Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1904-03-02
The Odd Industry
OF Geese Stuffing.
(By C. H. Tercinski.)


Wis, and about 10000 pounas of
| stuffed geese and about 325, 900 pounds
OF Stalled geese are shipped annually
from there to all parts of this country.
The demand for stuffed geese is in
creasing all the time. and the ship
pers of this class of Of poultry claim it
is not possible to fill all their orders
unless these are placed early IL lLe
fall. The geese have to undergo the
stuffing process to produce abnormally
Duke George Of Saxony, being disat-
isfied with some of the political move
meots in Germany, went to Alsace in
1864 and became afterward governor
of Strasburg. The duke being great
gourmand, his chef attempted to sat-
isfy the desires of his master for orr
ginal dishes, and at last was successful
In producing q master piece Of his cul-
mary art, the afterward famous o. as
burger Gaenseleber Pasteten, made
Of the livers of the geese and served in
delicious gravy. 1t is not known
whether the original pasteten were
maze of livers OF stuffed geese or not,
but it has been demonstrated that the
size of the liver is not more than
doubled by the stuffing process, and
| ever since the geese have had to suf-
fer to satisfy the desires of the gour-
mands,
But very few people indeed have
any idea how much constant care and
untiring efforts is required to bring
the fowls to the market in the perfect
condition of the Watertown stuffed
geese. AS early as April eggs of the
| largest breed of geese are carefully SO.
lected and hatched out by hens, as the
geese are not considered sure and re-
liable hatchers. The young geese are
allowed to roam about on the farm for
time, and than they are again care
fully selected, and those found in good
condition are put in stalls Or inclos-
ures to facilatate the stuffing, and to
else by running about. Some farmers
place each goose in a separate stall
just about wide enough for the goose
to stand in, but not wide enough to
turn around, while others put five
or six in larger stalls. Instead of be-
ing fed grain, ETC., the geese are from
now on stuffed with the so-called
noodles" made of wheat -four.
| ground corn, and ground oats. This
mixture is boiled down in water to a
solid mass and shaped in noodles about
the size and shape of an ordinary
Frankfurter sausage.
In stuffing the goose the feeder
holds it between his knees and forces
the noodles down into his throat, but
each noodle must first be dipped into
warm water to make it more slippery.
| During the first week eight noodles are
thus given three times day, and dur
ing the second week the same number
are given four times a day. From
then on the stuffing has to be done
every three or four hours, night and
day, and each time six or seven
noodles are forced down. The geese
have by this time accumulated SO
much fat and the liver has expanded to
such proportions that they have to be
watched continuously, as some are
liable to choke and thus prove total
| loss. The entire household is called
upon, and every man, woman or child
has to take turns and sit up and attend
to the geese. At last, when ready for
market, the geese are killed and the
| feathers on breast ard belly must be
picked Immediately, while the bodies
are warm. otherwise the very tender
skin would be torn or damaged, and
thus allow the thick layer of the pre-
cious goose fat to ooze out. The
wings and back parts of the fowl
can be picked more easily, and are
first dipped into hot water to facilitate
the process. After they are thorough
ly picked, the heads, wings, and legs
are tied together on the back and the
birds hung up in cold place and al
lowed to freeze solid.
Prepared in this way they are very
appetizing looking. Their size is en-
ormous. In weight they range from
twenty to twentyeight pounds each,
some extra large ones weighing from
| thirty-four to thirty-six pounds. The
livers are generally very large cover
inU an ordinary conn r,1ata and