The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1912-12-03
THE TURKEY INDUSTRY.

Thanksgiving day, compelled TO pe
content with q cheaper neat The
price Of turkey roosts MS Il the
demand is 50 great that those VINO
raise turkeys make better profits
than on most crops. This paper yes
terday printed the following tele-
graphic news:
"Statesvile, Nov. 26-ADuring the
past three days about fifty cars OF
urkevs have passed through States
Vile en- route from East Tennessee TO
New York city where they. with
| thousands Of gallons of cranberrles,
will help make up the Thanksgiving
dinners Of the metropolis.
lone freight train was made up
almost entirely Of turkey cars, eggs,
cattle. etc. there being thirty-two
ears of turkeys in the lot, all coming
from a big poultry concern IN Zen
nessee. With each car was a man to
take care of the birds Of that car
and in charge Of the turkey train was
a manager for the poultry firm.
1.-The Turkeys averaged about 1900
to the car and it was the opinion OF
the manager that they would average
ten to twelve pounds each. They are
to be sold to wholesale dealers in
New York at 20 cents a pound. A
lllClo ISuTluS VIII SIAOW lila III
value Of the fifty cars of turkeys at
wholesale is $4,000 or more the car,
and by the time they reach the con-
sumers in the n~eighborhoOd OF $780,
600 will have been paid out for them.
ThOueh turkeys are unusually scarce
this year, his shipment Of the Ten
nessee dealers is said tOpbe about the
largest ever made
The first impression made upon the
mind Of a North Carolinian in the
reading the above is to ask the ques-
ton: why should carloads Of tur-
keys not be on the way to Northern
markets from North Carolina so that
the profits will remain In this State,
and not merely pass through this
State? If East Tennessee folks can
ship fifty carloads Of turkeys In one
week, why cannot North Carolina
folks do likewise - The answer to
that question is that they can, and
that in some parts Of the State this
turkey industry is carried IN, though
on a smaller scale.
The price Of turkeys, chickens,
geese, duck and all fowl and poultry,
and Of eggs, has gone to a price to
SlNo ~ III tllcIil. oOlIlS wv
folks hin it is easy to raise turkeys
and chickens for market and that it
does not cost farmers and their
wives much money and time to raise
them. Such a notion is born Of ig-
nOrance. 1t is almost as hard to
raise young turkeys as young babies
but we raise plenty Of babies in this
State where race suicide is unknown
We also raise lots of turkeys for mar
ket, but nothing like as many as WE
could raise if we gave our best at.
, tention to it. In some parts Of North
= Carolina the poultry industry Is tht
: most profitable one, but in most part:
Of the State it is neglected.
There are many women in Nortl
o Carolina who are looking for gainfu
, occupations by which they can supper
themselves. They are hurrying nt(
/. the towns and cities to become stenog
=, raphers and clerks, working Ion:
hours in Offices and in stores, and tn
salaries they receive are sufficien
only to pay their living expenses
Factory towns are draining the coun
: try Of women and children, who worl
long hours for compensation that af
fords nothing more than living ex
penses, and economical living at that
e There is no occupation better suite
. for women than raising poultry an
eggs for market. They are peculiarl
Il adapted for caring for chickens IN
e turkeys in the trying days when onl
o the tenderest care keeps them alive
They raise most Of the chickens an
d turkeys sold in North Carolina. VIII
should they not raise enough to enabI
y them to live much in the open air an
give them steady and profitable I'm
$ %ployment?
a Corporations are doing on a larg
it scale in nearly every industry wha
separate individuals cannot do S
we'll. In some states large poultr