Capons have ever been esteemed among the greatest delicacies of the
table; and are made by the extirpation of the reproductive organs in
male fowls. If a cock, when young, is emasculated, a remarkable change
takes place in him. His natural fierceness is calmed; he becomes placid
and peaceful; his pugnacity has deserted him; he no longer seeks the
company of the hens; he loses his previous strong, shrill voice; he
grows to a far larger size than he would otherwise have done, having
nothing to interfere with the main business of his life--to eat, drink,
sleep, and get fat as speedily as possible; his flesh is peculiarly
white, firm and succulent; and even the fat is perfectly destitute of
rankness. The capon may, also, by a little management be converted into
an admirable nurse. Some assert that caponized cocks are never afterward
subject to the natural process of moulting; but this is denied by
others.
The art has been practised from the earliest antiquity, in Greece,
India, and China, for the purpose of improving the flesh of birds for
the table, in tenderness, juiciness, and flavor. It is extensively
performed in the great poultry-breeding districts of England; but in
this country it is by no means so generally practised as would naturally
be expected.
The instruments most approved by skilful operators consist of two five
or seven-pound weights for confining the fowl; a scalpel, for cutting
open the thin skin enveloping the testicles; a silver retractor, for
stretching open the wound sufficiently wide for operating within; a pair
of spring forceps--with a sharp, cutting edge, resembling that of a
chisel, having a level half an inch in its greatest width--for making
the incision, and securing the thin membrane; a spoon-shaped instrument,
with a sharp hook at one end, for pushing and removing the testicles,
adjusting the loop, and assisting in tearing open the tender covering;
and a double silver canula, for containing the two ends of horse-hair,
or fibre, constituting the loop. The expense of these instruments is in
the neighborhood of six dollars. A cheap penknife may be used instead of
the scalpel; and the other instruments may be obtained of a cheaper
construction--the whole not costing more than half the above-named
amount.
The cockerel intended for capons should be of the largest breeds, as the
Dorking, Cochin China, or the Great Malay. They may be operated upon at
any time after they are a month old; the age of from two to three months
is considered preferable. If possible, it should be done before July; as
capons made later never prove so fine.
The fowl should be confined to a table or board, by laying him with the
left side downward, the wings drawn behind the rump, the legs extended
backward, with the upper one farthest drawn out, and the head and neck
left perfectly free. The feathers are next to be plucked from the right
side, near the hip-joint, on a line with, and between the joint of the
shoulder. The space uncovered may be from an inch to an inch and a half
in diameter, according to the size of the bird. After drawing off the
skin from the part, backward--so that, when left to itself after the
operation is completed, it will cover the wound in the flesh--make an
incision with the bevel-edged knife, at the end of the forceps, between
the last two ribs, commencing about an inch from the back-bone, and
extending it obliquely downward, from an inch to an inch and a half,
cutting just deep enough to separate the ribs, taking due care not to
wound the intestines.
Next, adjust and apply the retractor by means of the small thumb-screw,
and stretch the wound sufficiently wide apart to afford room for an
examination of the organs to be removed. Then, with the scalpel, or a
sharp penknife, carefully cut open the skin, or membrane, covering the
intestines, which, if not sufficiently drawn up, in consequence of the
previous confinement, may be pushed forward toward the breast-bone, by
means of the bowl of the spoon-shaped instrument, or--what would answer
equally well--with the handle of a tea-spoon.
As the testicles are exposed to view, they will be found connected with
the back and sides by a thin membrane, or skin, passing over them. This
covering must then be seized with the forceps, and torn open with the
sharp-pointed hook at the small end of the spoon-shaped instrument;
after which the bowl of the spoon must be introduced, with the left
hand, under the lower or left testicle, which is, generally, a little
nearer to the rump than the right one. Then take the double canula,
adjust the hair-loop, and, with the right hand, pass the loop over the
small hooked end of the spoon, running it down under the bowl of the
spoon containing the testicle, so as to bring the loop to act upon the
parts which connect the testicle to the back. By drawing the ends of the
hair-loop backward and forward, and at the same time pushing the lower
end of the tube, or canula, toward the rump of the fowl, the cord or
fastening of the testicle is severed.
A similar process is then to be repeated with the uppermost or right
testicle; after which, any remains of the testicles, together with the
blood at or around the bottom of the wound, must be scooped out with the
bowl of the spoon. The left testicle is first cut out, in order to
prevent the blood which may issue from covering the one remaining, and
so rendering it more difficult to be seen. The operation, if skilfully
done, occupies but a few moments; when the skin of the fowl should be
drawn over the wound with the retractor, and the wound covered with the
feathers that were plucked off at the commencement.
In some fowls, the fore part of the thigh covers the two hindmost ribs;
in which case, care must be taken to draw the fleshy part of the thigh
well back, to prevent it from being cut; since, otherwise, the operation
might lame the fowl, or even cause its death.
For loops, nothing answers better than the fibre of a cocoa-nut husk,
which is rough, and readily separates the testicles by sawing. The next
best substance is the hair of a horse's mane or tail.
After the operation, the bird may be placed in a warm house, where there
are no perches; since if such appliances are present, the newly-made
capon will very probably injure himself in his attempts to perch. For
about a week, the food should be soft, meal porridge, and that in small
quantities, alternated with bread steeped in milk; he may be given as
much pure water as he will drink, it being best to use it in a tepid
state, or at least with the chill taken off. At the end of a week, or
ten days, at most, the fowl, if previously of a sound, vigorous
constitution, will be all right, and may be turned out with the others.
The usual method, in France, of making _poulardes_, or hen-capons, as
they are sometimes improperly designated, is to extirpate the
egg-cluster, or _ovarium_, in the same manner as the testicles are
extracted from the cockerel; but it is quite sufficient merely to cut
across the oviduct, or egg-tube, with a sharp knife. Otherwise, they may
be treated in the same manner as the capons. Capons are fattened in
precisely the same manner as other fowls.