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Duck Eggs Are Gaining in Favor
(By L. A. Hart In Pacific Poultryman.)
MUCH has been said regarding
duck egga and their relative
value compared with hens
eSBs, so I trust what I have to say
will at least gain the attention ot
those engaged in raising ducks of any
Tarlety. I have never engaged In
raising ducks but have had the pleas
ure of placing the eggs on market for
several poultrymea around Portland.
There seems to have arisen the ques
tion whether thera really is a market
tor duck eggs at the eame price ot
hens' eggs.
The squab breeders of the North
west used to depend on newspaper
quotations as a basis for their selling
price consequently they seldom real
iied over 13 per dozen. Now it is dif
ferent, squabs bring as high as $S per
dozen, seldom less than f 4.5 0.
The Oregon Co-operative Squab Association-
is the result ot squab rais
ers, both in Oregon and Washing
ton. The duck raisers can accomplish
much In the Bame way. The main
point Is to get the disinterested pub
lic to try a pure white duck egg, then
the rest is easy.
The Beginning.
I am engaged in the butter and egg
business (retail), and have a steady
demand for fresh eggs. A year ago a
Mend of mine secured a pen of Pen
ciled Indian Runner ducks and by
September they began to lay In earn
est. He offered to furnish me with
duck eggs if I could sell them. He
was already supplying me with pure
white Leghorn eggs, so all that was
necessary to bogln was to get the duck
eggs and place them before my cus
tomers. On the wholesale market they were
cheaper by two cents per dozen, but I
agreed to pay the same as for other
eggs. I Insisted on giving one duck
egg with every eleven hen eggs. I
then put an advance of five cents
over other eggs and awaited, results.
Demand Increases.
To my surprise I found an increased
demand for eggs. Everybody's atten
tion was attracted by their clean
white appearuuee and uniform size. In
the rush Borne of them were sold aa
Just eggs. Then came repeated or
ders and more eggs had to be se
cured. I found other fanners who
kept ducks.
I engaged their duck eggs at two
cents above the market quotations.
More customers came, for one satis
fied customer would tell another.
Now I have a steady demand tor duck
eggs and never have enough. It all
came about for this reason. I am a
fancy poultry man and believe In
top prices for the farmer. So being
engaged in business does not prevent
me from co-operating with the pro
ducer, enabling him to seenre a prem
ium for his strictlr fresh eggs.
More Nourl.Hlilng.
A duck egg is not only larger than
ordinary hen eggs but contains more
nourishment For baking they have
no, equal I believe the best tried egg
I ever tasted was a duck egg. Need
less to say the common green egg
will not satisfy. A white egg will
attract attention every time. Indian
Runners are very desirable as a white
egg strain.
The egg farmer of today must be
awake to a few important facts: First,
he or she must gain the confidence ot
customers by demonstrating continu
ally that the buyer can depend on
what they say regarding their eggs
being fresh. Second, never take a
chance of mixing old eggs with new
laid ones. To be certain, never mar
ket an egg over five days' old. Don't
blame the customer for faults that
you can remedy. Because you can't
come to town over twice a month, or
.every time it rains hard, don't blame
the trade.
Vse Diplomacy.
To be successful in business of any
kind do not try to convince by argu
ment. Use diplomacy always. There
are times when a customer Is crooked,
or more often misinformed; in such
cases be sure yotl are right, then go
ahead. Try to reason rather than ie
arbitrary. Having been behind the
counter since twelve years ot age, and
having made many mistakes along the
lines just mentioned, I know that cus
tomers are not customers any longer
than they are treated squarely and
politely.
Third, If in doubt never take ad
vantage of the doubt. Better con
struct a candler from a cigar box by
cutting a hole large enough to see
through an egg, then place a tallow
candle Inside. Learn the difference
in eggs 24 hours old and three days
old. There la a difference and it
shows in candling although they look
the same when broken. Duck egga
are gaining favor every day. I can
use more myself. Will some reliable
duck raiser take notice?
and new. Some breeders prefer a
mixture of two-thirds corn and one
third oats, and occasionally give a
cornmeal mush feed.
