SF UC-NI /V8 GIFT OF For the Good of The Game Handling and Candling Eggs With Side Lights On Live Poultry By JOS. R. NUGENT PRICE TWENTY-FIVE CENTS Copyright 1917 by JOS. R. fiUGBNT PREFACE As the egg trade has about come to the conclusion that the average work on egg candling contains such a mass of scientific detail that, at times, the instructions contained therein for candling eggs were not as clear as they might have been if less detail and simpler language had been used, I have written this book with the object in view to avoid elaborate detail, and to explain the different stages of deteriorated eggs in as simple language as possible. In addition to the candling instructions, I have also endeavored to clearly explain to the producer what effect small-sized, sick or crippled poultry has on the dealer's profits. I hope the explanations given will result in a better understanding be- tween the producer and dealer, and result in a "Live and let live" policy on both sides. CONTENTS. Preface Introduction 3-4 No. 1 Storage Packed 5 Current Receipts 5 Storage Seconds 5 Dirties No. 1 5 Dirties No. 2 5 Blinds, Checks, Cracks, Washed, and Leakers 5 Prices Seconds . . 5 Small, Dirt, Shrunken 5 Held, Stale, Weak, Watery and Heated 5 Soft Yolk, or Badly Heated 6 Sunken Yolk, or Floaters 6 Musty or Odorous Eggs 7 Moldy Eggs v 7 Black Rots 7 Sunken-Spot Yolks and Heavy Spots 7 White Rots . . 7 Red Rots 7 Blood Rings 8 Green Whites, or Grass Rots 9 Sour Rots 9 Per Cent Grade, and Loss in Eggs. . 9 Cost per Dozen to Find 9 Storage Temp, and Humidity 10 Keep Eggs from Sweating 10 Tell Storage from Fresh 10 Shrinkage 10 Top and Bottom 10 Age in Eggs Air Space 10 Fertility After Separation 10 Age to Begin Hatching. 10 Summary 10-11 Market Poultry Live .12 Stuffed, Sick, Crippled Poultry 13 Per Cent Grade Poultry 13 Poultry Box Measurements 14 Butter How to Market 15 Hides How to Prepare 15 GJ Introduction The United States Department of Agriculture gives notice that: Shipments containing more than five per cent of bad eggs will be regarded as violating the Food and Drugs Act. "In the opinion of; that Department, eggs which contain yolks stuck to the shell (Spots), Blood Rings, Red or White Rots, Green Whites, Sour Rots, Moldy Eggs, and any other eggs which consist wholly or in part of a filthy, decomposed, or putrid substance, are adulterated. "Eggs which are adulterated may be shipped in interstate or foreign com- merce for use in tanning or other technical ways, without violating the provi- sions of the Food and Drugs Act only, if they are first denatured so as to ren- der them incapable of being used for food. Since it is impracticable to denature eggs in the shell, adulterated eggs must be broken out and denatured prior to shipment. ' ' Both the Federal and State authorities are determined to enforce the ]aws governing the sale of bad eggs. It follows that dealers in eggs should be extremely careful in the matter of making sure that the stock they offer for sale meets the law's requirements. While the officials will consider that any lots of eggs destined for food pur- poses and containing a maximum of 5 per cent bad ones as being barely pass-, able, still they will be liable to view with suspicion any lots containing that num- ber of bad ones, or perhaps less, as being stock that was not candled with the view to eliminate all bad ones, but candled to leave in as many bad eggs as one dared and escape prosecution. In that event ic might give the owner a bad reputa- tion and should make him an object of suspicion in any future dealings; because it probably would be a difficult matter to convince the officials that one meant to be fair, in view of the fact, that means were at hand to assist the owners of eggs in putting their stock into salable condition if they were so minded to employ them. Ignorance would hardly serve as a mitigating circumstance in these days of candling lamps and colored egg charts. With the many candling appliances so easily obtainable, even the producer should not check the blame to the shipper, nor the shipper or retailer to the commission man. The original and each successive owner should be held account- able for the stock he sells. Selling or buying eggs ' ' case count ' ' absolves no one from blame for offer- ing bad eggs for food purposes. The officials understand clearly, that the buyer who employs that method is putting a premium on shiftlessness, encourages the seller to shirk his plain duty in the matter of eliminating bad eggs, encourages mediocrity, and encourages an evasion of the law. The authorities will con- sider the "case count" buyer or seller as deliberately hostile to the cause of progress and fair dealing; and in all probability will force the offenders to dis- agreeably realize that