Charlevoix county herald. (East Jordan, Mich.) 189?-1953, 1914-09-05
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= POULTRY=
- DEPARTMENT EDITOR -
- ERNEST B. BLETT
- So Market Ave, randRapids, Mich. -
-.
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Government Makes
Egg Chart for
POultrymen
Uncle Sans COlOred Chart Will
Help You Tell How Fresh
They Are.

To enable farmers and housewives
to test eggs before candle and tell
accurately their condition before they
are opened, the department of agri-
culture has just published a colored
egg-candling chart. To give a true
picture of the eggs, twelve impSA-
slons were necessary to produce t.
autographed chart.
This chart shows the eggs in their
natural size as they appear before a
candle, and also as they look when
open in glass saucer. The pictures
include an absolutely fresh egg,
slightly stale eggs, decidedly stale
eggs, eggs with yOlks sticking to the
shell, eggs where the chicken has de-
veloped so far that blood has been
formed, moldy eggs, added eggs, and
eggs with a green white.
Comparatively few housewives are
aware that green color in the white
of eggs is due to the presence of
billions and billions of a certain
| bacteria that make a green coloring
matter. Eggs with this greenish tint,
even though the yolks seem to be
perfect, are not fit for food.
AS long as the departments supply
lasts, these charts will be furnished
free upon application to the Editor
and Chief, Division of Publications.
Commercial shippers of eggs, how
ever, should apply for departmental
bulletin 81, technical paper on test
ing by scientific methods not availabSS
to the average farmer. This bulletin
includes the colored illustrations. This
chart alone will be found to be not
merely of great service to the house
wife wishing to test the eggs she is
to serve to her own family. but also
OF commercial value to farmers, coun-
try merchants, or egg shippers who
wish to buy and handle eggs on an
accurate quality basis.
The great spoilage of eggs in this
country is due to bad handling and is
quite unnecessary. Part of the rem
edy is to teach everybody, from the
farmer to the consumer, how to tell
the quality of an egg without break
ing the shell. The country buyers,
the middlemen and the housewife
judge of the quality of the inside of
cucumber or an eggplant, or any
other vegetable, by the appearance
OF the outside and the firmness of its
texture. 1t is not possible to tell
the quality of an egg by looking at
the shell, though it is safe to say that
the eggs with shiny shells are apt to
De aged. A fresh egg looks as thougI,
1T had been busted with a very fH/
powder; the "bloom," as the egg men
say But in order to know what is in
side the shell the egg must be held
in front of a strong light-such as
an electric bulb furnishes-which
comes through hole about 1 4 inches
in diameter. The room must be dark.
When the egg is held close against
the hole the bright light renders its
contents visible, and the quality is
indicated By the appearance Of the
yolk, the white and the air space at
the blunt end. There are many egg
candles" on the market. but the
housewife can easily make one for
herself by cutting a hole in n small
paste-board box, which is slipped over
an electric light bulb. If gas or an
oil lamp is the source Of lghr, q tin
box CT can should be used.
The raising of capons is not as gen
eral as should be. The work is not so
difficult to do and you can easily
learn to do 1T. A young fowl capon-
lied will weigh at maturity nearly
30 per cent more than he would other
wise.
If you did not set out trees last
spring IN the runs, you may now see
the need of shade and plan to set
them this fall and in the meanti ~
while they are growing provide sorYe
artificial shade.
"Crowding," this is a mistake and
a bad one to let young growing stock
crowd at this season of the year. II
retards the growth and many a bird
that would have made an extra nice
specimen or winner is spoiled in this
way.
Poultry Topics says: "The 1000
egg mark has been reached by a sew
en-year-old White Plymouth Rock hen
at the Missouri station. That's prof
table kind to have. Too many good
hens are sacrificed in their second
year and too many poor ones are kept
as long as they live"
, In constructing dropping boards
they should be made to extend wide
J enough to catch all the droppings
from both sides of the perch, n They
: should be about six inches beyLf the
, perches and should be made in sllzh
way that they can be easily removed
+ to be cleaned.
, We can supply most any poultry
book published. We can offer many
, for getting a few subscriptions to
American Poultry Instructor. If
there is anything you want as a pre-
MUM write us and we will get it for
I you in exchange for getting up clubs.
| Many have got good start in poultry