The picker seats himself in the chair, with the bird in his lap, its head held firmly between one knee and the box. The sooner he gets at it the better, and if he is smart he will have the bird well plucked by the time life is extinct. The feathers should be carefully sorted while picking; the wing and tail-feathers and pins thrown away and the body feathers, with the down, thrown into the box. Care should be taken about this, as the feathers are no mean source of income, and will always pay for the picking. A dull knife should be used in connection with the thumb in removing the long pins, and, in fact, all that can be removed without tearing the skin. The down can usually be rubbed off by slightly moistening the hand and holding the skin tight. As there are often some pins which cannot be taken out without tearing and disfiguring the skin, and some down that will not rub off, they must be shaved off. A knife should be kept for the purpose. This knife should be made of the finest oil-tempered steel, and must be sharper than the best razor. The tops of the wings should be left on, and the bird picked half way down the neck. The bird should not be drawn nor the head removed. All this is in reality done in much shorter time than is required to describe it. The expert performs his duties mechanically. The feathers actually seem to stick to his fingers, and he will in seven minutes pick a duck in far better shape than a novice would in an hour. The bird on being picked, should, after the blood is washed carefully from the head, be thrown into a barrel or tank of floating ice. It will harden up so that its rotundity of outline will be preserved.
This method is far better than that practiced by some parties, who pack their birds in ice at once, where the bodies are compressed into all manner of shapes and harden up in that position, and never again can acquire that attractive appearance and rounded outline which a well-fattened duckling should present. After the birds are hardened they should be packed close in light boxes, back down, with the head under the wing, and if your market is within twelve hours ride, can be safely shipped without ice, and they will always arrive in good condition. Dealers like to have them come in this way, they look so much nicer and are far more saleable.
I have boxes for the purpose, of different sizes, holding, when closely packed, twelve, eighteen and thirty-six pairs of birds. These boxes are light, made of five-eighth inch pine, are strongly cleated at the corners and ends, and are fitted with hinged covers, fastened down with clasps and screws. I find this much the best way, as the birds always preserve their shape and arrive in good condition, while express companies return the empty boxes free, and when they "get the hang of it" soon learn to deliver promptly and handle carefully.
How to Ship Poultry.
In shipping poultry the first thing the young poulterer should do is to establish a reputation among the first-class dealers in his vicinity. This can only be done by shipping first-class stock. Never kill a bird unless it is in good condition. Pick and dress them neatly, box them carefully, and they will always command a good price and a ready sale; while equally as good stock, slovenly and carelessly thrown together, will go begging. I have often seen good stock cut several cents per pound, owing to the shipper's carelessness.
A prominent dealer in Boston said to me one day, pointing to a barrel of poultry, "The man who shipped that stuff is a fool! Look here!" He opened the barrel,—it was half full of ducks fairly well fatted and picked. But how those ducks looked. The shipper had evidently thrown those birds in head first, or any way to suit, and then had thrown a lot of ice on the top. The barrel not being very clean, he had introduced blue paper between the ducks and barrel. The ice had melted, the barrel had been capsized repeatedly during transit, and the paper had been completely disintegrated. It was stuck all over the ducks in little patches and rubbed in, while the birds had acquired a fine tint of blue that would have done credit to a laundryman.
"There," said the dealer, "I shall have to cut that man four cents per pound." If occasionally you should have poor stock always ship it by itself, and notify your dealer of its quality. He will know it soon enough without you telling him, but, at the same time, he will know that you are not trying to put a poor article on him for a good one. One or two pairs of poor birds in a box of good ones will often affect the price of the whole. Never pack a bird till after the animal heat is out. By a close observance of the above, the time will soon come when you will have no trouble in selling your stock. You will have more orders than you will be able to fill.