MARKETING EGGS FOR HUMAN FOOD 433 
committee of the Mercantile Exchange, which committee is 
appointed by the president. The sliding scale was devised in order 
to meet the variations in the price of eggs during different sea- 
sons, and to permit the practical adjustment of these fluctuations. 
This classification is, of course, not ideal, but it is a practical 
one, designed to meet the conditions in a market, not as they 
ought to be, or as they would be under ideal conditions, but 
as they actually are. In speaking of a best egg we cannot have in 
mind the best egg for the whole year, but the best one possible at 
the particular time in question. This sliding scale becomes espe- 
cially valuable in those seasons when an absolutely good, fresh, 
clean egg is not obtainable. At such times, with a system as out- 
lined above, the whole classification slides to a lower scale, as 
shown by the A, B, C of the classification. With a reliable com- 
mittee, this shifting of the scale will be slight and beneficial. 
1. ‘Eggs shall be classified as ‘fresh-gathered,’ ‘held,’ ‘refrigerator,’ and ‘limed.’ 
2. ‘There shall be grades of ‘extras,’ ‘extra firsts,’ ‘firsts,’ ‘seconds,’ ‘thirds,’ 
‘Nos. 1 and 2 dirties,’ and ‘checks.’ 
3. “Fresh-gathered extras shall be free from dirt, of good uniform size, reason- 
ably fresh, sweet eggs, with full, strong bodies, at the discretion of the 
egg committee, as follows: A, 90 per cent; B, 80 per cent; C, 65 per cent. 
4. “Fresh-gathered firsts (or extra firsts) shall be reasonably clean and of 
good average size, and shall be reasonably fresh and full, strong-bodied, 
sweet eggs, at the discretion of the egg committee, as follows: A, 75 
per cent; B, 65 per cent; C, 50 per cent; D, 40 per cent. 
5. ‘‘Fresh-gathered seconds shall be reasonably clean, of fair average size, 
and shall be reasonably fresh and full eggs, at the discretion of the egg 
committee, as follows: A, 65 per cent; C, 40 per cent; D, 30 per cent.” 
The following classification* of fresh eggs shows the compara- 
tive prices paid for different grades of eggs in the New York 
market, according to size and color (Fig. 196): 
Whites: Large, 27 ounces and above................... 40 cents 
Medium, 21 to 27 ounces.................-04- 38 cents 
Small, 18 to 27 ounces...............--..-00055 30 cents 
Culls, under 18 ounces................-..0.004. 20 cents 
Browns: Large, 27 ounces and above................... 32 cents 
Medium, 21 to 27 ounces..................05. 30 cents 
Small, 18 to 21 ounces...................0005. 25 cents 
Culls, under 18 ounces...............0.000000- 20 cents 
Mixed: Large, 27 ounces and above.....:............. 31 cents 
Medium, 21 to 27 ounces..........----.0-005- 28 cents 
Small, 18 to 21 ounces.......... 0.0.00 eee eee 24 cents 
Culls, under 18 ounces.......... ese eee eee evens 20 cents 
* This classification originally worked out by the Poultry Department of 
Cornell University. 
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