buying and selling bad eggs is a poor business financially or otherwise. If heat, carelessness, or neglect on the owners part should result in bad eggs, it would be an injustice on their part to make an innocent purchaser the victim because of them. Eggs from hens separated from the cockerels at the close of the breeding season are the least impervious to heat; but all eggs begin to deteriorate from the time they are laid and rapidly in hot weather. Candle your eggs at the approach of warm weather! - 366324 A. H. BARBER CREAMERY SUPPLY CO.. CHICAGO, ILL. If you are a producer, gather eggs once daily in the spring months, and twice daily in hot weather; and keep in a cool, dry place until they are ready for market. Then candle carefully; do your level best; but in any event, be sure to throw out ROTS BARBER CREAMERY SUPPLY CO., CHICAGO, ILL. __ WHEN CANDLING: When rotated, the yolk is not distinguishable separately; the entire con- tents appear as a loose, light-colored mass; hence the name Light or .White Rot. ShoWs some shrinkage. WHEN BROKEN: Contents are thoroughly mixed, a sickly, pale yellow in color, and an offensive, sour odor. Yolk and white not distinguishable separately, and thin and: watery. NOTE: Not detected readily by a novice in candling unless when rotating he notices the very loose condition of the yolk and the unusually light color of the contents. These eggs are an advanced stage of. the Badly Heated (Soft Yolk) or Sunken Spot eggs. Heretofore some cahdlers, for the want .of a better name, styled them Sour Rots, or Mixed Rots, using this last term principally on account of the mixture of white and yolk, and, too, because of doubt as to whether to term it by any one of the three names mentioned. On account of this confusion of terms, many dealers have not taken the trouble to name or chart the advanced stage of the Badly Heated (Soft Yolk) or Sunken Spot eggs; taking it for granted, no doubt, that the candler understood that when the eggs mentioned in the foregoing have arrived at the complete yolk-breaking stage, they are unfit for food purposes. The term White Rot, then, may be useful in designating the final passing of its immediate predecessors. RED ROTS, OR MIXED ROTS: Usually appears in the Infertile egg. Age and weakened membranes, coupled with heat, partly decomposes the contents and makes them thin and watery. The weakened membrane, too, permits of seepage of the yolk into the white one of the conditions which also makes for White Rots. Some persons account for the Red Rot by attributing it to a diseased condition of the ovaries, causing blood to seep through the soft, flimsy shell before it had fully formed. WHEN CANDLING: Shows some shrinkage, but not necessarily heavy. The entire contents are very dark colored; the white scarcely distinguishable. When rotated, the white and yolk roll as one mass. WHEN BROKEN: Yolk is much darker than usual, and would seem to be compact were it not for the presence of a considerable portion of it mingling with the white. NOTE: Less seems to be positively known about the Red Rot than about other eggs in the tabooed class that is, as to the cause of all of its badness. Suffice it that this egg with its extremely dark-colored yolk, with parts of it mixed with the white in fact, any egg with a breaking yolk would have a difficult time in "getting by" the average housewife. The Department of Agriculture asserts that it contains enormous amounts of bacteria. BLOOD RING ROTS: Eggs, if Fertile, and held too long in a temperature of 70 F., or over, will begin to incubate anywhere; or, if Infertile, to weaken and spoil in an incu- bator, under sitting hens, when exposed to the sun in out-of-way nests, or on the bottom layer of egg-cases. This incubation develops a Blood Ring as the temperature gets higher. The Blood Ring is the embryo chick, the germs of which were killed on account of low temperatures before they were fully incubated.; At a temperature of 103 F., this germ will appear in twenty-four or forty-eight hours. A.-H-. BARBER CREAMERY SUPPLY CO., CHICAGO, ILL. WHEN CANDLING: Shows some shrinkage, but not necessarily heavy. The yolk shows as a dark mass at the top of the egg. On this yolk, a distinct, thread-like dark ring will appear when the egg is rotated, varying in size from half an inch in diameter and under. WHEN BROKEN: The hatch-spot shows clearly in the yolk, surrounded by BTood Rings and other blood streaks. The white, thin and watery. NOTE: Light Blood Rings are considered by some authorities as of a certain value for food purposes. But the Federal Government's regulations do not seem to make any distinction between Light and Heavy Blood Rings; therefore it would seem scarcely worth while to try to put a Light Blood Ring through. GREEN WHITES, OR