The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-09-27
EGG GAMBLING IN MISSOURI.
Eggs Are Classified as Extras. Small and
Dirties, Seconds, Cracked and Rotten.

From the 81 Louis Globe Democrat
SPRINGFIELD, Mo, Sept 15.-When the State
Statistician at Jefferson City completed his COM
pilauon Of the surplus products Of Missouri re-
Gently, he discovered that the greatest gain Of
the year was in poultry. The figures are amaz-
ing. The poultry product shipped and sold last
year amounted TO over 7OOOO 600 pounds 1t
realized the producers at first price S49O0O 600
The eggs shipped were SO 5000 dozens. and
they brought to the people who gathered them
from the nests So 393 900 Poultry and eggs
together yielded TO the farmers of Missouri, after
their own tables had been supplied So 29S 600
The aforetime egg buyer, sitting in the cellar
Of his store with lighted candle before which
he holds up an egg at time to Judge of its sound
ness. has been superseded. lie would never
come to the end of the 33. 935, 900 dozens which
the Missouri farmers wives bring To town
in twelve months The average price paid to
producers for eggs is a bout 10 cents dozen That
was the rate in what known as the months
of greatest egg production, March, April and TO
the 10th Of May. After that there was a brief
period when prices as low as cents 1t was
the time of the highest percentage of bad eggs
In June and July the life Of an egg handler is not
a happy one II ia the season Of nest hiding
Hens will be secretve The farmer coming upon
dozen eggs in the harvest field, with perhaps
one Matched out thinks it is altogether the thrifty
thing to gather up the remaining eleven and send
them in to the egg buyer June and July are months
in which the egg buyer would, il he could gladly
take vacation and go to Alaska, where the only
egg known is the frozen solid In August
the harvest Of bad eggs from the harvest fields
by constituencies faNners is over The quality
Is again restored To normal Prices are now IL
cents and IL cents a dozen 10 farmers wives
Aside from this brief depreciation, prices Of eggs
haven't varied cents a dozen the past season,
which speaks exceedingly well for the new methods
The surplus Of Gigs Of last April went into cold
storage 10 await the demand next winter. 1t is
notable that the egg buyers do not hold either
the hens the farmers wives responsible for this
rush Of bad eggs to market in June and July.
The farmers, the buyers say. find the hidden
nests when they cut their grain and send the CON
tents by the hatful to the house TO go into the
bucket for the next trip to town.
Gambling" is still the name Of the process Of
testing eggs, although the candle has gone out of
date In the dark room Of the poultry and egg
house hangs an electric light II is in with
two bright eyes The egg testers sit on either side
Of the electric light They raise two eggs at a
time from the cases in which they come from the
buyers and hold them for moment between the
electric eyes and the human vision The decision
| is instant The movement which follows is so
rapid that il is hard 10 follow Examining two
eggs at time, the tester must conclude al once in
which Of five directions each egg shall go. There
are three grades Of merchandise eggs But
there also two tubs 10 receive eggs Of fourth
and NTH classification. II an egg is sound and
whole II may be Western extra" Il small and
dirty" or a second" But there may he a crack in
the shell The wear Of tranSporta ton means the
cracking Of a great many eggs. The moment the
tester detects crack his hand goes toward one Of the
tubs With dcft turn Of the wrist he completes
the fracture, emptes the contents Of the shell into
the tub. and losses the shell into the second tub
Then there are the bad eggs. They 60 into the
other tub quick as the tester can drop them.
The economies Of the business have not yet de
v"oped use for spoiled egg. Shells Of the cracked
eggs and bad eggs are hauled away and thrown
on the ground. They have some feTlilizinE value
but not enough IN pay for the carriage. The egg
house pays for the removal Of the bad eggs
Extras" hardly need explanation. They are
the large, clean and sound eggs When it is stat
ed that they are worth w. cents dozen their
superior character is indicated The small and
dirty speaks for itself But there is this To hc
said the small and dirty" must be perfectly sound
The size and the dirt on the shell make IL worth
only cents IN II cents n dozen. Then come the
seconds" which betray signs Of age The sec
ond' is an article Of commerce AT from cents H. q
cents dozen, is the egg that is only little OF
and passes very well where tastes are not too crit,
icaL The extras go intu new cases with perfect
packing. In them the dealer finds his profit
In the Sedalia egg house there is man who has
been Gambling" twelve years He confcsses
franklytthat he is all Of the time learning some
thing new about eggs he turns the electric ray
On them. and he admits that he has gathered some