Poultry Meeting at Columbia. 443 



minor rule might well prove disastrous to the egg circle. It 

 is better to try to encourage and persuade the member to do 

 right than to expel him. After the circle is well established 

 this trouble would not be as serious. 



The stamped eggs are often objected to because if not 

 properly stamped the egg was smeared. The ink would often 

 soak in, staining the white of the eggs. Thus a clean egg was 

 preferred. 



Again, the eggs when stamped were sometimes not good 

 enough to be sold as "extra firsts." But to sell them as 

 "straights" was impossible as the retailer would ask questions 

 and refuse them, so they would have to go as "No. 2" and thus 

 realize a lower price than would otherwise be the case. These 

 last objections would be met by using a neat, attractive package 

 and by stamping the package only. 



Parcel Post. — At present the shipping by parcel post is 

 rather expensive. The postage costs about three cents a 

 dozen, the package another cent and there is quite a deal of 

 labor required. To send the eggs by freight just costs a fraction 

 of this, being about half a cent a dozen. 



To hold customers by parcel post, a steady egg production 

 is required. This condition is one hard to meet. Again, an 

 unduly large proportion of the eggs are broken or damaged by 

 parcel post. 



Conclusions. — The real benefit derived from the co-opera- 

 tive eggs circles is not so much in their successful operation in 

 itself, but from the increased interest taken in poultry by the 

 farmers. In Ontario, from a careful census taken of 448 farms, 

 about two-thirds of the farmers were either indifferent or un- 

 interested in poultry. To get these men interested in poultry 

 is a greater thing than the success of the egg circle in bringing 

 increased profits to its members. 



To receive the greatest benefits from co-operative market- 

 ing we must organize a central society. Then we must operate 

 or rent space in a cold storage plant and store eggs. A thirty- 

 dozen case of eggs can be kept in cold storage for a space of 

 six months for thirty to thirty-five cents. A broker will sell 

 them for a commission of one-half a cent a dozen. Freight 

 charges will bring this cost up to a total of two cents a dozen. 

 If we can place eggs in cold storage at twenty-two cents a 

 dozen and sell for twenty-four cents we can produce for the 

 farmer a handsome return for his eggs. 



