INTRODUCTORY. 
therefore more wholesome desserts. But usu¬ 
ally the housekeeper economizes by the more 
obvious method of omitting to serve them as a 
meat substitute. 
“ The statement so frequently made by house¬ 
keepers that eggs at 25 cents a dozen are cheaper 
than meat is true in one sense. Not of course, 
with reference to the total amount of nutrients 
obtained for the mon£v expended, but because 
a smaller amount of money is needed to furnish 
the meal. That is to say, whereas at least Im¬ 
pounds of beefsteak, costing 25 cents, at 20 
cents per pound, would be necessary to serve 
five adults; in many families five eggs, costing 
10 cents, at 25 cents per dozen, would serve the 
same number and probably satisfy them 
equally well. If the appetites of the family 
are such as to demand two eggs per person, 
doubling the cost, it is still 20 per cent, less than 
the steak. Many persons eat more than two 
eggs at a meal, but the average number per 
person it is believed does not generally exceed 
two in most families. A hotel chef is authority 
for the statement that at least oneMialf the 
orders he receives are for one egg. Frequently 
when omelets, souffles, creamed eggs, and other 
similar dishes, are served in place of fried, 
poached, or boiled eggs or meat, less than one 
egg per person is used. 
“These statements must not be understood 
as advocating a free use of eggs at any price, but 
merely as pointing out that even at the higher 
prices the occasional use of eggs in place of 
meat need not be regarded as a luxury.” 
Description and Composition of Eggs. 
“Size. The eggs of different kinds of domes¬ 
tic poultry vary in size as well as appearance, 
and there is also a considerable range in the 
size of eggs of different breeds; thus, hens’ eggs 
range from the small ones laid by bantams to 
the large ones laid by such breeds as Light 
Brahmas. On an average, a hen’s egg is 2.27 
inches in length and 1.72 inches in diameter or 
width at the broadest point, and weighs about 
2 ounces, or 8 eggs to the pound (1£ pounds per 
dozen). Generally speaking, the eggs of pullets 
are smaller than those of old hens, those of 
ducks somewhat larger than hens’ eggs, while 
those of turkeys and geese are considerably 
larger. Guinea eggs, on an average, measure 
1 ^ by H inches, are rather pointed at one end, 
and weigh about 1.4 ounces each, or 17 ounces 
to the dozen. Goose eggs weigh about 5.5 to 
6.7 ounces each, or about 5 pounds to the dozen 
—that is, more than three times as much as 
hens’ eggs. The eggs of wild birds are said to 
be smaller than those of the same species when 
domesticated. Wild ducks’ eggs are said to be 
on an average, 1.97 to 2.17 inches in diameter, 
domestic ducks’ eggs 2.36 to 2.56 inches. 
“ Composition .—The shells of hens’ eggs 
constitute about 11 per cent., the yolk 32 per 
cent, and the white 57 per cent., of the total 
weight of the egg. According to tests made at 
the New York Experiment Station, white- 
shelled eggs have a somewhat heavier shell than 
brown-shelled eggs.” 
Increase of Eggs. 
The last U. S. Census Report says: 
The increase in total egg production is a fair 
index to the growth of the poultry and egg in¬ 
dustry in the several states during the past 
decade. In the North Atlantic division the 
increase in eggs was 37.5 per cent., Rhode Island 
leading with a gain of 59.2 per cent. In the 
South Atlantic division the increase was 59.1 
per cent., West Virginia showing a gain of 73.8 
per cent. The production of eggs in the North 
Central division exceeded the product returned 
in 1890 by 54.5 per cent. Minnesota with a 
gain of 112.3 per cent., and North Dakota with 
109.4 per cent., showing the greatest progress. 
The South Central division gained 80.8 per 
cent. Oklahoma returned but 989,625 dozens 
in 1890, when the territory was just opened to 
settlement, and the figures for the present 
census, 13,724,900 dozens, showed a gain of 
1,286.9 per cent. Tennessee and Kentucky 
both showed decreases in number of fowls, but 
increases of 37.3 per cent, and 43.1 per cent, 
respectively in egg production, proving con¬ 
clusively that the industry prospered there, as 
already explained. 
The Western division, with its almost unpar¬ 
alleled advance in all lines of agricultural in¬ 
dustry, gained 112.3 per cent, in egg production. 
Idaho and Montana made the greatest progress, 
the gain for the former being 290.3 per cent, 
and for the latter, 260.0 per cent. 
The total value of poultry raised on farms 
and ranges in the United States in 1899 was 
Sl36.891.877; the average value per farm of 
poultry raised was $26.86. ■ 
The five states of the highest rank in the 
value of poultry products in 1899 were Illinois, 
Si 1,307,599; Missouri $9,525,252; Iowa, 
7 
