84 
THE RURAL, NEW-YORKER 
January 18, 
THOSE EGG-LAYING CONTESTS. 
The egg-laying 1 contests at the Experi¬ 
ment Stations in Connecticut and Missouri 
that closed at the end of October show that 
the average egg production was 154 in 
Connecticut and 134 in Missouri. Mr. 
Cosgrove, in The R. N.-Y. for December 
28, 1912, is inclined to attribute these 
differences to the comparative value of the 
formulas for feeding that were used at 
the two Stations. But there were other 
differences even more marked than the vari¬ 
ations in the constituents of the grain ra¬ 
tions and the dry mash. First, differences 
in climate. Second, differences in housing. 
Third, and most important of all, differ¬ 
ences in age. It may be found true that 
the ages of the competing birds had more 
to do with the inequalities in egg produc¬ 
tion than all other conditions put together. 
On this point Mr. Quisenberry, who has 
made a preliminary report on the Missouri 
contest, says “more than a dozen pens 
lacked two or three months of being ma¬ 
ture when the contest began, and more 
than half of the pens were made up of 
hens, and several of them contained liens 
three and four years old.” What were 
the conditions as to age at the Storrs 
Experiment Station? 
If we turn from general averages to spe¬ 
cial results we find very creditable condi¬ 
tions at the Missouri contest; 59 birds, 
representing 16 different breeds of poultry, 
each laid 200 eggs, or more, during the 
year. The proportion of contesting birds 
that qualified to enter the 200-egg class 
was practically the same at both experi¬ 
ment stations—about 10 per cent. Tak¬ 
ing the highest individual scores as a test, 
Missouri is the winner. The highest score 
at Storrs was made by a S. C. Rhode 
Island Red that laid 254 eggs. This was 
beaten at Missouri by two birds; a White 
Plymouth Rock laid 281 eggs and a R. C. 
Rhode Island Red laid 255 eggs. The win¬ 
ning pen at Missouri averaged 20S eggs for 
each bird. Such results seem to show 
that we must look beyond the feeding form¬ 
ulas for an explanation of the fact that 
the Connecticut birds, taken collectively, 
laid 20 eggs more than the Missouri birds. 
Pennsylvania. wm. r. fisher. 
DO NOVEMBER EGGS PAY? 
The following item appeared in The R. 
N.-1 T . of December 21 : “And now the 
statement is made that no one gets No¬ 
vember eggs at a profit! It is true that 
some flocks do lay fairly well during the 
month, but counting cost of the entire 
flock, do such eggs pay?” 
It seems to me that the question whether 
or not November eggs are a paying proposi¬ 
tion is a matter of no consequence. If 
the poultryman had to depend for his in¬ 
come upon eggs alone, it would have been 
necessary to increase the number of poor- 
houses, for the income derived during the 
year from the sale of eggs at the ordinary 
market price hardly pays for the feed. The 
poultryman’s main income comes from the 
sale of broilers, hens, etc. But is it true 
that no one gets November eggs at a 
profit? At Liberty, N. Y., we do not get 
fancy prices for eggs. The highest price 
I got for my eggs this Fall was 53 cents 
per dozen, and to-day (December 21) the 
price is only 40 cents per dozen, and yet 
I find that the eggs have yielded me some 
profit in November. As stated in a 
previous letter, my 300 chickens have laid 
in November 2,794 eggs. Of thp.se I sold 
221% dozen; the income was $116.34. De¬ 
ducting the sum spent on feed, which 
amounted to $63.60, I have a balance of 
$52.74. To be sure, this is not a fortune, 
but at any rate it proves that November 
eggs do pay. Later in the season I ex¬ 
pect to get more eggs, but my income will 
never be larger than -it was in November. 
On the contrary, it will be smaller, and in 
the Spring, when the price of eggs is only 
20 cents per dozen, and sometimes even 
lower, I shall be glad if the chickens pro¬ 
duce enough eggs to cover the cost of the 
feed. C. P. b. 
Sullivan Co., N. Y. 
Leaky Henhouse Roof. 
On page 1060 there is a question and 
answer about a leaky shingle roof. Most 
henhouses have a roof with very little 
pitch. In a case of leaks it is well to 
call in a first-class carpenter and get his 
advice. R. P. C. advises taking the shingles 
off and putting on a layer of tar paper, 
then putting the shingles back. If this 
were done it would cause any water that 
went through the shingles to run down 
underneath them and cause them to rot in 
a short time. It would be a much better 
plan to leave the shingles off and put on 
a composition paper roof, using the shingles 
for a roof with more pitch. There is no 
reason for a shingle roof, properly put on, 
leaking, unless the roof has very little 
pitch and the wrong kind of shingles are 
used. It is almost impossible to lay 6 x 24 
cypress shingles on a flat roof so it will 
not leak. For a roof with little pitch 
always use cedar or White pine, prefer¬ 
ably four-inch cedar. They lie closer. 