GRASS ROTS: Grass has nothing to do with the greenish tint in the white of this egg. Hard to account for except that as they are prevalent in the wet, spring months, and as almost invariably the green tint is found in the Caked or Washed Dirties and Cracks, it is to' be presumed that the germ which infests this egg is not produced by heated conditions, as is the case with whole-shelled and clean eggs. WHEN CANDLING: Hard to detect under the candle, except that the contents appear very light too light to be normal. WHEN BROKEN: The yolk is usually firm, but tough, and occasionally parts of it are found to be mixed with the white. If decomposition has set in, there is a fetid odor; otherwise, the odor might be good. But if the greenish tint shows in the white, to Be safe, discard this egg. SOUR ROTS: Another egg that- is hard to catch under the candle, except that the white might appear to be thiek, or the yolk might be partly mixed with the white on account of broken membranes, or if your sense of smell is acute enough to detect the sour odor before the egg is broken. WHEN BROKEN: . Unless the: above" conditions prevail, as broken membranes or thick whites, only the sour odor will betray this egg. Considered unfit for food purposes if this, odor is evidenced. NOTE: As the Green White and Sour Rot eggs can be scarcely detected against the light, even by expert candlers, some authorities seldom mention the exist- ence of these eggs, except that the Badly Heated and Sunken Yolk eggs in the advanced stage are sdmetimes inaptly termed ( 'Sour Rots. ' ' PERCENTAGE OF GRADES AND LOSS IN EGGS: In the spring, during Storage Packing, many dealers estimate the grades and loss as follows, (basing 400 cases to the car). Loss: Mashed and Shorts .00%% 2 cases. Seconds: Small, Checked, Dirty .14%% 58 cases. No, 1 . 85 % 340 cases. The foregoing figures vary according to the sections of Small or Large egg production. But 5 per cent either way should about catch the extremes, as: Large egg sections, should yield 90 per cent No. 1; and Small egg sections, 80 per cent No. 1. In summer, eggs from cool climates show a higher percentage of No. 1. Figures are too varied to try to give an average estimate here. FIGURING COST PER DOZEN, GIVEN PRICE PER CASE: Divide by 3, and point off three places to the left. A. H. BARBER CREAMERY SUPPLY CO. ? CHICAGO, ILL. COLD STORAGE TEMPERATURE AND HUMIDITY: Temperature, 29-30 F. Humidity, 82-80%. TO KEEP EGGS FROM SWEATING: Before taking the eggs into a warm temperature, spread them out on clean, slat-shelved poultry racks; or transfer them from the cases to cages made of wire mesh; and have 1-inch cleats on the bottom, to allow the circulation of air underneath if several cages are to be dried at the same time. Eemove fillers, but leave flats between layers. Whether using the racks or #ages, after the eggs are taken to the higher temperature, turn the electric fan on them until they are thoroughly dry. Candle carefully after drying. TO DISTINGUISH STORAGE EGGS FROM FRESH: It seems to be easily done by any one not actively engaged in the egg busi- ness; but storage egg dealers, or veteran egg-candlers do not seem to be able to pick them out. The veterans can tell a Held egg, but they cannot say if the egg has been held in or out of storage. SHRINKAGE: This refers to the air-space. The area of the air-space shows the extent of the shrinkage. TOP AND BOTTOM: In this book, when mention is made of the "top" of an egg, the large or butt end is meant; the small or pointed end is the "bottom 77 of an egg. TO DETECT AGE IN EGGS: Eggs begin to evaporate soon after they are laid, causing a shrinkage of the contents; the vacuum created on account of this shrinkage fills with air, and is termed the "air-space." No air-space denotes a Strictly Fresh egg. As the age of the egg increases the space grows larger. Some persons claim that an egg is about a month old if the circumference of the air-space at its widest part is of the circumference of a ten-cent piece; when it gets around to the circumference of a twenty-five cent piece, it is between six and nine months old. If held outside of cold storage, this last condition would stamp the egg as Stale. Eggs evaporate more rapidly outside of cold storage. FERTILITY OF EGGS AFTER SEPARATION: Eggs are sometimes Fertile after the male bird has been removed for as long as 21 days, but as a rule the fertility is practically gone the tenth day, and often earlier than this. This depends considerably on the individual and perhaps the vitality of the bird. AGE TO BEGIN HATCHING: HENS 1 year old; incubation 21 days; useful 5-10 years. TURKEYS 1 " " " 28 " " 10 " DUCKS 1 " " " 28-35 " " 10 " GEESE 1 " " " 30-35 " " 10 " GUINEAS 1 " " " 25 " " 10 " PIGEONS 1 " " " 18 " " 10 " Pigeons