It is said that turkeys will fatten
more readily on Northern white flint
corn, and the flesh will be of a finer
quality. While fattening turkeys
must not be cooped up. They must
have their -liberty, and if regularly
given two meals a day they will not
be inclined to roam. To pen them in
a building or other tnclosure will re
sult In loss ot appetite if not sickness.
Daring this confinement they soon
tire of the food given them, will start
to quarrel with other birds In the
pen, become restless, and at killing
time will not weigh as much as when
they were first penned np. The tur
key pines tor associates; with them
It is "liberty or death," New York
Sua.
Scratchings in the Poultry Yard
GREEN FEED.
IT has always been troublesome as
well as expensive to secure a suf
ficient quantity of green feed for
fowls. Green feed is necessary to pro
mote the health of the birds and keep
them in the best condition. To try
to get eggs during the Winter months
without some form of. green food or
vegetable would be like maintaining
your work horses without feeding
them hay.
Both would soon lose their vitality
through digestive disturbances and be
unable to do their work propertly,
which In a hen is to produce eggs.
To purchase cabbage or some other
vegetable and store it over Winter
requires space and also qnlte an out
lay. So the next best thing is to
sprout oats for the Winter layers,
and wheat or rye for the chicks in
Spring or Summer. The oats can
be sprouted in your cellar.
Coloring Plumage.
In the showroom the demand is
for pure white plumage, free from
brasslness or creaminess. This ex
plains why some fanciers are so par
ticular about protecting their birds
from sunburn and also why certain
of them are seemingly foolish In the
matter of the ration used.
A friend of the writer noted
throughout America for his ability
to produce winning White Rocks and
Wuite Wyandottes is most decided in
the belief that yellow corn Imparts
a creamy tint to the plumage, and
his flock receives only white corn.
New Tork Press.
Utility vs. Fancy.
The utility va. fancy bug seems to
be getting some of the Bo-called
utility advocates. Utility Is surely
the first thing to consider in any
fowl that a profit Is to be derived
from. But those claiming it Is Im
possible for a fowl to have fine shape
and plumage and at the same time
be a good utility fowl have no founda
tion in the face of the Missouri State
laying contest, and hundreds of trap
nest users who are high-grade breed
ers. New York Herald.
KEEPING UP VIGOR.
BREEDERS that have tie strongest
stock will never use for any
breeding a fowl that has at any time
been sick. It Is the one safe way to
keep the vigor of the flock up.
In the care of fowls during the Fall
nothing is more Important than this
question of placing the fowls in
healthy condition in Oie Winter quar
ters, that are properly ventilated and
kept clean, and the proper floor space
given to each flock.
In the majority of cases too many
fowls are housed together. From
three to three and a half square feet
floor space is not too much for the
lighter- breeds, while the heavier
breeds should have from four to five.
Many poultry-keepers have good re
sults with-less floor space to each
fowl, but to the beginner plenty of
room will be safest.
Feeding Methods.
Simple feeding methodB pay best,
and simple feed rations fit best Into
work of the farm. None of us would
care to go back to the wet, mashes of
some yeacs ago, which involve the
labor of daily mixing and feeding,
I depend on the hopper plan of
feeding, supplying all the ground
grains and part of the scratch feed In
this way. On the farm, with its
many cares and duties, to adopt hop
per feeding is to bring the labor cost
down to the lowest limit of safety.
One of the simplest and best dry
mash hoppers which I have ever used
is made of an ordinary box, say 16
Inches square and five inches deep.
A lath frame, covered with two-inch
mesh wire netting, fits loosely in
this, resting directly on the mash. As
the feed is eaten this frame drops
down, permitting the birds to help
themselves, but preventing them from
wasting the material by scratching It
out Baltimore American.
Winter Precautions.
Before placing the fowls in the
"Winter quarters the poultry building
should be thoroughly cleaned and
well dried, for at this time of year,
with the many sudden weather
changes, a dry house is essential. Fall
colds, ehickenpox, etc., are checks to
egg broduction, and the effect is" more
lasting than most poultry-keepers
credit. Colds can be avoided by well
ventilated poultry quarters and plenty
of houseroom.
