onion, 2 or three small carrots, 1 blade of pounded mace, pepper and
salt to taste, 1 small bunch of savoury herbs, thickening of butter and
flour, 1-1/2 tablespoonful of mushroom ketchup.
_Mode_.--Cut off the best joints from the fowl, and the remainder make
into gravy, by adding to the bones and trimmings a pint of water, an
onion sliced and fried of a nice brown, the carrots, mace, seasoning,
and herbs. Let these stew gently for 1-1/2 hour, strain the liquor, and
thicken with a little flour and butter. Lay in the fowl, thoroughly warm
it through, add the ketchup, and garnish with sippets of toasted bread.
_Time_.--Altogether 1-3/4 hour.
_Average cost_, exclusive of the cold fowl, 4d.
_Seasonable_ at any time.
SKIN-DISEASE IN FOWLS.--Skin-disease is, nine times out of ten,
caused by the feathers being swarmed by parasites. Poor feeding
will induce this, even if cleanliness be observed;
uncleanliness, however liberal the bill of fare, will be taken
as an invitation by the little biting pests, and heartily
responded to. Mix half a teaspoonful of hydro-oxalic acid with
twelve teaspoonfuls of water,--apply to the itching parts with
an old shaving-brush.
OBSTRUCTION OF THE CROP.--Obstruction of the crop is occasioned
by weakness or greediness. You may know when a bird is so
afflicted by his crop being distended almost to bursting.
Mowbray tells of a hen of his in this predicament; when the crop
was opened, a quantity of new beans were discovered in a state
of vegetation. The crop should be slit from the _bottom_ to the
_top_ with a sharp pair of scissors, the contents taken out, and
the slit sewed up again with line white thread.
MINCED FOWL--an Entree (Cold Meat Cookery).