hatch 5 pairs a year, feathered fully in 4 weeks. SUMMARY. It will be noticed that the specifications for No. 1, Spring storage stock, March, April, and May, call for "Fresh Gathered stock, from clean, regular nests." Eggs gathered in these months are the soundest and best flavored eggs of the year. Further, by keeping them in cold storage they are better preserved than if kept outside of cold storage; because the cold temperature of the rooms disposes of the heat problem, the worst enemy of the egg, and a certain humidity in the egg-rooms prevents dry, atmospheric conditions from absorbing moisture from the egg and lessens evaporation shrinkage. The equalization of the two in proportion brings the eggs out of cold storage in good condition after nine or twelve months' holding. A. H. BARBER CREAMERY SUPPLY CO., CHICAGO, ILL. On the other hand, eggs held outside of cold storage evaporate rapidly, because of the dry, warm air absorbing moisture in the egg, and but little if any moisture in the atmosphere of sufficient duration to assist in lessening evaporation; hence the Stale egg, even if held one-third of the time a Storage egg is held. A Storage egg put away in the spring and held for the season, until January first, would not be considered a Stale egg by the trade, because the sanitary condition under which it is held, coupled with the cool and humid atmospheric surroundings, keeps it as sweet as it went in, and its nutritive value would not have been lessened in "the least. Eegarding Summer Seconds, or Heated eggs: It should be understood that eggs begin to deteriorate from the time they are laid, and rapidly in hot weather, when bacteria apparently thrive best; so it behooves the producer to exercise more care with his Summer stock than with the Spring or Winter eggs. Bacteria may be present in a Heated egg to a certain extent, but not enough to harm any one; and until the egg shows every evidence of being unfit for food, it may pay to use some caution as regards discarding them entirely. When an egg shows that it will not stand much handling or shipping, a producer would have the choice of taking it to his dealer for his ruling, use for flavoring purposes at home, or cook for chicken food. It would be poor business to take a chance on the consumer discovering the condition of the egg mentioned. " Breakers/' after candling, break the shells of eggs, and, as an extra pre- caution, examine the contents closely before using. If the yolks show a weak- ened, heated condition, but if the odor is a little stale (not fetid or sour) they will use them; because, though some bacteria may be present, the extreme heat employed in manufacturing) the product would effectually dispose of them or the slightly stale odor. But when an egg gets close to the Badly Heated, Sunken Yolk (Floater) stage, it would have a poor chance in qualifying as a "breaker V product upon arrival. All Blood Rings are placed under the ban; because, though a Light Blood Ring might go through the "desiccating" process with the extremely heated temperatures used and emerge as an egg powder, practically germless and whole- some, yet the United States Department of Agriculture feels, no doubt, that the line must be drawn somewhere, lest the confusion and misunderstandings engendered in discriminating between Light and (undoubtedly bad) Heavy Rings would be too great and not worth the trouble of making the distinction. If an egg started on a journey as a Light Ring, but arrived as a Heavy Ring, would the responsibility be fixed upon the owner of the egg at the Heavy Ring stage if distinction were made between Light and Heavy Rings? The present ruling dispels all doubt. At times a blood-clot will be noticed in an egg; but if the egg shows every sign of being perfectly good, outside of the clot, it is just as good as it looks; because the clot simply means that a small blood-vessel has been ruptured during the formation of the egg, and the removal of the clot before using is all that is necessary. Do not confuse these eggs with Red Rots or Blood Rings. In another part of this book mention is made of the ' ' Grass Egg, ' ' and that grass has nothing to do with its bad condition, nor has it; but grass or any green food may have a tendency to make dark yolks. Housewives prefer the darker yolks because they make a more appetizing appearance when sen ed "straight up" and are more wholesome appearing, even out of the shell before using, than the pale yolks; but there is not a particle of difference in the nutri- tive value of the pale and dark yolks. As the feeding of milk, tallow, and white eornmeal will bleach a chicken's flesh, the want of green foods will produce pale yolks in eggs. For sanitary reasons, it is well for the housewife to wash eggs just before usin