A COMMERCIAL POINT OF VIEW. 8 1 



a revolution in the national production and consumption 

 of poultry as the world never witnessed before. People 

 would then begin to understand and appreciate the value 

 of poultry, which, up to this day, is kept either merely as 

 a matter of fancy or a necessary adjunct to a farm-yard, 

 but whose productiveness is disputed by many. 



What is the result of our present system of selling 

 poultry? Why, that tons of poultry are annually de- 

 stroyed because sufficient customers cannot be found to 

 pay the fancy prices. This system is neither fair to the 

 breeder, the dealer, or the public. The first consign a 

 quantity of poultry to a salesman, and obtain but a poor 

 return ; the second's percentage is naturally in keeping 

 with a limited sale, and the public are obliged to pay 

 fancy prices, or forego an article of food which ought to 

 be within the reach of even the mechanic. As the first 

 commercial nation in the world, we ought not to purchase 

 food in foreign markets when we can produce it at home. 

 At the present time poultry is collected from all parts of 

 the country by higglers, who consign it to a salesman, 

 from whom the poulterers purchase at so much a head : 

 sometimes the demand is good, and fair sales are effected ; 

 other times the supply is too great ; then the poultry past 

 keeping is sold at a nominal price to costermongers 

 (rather than have it condemned by the market inspector), 

 who, in the garb of countrymen, hawk it about the 

 suburbs of London in a state unfit for human food. 



By the immense importation of eggs and rabbits, 

 foreigners have shown us how to proceed to alter our 

 system of selling poultry. When they found that poulter- 

 ers would not agree to their terms, they made arrange- 

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