Turkey-breeding in England. 
5i9 
finer in texture than that of the Cambridgeshire Bronze ; but as a rule the latter sort predominates 
in the East Anglian stubbles, and comes to the greatest weight. A good April-hatched cock at 
Christmas should average about eighteen pounds in his feathers, and the hen-bird about ten or 
eleven pounds in November, with ordinary feeding ; but if they have been ‘ sent along ’ with Indian 
corn, barley-meal, rice, and potatoes, they will make up to nearly two pounds heavier. The small 
Norfolk farmers generally keep a cock and three or four hens, and consider fifteen an excellent brood. 
The best broods are always hatched in April ; and the second brood, which never comes to the same 
maturity, and is eaten at poult estate, follows in June or July. A September hatch too often 
realises the rustic prophecy, ‘ They’ll never be fit, they won’t live long enough.’ Cramp in the legs 
is very fatal to the broods ; but it only kills them by lingering stages, and a disease in the head 
very often effects ‘a highly successful elimination.’ Wet is the young Turkey’s greatest foe. They 
are not let out of the coop till they have been hatched two or three days, and they should then be 
carefully watched and driven in from a shower. 
“ On the smaller farms they are seldom finished off for market, and middlemen go round 
about the end of August and buy them up at an average of ^4 10s. per score. They are then sold 
at a small profit, of sometimes only sixpence per head, to the larger farmers to ‘ shack ’ upon the 
barley or oat stubbles, while the ‘ swine, well ringled,’ are put upon the wheat ones. By the terms 
of some leases, the pigs and poultry are the only live stock which may be depastured on the young 
grass seeds layer. A turkey-boy is placed in daily attendance on the flock, to drive them home if 
it is wet, and keep them away from the trees, to which, true to their American forest origin, they 
are very partial. Nice bright plumage, and wattles like red sealing-wax, are capital symptoms, 
and if the cocks gobble they are said to ‘ talk healthy.’ Fighting is also a true sign of vigour, and 
so is fly-catching when they are young. Besides what they get on the stubbles, they have abundance 
of in-door relief. The system of cramming them at night with forced balls is very much abandoned, 
and they are generally well kept on potatoes, barley-tailings, and light wheat, ground and mixed 
with milk. Common white turnips, which they eat greedily without slicing, tend to make their flesh 
white, and ‘cool their coppers ;’ brick-dust to scour their maw is never neglected. 
“ They are killed simply by breaking their necks, and the breast-bone is also broken before 
they are sent off to the poultry salesman, in order to give the breast a plumper appearance. The 
cocks, if sold out of their feathers to the neighbouring gentry, will fetch one-and-twopence per 
pound, and the hens a shilling, or sometimes only ninepence, when a very plentiful season has 
knocked down prices, or they are not fed up to the mark. The bigger they are the higher their 
value per pound, on the same principle that salmon of twenty pounds and upwards fetch sixpence 
more in the spring and early summer months for the large West-end dinner parties. The great 
bulk of them go in their feathers to the London salesmen ; but the wives of the small farmers take 
them picked to Norwich and sell them in the market, where very large ones, trussed and ready 
for the spit, have made one-and-sixpence at Christmas. Hen-birds, which get fat sooner, and are 
generally killed off before the end of November, are thought to be a daintier morsel than the 
‘ gobblers.’ Some two-year old cocks (beyond which age they are very seldom kept) have been 
killed at thirty pounds, when a heavy-weight is wanted for an audit dinner; but with very high 
feeding, in one or two rare instances, prize birds have turned the scale at forty pounds.” 
The White Turkeys mentioned in the preceding account are exceedingly beautiful in 
appearance. The tuft on the breast of the cock remains black, producing a most beautiful contrast 
with the snow-white plumage ; and the red and blue upon the head and neck also contribute to 
set off the general colour of the bird. This variety is generally found somewhat delicate, but not 
to nearly so great an extent as many persons have alleged ; indeed we have heard from one lady 
