Russian Poultry Industry. 



31 



fowls are large ; a full-grown cock will generally weigh 

 about 9 lbs., and the hen a couple of pounds or so 

 less. In external appearance they somewhat resemble 

 Malay fowls, but anatomically they are very different. 

 The chief point in which they differ from all other 

 kinds is the conformation of the head, which in the 

 Orlow is large and round, while the beak is curved. Crested 

 and bearded fowls known as Pavlovsk also form another 

 distinctive Russian breed ; in shape they resemble the Polish 

 crested hens and " Padua" hens, but they are smaller. 



There are also in Russia native breeds of geese which 

 have retained their typical character from very ancient times. 

 These geese owe their existence to sport, and are bred, not 

 with a commercial object, but as game birds for fighting; hence 

 they are not remarkable for productivity, thirteen eggs in a 

 season being a common average, These " fighting geese " 

 are very hardy and demand no special feeding or attention, 

 while their meat is of very good quality. The "Tula fighting 

 goose " is the most widely distributed in the central region. 

 The most striking characteristic of this bird is the pretty 

 round head. There are several varieties, varying more 

 particularly in colour and conformation of the beak. 



Co-operation appears to be unknown in connection with 

 poultry in Russia, and the industry is described as being 

 everywhere in a more or less backward condition, the country 

 people only raising as much poultry as they are able to 

 maintain without any particular outlay or supervision. The 

 following account of the poultry and egg industry is 

 summarised from a report by the German agricultural 

 expert at St. Petersburg, and published by the German 

 Agricultural Society.* According to this authority 

 progress in the breeding of poultry has not kept pace with 

 the expansion of the export trade. The natural conditions to 

 which the poultry are subjected in different parts of the 

 country have gradually imparted distinctive peculiarities to 

 the breeds. In the northern governments, where little corn is 

 grown, the geese, fowls and ducks, and consequently their eggs, 



*Mittheilungen der Deutschen Landwirtschafts Gesellschaft, No. 1, 189S. 



