER. 



93 



ARTIFICIAL INCUGATION-THE ECCAL- 

 E015ION. 



This is a coritrivancn for lia'cliinn; egfxs by arti- 

 ficial hoit. It ilitVers froiii the Eiryptian method 

 of artilir:ial incubation by means of mammals, or 

 ovens heated im:n.'diately by fire, which was tried 

 in Paii.-i by Do Reaumnr, and in London by Mr 

 Mowbray; and also from the more recent attempt 

 at the En^yptian hall, by means of steam. In what 

 way the heat of the Eccaleobion is produced, wo 

 are not informed ; probibly it is by hot water: cer- 

 tainly the operation is simple and effi'ttive, as 

 abundant livinjj proofs testify. 



In an oblong; wooden case, about nine feet in 

 lengjth, and three feet in width and depth, ojitirely 

 insulated, and divided into eight compartments, 

 each closed by a jjhized door darkened, the oggs 

 are placed on cloth, without any coverin;; : here 

 they remain for twentyone days, the period of in- 

 cubation : at the expiration of which time, the chick 

 liberates itself, and the Jiext day is running about 

 and pecking its t'ood as lively as if it had tlie hen's 

 wings to shelter it. Tlie Eccaleobion is capable 

 of containing upwards of two thousiind eggs, and 

 of hatching about a hundred daily; and though 

 some failures i>ccur from natural causes, the ma- 

 chine, unlike the parent bird, never addles the egg. 

 It is always contrived that one compartment 

 shall e.xhibit the last stage of incubation ; and this 

 being open, the visitor may not only hear the faint 

 chirp of tlie imprisoned chick, but watch its attacks 

 on its oval cell, till, having broken the shell ail 

 round, it bursts the integuments and liberates it- 

 self. At first emerging into this new sLate of ex- 

 istence, the light and the human eyes gazing on 

 the little chick, together with its extreme weakness, 

 make it appear as if it would fain retire into its 

 confinement again ; it staggers, closes its eyes, and 

 falls down in an apparently exhausted state, but 

 soon revives, though but for a short time ; as soon 

 as it can take food, however, it gains strength rap- 

 idly. In the last stage of incubation, the egg nny 

 be held in the hand, or placed in a lady's bosom ; 

 where, if any fair visitor bo so minded, the chick 

 may come to light. 



In a case fitted with lenses, placed before eggs 

 in different stages of incubation, lighted by gas, 

 the appearances through the shell may bu observ- 

 ed ; and on a table are placed the contents of sev- 

 eral eggs at successive periods of incubaticm, show- 

 ing the formation of the embryo, from the first day, 

 (as seen under the microscope) to the complete 

 bird, coiled up in its oval form. To trace the 

 gradual devolopenient of the eyes, th^ bill and cra- 

 nium, the heart and circulating system, the feet, 

 feathers, &c., is exceedingly inlereslmg. 



The fledglings arc placed in partitions and sup. 

 plied with food, and the room rings with their chirp- 

 ing. 



The Eccaleobion process is of course applicable 

 to eggs of every species of bird, but none other 

 than those of the common gallinaceous fowl have 

 been reared : parties bruiging the eggs of other 

 birds, however, can have them hatched by the ma- 

 chine, as the same temperature (about r.inetyeight 

 degrees of Fahrenheit) is applii-able to all, from the 

 wren to the eagle. The introduction of the Ecca- 

 leobion into general use, will supply abundance of 

 fowls for the table at a very cheap rate, and with 

 very little trouble : the machinery of the Eccaleo- 

 bion is also applicable to a variety of scientific 

 purposes, where an even and pervading tempera- 

 ture is required ; as it may be regulated at plea- 



sure up to three hundred degrees of Fahrenheit.- 

 Lonilon paper. 



From the American Kurmor's Companion. 



MANURES. 

 Mr Editor — As the success of the farmer in 

 raising large crops in a great measure depends up- 

 on the a!;iount of manure that he may accumulate, 

 and the manner in which it is applied, it vvonid, 

 perhaps, be interesting to mony of your readers, to 

 know how they might be most successful in arcu- 

 mulating manure. For the benefit of such, I send 

 you the following method, which has been tested 

 for many years. 



First, that part of the yard intended for the man- 

 agement of manure, is so formed as to be six in- 

 ches lower in the centre than any other part, so as 

 to retain more or less of the urine, which is the 

 very essence of manure, and a portion of which is 

 necessary to create fermentalioii ; and that there 

 be no loss in case of excessive rains, I have a pit 

 at one end of the yard with drains leading to it, to 

 catch all the superabundant liquid that may be 

 drawn from the yard, which liquid, when fermented, 

 I apply to the soil by means of a large watering 

 pot made for that purpose. But to return — the 

 yard being prepared, I cover it with refuse straw 

 and other vegetable matter, about one foot in depth ; 

