ANIMAL PRODUCTION, 775 



of poultry, feeding, care, and management of poultry, insect enemies, poultry 

 houses, and related questions are discussed especially from the standpoint of 

 local needs and a prelimiuai-y report is made of poultry work carried on at the 

 station. 



As regards the relative merits of inside aud outside or ground nests for 

 sitting hens, little difference was observed in a 2-year trial, 50 per cent of the 

 eggs in the inside nests and 40 per cent of those in ground nests hatching on an 

 average. 



When warm aud cold houses were compared, the avei'age monthly egg pro- 

 duction in 3 months in a large warmly-built poultry house was G.5 eggs and in 

 a single board wall colony house 7.6 eggs per hen. In a second test under the 

 same conditions the average egg yield was G.4 and 10.5 eggs, respectively. In 

 this test " the general health of the fowls in the cold pen was noticeably better 

 than that of the fowls in the warmer pen." 



When the comparative effects of inbreeding were studied, 1.3. out of 26 eggs 

 laid by 3 inbred grade pullets were hatched and 10 out of 24 eggs laid by 4 

 inbred Barred Plymouth Rock pullets. In each case there were 3 deformed 

 chicks. Twenty-one out of 26 eggs aud 22 out of 27 eggs laid respectively by 

 2 and 3-year old hens and 2 grade pullets (not inbred in either case) hatched 

 and none of the chickens were deformed. For 4 months another record was 

 kept of the egg yield, and it was found that with 4 inbred yearling hens it was 

 42.5 eggs per hen as compared with an average egg yield of 60 per hen in the 

 case of 3 hens 2 and 3 years old not inbred. '• One striking feature in connec- 

 tion with these experiments was the impaired laying ability of the inbred pul- 

 lets, evidently due to a lack of constitutional vigor. AVith 2 exceptions they 

 were very erratic in their performances. They would lay heavily at times and 

 then cease almost altogether." 



With the object of demonstrating the value of pure-bred males for improving 

 flocks, tests have been carried on for 3 years with satisfactory results with 

 Barred I'lymouth Rock cockerels and low grade or scrub hens. 



Some poultry problems, J. E. Rice {Pcnn. Dcpt. Ayr. Bui. 15J, pp. 11.^-121, 

 pis. l.'f). — In a paper presented at the meeting of the Farmers' Annual Normal 

 Institute, 1906, the author discusses problems connected with poultry raising, 

 drawing his illustrative material largely from work carried on at the New 

 York Cornell Plxperiment Station. 



From data summarized regarding egg production at different times of the 

 year he concludes " that egg ]troduction is governed by climatic conditions 

 which have to do not only with temperature but with the length of day and 

 with the amount of sunshine," the lowest egg production in the test quoted 

 being noted from October to January and the highest from April to June, 

 inclusive. 



In a discussion of the relative value of Barred Plymouth Rock and White 

 Leghorn poultry as table birds data are reported regarding the live and dressed 

 weights, the percentage of organs, cuts, etc., of two birds. " The percentage of 

 the dressed fowl to the live weight in the case of the Rock was 90.5 ijer cent, 

 while that of the lieghorn is 86.8 per cent. In like manner the percentage of 

 the edible parts of the Rock is 75.49 per cent, and that of the Leghorn 66.55 

 per cent. Again, the percentage of the waste parts of the Rock is only 13.42 

 per cent in contrast to 16.45 in the Leghorn." 



As shown by studies of the character of the muscular fibers, the lean meat 

 of the Plymouth Rock had a larger proportion than the Leghorn of the muscular 

 fibers which make up the juicy tender meat and a much smaller proportion of 

 the tough connective tissue. 



