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actly what I discovered. The sixty fowls which had made a high 

 record were the meanest, scrawniest-looking lot of hens that I have 

 ever seen; while the sixty poor producers were ia perfect health and 

 appeared very trim and neat. Stop just a moment and think what it 

 must mean for a four-pound hen to produce one hundred and sixty 

 eggs in one year. It means that she has given you five times her 

 weight in eggs. Is it any wonder that she is lacking in vitality and 

 energy? This explains why the heavy producers look emaciated and 

 the poor layers in the best of health. A great many people ask the 

 question, "Is it possible to increase egg production by breeding?" 



My views on this question are as follows : 

 First, do not try to produce or breed 

 from two hundred-egg hens. This pro- 

 duction is abnormal and the progeny of 

 such stock is very likely to be weak. 

 Second, if we can increase our egg pro- 

 duction by breeding (and to my mind it 

 is very doubtful if such increase can be 

 shown) we should select hens which lay 

 about one hundred and fifty eggs a year 

 and mate them to sons of hens which have 

 made a similar production. While mak- 

 ing such selections, one should exercise 

 care to see that the individuals are not 

 closely related. From such matings as I 

 have just described, you must not expect 

 f 11 f the progeny to be high producers, 

 but the percentage of good producers 

 will be greater than it would be if we were to breed indiscriminately. 

 To sum up the whole thing, breed from your good producers (not 

 necessarily two hundred-egg hens) and select only strong, healthy 

 distantly related individuals. 



The average weight of eggs produced on the farms will not ex- 

 ceed twenty-three ounces per dozen. What causes this small egg? I 

 think the cause of the small eggs in the country is the fact that there 

 has been a great deal of haphazard breeding, which has resulted in a 

 great mass of mongrel stock. It is my belief that if we can slowly 

 eliminate this mongrel stock and replace it with pure bred poultry 

 of the American breeds, we can increase the weight of the eggs to 

 twenty-four ounces or more. If every one of you will be loyal to the 

 cause and preach pure bred poultry to your friends and neighbors 

 you can accomplish a great deal. 



The question is often asked, "What breed do you consider best 

 for egg production?" Many of us believe that the length of body 

 has some correlation with egg production, but from my own observa- 

 tions I cannot say that it does. I think that a rectangular body with 

 a broad back and a broad spring of ribs will be the best layer. Many 

 people believe that the Leghorns are the best breed for egg produc- 

 tion, but the various tests show that no one breed can rightly be 

 called "the best egg producers." To give you a concrete example, 

 I will cite the egg-laying contests which have been conducted in 

 Australia for the past eight or ten years. These tests have been won 

 by Leghorns, Langshans, Silver Wyandottes and Minorcas, which 

 clearly indicates the inconsistency of the breeds in relation to egg 



