102 



THE AMERICAN POULTERER'S COMPANION. 



en. Appearance is every thing with poultry, as 

 well as other articles, and has great influence 

 on the purchaser. 



AGE OF POULTRY. 



Farmers usually sell poultry alive. Poulter- 

 ers in towns, on the other hand, kill and pluck 

 every sort of fowl for sale, so that the purchas- 

 er has it in his power to judge of the carcass ; 

 und if he buys an inferior article at a high price 

 it must be his own fault. It is easy to judge of a 

 plucked fowl, whether old or young, by the state 

 of the legs. If a hen's spur is hard, and the scales 

 on the legs rough, she is old, whether you see her 

 head or not ; but the head will corroborate your 

 observation, if the under bill is so stiff that you 

 can not bend it down, and the comb thick and 

 rough. A young hen has only the rudiments 

 of spurs, the scales on the legs smooth, glossy, 

 and fresh colored, whatever the color may be, 



the claws tender and short, the under bill soft, 

 and the comb thin and smooth. An old heu 

 turkey has rough scales on the legs, callosities 

 on the soles of the feet, and long, strong claws ; 

 a young one, the reverse of all these marks. 

 A young goose or duck is distinguished by 

 the tenderness of the skin under the wings, the 

 strength of the joints of the legs, and the coarse- 

 ness of the skin. 



TO PRESERVE POULTRY IN WINTER. 



" About the 15th of November," said the late 

 Judge Buel, " I purchased a quantity of poultry 

 for winter use. The insides were carefully 

 drawn, their place partially filled with charcoal, 

 and the poultry hung in an airy loft. It was 

 used through the winter, till about the first of 

 February, and although some were kept seventy 

 days, none of it was the least affected with must 

 or taint, the charcoal having kept it sweet." 



