The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1897-06-27
THE WORK OF THE HENS.
Have Earned Two Hundred and Nine
ty Million Dollars.
EGGS WORTH MGRE THAN WHEAT
Not So Far Behind the Earnings OF
the RniIronds-Could Easily
Uuy Several states.

(writtcn for the New York World by H.
w. Collingwood OF the Rural New
yurker.)
Mrs. American Business Hen is ono OK
our most useful citizens. She is a shrink
ng, unassuming creature, too modest ut
times even to cackle over the birth oil her
own egg, leaving that celebration TO her
husband; and yet Mrs. American Hen has
been quietly paying OF mortgages driving
wolves from the door and Matching out nest
egEs for thousands of feathcrless bipeaH'
In 1890 there were in this country 25S'-
S7l 1875 chickens and 26.7SS,alb other fowls.
| In that year the American hens iad "
! 6,S74 ,9g2 eggs. There arc now 5oooOo'oVo
chickens. which Will lay this year lS''So'-
100000 eggs These eggs are worth SloS'-
| 000,0 600. and the poultry meat sold during
the year viii bring $i25,000,0oO. which gives
$3.50 900 900 as very low estimate of tho
earnings OF Mrs. American Hen for ono
| year of the great depression.
| The S5o0Ov 600 hens are worth $685.
| 600 900 OF any mans money, but We will not
! consider that. but take simply the earnings
! OF the hen, The average length of an rss
| IL , IN incbes. The - 1850 100000 eggs VIII.
| therefore, nuke a chain 5i22l miles long,
| while the total weight OF this production
| Of hen fruit is at least S53.l2b tons.
| Does any reader of the Sunday World
realize what this immense production OF
! oRHB and meat means to the country! Hero
| are lew figurs for comparison;
| Value Of silver production. S'2,blo,uVO
| Value of wool clip ......... IS, ,i53
F! Value of all sheep ............ 80
/ Value of all swine ............ lhb,5-s''lo
Value of mules ..,........... lO8.2Oi,l5I
! Value OF horses .............. 6OOl lSh
| Value OF petroleum products.... b9.3Sd. iuS
| Value of uotato crop ........ 1881 SOL
! Value of tobacco crop 3b,o,i.-A0
Value of cotton crop .......... 2bv, ,oto
| Value of oat crop .............. lb5,bOb, ooS
Value of whcht crop ...........- 23' .H3S,HNS
Imports of coffee Zone year, Si.19S,lGi
| Imports of tea Tone year, l&,tOi.1iO
Total of pensions .............. lov,asU,uio
| Total of school expenditures lIS,Zl1,1oO
Total interest on mortgages.... Ib.i28,uI
| Cost Of postVffice department.. HO'62b.296
Net earnings Of railroads ...... 52J, lJo' ioi
| Dividends Oh railroad stocks Sl,5iod,t
Tho value of all gold produced in Ameri-
| can mines In 1895 was sib,6lO,OOO ana OF
all silver S72 ,OJl 900 The value OF all
minerals Including iron, gold and silver,
taken out OF American mines in 1894 was
! SOS lGS. 76S. Americans are given TO Drag
| rlng about our immense mineral resources.
for II all In one year and had enough left
to lust about pay the interest on all mort
| cages!
Mrs Hen will earn enough this year to
pay tho entire state and county tax (Which
In 1880 was sI43. 1856 007). and have enough
left for every cent OF pensions that arc
paid to old soldiers.
The average cow weighs 100 times as
much the average hen, and yet all the
mich cows in the country have total
value of but s2G3. 955,5ij. Mrs Hen in one
year will earn enough 10 buy every cow.
and put the entire tobacco crop In her
pocket ms well She could pay out OF her
years earnings for all the tea and oonee
imported in one year and all the petroleum
products. and have enough left to buy all
| tho tobacco grown In 1896. The total rs
| segsed valuation OF tho following States
| fall below the hens yearly earnings:
New Hampshire, Nebraska,
| Vermont Alabama,
Delaware. mississippi.
| Arizona Idaho,
West Virginia. Louisiana.
| North Carolina, Arkansas,
South Carolina Montana,
| Utah Oregon.
| Florida Wyoming,
| North Dakota. Colorado.
South Dakota. New Mexico.
| Nevada.
In other words, Mrs. American Hen could
| buy any OF these States from one years
egg and chicken money. She could buy In
this way New Mexico. Arizona. Wyoming.
North Dakota. Idaho and Montana all put
together
The total cost OF conducting the post
office department last year was s9O626.-
1864. We can pick out 5o,0oO,O00 OF our
best hens that will cover every dollar OF
this outlay In one year.
The net earnings OF the railroads In 1895
were 1925, l96454 The railroad dividends
paid amounted to ss1.375.774. The Amer
lean hen paid nearly twice the profits
earned by American railroads.
The total earnings from passenger traf-
fc amounted to s26l .640,5 98. or less than
that OF the hens. II cost In 1895 slightly
over cents to carry one passenger ons
mile. Oi84 OF a cent to carry one ton OF
freight one mile and Of cents to run the
| average train one mile. Ono single hen.
laying 100 eggs per year. could have 2l5
days OF vacation. and would still be able
! to pay for carrying one passenger 100
| miles, or for hauling ten tons OF freight
| 10, 900 miles, or for running an ordinary
| train two miles. One hundred and forty
such hens would pay the salary Of the
average teacher employed In the public
schools, while seventy Ave hens would paE
the average pension to old soldiers Il