CHAPTER XIX 

 THE CARE AND MARKETING OF FEATHERS 



There are dealers who buy feathers. The prices vary 

 according to the condition of the feathers and the quahty. 

 Pure white feathers bring a higher price than mixed or dark 

 feathers. 



All body feathers will heat if sacked up before being thor- 

 oughly aired and dried. The stock may be apparently dry 

 when shipped, but unless the animal heat has been thoroughly 

 removed the feathers will heat and mold in a short time. It is, 

 therefore, necessary to spread all body feathers on a clean floor, 

 not over 4 to 6 inches thick, and turn them every day until dry. 

 They must have plenty of air, except in extreme weather. 



In many of the large establishments the buildings have 

 their rooms floored with tonged and grooved flooring, and 

 the walls and ceiling covered with tonged and grooved ceiling 

 material. The most of -these ducks are scald-picked. The 

 feathers are then taken to these rooms and spread out in a thin 

 layer and beat up with a long slender stick once a day till dry. 

 The workmen find that if they stay in these rooms too long 

 at a time they suffer from a catarrhal condition of the nasal 

 passages, which appears to be due, at least in part, to a volatile 

 fatty material which enters the air while the feathers are agi- 

 tated. It apparently irritates the mucous membrane of the 

 nasal passage, producing a thickening of the mucous membrane. 

 If wet feathers are not beat up regularly while wet they become 

 dried in lumps, which causes a reduction of the price when put 

 on the market. If properly beat till dry, all the feathers fluff 

 out and present a pleasing appearance. 



All chicken and turkey body feathers should be kept separate. 



All quills should be kept out of the body feathers . 



All quills, and particularly tail quills, should be thoroughly 

 aired before packing. To bring the top market price they 

 must be thoroughly dry. 



In plucking the short quills, pointers, tails, and wing feathers 

 should be separated, having a receptacle in which to throw each 



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