DOMESTIC FOWL 73 



of cramming is too laborious to be utilized on a 

 big scale; the other two are excessively cruel to 

 the bird. 



When the fowl is ready for the market all food 

 is withheld for a few hours previous to the kill- 

 ing. The killing is done with a sharp knife by 

 severing the large arteries of the neck through 

 the mouth. A sudden twist causes the knife at 

 the same instant to penetrate the brain, causing 

 immediate and painless death. Plucking is under- 

 taken at once; should there be a delay of only a 

 few minutes the skin becomes strangely soft and 

 easily tears. The average picker works witli 

 great speed and can completely denude twelve 

 fowl an hour. 



After the small pin-feathers have been removed 

 with a knife and the body singed, the bird is 

 placed in a shaping-trough. This consists merely 

 of two boards placed lengthwise at right angles 

 and nailed. The fowl is placed breast down with 

 a third board weighted and pressing upon its 

 back. The flesh is thus forced downward toward 

 the breast. As it cools the flesh hardens in place, 

 giving the fowl the appearance of owning a full 

 breast, a delusion meant for the eye of the pros- 

 pective buyer. 



The production of poultry has reached greater 

 proportions in the United States than in any other 

 country of the world. The government census 

 reports of January 1, 1920, showed that there 



