Marl  et  .Demands ; Fattening. 
morning  feed  consists  of  barley  meal,  wheat  meal,  and  buck- 
wheat meal,  mixed  with  skim  milk  to  a crumbly  consistency, 
and  to  this  about  half  an  ounce  of  fat  per  bird  per  diem  will  be 
beneficial,  though  the  quantity  can  be  increased  during  the  last 
week  or  ten  days.  Boiled  potatoes  are  advantageously  mixed 
with  the  meals.  The  afternoon  feed  should  consist  of  barley, 
oats,  and  buckwheat,  to  which  peas  may  be  added  occasionally, 
say,  one-twelfth  of  the  total  weight.  These  grains  are  better 
steamed  or  steeped.  As  already  mentioned,  skim  milk  may  be 
given  the  birds  to  drink.  In  addition,  cabbage  or  roots  are 
valuable,  helping  to  keep  the  blood  cool,  and  there  must  be  a 
plentiful  supply  of  coarse  grit  and  sand,  to  which  a little  slaked 
lime  or  old  mortar  can  be  added. 
The  wonderful  quality  seen  in  some  of  the  French  turkeys 
— though  I do  not  think  that  the  flesh  is  as  tender  as  in  the 
best  home-fed  birds — is  due  to  the  use  of  milk  and  to  the  fact 
that  the  birds  are  hand-crammed  with  boluses  made  of  fine 
barley  flour.  Cramming  has  been  tried  in  Britain,  but  the 
improvement  was  not  sufficiently  great  to  repay  the  additional 
cost  for  labour.  During  the  fatting  process  the  birds  must 
be  kept  as  (juiet  as  possible,  and  it  is  inadvisable  to  admit 
strangei's  more  than  can  be  avoided. 
Food  should  be  withheld  from  the  turkeys  for  thirty  hours 
before  they  are  killed,  so  as  completely  to  empty  the  intestines. 
The  usual  method  of  killing  a turkey  is  first  to  fasten  the  legs 
and  wings  with  soft  string,  which  should  be  strong  enough  to 
bear  the  weight.  By  means  of  that  fastening,  suspend  the 
bird  from  a beam,  head  downwards,  so  that  the  head  will  fall 
about  midway  on  the  operator’s  body.  Pass  tbe  left  arm 
around  the  turkey’s  bodj",  so  that  its  tail  will  point  behind. 
Take  its  head  in  the  right  hand,  with  Angers  under  the  throat, 
and  thumb  at  the  base  of  the  skull.  Now  give  a sharp,  sudden, 
strong  jerk  downwards,  and  a sharp  twist  upwards  and  side- 
ways, and  death  will  be  instantaneous,  though  there  may  be  a 
considerable  muscular  action  for  some  time.  If  it  is  thought 
desirable  to  bleed,  this  can  be  secured  by  cutting  the  throat, 
but  it  must  be  done  quickly. 
Turkeys  are  plucked  (and  ihis  is  better  done  immediately 
after  death)  all  over  the  body  and  neck  to  within  three  inches 
of  the  head,  except  that  the  feathers  are  left  on  the  back  of  the 
wings  and  the  top  of  the  rump.  The  wings  are  crossed  over 
the  turkey’s  back,  forming  a pad  upon  which  the  bird  rests. 
In  Normandy  it  is  customary  to  tie  the  body  up  in  fine  linen 
cloths  soused  in  skim  milk,  which  explains  the  smooth  skin 
and  compact  appearance  of  French  turkeys.  A small  point 
like  this  means  much.  Some  of  the  smaller  East  Anglian 
feeders  follow  the  same  plan,  the  universal  adoption  of  which 
