Newark post. (Newark, Del.) 1910-1969, 1916-04-05
GREATER EGG PRODUC-
TON THAN LAST YEAR
Delaware Hen In The Lead

Who can imagine Easter on the
farm without the old mother hen,
with her downy flock of cheeping,
peeping chicks? Indeed the coun-
tryman finds it hard to think of
the warm spring sunshine, the
mud dried roads, and the tender
springing grass without the fami-
liar scratching chickens. All of
which perhaps explains the inter-
est displayed in the north Ameri-
can egg lyaing competition at the
Delaware College Experiment
Farm under A. M. Pollard. When
questioned as to the progress OF
the competition this year, Mr.. Pol
lard on Monday stated that the
total record on April third was
29.612, an increase of $50 over the
figures registered on the same
date in 1915. Correspondence,
now, relative to poultry questions,
averages fifteen letters a day, con-
trasted with six or seven at this
time last year. There are, two,
perhaps twice as many visitors as
at the same tine n the previous
competition. From far and near
they come. Among the number
last week was Mr.. Fred Mozart Of
the Mozart Poultry Ranch, Camp
bell, California. Mr.. Mozart de-
clared he had come one thousand
miles out of his way to visit the
plant and observe the manage
ment of the competition. A re
quest, also, has recently been re-
ceived from Professor F. S. ia
CODY, animal husbandman of the
Ohio State University, for samples
of all the forms used in the compe,
tition. Ohio contemplates start,
ing a similar contest next fall.
Of individual interest in the
competition is a White Wyandote
hen, owned by Thomas HUT, Ser
gent of Delaware City. At the enc
of the twenty-second week in the
contest, the bird has record OF
100 eggs, compared to Lady Eglan
tines 121, at the same period las
year. These records form an in
teresting study since they repre-
sent two widely variant Breeds
the Wyandotte, a heavy breed, OH
only purely American bird, ant
the Leghorn a light weight, i'm
ported from the Mediterranean,
countries. The second best in tn
competition is also a Wyandotte
with a record of 104 eggs.
A visit to the competition car
not fail to mean for the averag
farmer or housewife valuabl
object lesson in methods whic
will go largely toward maxim
!, poultry raising profitable. 1ndiv
Il dual records of the five hundre
hens entered in the competitio
are kept in Mr.. Pollard's offic
J.. These afford a most interestin
~ study. Lady Eglantine's record
last year shows that her longe
uninterrupted laying period w;
from March 9th to April 18th. TT
owner by studying a similar r
r. port may determine what season
of the year are the greatest layir
periods of a particular breed.
the laying period comes at a Sc
son when prices are low, he WI
naturally conclude that this is n
the hen to select for breeding pu
D poses. Another interesting fe
ture of the records is the set
cards showing the kind and qua
tity Of food consumed by each HI
of five birds. At the beginning
every week each pen is suppl,
n with six pounds of mash, al
p twelve pounds of grain. (TI
birds get their meals by peckil
at automatic feeders which are
H. operation only at certain times
day. At the end of the week t
amount of food remaining
p weighed in order that an accura
account of the amount consum
may be filed in the office.
Invariably the greatest laye
consume the most food. La
n Eglantine's pen used 3.5 puon
of mash, and At pounds of gra
compared with 3.8 pounds of ma
and 10 pounds of grain in one
the low record pens.
The entrants in the present co
petition represent a wider ter
tory than those in the last COM
tition, although there are TIVE
, entered from our own State,
8 increase of five over last year.
In order to confine the compt
ton to a study of the profile
p that confront the average farm