32 
THE AUSTRALIAN GARDENER. 
January 1, 1910 
The breeding geese are kept in flocks 
of from a dozen to a hundred or more, 
according to the farm or the inclination 
of the farmer. They are turned out in 
waste pasture containing a pond or run- 
ning steam, and fed very little grain. 
The breeding geese require no housing 
and where houses are supplied they 
prefer to remain out in the open even in 
the winter weather. The coslings when 
hatched either under hens or mother 
geese, are raised almost exlusively on 
grass pasture or other green -forage, 
fodder corn, or young greenrye. After 
goslings are a few days old they re- 
quire very little care. 
Two or three months gre required to 
rear a gosling to a marketable age, their 
fair selling price then being from 90 cents 
to 1ldol. 50 cents at the door by the 
collecter, There also appears to be a 
market for young newly-hatched, or one- 
day-old goslings. which sell at 50 cents 
at the door. although breeding geese are 
not reproductive until two years old, the 
the birds are profitable until a much 
longer time than ordinary poultry, the 
males being good until six or e’'ght years 
whilst the females breed until 10 years old. 
At the Austin farm, in the fattening 
pens or being prepared for that destina- 
tion on the pasture land, from 8,000 to 
10,000 geese may be found at the height 
of the season. The fattening pens are 
supplied with rough board sun-shelters , 
otherwise no buildings are required for 
housing the geese. Low rail fences are 
used for separating the flock, and these 
are arranyod a roadway for convenience 
in feeding The pens are about Soft. 
square, and accommodate from 30 to 40 
geese. With favorable conditions, it 
requires about three weeks to put the 
goslings into good condition for market. 
at which tlme they should be about 12 
weeks old. 
The mode of fattening at this farm is 
to give an abundance of green food to the 
goslings until within 16 days of killing 
time. Grain is fed to fattening pens 
three times daily. Morning and night 
feeding is of a nash or cornmeal dough, 
containing meat scraps. This mash is 
made up wholly of yellow cornmeal’ 
containing about 10 per cent. of best beef 
scraps. The mash is fed in wooden 
troughs twice a day. 
The killing room on the Ausin farm 
occupies one of the main buildings and 
accomodates a number of pickers. The 
picking or dressing is all done by experts, 
who receive 11 cents per goose for the 
operation. The geese are bled by 
sticking in the mouth, and stunned by 
clubbing on the head. As a rule, they 
are exclusivley dry-picked, fine down, 
hairs, and small pin feathers being shaved 
off by a sharp knife if necessary. The 
goose-picker sits while at work, holding 
the bird on hig lap, held firmly between 
his knee and the feather-box is its head. 
They consider goose-piching is not more 
difficult than picking ducks, and claim 
that a goose-p cker can comfortably finish 
off from 30 to 50 geese asa day's work, 
The geese are cooled off in an ice-water 
bath, much the same way as are ducks. 
‘Mongrel’ geese receive different treat- 
ment. The feathers are removed from 
their body only by dry-picking. The 
entire wings are left with their plumage 
untouched, and it must not be soiled by 
blood. The neck is picked only a short 
distance from the body, and tail feathers 
are left in. This method, it is stated, 
makes an exceptionally attractive market 
poultry product. 
The geese on the farm are killed, 
dressed, and shipped to order only, 
So called ‘daily’ orders are neatly packed 
in boxes. ‘Freezer’ orders are packed in 
barrels. The most desirable weights for 
green goslings are 11]b. to 12lb. each. New 
York prefer heavier weights than Boston 
markets. The prices for green goslings in 
the wholesale market at the best season 
runs from 23 to 25 cents per lb,, but 
these high prices hold but for a few 
weeks. Later the prices fall to 17 to 19 
cents per lb.. The mongrel goose is a 
fancy article, and brings to 28 cents per 
lb., with a steady and good demand, 
The Boston and New York markets take 
the whole output of the Austin farm. 
The soft-goose feathers are saved. and 
sold to the bedding manufactors in 
Boston. The pure white feathers bring 
the highest prices. They are packed in 
sacks, and bring from 30 to 40 cents per 
lb., and it is stated that three or four 
adult geese will yield a pound of feathers, 
There is no demand for quills, and these 
are not saved. 
Old Hens for-the Table. 
When hens have reach the age of be- 
tween twoand a-half to three years of age 
it is high time to get rid of them and 
supply their places with younger birds. 
What is to be done with them? The ac- 
cepted opinion is that they are too tough 
forthe table. If, however, they are properly 
killed and cooked they are perfectly 
eatable. In the first place, they should 
be kept without food for a day and a-half, 
when they will keep for long time in cool 
weather. When drawing them, instead 
of making a large cut and inserting the- 
whole hand to withdraw the iatestines, 
the plan recommended in an English 
poultry journal is as follows:— 
Lay the fowl breast downwards, picls. 
up the skin on the back of the neck, slip» 
the point of the knife through, and cut 
‘towards the head so as to leave a piece 
of skin about 3 inches long. Fold this. 
back until the neck is bare close up to 
the body. There isa spot which shows. 
whiter than the red of the neck. Nich 
on both sides, and the joint will easily 
break. Put the knife underneath the- 
neck and scrape toward the head,. 
and cut off the skin at the same length 
as the other, thus leaving two folds to 
cover the broken joint, so as to hide the- 
red and make the front of the dressed 
fowl iuore presentable Set the bird on 
its stern, take the crop in the forefingers of 
the right band, and work the outer skin. 
away from it all round. A finger inseried 
into the front cavity will work the crop. 
quite clear, and can then be drawn out. 
Now take take the fowl so that its back 
lies balanced in the left hand. Insert 
the middle finger of the right hand, and 
pass it tightly round so as to break all 
adhesions and thoroughly loosen all 
internals from the breast, Turn the 
fowl over in the hand. The lungs lie in 
cavities on either side of the backboue- 
