The Prescott daily news., 1914-11-19
EXPERIMENT ADVICE FOX " POULTRY SHIPPERS

Tho fact that it will soon be one
 ,rce the calamitous dressed
 sl+rv ' season of 1913 wrecked many t.nd,ers of poultry, sent tens of thou
 ,,nds of pounds of chickens turkeys,
 anols and geese to the crematory,
 ,,d left the consumer with such a 1 y.onc aversion to the taste of the noltry that reached the marked "off" condition that sales have suffered ever. since is being used as the text of the ,srmon which experts in poultry handling in the department are ,eaching to poultry shippers all over
 the country.
 Shippers agree that the spoilage of dressed poultry during the autumn of 1913 was unparalleled, and that the rest of the year has been, financially, one of the worst on record despite the scarcity of meat. Specialists in the dt ,.ftment consider that the blame rests chiefly upon the man who killed picked, chilled, and packed the poul- try and sent it to market. This man bought the birds alive, hence they were not decayed when he got them. The railroads in general have worked | diligently at their refrigerator lines, and it is well known that shippers who packed their goods properly found the railroad service last autumn sufficient y satisfactory to deliver the product in good order. The receivers of poul- try were hunting for stock that could be sold to a high-class trade-but the inspector did not have to look far for poultry that was absolutely unfit for food.
 The department accompanies it's words of warning with words of ad- vice to the opultry dressers, telling them how to handle the birds to in- sure high quality and a minimum change in composition.
 First The packer, as soon as the birds are received should transfer them to holding batteries" which are really coops so constructed that only few birds are in the same compart- ment. All have an equal chance to get food, each has an abundance of lfesh air, and absolute cleanliness is easily maintained.
 Second. For "A hours before killing ne bird is not fed but is given plen- or celan water. In this way the crop Is emptied and the flavor of the aesn Is improved, as we'll as it's keep ug quality. Of course, the bird does aO' weigh as much emptied of food, 00' It Is peter to be paid for few ltsS pounds of poultry than to re- celve only freight bill.
 lnlrd. Killing should be done by .u''ihg the veins of the neck from .AS'ue the mouth while the bird is suspended by the feet (Circular 61 of
 s bureau of Chemistry gives the ue'alls of how to bleed and to 'a'',i' J; that is loosen the feather 4D'''es so that the birds may be ns picked, not scalded. Ccalded aus s. ;, nave their keeping qualities greatly reduced
 toufth' Holding bird while re- as,'ne the feathers is best accom-
 ,'"'u py the frame" method. The h t.0',u a pest way is what is known as ms., S'ring method and the worst
 1S p..', are the "bench" and "lap." ,;., sn.h' After the birds are bled and moal el the animal heat must be re- is..' The best method of doing so ,.. nang them, head downward, in a a@ ''' having temperature between sh,,,, ana 50 degrees F., where they t,ma u remain for 24 hours. The prea. a'ure must not go above 35 de- uhs.s' nor below 29. and the atmos- nan @ ssn not be depended upon to re- chan;,s",' "''nln these limits, hence me neco..:. reirlgeration is an absolute had ' aa If the packers last season S ,.s 'ered to this one regulation, it in tho ., so assert that the inspectors a lon. z. AeIs would have had to hunt . Ae s t; tune for "green-struck" or Of. ''rus in coludwluoilouodlooloha