INCUBATION ON CORNING FARM 113 



(and this is particularly true of early hatches) that, 

 if the eggs are not brought up to 103 degrees for the 

 first week, a retarded hatch is the result. A hatch 

 which drags over its time usually means a lot of weak- 

 lings. It is our practice, therefore, to bring the eggs 

 up to 103 degrees as soon as possible after setting 

 them, and to continue this temperature as nearly as 

 possible. 



Cool But Never Cold 



Cooling the eggs is of course practiced on The Corn- 

 ing Egg Farm. For the first week, five or six min- 

 utes will usually be found a sufficient time, but as the 

 embryo grows the length of time should be increased. 



It is quite impossible to give any exact length of 

 period for cooling, and it must be determined by the 

 feel of the egg to the hand. They should never reach 

 a point where they can be termed perfectly cold, but 

 should feel slightly warm as the palm of the hand is 

 laid upon them. In cooling, the egg tray should be 

 placed on top of an incubator or table so that the bot- 

 tom is completely protected, otherwise the eggs will 

 cool too rapidly. In other words they should lie as 

 they do in the nest of the hen. According to atmos- 

 pheric conditions, cooling, during the latter part of in- 

 cubation, will sometimes reach from forty to sixty 

 minutes. It is a practice with us to give the eggs a 

 very long period of cooling on the i8th day, before 

 they are placed in the incubator for the last time. 



