FLESH FOOD FURNISHED BY THE FEATHEEED TEIBES. 149 



disease and accidents a loss of 11,000,000; in all 

 22,000,000 chickens have to be deducted from the 

 101,000,000 produced ; there remains, therefore, 

 79,000,000, which sold at 1 fr. 75 c. each, yield a sum 

 of 138,250,000 fr. To these figures must be added about 

 7,000,000 fr. for superior fowls, capons, and fat hens. 

 The summary for these fowls is 179,405,268 fr. Further- 

 more, the 32,787,024 hens lay each year on an average 

 100 eggs each. From this we must deduct 100,000,000 

 eggs employed for hatching, which leaves 3,187,702,400 

 at '07 cents each, which gives a product of 223,139,168 fr. 

 It may therefore be aflBrmed that the 43,858,780 fowls 

 would yield on the one hand 179,405,268 ir. for poultry, 

 and also 223,132,168 fr. for eggs, in all 402,537,436 fr. 



Guinea-fowl are seldom met with on farms, and are 

 chiefly found in the poultry-yards of amateurs or large 

 proprietors ; we are therefore surprised at the figures 

 given by Mr. Masson, which can scarcely be correct. 

 He states that there are in France 2,588,700 Guinea- 

 fowls, worth 4 fr. each, equal to 10,354,800 fr. Of 

 these, 647,740 are annually sold ; at 4 fr. apiece, these 

 will yield 2,590,960 fr. There remain 1,940,960 hens, 

 producing annually 6,000,000 chickens. From these, 

 600,000 are chosen as reproducers, replacing those 

 killed, and about 600,000 are carried off yearly by sick- 

 ness and accidents. There remain, therefore, 4,800,000 

 young, which, sold at 2 fr. each, yield 9,600,000 fr. If 

 we add 500,000 fr. for fine and choice birds, we have 

 for those sold, 12,690,960 fr. Besides the eggs saved 

 for hatching, the 1,940,960 hens will lay on an average 

 200 eggs each yearly, or 388,192,000 at '05 cents, equal 

 to 19,409,600 fr., which, added to the value of the birds, 

 makes 32,100,560 fr. 



In Paris in 1883, 26,000 tons of poultry and game 

 were sold. The price of poultry has increased very 

 much during the last few years, and fowls, the wholesale 

 price of which was rather less than 3 fr. in 1879, were 

 last year over 5 fr. The wholesale price of ducks has 

 gone up during the past ten years from 2 fr. 72c. to 4 fr., 