L. p. c. 
Guinea Pigs. 
Can you tell me something about guinea 
pigs? Are they easy to raise? Is there 
ready market for them ? Do they require 
much care, and do they mature quickly? 
Schenectady, N. Y. n. e. d. 
Guinea pigs are comparatively easy to 
raise. Cleanliness and variety of suitable 
food and plent 3 r of it are necessary. Clover, 
cabbage, beets, carrots or grass with oc¬ 
casionally hay or oats arc all excellent. 
Coarse sawdust makes the best litter, and 
the floor of the cage should be frequently 
covered with a new supply. The period of 
gestation is eight weeks. The young are 
weaned when three weeks old. The mother 
should be given one week’s rest before being 
placed with the male again. From two to 
four young are usually born in a litter. 
They are ready to breed at six months of 
age, and remain good breeders for three or 
four years. An average of from to six to 
nine young ones should be expected from 
each female. There seems to be quite a 
demand for guinea pigs, as I am told by 
Mr. Rocder, farm superintendent at the 
Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research, 
that eight-ounce young pigs are worth 75 
cents to a dollar each, and full-grown ones 
weighing one and a half pounds apiece are 
worth $2.50 or more. a. l. c. 
Cross Breeding and Egg Production. 
In reply to an inquirer who recently 
asked about the feasibility of increasing 
the size of the Leghorns without impairing 
their productivity by crossing them upon 
some larger breed, as the Plymouth Rocks, 
the writer gave it as his opinion that, 
while this cross would be objectionable 
from some standpoints, it would not 
necessarily decrease egg production. That 
this is not the opinion of all, however, 
and is not sustained by the result of an 
experiment conducted for the purpose of 
determining that point, may be seen from 
the following note received from Mr. W. 
G. Krum, Assistant in Poultry Husbandry 
at Cornell University. 
“In reference to the enclosed statement 
regarding the cross breeding of fowls, this 
does not agree with our experience here 
at the college. We used a pen of thorough¬ 
bred White Leghorns, and one of Barred 
Rocks, breeding them straight, and also 
crossing a pen of each both ways. The 
result was that the Leghorns laid an aver¬ 
age of 182 each, and the Plymouth Rocks 
124, while the crosses each way laid 151 
and 153 respectively. This leads' us to con¬ 
clude that the crosses usually average to 
lay about half way between the heavier 
and lighter layers; in addition to this the 
eggs were of all colors and sizes, as were, 
also, the birds, and we conclude, there¬ 
fore, that cross breeding is not profitable.” 
It seems to be the popular opinion that 
cross breeding two varieties rather in¬ 
creases vigor and productivity than other¬ 
wise, however, popular opinion is not a 
safe guide, and while one experiment of 
the kind reported is not sufficient to 
establish a law, it is of value as Tar as It 
goes, and if confirmed by others, should 
be accepted as determining the facts. 
M. B. D. 
Barred Plymouth Rocks for Utility. 
After reading Mr. Cosgrove’s article on 
page 1257, one is inclined to exclaim: 
“Verily, the way of the hen is incompre¬ 
hensible !” Why is it that up to Novem¬ 
ber 23 only one of Mr. Cosgrove’s pullets 
was laying? It cannot be attributed to in¬ 
experience, for Mr. Cosgrove is a man of 
40 years' experience in poultry keeping 
and. as his article in The It. N.-Y indi¬ 
cates, is an expert in this line. It cannot 
be due to poor care, for Mr. Cosgrove 
states explicitly that his fowls had “extra” 
good care. What then is the cause? It 
seems that nobody is to blame unless it be 
the total depravity of her nature. 
In contrast with Mr. Cosgrove’s failure 
to get eggs this Fall, I wish to put on 
record the fact that my pullets have laid 
in November remarkably well—better than 
any previous November. I have about 240 
Barred Plymouth Rock pullets and about 
60 hens. The pullets began to lay on 
August 12, when they were 4% months 
old, and have laid very liberally ever since, 
the number of eggs for November being 
2.794, or 93 2-15 per day. Of these at 
least 80 per cent, were laid by the pullets. 
