44 PROFITS IN POULTRY. 
a mark on each side of the egg in order to be guided in 
knowing which side is up correctly. ‘Turn them morn- 
ing and night, but cool them down only once a day. 
Always keep a few wet sponges in the egg-drawer, as 
they will indicate the moisture. Put the thermometer 
in among the centre of the eggs, the top of the bulb on 
a line with the top of the eggs, the upper end of the 
thermometer kept slightly raised. 
Three weeks are required for hatching, and the tem- 
perature should not get below 98° nor over 105°. 
Should the eggs be over-heated, let them cool well, 
sprinkle them, and put them back. Heat as high as 108° 
for a shoré time is not necessarily fatal. Never sprinkle 
as long as the sponge keeps moist, and always sprinkle 
with tepid water. 
‘BE SURE your thermometer is correct, as one half 
of them are incorrect, the low-priced ones being as true 
as the highest-priced ones. Place your thermometer 
next to a hen’s body under the. wing; shut down the 
wing closely upon it; let it remain so for a minute. 
Then quickly look at the thermometer, and it should be 
at 104°. It is best, however, to have it tested in a pan 
of warm water, by the side of one known to be correct. 
Do not keep the incubator where there are any odors. 
When the chicks hatch do not remove them until 
they are dry; then put them in the brooder. Keep the 
heat in the brooder at not less than 90°. Feed at first 
hard-boiled eggs for a day or two. No food should be 
given the first twenty-four hours. Then feed oat-meal 
and corn-meal, cooked and moistened with milk. Feed 
four or five times a day, at first, fora week. Keep fine 
screenings, cracked corn, fine gravel, fine-ground oyster- 
shells, pulverized charcoal, and clean water always where 
they can get at such, and keep evervthing clean. Give 
mashed potatoes, chopped onions, or cabbage, or any- 
thing that serves as a variety. Be sure and not crowd 
