12 
BULLETIN 391. U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
deteriorated yolks harmonize with those obtained in previous in- 
vestigations. 1 
These findings also show that a very large percentage of '"'soft 
eggs" consisted of sterile eggs. Consequently, the first stages of 
deterioration in the yolks of such eggs in most instances can not 
be ascribed to bacteria. 
Deterioration in eggs that is not due to the presence of bacteria 
may be the result either of the action of native enzyms 2 or of 
osmosis 3 of water from the white to the yolk, thereby causing the 
vitelline membrane to stretch and become weakened. It was the 
aim of the candlers at the commission houses to exclude eggs with 
adherent yolks or addled contents, but through error in candling a 
few of such eggs were present in the samples. 
Part III of Table A' shows that a larger proportion of the eggs 
with broken yolks contained bacteria than did those with whole 
yolks. 
Table V. — Relation of bacteria in eggs to condition of yoR. 
I. EGGS CONTAINING BACTERIA. 
Description of yolk. 
Number 
examined. 
Number 
positive. 
Per cent 
positive. 
Whole 
1.5SS 
441 
23 
168 
100 
10 
10.6 
22.7 
Adherent or addled 
43.5 
Total 
2,052 
27S 
13.5 
II. VARIATION LN BACTERIAL CONTENT OE EGGS CONTAINING BACTERIA. 
Number of bacteria per cc. 
Description of yolk. 
101 to 
1,000. 
1,001 to 
10,000. 
10.001 to 
50,000. 
50.001 to 
100,000. 
100.001 to 
500,000. 
Over 
500,000. 
Total 
num- 
ber of 
Num- 
ber of 
eggs. 
Per 
cent. 
Num- 
ber of 
eggs. 
Per 
cent. 
Num- 
ber of 
eggs. 
Per 
cent. 
Num- ! p 
berof cent. 
eggs. 
Num- 
ber of 
eggs. 
Per 
cent. 
Num- 
ber o'. 
eggs. 
Per 
cent. 
eggs. 
Whole 
54 
21 
1 
32.1 
21.0 
10.0 
28 
15 
2 
16.7 
15.0 
20.0 
20 
16 
11.9 
16.0 
11 I 6.5 
8 8.0 
1 | 10.0 
19 
12 
1 
11.3 
12.0 
10.0 
36 
2S 
5 
21.4 
2S.0 
50.0 
16S 
100 
10 
Total 
76 
45 
36 
32 
69 
27S 
III. EGGS CONTAINING ORGANISMS FERMENTING LACTOSE BILE. 
Description of yolk. 
Number 
examined. 
Number Per cent 
positive. positive. 
Whole 
1.527 
431 
22 
30 
21 
5 
2.0 
Broken 
4.9 
Adherent or addled 
22. S 
Total. 
1,980 
> I". S. Dept. AgT. Bui. 51. pp. 29. 30. 53. 54. 
i C. S. Dept. Agr., Bureau of Chemistry Cir.. 104. pp. 4. 5. 
5. Dept. Agr., Bureau of Chemistry Cir., S3, p. 3. 
