PRESERVING EGGS FOB MARKET. 91 



EGGS IN GREAT BRITAIN AND THE UNITED STATES. 



The population of Great Britain was, in 1881, thirty- 

 five millions. That of the United States, in 1880, was 

 fifty millions. There were in Great Britain, in 1885, 

 fowls (all kinds), 29,940,000; in the United States, in 

 1880, 125,507,000. Great Britain has a little over 20,- 

 000,000 of the ordinary barn-yard fowl. The remainder 

 are ducks, geese, and turkeys. In our census, 102,000,- 

 000 are of the barn-yard kinds. The egg-product of 

 this country is put at 457,000,000 dozen, or forty-five 

 eggs for each fowl; that of Great Britain, at the same 

 rate, would be 75,000,000 dozen. In 1883 Great Britain 

 imported 71,000,000 dozen eggs, which, at the same rate 

 for 1885, would give an aggregate of 166,000,000 dozen 

 for home production and import, or about four dozen 

 a head for the population. In the last year for which 

 we have official returns, the import of eggs to the United 

 States was 16,487,204 dozen, and our export was 295,- 

 000 dozen. The consumption of eggs in the United 

 States, adding home production to the import, is about 

 nine dozen for the entire population. It is no wonder 

 the country grows so fast and vigorous, when it has at 

 hand such stores of nutritious food. 



The value of our egg import is nearly $3,000,000, as 

 stated in the Customs returns, or about six cents a 

 dozen. Happy is the consumer who can buy them for 

 twelve cents. Of the egg import into the United States, 

 three fourths comes from Canada, mostly from Quebec 

 and Ontario. One fifth comes in by way of Vermont, 

 and another fifth at Buffalo, another at Niagara, and 

 another at Boston and Ogdensburg. Nearly one half of 

 the importation is into New England, and the remain- 

 der arrives at New York, and at Niagara and Buffalo. 

 It is a curious fact that China sends us 220,000 dozen 



