The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1914-01-18
'GOIHAMITES BUY
Land WITHBIRDS
New Workers Ask Aid Of the
Agricultural Department
In Their Dilemma.
GRAVEL IN CHICKENS
Is Made that Poultry Men
Stuff Fowls to Make Up
Weight.

From l5O,UuG 10 oU,Vo pOunuS OF bdnu
and rock anI other weishty material are
sold weekly 20 New York people in poul-
try, according to the Greater New York
Live Poult,y Dealers Protective Asso-
citation. As a result of this practice.
Abraham Ioewenstein, secretary Of the
association: +. b. Goodman. special IN
vestigator, ard Herman Fleck, an inspec-
tor OF the association. appeared yester-
day morning before the Office of markets.
and asked thai the Department OF Agri-
culture taxi steps to stop this practice
among shippers of live poultry.
The representatives of the association
brought with them large number OF
chickens which had been "sanded'' and
otherwise stuffed by special feeding to
add to their market weight They also
brought SAMPLES of the sanded food OBJ
tanned from :he car in which the chickens
were shipped. This weighing food con-
sisted of a paste. composed o. two hands
full Of wheat middlings, one handful of
sand and c'arsc gravel. and one handful
of meal According 70 these men the
chickens are starved for twenty-four
hours before the time Of their arrival in
New York City.
Two or three hours before they are sold
this paste. made up o. sand, stone. and
gravel. is fed to them. The chickens eat
1t greedily anC II is Of such a nature that
III
tic-like mass that cannot be digested for
several DAYS. 1t acts in such a way that
the chicken then cannos eat normal food.
and consequently loses weight from star
walton while l. is kept by those who buy
it from .he shipper.
Heads Bowed Down.
Several % the chickens had crops as
large as good-sizeG orange, which
showed plainly after they were dressed.
They. however. do no. show so plainly
before the feathers are picked. and these
chickens are sold usually unpicked and
then slaughtered.
Some of the chickens were so weighted.
and with such distended crops. that the
poultry dealers said that wher they were
alive they had to bend their heads over
on account OF the weight According to
the poultryIen. the weekly shipment of
live chickens to New York ranges from
100000 to 100000 pounds. Indications
are that this feeding adds an illesitimate
weight amounting TO Is per cent of the
total weight II the chicken.
The poultTymcn state they are forced
to take the chickens as they come and
sell them. Tut that there is loss and no
profit to them from the weighing. The
Jewish and Italian women and the Chin
ESQ., who are the chief BUYERS OF live
chickens. have grown wise to the prac-
tice. and require the poultrymen to make
concessions in the case Of chickens with
prominent crops
In addition. the poultrymen state, that
as they have TO keep the stuffed chick
ems alive for ss-cral DAYS, and the chick
ems cannot eat owing to the solid mass
in their cro"s. they lose all falIins-or in
weight of me chicken.
Department to Aid.
The practice is possible in New York
for the reason that /. is the only city
which has no regulations prohibiting the
feeding of chickens within twerty-fOUr
hours before they are sold for killing.
The poultry men. however. believe that
shippers she uld be prohibited from using
this sand. gravel. and food paste even
prior TO twenty-four hours, because it
weights the chicken and causes loss in
net weight while ii is being kept for
killing.
To stop these practices the poultry
mems association state that they have in
connection with the Humane Society
caused five persons engaged in weighing
poultry in New York railroad yards TO he
brought before magistrates by the Cruel
ty TO Animals Association. OF these three
have been neld for special sessions, and
two have asked for adjournment. Ono
arrest was made in Hudson County for
similar practices in the New Jersey rail-
road yards and the justice of the peace
in Hoboken fineG the defendant 800 and
costs.
The Department OF Agriculture has
promised - investigate this matter and
also to take up the osuestion of proper
feeding of chickens in transit. In this
work the Ofios of Markets and the Di-
vision of Animal Husbandry will cooper