No. 7. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 431 



POULTRY AT THE ST. LOUIS EXPOSITION. 



By Charles T..Cornman, Carlisle, Pa. 



It was my privilege to be selected as one of the jurors on poultry 

 at tiie Universal Exposition, St. Louis, an honor which I very much 

 appreciated, especially when you take into consideration the fact 

 that it was the largest collection of pure-bred poultry the world has 

 ever seen and will see for years to come. The entries in the leading 

 varieties was simply astounding, and the public had an opportunity 

 to study those useful and l^eautif ul varieties on a scale never before 

 seen in the battle of the breeds. There were more than 1,600 Wy- 

 andottes, more than 1,300 Plymouth Rocks, more than 1,000 Leg- 

 horns and fully 800 in the Asiatic classes and enough entries in the 

 American, Mediterranean, Asiatic and English classes to make 

 the entries fully 6,000. The Wyandottes came from 29 different 

 states, Plymouth Rocks from 24 states, ranging from Massachusetts 

 to California, from Canada to Texas. The total entry of poultry 

 was 8,550. The entries were booked from 41 states, territories and 

 foreign countries. Missouri led in number of entries, with almost 

 1,000 birds, Canada, Illinois and New York following in the order 

 named. Ohio, Indiana, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania constituted the 

 next group of competitors. New Jersey, Iowa, Massachusetts, Cali- 

 fornia, Michigan, Nebraska, North Carolina and Connecticut follow- 

 ing closely in the order named. 



When asked to address this body representing the agricultural 

 interests of this great State, I consented with the understanding 

 that I select my own subject. I did not select the above with the 

 object in view of lauding the State of Pennsylvania for what she 

 had done for poultry at the Universal Exposition or for what she 

 has ever done for poultry, but rather to criticise her for what she 

 has not done. The blush of shame mantled my cheek on more than 

 one occasion when asked by a commissioner in the interests of 

 poultry from other states, what has Pennsylvania done for poultry 

 at St. Louis, and I was compelled to say, nothing, and also to have 

 • to confess that she has never done anything. Why is it that Penn- 

 sylvania will not awaken to the magnitude of the poultry industry 

 of this country, and especially of this great State? It is useless 

 for me to elaborate on the statisticaTreports of marketable poul- 

 try and eggs, for you are all familiar with that and every school- 

 boy knows that it exceeds the wheat interests. It is not my inten- 

 tion to touch that side of it but to give you, if possible, an insight 

 to the pure-bred poultry side that is so rarely touched on. 



Do you realize the fact that the yearly output of pure-bred poul- 

 try each year exceeds |200,000,000? Do you appreciate the fact that 

 the poultry exhibit at St. Louis represented fully |250,000. Do you 

 appreciate the fact that in this city of Harrisburg at the present 

 . time there is an exhibition of pure-bred poultry representing an 



