TO KEEP EGGS 375 



rapidly plucked. This, of course, should always be done while the 

 bird is bleeding. The can catches the blood, and by hanging the bird 

 over a barrel the feathers may easily be saved. 



Care of Feathers and Eggs (Lambert) 

 Feathers. 



When dry picked and sorted so as to keep the stiff from the soft, 

 and the white from the colored, feathers have a market value worth 

 considering. Mixed colors of soft chicken feathers bring 4 to 10 cents 

 per pound, and pure white bring 20 cents per pound. Duck feathers 

 bring 33 to 42 cents per pound, goose feathers 42 to 60 cents per 

 pound, goose quills 15 cents per pound. Long, bright-colored 

 chicken feathers are sold for millinery purposes at about $1 per pound. 

 The stiff turkey feathers are in great demand for feather dusters 

 and the like. Feathers are cured in sacks of thin material exposed to 

 the sun and air for several days. They can be sold and shipped in 

 these original sacks. 



General care of eggs. 



Eggs for market will keep better from spoiling if not fertilized. Those 

 from mated pens should be kept from heat over 60 Fahr. The 

 nests should be kept supplied liberally with dry sawdust or some clean 

 absorbent. The eggs that become soiled should be wiped with a damp 

 cloth and never submerged in water if they are to be kept more than 

 one week. The natural color of the shell is not indicative of the 

 quality of the contents, although the preferences of the market 

 should be catered to, if one wishes to secure best prices. Brown-shelled 

 eggs are usually larger than white shelled ones, because all the 

 larger breeds except one lay brown eggs, or those from a delicate pink 

 to a light chocolate. The color of the yolk is controlled by feeding 

 green foods and certain grains. Eggs are porous and susceptible 

 to taint from bad odors. Care must be taken to keep them in clean, 

 cool places. Marking the shells in any way is not desirable. Cartons 

 holding one dozen eggs can be purchased from paper dealers. These 

 have specially printed covers, " One Dozen Fresh Eggs," etc., 

 and can be used several times if desired. Cases holding fifteen 

 or thirty dozen each, for shipping to the trade, are popular sizes. 



