FOOD VALUE AND USES OF POULTRY. 9 



can be safely penned for. a few days previous to killing. Regulating 

 exercise is usually closely associated with special feeding. In the 

 special fattening of geese for goose-liver paste (see p. 6), for exam- 

 ple, keeping the birds absolutely quiet, sometimes in darkened pens 

 so small that they can not. move their wings, is considered as essen- 

 tial as the forced feeding which accompanies it. 



The difference between the flesh of a plump chicken and of a lean 

 one of similar kind and age is due principally to the fat present. This 

 fat appears not only in solid masses around the muscles, but also in 

 tiny particles between the fibers of the muscle itself, and these tiny 

 particles make the flavor richer and the texture less close and firm. 

 The skill of the fattener, from the consumer's standpoint, lies not 

 only in producing the desirable amounts of fat at the least expense 

 for food and care, but also in getting the fat well distributed through 

 the flesh rather than merely in masses within the carcass or under 

 the skin. Such large masses have little value for table purposes and 

 unless they are carefully saved and used for cooking they are prac- 

 tically wasted. On the other hand, when the amount of flesh is 

 increased by the fat which occurs between the fibers, the proportion 

 of edible material is increased and the larger masses of meat make 

 better portions in serving. 



Besides improving the flavor of the flesh by increasing the fat 

 present, special feed may give specific flavor. Chickens fattened on 

 a mash of grain and milk acquire a delicate flavor, while the "wild" 

 flavor of guinea fowls that find their own food is probably due to the 

 fact that they get a variety of food as they range. The rather rank 

 taste of many water birds has long been believed to be due to the 

 accumulation in their flesh of extractives occurring in the water bugs, 

 fish, and other animal substances which they eat. This theory has 

 been confirmed by recent German work with the European coot, the 

 flesh of which has such a. strong flavor. and odor that it is usually con- 

 sidered inedible. It was found that these disagreeable qualities .are 

 due to monomethylamin, a substance characteristic of the food supply 

 of the birds and similar to one found in decaying meat. It appeared 

 in the skin more than in the flesh, and by removing the former 

 before cooking the disagreeable qualities were largely removed. 

 Special feeding often imparts a very desirable flavor. For instance, 

 canvasback ducks are considered at their best when they have fed 

 on the wild celery characteristic of their favorite feeding ground, 

 and celery and chestnuts are sometimes used to give turkey flesh a 

 special flavor. On the other hand, birds intended for the table 

 should not be allowed to eat onions or wild garlic habitually, because 

 the sulphur compounds in these plants pass over into the flesh and 

 give it a taste which most persons consider undesirable. 

 61289°— Bull. 467—16 2 