My original stock came from this neigh¬ 
borhood. and my roosters came mostly from 
the Maine Experiment Station. My chickens 
have a good house and are well fed, 
but I cannot say that I give them 
“extra” good care. I have kept Barred 
Plymouth Rocks for the last five years 
and I have always found them to be good 
layers. While so many writers are sound¬ 
ing the praise of the White Leghorns or 
of the White Wyandottes, I think it is only 
just that some one should say a good 
word in behalf of the humble Barred 
Plymouth Rocks, and in view of what they 
are doing on my place, no apology is neces¬ 
sary for presenting these facts. 
CLEMENS P. BERYLSON. 
Sullivan Co., N. Y. 
Butter, 26: eggs, 24; cattle, $5 to $6 
per 100; chickens, 10; hogs, seven cents, 
live; wheat, $1.05; potatoes, 50; apples, 25 
to 50; hay, $10 to $12 per ton; straw, $6 
to $8. w. M. G. 
Butler, O. 
Evaporated raspberries are bringing the 
growers 13 cents this week, and very few 
buyers at that. Pork, dressed, 10 ; eggs, 
30 ; butter, 32 ; potatoes, 60 ; chickens, live, 
10. T. i. M. 
Dundee, N. Y, 
Open Winter so far, no skating yet, only 
two days of sleighing. Christmas white 
but New Year’s green. Milk keeps up and 
is sold at the railroad for four cents a 
quart. Ilay $15 a ton; cornmeal $30; 
eggs, 36 cents ; butter. 40 ; hogs, $10 per 100 
pounds, live weight. Times are dull here 
<>ti account of the marble quarries, which 
is our main business, being shut down for 
the Winter. The city resorts are building 
up largely, getting ready for next Summer's 
trade. This is quite a Summer resort sec¬ 
tion, being in southwestern corner of Ver¬ 
mont, Bennington county being the corner 
county. a. L. B. 
So. Dorset, Vt. 
Butter, 35 to 40; eggs, 30; cheese, 20 ; 
live chickens, 14; fowls, 14; ducks, 16; 
geese, 17; turkeys, 20; guinea hens, 10; 
apples 75; potatoes, 60 to 65; onions, 50; 
cabbages, $10 a ton; carrots, 50; beets, 
50 ; parsnips, 65 ; celery, 30 cents a dozen ; 
Hubbard squash, $25 a ton; wheat, $1.02; 
oats, 40; hay, Timothy, baled, $16; bulk, 
$18 to $20: wheat and oat straw, baled, 
$9 and $10 a ton; clover seed, $10.25; 
Timothy seed. $1.60; live hogs, $7.50 per 
100: dressed pork, 10; cattle, choice steers, 
eight cents; choice heifers, $6.50 per 100; 
cows, $4.50 to $5 per 100. All stock look¬ 
ing well, not many cattle being fattened. 
Potatoes about all sold; some apples in 
storage yet. Corn mostly husked, mice do¬ 
ing much damage to corn in shock. Wheat 
looking well, large acreage sown. Very 
mild Winter and very good roads as yet. 
Brunswick, O. j. m. r. 
Cattle are selling for 8% to 10 cents 
per 100; hogs, seven to 7% ; sheep, five to 
5%; lambs, 6% to 7 1 ,4; horses, $150 to 
$225 per head : good cows, $40 to $60 
Wheat, per bushel, $1 ; oats, 30 cents; 
corn, 40; rye, 65; apples, $1 to $1.15; 
potatoes, 75 to 90; butter, per pound, 28 
to 30; eggs, 24 cents per dozen ; creamery 
butter, 30; celery, three cents per bunch ; 
cabbage, 3% cents per pound; onions, 40 
to 50 cents per bushel; flour, $3 per 100 
pounds; chickens, 10 cents per pound; 
ducks, eight; geese, 10; turkeys, 17. 
Dressed pork, 11 cents per pound ; beef, 
10 to 12; walnuts, $1 per bushel, hickory- 
nuts, $1.25. ., j. mc. A. 
Belle Center, O. 
.MAKE HENS LAY! 
more eggs: larger, more vigorous chicks; 
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thoroughly mixes the feed 
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WILSON BROS. 
Easton, Penna. 
125 Egg Incubator $1A 
and Brooder To™ ""111 
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freight paid east of 
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Box 145 Racine, Wla 
CORNELL 
GASOLINE 
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Equal to five Kerosene Heaters' 
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No lamps to trim. 
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* 10.92 
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DEPT. 201 
ITHACA. N. Y. 
Manufacturers of Poultry Hons# 
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Big Money thisYear 
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