1921.] 



Egg-Laying Trials. 



797 



Replacement of Dead Birds. — A way has been suggested by 

 which controllers of laying tests may exercise a salutary influence 

 on the maintenance of stamina and constitutional fitness. That 

 is, by refusing to countenance any rule that permits breeders to 

 replace any fowl that dies during a testing period. To permit 

 any such replacement is held to encourage the taking of risks 

 relative to the maintenance of vigour and vitality, and it may 

 quite possibly benefit the breeder concerned in a way that is 

 undesirable — in view of the object of egg tests. Any rule with 

 such possibilities would appear to be quite wrong in principle. 



An alternative method, for application in order to avoid 

 penalising a breeder in the event of the death of a bird during 

 a test, was put forward by a speaker at the recent World's 

 Poultry Congress. The method advocated involves the adoption 

 of a different system of calculation, but however satisfactory 

 this might be to the individuals concerned it would seem to evade 

 the main point, which is the importance of imposing checks to 

 degeneracy. 



Quality and Size of Eggs. — As regards the prevailing 

 tendency to loss of size in the eggs there is more to be said. 

 There is a very general opinion that it is time to formulate rules 

 and devise means to secure and maintain the desired standard 

 of weight and size in eggs, together with texture of shell and 

 other qualities that, in combination with numbers, are most 

 required. It is equally important, however, to bear in mind that 

 none of these qualities can be maintained, even if they are 

 attained, without the necessary vigour and character in the 

 stock. 



As illustrating the wide difference that may exist in weight, 

 mention was made at a conference at the Harper Adams Agricul- 

 tural College last year of one pen of six birds laying 895 eggs, 

 of which only 14 were under 2 oz. in weight, w T hereas another 

 pen of six birds laid 939 eggs, of which 223 w r ere under 2 oz. 

 As the 2 oz. egg is the most popular for the breakfast table it 

 is evident (in view of foreign competition) that any method of 

 valuation in laying tests that encourages approximation to this 

 standard is preferable to a method of numerical scoring that 

 would tend to the encouragement of the small egg. 



There are those who contend that market value would be the 

 correct standard if pullets were the onlv egg producers : but as 

 hens in winter are not as a rule highly productive, and foreign 

 imports are greatly reduced, the eggs of pullets secure an 

 artificial value if judged by this standard. It is therefore argued 



