The best chickens have soft yellow feet, short thick legs, smooth, moist skin and plump breast; the cartilage on the end of the breast bone is soft and pliable. Pin feathers always indicate a young bird and long hairs an older one. All poultry should be dressed as soon as killed. Cut off the head, and if the fowl is to be roasted, slip the skin back from the neck and cut the neck off close to the body, leaving skin enough to fold over on the back. Remove the windpipe, pull the crop away from the skin on the neck and breast, and cut off close to the opening in the body. Cut through the skin about 2 inches below the leg joint, bend the leg at the cut by pressing it on the edge of the table and break off the bone. Then pull out the tendon. If care be taken to cut only through the skin, these cords may be pulled out easily, one at a time, with the fingers; or by putting the foot of the fowl against the casing of a door, then shut the door tightly and pull on the leg. The drum stick of a roast chicken or turkey is greatly improved by removing the tendons. Cut out the oil bag in the tail, make an incision near the vent, insert two fingers, keeping the fingers up close to the breast bone until you can reach in beyond the liver and heart, and loosen on either side down toward the back. Draw everything out carefully. See that the kidneys and lungs are not left in, and be very careful not to break any of the intestines. When the fowl has been cleaned carefully it will not require much washing. Rinse out the inside quickly and wipe dry. In stuffing and trussing a fowl, place the fowl in a bowl and put the stuffing in at the neck, fill out the breast until plump. Then draw the neck skin together at the ends and sew it over on the back. Put the remainder of the stuffing into the body at the other opening and sew with coarse thread or fine twine. Draw the thighs up close to the body and tie the legs over the tail firmly with twine. Put a long skewer through the thigh into the body and out through the opposite thigh, turn the tips of the wings under the back of the fowl, put a long skewer through from one wing to the other. Wind a string from the tail to the skewer in the thigh, then up to the one in the wing across the back to the other wing, then down to the opposite side and tie firmly round the tail. If you have no skewers, the fowl may be kept in shape by tying carefully with twine. Clean all the giblets, cut away all that looks green near the gall bladder, open the gizzard and remove the inner lining without breaking. Put the gizzard, heart, liver, and the piece of neck which has been cut off, into cold water, wash carefully, put in a saucepan, cover with cold water, place on the back of the stove and simmer till tender. Use the liquid for making the gravy; the meat may be chopped and used for giblet soup. ROAST CHICKEN (OR TURKEY).