24 California Poultry Practice 



Packing Eggs for Shipment. — When eggs are going some distance 

 they have to pass through a good many hands and some of these hands 

 are very careless. Others are just itching to play ball with every 

 package that comes their way and the only way to do is to pack 

 eggs so that these hands can all be accommodated and the eggs still 

 come through in good shape. 



For one, two or three settings, or even fifty eggs I have never 

 found anything as good as a good chip basket. The very small size 

 is not practicable, but the second size is large enough for one setting 

 of eggs. The next larger size will hold two settings. The cost of the 

 small one is ten cents, of the larger fifteen, and the one large enough 

 to hold fifty eggs will cost twenty cents. 



Line the basket with several thicknesses of paper or cardboard, 

 then lay excelsior along the bottom and sides. Wrap each egg in a 

 square piece of paper and in placing them in the basket put a little 

 pad of excelsior between each egg. Keep laying the eggs in this 

 manner until all are in, then tuck in well with more excelsior. The 

 aim must be to have the eggs so solid in the basket that no amount 

 of shaking will disturb them. If they can be shaken out of place they 

 will not carry safely to their destination and you may as well go over 

 the task again. There is just a knack in it and if you keep trying you 

 will catch on. After you succeed in getting the eggs to stay, proceed 

 to cover the package. I use clean burlap, but that is a matter of 

 choice. Burlap is strong and will stand a good thick string to sew it 

 on with. Use a packing needle, cut the cover a little larger than the 

 basket, tuck the raw edges inside and sew burlap and basket all 

 around right down to your excelsior filling. Paste a label with 

 address of person eggs are for and your own address as shipper, and 

 in e-xtra large type the words: "Eggs for hatching, handle with care." 

 Give correct value of eggs to express agent and advise your patron 

 to collect if eggs are damaged in transit. 