Overcrowded quarters, especially
In the Fall and early Winter, are the
cause of many colds, often leading
into roup, if not promptly checked.
Chickenpox or sorehead, if appearing
in the flock, should be promptly
stamped out. It can only be success
fully coped with by removing at once
all fowls that show symptoms of the
pox and treating separately.
To try to effect a cure by placing
medicine in the drinking water, al
lowing the sick fowls to mingle with
those that are well, la folly. Every
sick fowl should be removed from the
rest of the flock at once. It is sel
dom that any illness will attack a
flock well raised and managed, and
It is wise to keep any fowls that have
been ill in a house by themselves un
til disposed of. Philadelphia Record.
Fattening Turkeys.
Different methods are used in
fattening turkeys, but the ma
jority of grewers prefer 2-yrar-old
corn. Where there is not a very
large supply of old corn it is safe to
make an equal mixture of both old
CD C IT" TO ISTHODrCR
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COFFEES
we will give you
your choice of a
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necessity that ought
to be in every kitch
en, or a pair of
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pepper shakers In a
holly box, or one
Wm. Rogers ft Son
silver- plated tea
spoon, FREE, with
Five Pound Arcadia
35c Coffee, tlAi,
Ot
FfTe Ponntla PitHflco
33e Coffee, S1.34,
Parcel Post Charges
Prepaid.
ffattafnetfon Guaran
teed or Year Money
BefBDded.
PacificCoast
Coffee Co.
A. P. Farinl, Mar.
S3 Fifth Street,
Portland, Or.
Blooded Poultry Stock
Distributed to Farmers
THE experiment station of West
Virginia announces for. the sec
ond time the distribution of White
Leghorn cockerels from experiment
station farm flocks. These birds are
selected from heavy laying strains
and are worth several times the pur
chase price, yet they may be had for
virtually the cost of crating and ship
ping. The applicants for birds must be
farmers living on farms In the state.
AH those who secure these cockerels
must agree to keep no other male
birds with their heps for two yearF
unless the hens are penned separatel'
during the breeding season. Fifty
cent is the price asked for these
cockerels and it must accompany the
order. This just covers the cost of
crating and delivering to the express
agent The express on the birds must
be paid by the farmers to whom they
8re sent Not more than three cock
erels will be given to any one farmer
and the purchasers of cockerels from
the experiment station last year are
not eligible to receive them this year.
These few suggestions and regula
tions with regard to the distribution
of blooded cockerels are worthy of
comment, because it shows that the
people of West Virginia are alive to
the possibilities of improving the
flocks that are now on the farms of
the state.
It is doubtful if one-tenth of the
farmers of this country, and this is
true of the Southern states as well as
any others, realize the possibilities of
their poultry. It is doubtful If these
people manage their flocks in a way
that would make It possible for them
to realize anything like the degree of
profit which should naturally be
theirs. This does not mean that they
should have more expensive or better
equipment or more fancy houses, but
it does mean they must give the poul
try tetter and more common sense
care.
The dairy cow and the hen go
splendidly togeOier. The former is a
constant source of income, while the
latter uses the by-product for the
greatest profit If handled with fair
Intelligence and given half a show,
the hen will make a splendid little
side line week in and week out
throughout the entire year.
Fruit growers of Keesllng, Wash
ington, in thoir local association,
have declared themselves in favor of
pooling the entire fruit crop of the
Spokane district as a marketing
measure that will lead to greater uni
formity in price aud Insure agaiusl
loss to individuals.
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ontaJning 108 rn o d e r-itely-priced
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Our Baby Chick
Hatchery
will start January 1. Place yoor order
now for chicks from high-bred WHIT 12
LEGHORN egg-producer. Some of
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Catalogue and prices on application.
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Short's Peerless Anconas
Season We breed for Winter
SKBi nnd prize-winners. Order hatch
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them when wanted. 100 Breeding
Cockerels, $S to 19. Write for de
scriptive catalogue. It's l-'ltHK.
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