 this layer is covered with manure from the stables 

 to about the same depth, taking care to keep the 

 horse manure on one part, and the other kinds on 

 the other part. I then cover the manure with 

 another layer of straw, leaves, or any other kind of 

 vegetable matter that I may have at hand, so as 

 not only to prevent the strength of the manure 

 from evaporating, but the refuse by this method 

 will undergo fermentation and absorb the supera- 

 bundant moisture that may be in the maiuire. The 

 next time in cleaning the stable, I reverse the plan 

 of covering with manure, putting the horse manure 

 on that part where the cow manure was put at the 

 first covering; so as to produce equal heal in fer- 

 mentation — the horse manure containing the most 

 heat of the two, and so I continue reversing the 

 manure, and cover with alternate layers of refuse 

 straw from tim& to time, until the whole is well 

 fermented, which will be in about six months from 

 the time of commencing. By this method, with 

 twelve or fifteen head of stock, from a thousand to 

 fifteen hundred loads of well fermented manure 

 may be accumulated every year; but perhaps some 

 may object ti' this method on account of the amount 

 of straw and other refuse required to cover the ma- 

 nure with alternate layers. To such I would say, 

 that leaves, bog roots, weeds, green bushes, and 

 many other substances may be gathered on a farm, 

 which, if mixed with manure, so as to ujidergo fer- 

 mentation, will amply repay for the time and la- 

 bor spent in gathering. 



In the next place, the manner of applying ma- 

 nure. Now, all admit that it is applied for the 

 purpose of nourishing the plants, roots or grain, to 

 which it is applied — if so, reason and common 

 sense will teach us that the nearer it gets to the 

 root the better. Furthermore, we all admit that 

 when it is applied as a lop dressing, that a greater 

 part of the strength is evaporated ; on the other 

 hand when ploughed in to the depth of six or eight 

 inches, as is frequently done, in open and porous 

 soils, much of the strength sinks beneath the reach 

 of the roots ; therefore, in order to avoid both ex- 

 tremes, when applied to corn ground, harrow it in 



with the cultivator to the depth of about three in- 

 ches, and when applied to wheat ground, after the 

 ground is completely prepared, apply the manure 

 and plough it in with the wheat, to about the same 

 depth as that of corn, and with every other kind of 

 roots in a similar manner. 



A.N Old Farmer. 



PREMIUMS ON PLOUGHS. 



The Trustees of the Massachusetts Society for 

 Promoting Agriculture, in their premium list for 

 1840, otler the following premiums: 



1st. For the best plough that will turn the sod 

 over and lay it flat ; regard being had to the 

 strength of the plough, easiness of draft, excellence 

 of the work it performs, and its cheapness — one 

 hundred dollars. 



It is expected that two ploughs of different si- 

 zes of the same model, will be produced. 



■iA. I'or the best plough that shall lay the sod on 

 edge or obliquely, and not flat, regard to the quali- 

 ties above mentioned — seventyfive dollars. 



It is-exppcted that two ploughs of different sizes 

 of the same model, will be produced. 



Competitors for these premiums will be admitted 

 from any of the States, and claims may be sent to 

 Benjamin Guild, Esq., Recording Secretary of the 

 Society, in Boston, on or before the ninth day of 

 October next. 



The trial of ploughs has been appointed to be 

 had in Worcester, on Tuesday, the 13th day of Oc 

 tober next, and the Committee of Arrangements of 

 the Worcester County Agricultural Society, have 

 been charged with the duty of making the neces- 

 sary arrangements for the occasion. 



It is expected that the presidents of the several 

 agricultural societies in the State, will constitute 

 the committee for awarding these premiums — Wor- 

 cester JEgis. 



FLOWERS, TREES, SHRUBBERY. 



We are not about to philosophize at all, but we 

 wish to ask the farmer — the man who has a house 

 and lot with it— the owner of any spot of solid 

 earth — why it is that he does not more often real- 

 ize the power which he has to make himself master 

 of a literal paradise.' Our poets always talk of 

 ■ green leaves, and fresh flowers and noble trees, as 

 i things belonging, of course, to a blessed place. Our 

 hymns tell of " flowery plains" and " trees of life 

 ' immortal ;" and all our representations of happy 

 places and scenery, include them as a matter of 

 course. Why cannot this be realized ? The man 

 who has a house, a garden, a yard, or a farm, can, 

 with a little care, have all thesf, although he can 

 lay no claim to wealth. There is wisdom in cul- 

 , tivating these lovely adornments ; and although 

 1 we promised not to philosnphize, we cannot help 

 I saying that there is more philosophy in these no- 

 tions than most good people imagine. There is 

 reason as well as poetry. And he who has about 

 his dwelling these children of the earth, will have, 

 among the s.jugsters of the air, and the fragrance 

 and music which will come on the breath of sum- 

 mer through his open windows, that which will 

 sweeten his intellectual associations as well as re- 

 gale his senses. 



Now, if this little article should be the means of 

 planting a hundred trees and flowers, we should not 

 be surprised to find out in the end, that it had cher- 

 ished also a hundred domestic virtues. 



