~~ 
1 Aprin, 1902.] QUEENSLAND AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL. 265 
Poultry. 
PRESERVING EGGS. 
The preserving of eggs by various means continues to receive great atten- 
tion in Europe, the United States, and Canada. We have also received many 
inquiries from various parts of Queensland as to the best preservative to use, 
and have always recommended lime-water as the best, having practically proved 
it by keeping eggs perfectly fresh for nine months in the solution. Several 
experiments have been made in Canada by Mr. F. T. Shutt, chemist to the 
Canadian Experimental Farm guane. the last three years. In the experiments 
of 1898-99 some of the eggs were placed in various solutions in the first week 
of October, and tested at the beginning of the following March, and others were 
retained under experiment until December, 1899, a period of fourteen months. 
The preservatives were of various kinds, and after careful examination of the 
eggs, including poaching, it was concluded that saturated lime-water gave by far 
the best results. 
The experiments were renewed during the past year on 5th June, and the 
eggs were examined on 10th December. Three eggs of each batch were 
poached. 
The Journal of the Board of Agriculture, writing on the subject, continues 
thus :— : 
Briefly stated, the results were as follows :— 
1. Eggs immersed continuously in saturated lime-water. Outward 
appearance, excellent ; yolks, non-adherent, of good colour and fairly globular ; 
Bipawien somewhat more limpid than in fresh eggs and slightly discoloured; a 
very slight “stale” odour; air space normal; poached eggs free from all 
objectionable taste and of good appearance. 
2. Eggs first smeared with vaseline and immersed continuously in lime- 
water. Externally somewhat darker than the foregoing, and rather greasy ; 
yolk globular and of good colour; albumen a very faint yellowish tint and 
somewhat limpid; a very slight ‘‘stale” odour; air space normal ; poached egg 
very similar to that in 1. 
3. Eggs continuously immersed in 2 per cent. silicate of soda. External 
appearance good, and very similar to that of eggs in lime-water ; yolk globular 
and of good colour; albumen but very slightly discoloured, almost normal ; 
marked odour of a “soapy” character, which is further developed in poaching; 
air space normal; poached egg of very good appearance, but with faint “ stale” 
flavour. 
4, Eggs continuously immersed in solution of 5 percent. gum arabic and 
1 per cent. formalin. Outward appearance inferior to those in foregoing tests ; 
yolks attached to shell; albumen decidedly discoloured ; odour not marked ; 
air space normal; appearance of broken egg much inferior to those in preceding 
test; developing marked flavour on poaching. 
5. Eggs continuously immersed in 5 per cent. gum arabic plus 5 per cent. 
salicylic acid. Preserving solution quite mouldy, and with a very bad smell. 
Egg-shells quite soft. The broken egg, though not unsightly, had a most 
nauseating odour, and was quite unfit for food. 
6. Eggs continuously immersed in 5 per cent. dextrim plus 5 per cent. 
salicylic acid. Preserving solution very mouldy, and smelling badly. Egg- 
shells soft, and contents unfit for food. 
7. Eggs dipped momentarily in dilute sulphuric acid, then washed and 
stored in a large bottle. All exceedingly bad; contents very offensive. 
