foot long, and not done growing yet. There 

 may be 100 bushels of dasheens and cassava 

 " too numerous to mention." Our 56 chick- 

 ens laid one egg yesterday and two to-day. 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



You see they are on the " up grade." Ducks 

 are doing about the same. You see they 

 were all waiting for the " boss " to arrive 

 and give them '' inspiration." 



POULTEY DEPARTMENT 



CHICKENS IN FLORIDA; BUTTERCUPS, ETC. 



When I said we got only two eggs a day 

 I omitted mentioning that eggs here are 50 

 ets. a dozen and scarce at that. Even duck 

 eggs bring 40 cts. I found only two duck 

 eggs, but Wesley went after me and found 

 eight more in the same nest, covered up, so 

 the ducks are not doing so very badly. To- 

 day, Nov. 10, we got six eggs. Neighbor 

 Abbott was just over, and he says he has 

 two Buttercup pullets that laid 53 eggs in 

 October, or 261/2 eggs in 31 days. Mrs. A. 

 thinks they did nearly as well in September, 

 but no count was made. When I asked 

 about moulting he said they had not moult- 

 ed yet. I forgot to ask their age, but very 

 likely they were hatched so late they will 

 not moult this season, and here is a hint: 

 If we can have young pullets laying when 

 the older hens are moulting we can get the 

 big prices, even if the eggs are a trifle small. 

 Should I give the above without explana- 

 tion, it might look like a boom for the 

 Buttercups. Let me mention that the pret- 

 tiest Buttercup hen in our yards is a very 

 poor layer, yet she is always following me 

 around in the yard, and " wanting to talk," 

 but she lays only once in three or four days, 

 apparently. Pullets of any non-sitting 

 strain can be hatched so as to lay during 

 moulting time. 



INDIAN RUNNER DUCKS IN FLORIDA. 



I have said so much in favor of the In- 

 dian Runner ducks that I felt loth to report 

 that when eggs were down to 20 cts. last 

 April no one wanted duck eggs here in our 

 market. It Avas no use to say they were 

 " just as good," and " much larger " than 

 hens' eggs, etc. Nobody wanted them. I 

 managed, however, to get about 15 cts., but 

 after I was gone Wesley reported no one 

 wanted them at all. Then I wrote Mm to 

 sell the ducks for whatever anybody would 

 give; but he replied no one would give any 

 thing for the ducks. The women said they 

 were " hard to pick," etc. As I have told 

 you, I found it hard to own up all this after 

 I had praised the ducks so much. Now, 

 this isn't all. Soon after he said the eggs 

 wouldn't sell, he wrote it didn't matter ; for 

 when the hot weather came on they all 

 stopped laying, and this was the condition 



of things when I reached here Nov. 7. I 

 found hens' eggs 50 cts., and few or none 

 at that price; and even duck eggs were in 

 demand at 40 cts. As the hens are about all 

 in full moult I couldn't get them to lay; 

 but the duck doesn't seem to mind moulting 

 time, and I am now getting six eggs a day 

 from 12 ducks. Where are the rest of my 

 big flock, do you ask? Well, the alligators 

 decided if nobody else wanted ducks they 

 wouldn't mind having a few, and they took 

 all of Dr. Morgan's, and about half of mine. 

 Moral. — Just now, while duck eggs bring 40 

 cts., my ducks are not for sale ; and shall we 

 not keep ducks just to have eggs in moult- 

 ing time? 



EGGS FROM CHINA, ETC. 



Not only do the Chinese succeed in pro- 

 ducing eggs cheaper than we can here in 

 America, but I suppose we shall have to 

 admit that they succeed in getting them here 

 to the United States, especially on the Pa- 

 cific coast, in very fair order so as to com- 

 pete with home-gTown eggs. Good honest 

 authorities have declared the Chinese eggs 

 comi^are very favorably with the cold-stor- 

 age eggs of our large cities. Just now I 

 found the following in the Pacific Poultry- 

 man: 



LABEL THE CHINESE EGGS. 



A recent item in the daily press stated that a 

 customs inspector had held up a shipment of Japan- 

 ese toothpicks because they (each toothpick) was not 

 labeled " made in Japan." The importers protested 

 to Washington, and we are still awaiting the gov- 

 ernment's decision. If the customs inspector is up- 

 held, the rule should also apply to imported Chinese 

 eggs. 



The above is a pretty good joke in regard 

 to the toothpicks. No matter if the Chinese 

 eggs are just as good as those in cold 

 storage, the consumer has a perfect right to 

 know if the eggs he buys are brought from 

 China. Tlien he can decide whether or not 

 they are just as good as the home-grown 

 cold-storage eggs. Of course the Chinese 

 eggs should go at a lower price. There is 

 still another point to be considered : If these 

 imported eggs are equally wholesome, may 

 they not be a benefit to poor people? I 

 hope and pray that the present war will not 

 prevent China or any other nation from 

 being benefited by honest traffic across the 

 seas. 



