Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1908-02-13
POINTERS FoR POULTRY BUYERS.

fowl in market and served it to the
family for Sunday dinnerY'
Certainly not"
"Have you ever selected sick chick
en- from your own flock and served II
to the minister of your church, the
guest of the family?"
what shocking idea! How dare
you insinuate such horrible thing?"
"Well, dear madam, we are not here
to insinuate. but to tell you kindly that
there are many housewives who pur-
chase fowls under the impression that
all are healthy. With them it is SIM
ply a question Of age and weight and
juicy tenderness. There are others,
however. who have placed ban
against dressed poultry and who put
every live fowl through strict exam
ination before dressing it for the ta-
bie."
We come to the reader of this arti-
Gle with a few pertinent points for
purchasers of poultry They may save
a doctors BILL We watched a farm
er's wife dress a Plymouth Rock for
dinner
healthy?" we asked.
81 always kill the hen that's laying.
take her off the nest. A laying hen
is always healthy"
s'She was right" you say.
But listen. They don't keep hens on
nests in meat markets, and roosters do
not always lay. People eat two-thirds
rooster. According to her rule, the
nonprofit payer would always drone,
and the lousy. skinny old cluck would
always get the Ratchet.
'sThe hen that lays is the hen that
pays
Does it pay to kill the layer when
eggs are so cents dozen? Egg farms
aren't meat markets. The laying hen
is not always well
A good neighbor persisted in killing
a hen that had chronic diarrhea.
We said, Bury her"
mot a big fat hen like that. She
lays. We will have her for dinner"
No; you wouldn't be guilty of such
thing. We believe you, but you
might sin against the family health
through ignorance. Let us give you
some pointers for purchasing and Sc
lecting poultry.
COMBS, SHAPE.
Do not select male bird with a flop
comb Hens combs often turn over
naturally, but a ROSTERS flop comb is
an indication of weakness or disease.
A males comb may be misshapen
and turn, but you can quickly detect
this. as it win have thin base or a
fold in front
A lousy ROSTERS comb often turns
down, and he gets lanky. Flop combs
in little roosters often come from head
lice
Do not buy a fowl with loose comb.
When a chickens comb pulls back
from the beak you will generally find
yellow liquid underneath.
Just be nervy enough to lift the fowl
and smell its beak. 1t will not be
sweet violets." 1t will be catarrh or
roup, and you will never forget that
smell. You will likely notice yell
low liquid running from the nostrils,
and this proves that the fowls head
is clogged with yellow bloody matter
These troubles come from colds, and
you will find their victims in nearly
every shipping crate that is exposed to
wintry weather
Don't buy chickens with scabby
snotty noses.
COMBS, COLOR.
Don't eat chickens with dark combs
They are generally daubed up behind
and have cholera, diarrhea or sour
crop. If the comb is white, it is scurvy;
IL yellow, it is jaundice. If the comb
is scaly and the feathers are off the
neck, it is favus. If the head and eyes
are swollen, it is cold or roup. If the
head has yellow topped sores, it is
chicken pox. If the throat has white
patches. it is diphtheria.
MISCELLANEOUS
Chickens with scaly legs are objec-
tionable Large swellings that bulge
up between the toes is bumblefoot
Look out for gangrene or blood poison
The hen that drags big sack behind
does not carry dozen eggs, as you
suppose. 1t is likely cheesy tumor
Avoid turkeys with white. black or
swollen heads. Geese and ducks with
timber necks are unfit for use. Do not
select table birds haphazard The
clear combed, bright eyed. sprightly,
good feeder, with few exceptions, is