THE HOME AND THE HOUSEHOLD. 981 



The finest quality of mutton will be quite fat, the fat portion being white and hard, while 

 the lean will be juicy and rather dark red in color. When there is but a small quantity of 

 fat that is soft and yellow, and the meat is coarse and flabby, it is a sure indication of poor 

 quality. Both beef and mutton are improved by keeping a while, when the weather will 

 admit. The time will, of course, depend upon the climate, etc. Beef two or three weeks old, 

 and mutton a week or more old, is much better, when it can be well kept, than that recently 

 butchered. Lamb, being more jiiicy than mutton, will not keep as long. The size of the 

 bones of a lamb will generally determine its age; they will also be reddish in color. Good 

 veal will have flesh of a pinkish tinge, and the fat will be white and firm. Never buy veal 

 that has soft flesh of a bluish tinge. It shows that the calf has been killed too young. The 

 soft, cartilaginous state of the bones also shows this. When the meat looks white, it indicates 

 that the animal was bled before being killed, which is not only a cruel and barbarous 

 practice, but injures the quality of the flesh. Pork should be firm in quality, the fat white 

 and hard, and the lean a pale reddish tinge. Pork that is soft, with yellow fat, is of poor 

 quality. 



Selecting Poultry. Few people are as good judges of poultry as they ought to be. 

 All fat fowls offered for sale in the market will not make fine, tender roasts. Every one 

 knows whether poultry is tough or tender when it comes upon the table, and is subjected to 

 the real test it there receives; but it is essential to be able to distinguish between the tender 

 and the tough birds before they arrive at this point. In chickens, the lower end of the 

 breast bone is soft and can be easily bent; in old birds, it is not as flexible. When the spurs 

 on the hen are hard, and the scales on her legs rough, you may be assured that she is old, 

 whether you see her head or not; but the head furnishes the surest indications of age. If 

 the under bill is so stiff and hard that it cannot be easily bent down, and the comb thick and 

 rough, she is old and tough, no matter how fat she may be. A young hen has a soft under 

 bill, a thin, smooth comb, and only the rudiments of spurs; while the scales on the legs are 

 smooth and glossy, and the claws tender and sharp. In selecting turkeys, the lower end of 

 the breast bone should also be soft and easily bent. This denotes a young bird. An old hen 

 turkey has rough scales on the legs, long, strong claws, and callous soles to the feet; while 

 a young one is the reverse of this. An old turkey cock has a long tuft or beard, and a young 

 one a very short one. When these are off, the scales on the legs and size of the wattles of 

 the neck will determine the difference between old and young birds. 



It is more difficult to judge of the age of a goose than any other fowl. One of the best 

 tests is the brittleness of the windpipe. If this breaks easily under the pressure of the finger 

 and thumb, the bird is young; if it rolls and does not break, it shows that the bird is old. 

 Other indications of age are rough legs, thickness and strength of bill, tenderness of skin 

 under the wings, and coarseness of the skin. The same tests that are applied to chickens 

 and geese are applicable to ducks, but a young duck s bill is much longer in proportion to the 

 breadth of its head than an old duck s. A young pigeon is known by its pale colors, smooth 

 scales, tender feet, and the long, yellow down interspersed among its feathers. A pigeon that 

 can fly is too old for use, being tough and dry. At this period they have red legs and no 

 down. 



Selecting Fish. When fish is fresh, the eyes will be full and bright, the gills of a 

 natural red color, the scales bright, the fins stiff, and the body firm. Never purchase fish 

 that have dim, sunken eyes, dark-colored gills, or that are soft in flesh. No article of animal 

 food will taint or deteriorate in quality so quickly as fish. 



Selecting Groceries, etc. The flour at present used is made by two different 

 processes the old or St. Louis, and the new or Haxall. The latter is designed principally 

 for bread, and the former for pastry, cake, etc. The new process flour packs much more 

 closely than the old; consequently a pound of it will not measure as much as the latter. The 

 rule generally employed in recipes is to use but seven-eighths of the quantity of the new 

 process, or one-eighth less than that of the old. Since the new process flour does not make 

 as good cake and pastry as the old, and is designed more especially for bread, it is well to 

 keep both kinds on hand. The best flour is generally the cheapest. Among sugars, the 

 granulated is the most economical, since a pound of it, being dry, contains more sweet pro 

 portionately than that which is damp and more heavy. Avoid sugar with a blue tinge. 

 Black tea is less liable to be adulterated with poisonous substances than green; yet even this 

 is not always pure. By purchasing coffee in the berry, one is more likely to obtain a pure 

 article than when obtaining it ground and ready for use. 



