emphasis in breeding programs in recent years. Although, selection for early sexual maturity has been accompanied by selection for increasing the egg weight during the early stages of egg production, the extent of progress for the latter trait has not been as effective as for the advancement of sexual maturity. As a result of these processes, a high percentage of eggs produced by present commercial strains during the early stages of the egg production cycle are in the small and peewee categories. These eggs do not have a real market value