132 MAKING POULTRY PAY 



"An excellent mixed meal consists of equal perts- 

 corn, oats, barley and wheat ground up together and 

 kiln dried before bagging for shipment.. We consider 

 it not quite sufficiently nitrogenous, so add from a 

 quarter (in winter j to a third (in summer) of shorts 

 to it. As it is not always easy to get germ meal of our 

 grain dealers about here, we make up the mixture as 

 above, and the fowls will complain little of that mix- 

 ture in their mash. The foundation of the mash is the 

 cooked vegetables, which may be refuse potatoes, beets, 

 carrots, turnips, onions (anything in the vegetable 

 line), and into the pot goes the table waste, potato 

 parings, etc., and the potato, squash and apple parings 

 from the kitchen. The potatoes, or beets, etc., are 

 washed before putting on to cook, and the mess when 

 boiled is sweet and savory. If one has a set kettle in 

 which to stir up the mash, and there leave it to cook 

 in its own heat and the heat of the brick work, they 

 are fortunate. We haven't, and have to make ours up 

 in common water pails. 



"The vegetable or clover kettle is put on before 

 sitting down to dinner, usually, and another kettle of 

 water to be boiling hot when wanted. When the vege- 

 tables are cooked, we set out four buckets in a row, dip 

 out the vegetables into the buckets about equally, mash 

 them thoroughly, add the salt — always — and the con- 

 diment of the day, add boiling water until the bucket 

 is two-thirds full, then stir in the mixed meal till 

 it is stiff and firm ; then cover and set away to cook in 

 its own heat. Clover rowen (second crop clover) cut 

 fine makes an excellent foundation for the mash and 

 two or three days of the week in winter we use that 

 instead of vegetables. \ye fill two kettles with the cut 

 clover and as much cold water as they will conveniently 

 hold, and heat to a boil. The clover is ladled out into 

 the buckets about equally, the clover tea added and 



