POULTRY NOTES.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXV, Issue 10713, 24 June 1913, Page 3

POULTRY NOTES.

(By Utilitarian.) Three more new members have quito recently enrolled themselves into tho ranks of the Utility Egg Circle. Two more are expected to join soon. Tho official report of tho egg-laying competition 1912-13 in South Australia is to hand, and a wonderful fund of inter sting matter is to be found therein ; wo strongly recommend any enthusiasts to send for a copy, enclosing for courtesy's sake, stamp for postage,. It is to Ik l noted in th? report that tho av.-rage profit per hen over cost of feeding ii; the highest on record for the South Australian competitions. The.t ko.n poultry man, Mr I.au:i.», G.m'Wim.nt expert over there, looks forward to the time when. l)-e.dris; iL be induced to enter into corup •! i i',r with uo to 100 pullets. He a!s > refers to tho lack of <>r> ginal m itter amr :gst t!) 1 varotiM writer; for tho p-niltry press. Th" trouble appear ! io be as a New 7-ea-lanckr expressed it, "Poiiltrynven are not writers an ! writ'is nro rot poultryrneu." Make it worth th ir while and doubtless the:» u il! f>~ found commercial. ~ pouli'rynitm who would devote some"of their tif'e to weilding tin nibs for tho of beginners. Both birds and owner:-, would 'then do more scratching for a living. We occasionally come acrossVcftSters in Masterton of broody liens and Mr. Laurie attributes this to reversion. It is astonishing liow long time. it takes to breed undesirable characteristics out of birds, or even for the matter of that out of any living forms.

'Mr Laurie, gives the following as reasons for .deterioration in size of eggs:/'"Breeding from .immature stock; precocity leading to laving at too earlv a period and thus leading to stunting, and retarding not only of bodily growth but also tTie organs of reproduction; faulty method;' :n breeding and rearing; faulty methods in mating." It has now been decided to centralise th) work of the three Government poultry stations by having one onlv, situakd at Parafield, some ten mile-: north 6f Adelaide, and the buildings, -are to be very extensive nnd commodious. Experiments on a [ibornl scale will bo entered into. , What is the reason for the abnormally high price for eggs which June has witnessed this year? It is difficult to state definitely, but we consider tho following, or some of them, may answer the question: (1) Dear food has caused .several to discard keeping poultry; (2) increasing number of Leghorns kept in place of setting bee-eds, makmg it more and more difficult to obtain; broody hens to hatch out winter laying pullets ; (3> the increasing trade being effected in the day-old chick businoa* is cli eking that proportionate number of eggs from going '011 to the market for consumption, for it must be remembered that several breeders commence selling- dav-okl chicks as early as May and June; and (4) tho demand, owing to a higher standard of living, now existing, is greater than in former ye-ars. If number four is the case this is the best economic sign of all for poultry producers.