118 



THE LEGHORNS 



The eggs are shipped under the seal of the Vineland 

 Poultry Association with the contents of each case plainly 

 marked on the label. When the case is opened the label 

 is broken. The eggs go by freight, leaving Vineland at 

 4:45 P. M. and reaching New York in time for the 2 A. M. 

 market the next morning. The express does not give 

 better service and the express rate on a case holding 30 

 dozen is 44 cents, which, however, includes free delivery 

 at destination. The freight rate is 14 cents and the 

 delivery in New York is 10 cents. The cases are not re- 

 turned and they cost from 12 cents to IS cents each. 



In 1910 when the co-operative plan was inaugurated, 

 the association collected the eggs by wagon. Including 

 the cost of the driver, the maintenance of the exchange 

 where the candling was done, the crates and packing, 

 the service was estimated to cost the producers 3 cents 

 per dozen for the eggs they shipped. After several months 

 of operation, however, the cost was found to be less than 

 that, or $.0278 per dozen. Starting in the middle of Jan- 

 uary, 1909, and continuing until the middle of May, 1909, 

 when the wagon was abandoned and the eggs were de- 

 livered to the exchange by the poultrymen themselves, 

 the total gross receipts of the association were $12,523.14- 

 The average price per dozen received was $.2698. I 

 thoroughly believe that the co-operative marketing of 

 the well-produced, carefully graded and sorted product 

 will increase the income on it. 



The best markets in America are near Vineland. New 

 York is 115 miles away; Philadelphia 34 miles and the 

 Jersey coast resorts, including Atlantic City, are on the 

 right hand. The summer hotels along the coast should 

 mean pretty nearly winter prices throughout the summer 

 months when the cost of producing eggs is the least of 

 all the year. The success of the beginner at Vineland, as 

 elsewhere is ultimately dependent on the outlet which 

 he can secure for his products, and at Vineland through 

 combined marketing, the association can be inquiring into 

 these great egg markets, while the poultryman devotes 

 himself to securing heavier egg production. 



When the Layers Pass Their Prime 



In addition to eggs, there are two other products that 

 an egg farm has to market— hens and cockerels. When 

 the birds have passed the accepted period of prolific lay- 

 ing, they are sold. Trapnests are not employed on utility 

 plants and no doubt oftentimes a hen is marketed that 

 would be good 

 for some time to 

 come as a layer. 

 I know of one in- 

 stance of a hen 

 that was said to 

 have laid 1,002 

 eggs in 7 years. 

 If she had been 

 sent to market 

 the summer fol- 

 lowing her sec- 

 ond or even third 

 birthday, which 

 are the usual kill- 

 ing times, the 

 owner would 

 have been the 

 loser, but when 

 hens are flocked 

 together in great 

 numbers, they 



SHELTERED WATER PAN. 



pan for cleanbing. It can be filled, if 

 desired, with a watering can without 

 disturbing the top. 



SHELTEREEi \^■ATER PAN. 

 Fig. 1.— A water pan with a shelter 

 for the use of the growing pullets on 

 the range durine the summer. It adds 

 greatly to the comfort and well being 

 of the fowls to have clean, cool water 

 to drink. A good device In use on 

 some of the poultry plants in the 

 Vineland, N. J., Leghorn district. 



are not consid- 

 ered individually. 

 They are "egg 

 machines" hatch- 

 ed in incubators, 

 reared in brood- 

 ers, put in laying 

 houses in the fall 

 and fed for heavy 

 egg production. 

 When, generally 

 considered, their 

 period of useful- 

 ness is over, their 

 carcasses are 

 marketed and 

 younger birds 

 take their places 

 in the laying 

 houses. The hens 

 are usually mar- 

 keted in August 

 just after the 

 laying stretch 



that continues through the winter and spring and just be- 

 fore they go into the moult. They net the poultryman 

 from 13 to 14 cents a pound. 



The production of pullets and cockerels on the Vine- 

 land Tract is about even. Almost all the pullets are saved 

 and almost all the cockerels are marketed. They are 

 grown into broilers as quickly as possible. By August the 

 price drops to 18 cents a pound and cockerels then weigh 

 from 2^ to 3 pounds. Two pound White Leghorn broil- 

 ers earlier in the season bring about 30 cents a pound. 

 Squab broilers are the most profitable, for the cockerels 

 are then sold when eight to ten weeks old and early in 

 the season bring from 50 cents to 60 cents a pound. If 

 they are plump and properly dressed and their skin is 

 deep yellow a premium of 10 cents is often paid on 

 each bird. 



Twenty-four years ago, with the advent of incubators 

 and brooders, Mr. and Mrs. A. P. Arnold went into the 

 broiler business at Vineland. Of late years they have 

 kept White Leghorns for eggs, but because of their long 

 experience in producing prime broilers, I give their feed 

 ration for fattening the Leghorn cockerels into plump 

 broilers. Five pounds of bran, 20 of cornmeal, 10 of beef 

 scrap, 5 of oilmeal, 5 of cotton seed meal, 5 of alfalfa, 

 21/2 of charcoal, 2 of grit and 2 of oyster shell and a hand- 

 ful of salt. This is mixed with a shovel and fed dry in 

 troughs and it is kept before the cockerels all the time. 

 At night the birds are fed all the cracked corn they will 

 eat. It takes two weeks to fatten the cockerels, but "if 

 they do not fatten in that time, let them run again. It 

 is too rich a food to feed longer than two weeks," said 

 Mr. Arnold. 



The cockerels on the Vineland Tract are not hatched 

 at a time when they will make the highest priced broilers. 

 They are hatched with the pullets at a time when it is 

 best to hatch pullets intended for work in the laying 

 houses the following fall and winter. Several Vineland 

 poultrymen told me that March pullets are too early 

 hatched for their climate. March hatched pullets lay their 

 first clutch of eggs the following September, starting 

 oftentimes in August. Then in October they start in for a 

 six weeks' "secondary" moult. April pullets are preferred 

 and in the average season they go through without moult- 

 ing. It seems to be a common opinion that they should 



