Los Angeles herald., 1909-12-18

of eggs. Assuming that they sell for
rs cents in a New York grocery, tho
money is divided as follows:
The farmer gets Is cents; the coun-
try merchant three-fourths OF l cent,
freight to New York, liz cents; proht
of commission man, h cent; profit OF
jobber. IL cents; loss from spelling
and breakage, 2 cents; profit of retail
er, cents.
The revenue of the farming commu-
nifty from the poultry yards could be
increased without any advance In the
cost of eggs to the consumer; the quail
ity of the product could be improved
If new and more business-like methods
were adopted in the trads, The egg
from a well-kept flock should in some
way be distinguished from the prod
uct of ordinary scrub hens for the BEN
eft of both the producer and the con-
sumer. The farmer who takes pains
to produce a good article ought to be
regarded, while the consumer who
pays a high price ought to receive the
full value of his money.
The great bulk of the poultry wealth
of this country is produced by the gen.
eral farms in the Mississippi valley.
Some idea of the rapid growth of the
industry may be obtained from the
figures from Kansas, where exclusive
poultry farms, such as are found in
the eastern states, are practically un-
known. The value of poultry and eggs
sold In Kansas in 1905 was Sc, 498, $50,
and this total increased at the rate or
81 900. 900 a year until 1907 when it
reached the enormous sum of $10,3O0,0S2
for that state alone. No later figures
are given, but the increase since was
undoubtedly equal to that of other
years; hence the revenue from the
Kansas henhouses was probably $l2 =
100000 or more for the current year.
There has been a corresponding In
crease in other states, but the supply
has not kept pace with the demand.
Advances in Price Continuous
There has been a continuous ad-
vance in the price of eggs for the past
ten or twelve years and it has been
greater than the average rise of values
in other food products. At the same
time the quality of the eggs sold on
the retail market has not improved,
and Mr.. Hastings asserts that it Is
decidedly inferior to that of several
European countries.
The average price of eggs on the
farm has continued to advance, but 1t
has not advanced as rapidly as the
retail price In the cities of the coun-
try. Throughout the western states,
particularly on the Pacific slope, eggs
cost more in the village stores than
they do in the fancy grocery stores of
New York city and Chicago. This, as
was explained in a recent letter, Is
due to the fact that so many farmers
In that part of the country are devot-
ing themselves to a single crop, to
fruit, to hops, to wheat or to some
other one thing which requires atten-
ton during the summer months only
and leaves them free to leave their
places and spend the winter in the
eastern states or in some favorite re-
Sort whereas, if they Kept chickens
or a COW, they would have to remain
home all winter to look after them.
Farm prices for eggs throughout the
west now run as high as 25 cents and
27 cents a dozen, while these same
eggs sell at retail from 30 cents to As
cents a dozen.
Mr.. Hastings says that "the eggs OF
the United States are worth much
more when laid than they are when
they reach the consumer. Now, If they
reach the consumer in good condition
he would pay a greater price and re-
ceive better eggs and more of them.
The only change that would occur in
consumption would be that the poorer
customer, who now eats low-grade
eggs, would be obliged to substitute
some other food for them, and that
the more fortunate customer, who now
limits his consumption because of the
poor quality, would increase his use of
eggs at the expense Of other foods
In the egg trade competition is open,
and the profit of improved methods
or the loss due to waste is necessarily
distributed according to definite prin-
ciples among all those concerned with
the production, transportation and
sale"
Method of Handling Eggs
The general country store is the most
common market for eggs. and, being
a perishable crop, they are taken per-
haps once a week to the merchant, who