298 POULTRY PRODUCTS 



more uniform, and secure recognition from the purchaser. 

 A very good way to dispose of eggs is to ship them to retail 

 stores, which pay a good price for them; this method elimi- 

 nates one or two handlings. The appointment of special 

 agents to distribute eggs or to act as selling agent is possible 

 if several who produce a moderate amount of poultry can 

 co-operate. These agents may sometimes be friends or rela- 

 tives. One or more cases of eggs, shipped each week to an 

 agent of this Idnd in the city, can usually be disposed of with- 

 out any trouble, at a good figure (Fig. 166). In an effort to 

 market eggs more systematically, egg circles have been 

 established in Canada and in the central part of the United 

 States. The method of operating these egg circles is simple. 

 Fifteen to twenty farmers band together, and elect one of 

 their members collector. He collects the eggs from each mem- 

 ber, grades, packs, and ships them. For this work he receives 

 a compensation, based on the number of dozen he handles. 

 More recently, attempts to improve market conditions have 

 resulted in the establishment of co-operative market asso- 

 ciations. These are rather large undertakings, and to be suc- 

 cessful, require the co-operation of many big poultry farms. 

 The only way in which the small poultryman can benefit 

 from them is for him to join one after it is well established. 

 Shipping Methods. — Poultry and eggs, being more or 

 less perishable, should he shipped with all dispatch, and, as 

 a rule, express is the most profitable mode of shipping. 

 AVhere products are shipped to great distances, and cold 

 storage methods must be depended upon, fast freight is the 

 best. Where eggs are to be shipped only a short distance, 

 and there is regular freight service, this is cheaper. The 

 trolley express, running as it does, through rural and semi- 

 rural communities, is often used by the poultryman for 

 short haul distriljution. The automobile also can be profit- 

 ably utilized to develop a retail trade, for the small auto 

 truck can cover a good many miles, and it brings the producer 



