March 1897.] THE IMPORT TRADE IN EGGS. 



371 



the declared value per dozen of the imports since 1856 are shown 

 below, the amount of the duty having been deducted in the years 

 prior to 1861 — 



jl ear. 



trice. 



x esr. 



Fri 



x ear. 



• 



Irrice. 





a. 





i 



a.. 





d. 



1856 



6*8 



1870 



7*37 



1884 



8-44 



1857 



7*2 



1871 



9 '09 



1885 



8-42 



1858 



6 • 5 



! 1872 



9 • 55 



1886 



8*02 



1859 



6*5 



1873 



10*29 



1887 



8-15 



1860 



8*3 



1874 



10-30 



1888. 



7-88 



1861 



7-7 



1875 



9'95 



1889 



7-96 



1862 



7-3 



1876 



10-02 



1890 



8-00 



1863 



7-2 



1877 



9-48 



1391 



7-92 



1864 



7-15 



1878 



9-23 



1892 



8-18 



1865 



7-31 



1879 



8-62 



1893 



8-42 



1866 



7'27 



1880 



8-61 



1894 



7-65 



1867 



7-10 



1881 



8-84 



1895 



7*55 



1868 



7'5 



1 1882 



S-44 



1396 



7-58 ! 



1869 



7*34 



1883 



8-37 







These figures represent the average declared value of the im- 

 ports of each year, but it is well known that the price is much 

 higher in winter than in summer, the market quotations in the 

 former season being usually nearly double those prevailing in the 

 summer months. 



Owing to the difficulties to which reference has been made in 

 connexion with the question of the country of origin of the 

 imports, it is not possible to calculate accurately from the import 

 statistics the value per dozen of the different varieties of foreign 

 eggs which reach our markets. An examination of the declared 

 values for the past three years shows that the consignments 

 from Russia and Germany have been of a lower average value 

 than those from Belgium, France, and Denmark, and from a 

 closer analysis of the trade returns of the various countries con- 

 cerned it is evident that the Russian and Austro -Hungarian 

 eggs are, as a rule, cheaper than those from the other chief 

 exporting countries. French eggs are the dearest of the im- 

 ported kinds, and those from Italian and Danish poultry yards 

 apparently rank next in value. 



In Russia the production of eggs for export has developed to 

 a remarkable extent during the past 10 or 15 years. According 

 to the trade statistics of that country, it appears that in 1880 

 the total number of eggs exported was only 77 millions, in 

 1885 it had risen to 235 millions, five years later it was 755 

 millions, and in 1895 it was 1,411 millions. The largest con- 

 signments are sent to Austria-Hungary and Germany. 



The popular varieties of poultry in the Russian Empire 

 consist for the most part of local breeds, and hitherto little 

 attention has been given to the improvement of the native stock 

 by the introduction of fresh strains from abroad. In some dis- 

 tricts a good fowl is bred, known as the gollandsk, descended 

 from a cross between the native race with Cochin China hens 



O 9571 1. 



B 



