398 COMMERCIAL POULTRY RAISING 



brane, which is easily ruptured, causing the vitellus to escape 

 and mix with the albumen. Naturally, this condition gives the 

 egg an addled, unsavory appearance, undesirable as food, even 

 though it may be strictly fresh. Nine times out of ten the house- 

 wife condemns it as a bad egg. 



(Courtesy U. S. Dep'l Agriculture) 

 Fig. 260. — White yolk of fresh egg. Magnified 250 times. 



Keeping eggs for any length of time weakens the vitelline 

 membrane, also, consequently eggs intended for hatching pur- 

 poses should be set as fresh as possible. An example of this de- 

 terioration is found in storage eggs, which, if kept for many months, 

 frequently result in ruptured yolks as soon as they are opened. 

 Moreover, in a stale egg the albumen loses its firm consistency 



