392 



Experiments in Fattening Turkeys. [oct., 



is, in some parts of these islands, practised to a great extent by 

 farmers and turkey fatteners. The system may be described in 

 these words : — A stiff mash is made of equal parts barley-meal, 

 maize-meal, and ground oats, with a small proportion of melted 

 fat and linseed meal and some skim milk, and this is placed 

 in a large pail or other vessel by the side of a woman (or some- 

 times a boy or man), who sits on a low stool. Close at hand 

 she has also a large bowl of skim milk, and, taking the mash, 

 she works it into pellets, about two inches long and tnree- 

 quarters of an inch in diameter. She makes a pile of these 

 sufficient to feed one turkey, and the bird to be crammed is 

 then handed over to her by an attendant. She takes it between 

 her knees, opens the beak, holding the head well up, and the 

 neck stretched to its full length, and dipping the pellets one at 

 a time in the milk, she passes them down the bird's gullet into the 

 crop. A large cock turkey will take from a pound to a pound and 

 a half of mash when crammed in this manner, but as the birds 

 are docile, and can swallow the food rapidly, it does not take 

 as long a time to cram a flock as one would suppose, without 

 having seen the operation performed by a skilful hand. The 

 birds are crammed in this way twice a day, but though the 

 method gives fairly good results it cannot be said to equal 

 the method adopted with Lot No. 3, which has now to be 

 described. 



The turkeys in Lot No. 3 were fed during the latter half 

 of the fattening period in a manner somewhat similar to that 

 practised by the poultry-raisers of Kent, Sussex, and Surrey, 

 who are so eminently successful in producing the high-class 

 and far-famed " Surrey fowls." The turkeys were not, however, 

 confined in coops, as fowls would be, but were allowed to 

 remain in the section of the house already described. The 

 house was well littered with straw, and the birds were confined 

 there and not permitted to take any exercise in the yard. A 

 cramming machine was used to administer the food, which was 

 given in a semi-liquid form twice daily, and this machine was 

 wheeled into the house when the times for feeding came round. 

 At first there was some difficulty about cramming these large 

 cock turkeys, because, on account of their size and strength, 

 they [could not conveniently be taken under the arm in the 



