POULTRY IN RUSSIA AND AMERICA. 



169 



2s. 6d. a hundred is paid in Russia for eggs, and 

 in summer they may go as low as is. gd., but 

 later they may go as high as 4s. 6d. to 4s. gd. 

 They are sorted through rings of different sizes, 

 and- also as to quality ; and when packed in 

 cases are carried by rail at almost incredibly 

 low rates, on the Government railways, to Baltic 

 ports. Vast numbers go to German markets as 

 well as to England, and considerable quantities 

 to Hamburgh, whence they are shipped to 

 England as German eggs. Many other of these 

 "German" eggs are Austro-Hungarian and 

 Italian, and it is doubtful if Germany herself, 

 except as a carrier, is a factor of much real 

 importance in the British egg trade. The Russian 

 egg supply itself can never be of very high 

 quality, or seriously threaten that of really new- 

 laid eggs. The distances are vast, the collection 

 slow, the transhipments necessarily several. 

 Hence the relative prices already noted. They 

 must always be mainly of the cheaper grades. 



The same applies to Russian dead poultry, 

 which necessarily come frozen, and are subject 

 to- the depreciation of frozen carcases. They 

 are shaped in cloths after plucking, the legs and 

 wings being folded tightly in, so that the entire 

 fowl is exactly the shape of a fir-cone ; each is 

 then tightly wrapped in thin paper and packed 

 in a case holding 100 birds of uniform size. In 

 April, 1899, we passed a very good class City 

 restaurant, and noticed on the vieiiit at the door, 

 " Half spring chicken, roasted, with bacon, is." 

 Though the hour was absurdly earlj^, and the 

 place nearly empty, we went in purposely to 

 try what such a portion at such a price was like, 

 and found it fully equal to any average, the half 

 being, of course, of a small bird. We investigated 

 further, to be met as usual with perfect courtesy, 

 and found these chickens were Russian, bought 

 that morning in the Central Market for is. 2d. 

 per bird. We do not see how English birds are 

 to be produced at such a price. On the other 

 hand, they are almost entirely sold for a restau- 

 rant trade, neither their size nor their keeping 

 qualities adapting them for sale by a poulterer 

 to private customers. 



As regards the imports of Danish eggs, 

 there has, during the past year or two, been a 

 shortage, and in the year igog Denmark sent 

 to this country 359,407 great hundreds less eggs 

 than in the previous twelve months, a decrease 

 of 2" 14 per cent. But the value of Danish eggs 

 has continued to advance, and, taking the 

 average value of foreign eggs imported into 

 Great Britain during igog, it will be found that 

 Denmark, if Canadian eggs be omitted, comes 

 highest with gs. 63,^d. per great hundred. The 



genuine Danish trade has been organised on the 

 same lines as the Irish trade, already described. 



The most gigantic poultry industry in the 

 world, at the end of the first decade of the twen- 

 tieth century, is undoubtedly that of the United 

 States. According to the census of 1880, the 

 number of fowls in that year was 

 United 102,272,135, and in iGqo that num- 



States. bet" had increased to 286,000,000. 



The census returns for 1900 unfortu- 

 nately give a very inadequate idea of the facts, 

 only including fowls over three months old on 

 June 1st, on agricultural farms. Owing to the 

 climate this would include scarcely any of the 

 chickens of the year, and the 250,681,673 birds, 

 value 85,794,996 dollars, represent practically 

 little more than the farm breeding stock. A 

 better idea is given by a return of poultry 

 products " raised " during the preceding 3'ear 

 (1899). These were valued at 136,891,877 

 dollars for birds, and 144,286,186 dollars for 

 eggs, or over ;£^56,ooo,ooo sterling. Yet this 

 again is mainly yoimg stock. Adding any 

 lowest possible estimate for both deficiencies, 

 and for smaller and city lots, it is clear that 

 poultry exceeds in value either the wheat 

 or the cotton industry, and is probably the 

 largest single industry of the country! 



Such figures necessarily denote an un- 

 paralleled consumption, the reasons for which 

 have been already stated. New York State 

 and City together are calculated to consume 

 45 million dollars in eggs and chickens annu- 

 ally, and in the city alone three to four millions 

 of eggs are eaten every day. Eggs are used in 

 all forms, by all people, almost universally. We 

 get from America also the best idea, probably, 

 of the extent to which eggs are used in trades 

 and manufactures, which probably applies more 

 or less to England also. It was calculated that 

 480 millions of eggs were consumed annually 

 in calico printing, 120 millions in wine clarify- 

 ing, and 240 millions in book-binding, glove- 

 making, and other leather industries. It is 

 remarkable that beside the enormous home 

 product, there is quite a perceptible import 

 of eggs from China, Mexico, and Japan, which 

 is probably absorbed in these manufactures. 

 There was formerly an import from Canada, 

 but this trade was stopped by the McKinley 

 tariff and diverted to England. 



In connection with this enormous egg trade 

 has grown up a system of cold storage, com- 

 mencing in April and continuing till the winter. 

 This tends to localise in a few centres, pro- 

 minent ones being Kansas City and Chicago ; 

 but there has been considerable exaggeration 



