178 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



Ji-XE 6, 1914. 



of this fact, and it is hoped that it will arouse 

 a more general interest in the deficiency. A great 

 deal can be done in the matter of pasture improvement 

 by fencing, the provision of proper shade, the planting 

 of a certain proportion in Guinea grass, and by 

 a system of rotation with arable land every few years. 



The feeding of artificial foodstuffs in proper 

 (juantities is important. Frequently, merely a quantity 

 sufficient for maintenance is given. Under these 

 conditions the animal cannot fatten because the 

 nutriment is all used up in the \vorking of the body, 

 and in maintaining the normal temperature. But as 

 well as sufficient quantity there is the matter of 

 proper proportion. If flesh is required, the ration 

 must contain flesh formers. These are to be got best 

 in such foods as linseed and cotton-seed meal; and the 

 diet for a meat-producing animal should, as a general 

 rule, contain nitrogenous and non-nitrogenous digesti- 

 ble constituents in the ratio of about 1:6. An examin- 

 ation of the ordinary West Indian ration shows that the 

 proportion of non-nitrogenous material is much greater 

 than it ought to be. 



( )f even greater fundamental importance in meat 



production than feeding, is selection. In places where 



there is no big and organized demand for meat, and 



in places like the West Indies where the demand is 



not critical and epicurean, it must be ciinfessed that 



there is no great stimulus for agriculturists whose 



main interests lie in other directions than cattle 



raising, to give a large amount of attention to this 



aspect of ihe subject. But in islands like St. Vincent 



and Nevis, and in a large colony like British 



Guiana where there are special cattle-raising 



industries, some of the fundamentals of selection 



ought to be attended to. It is perhaps too 



much to expect the establishment of beef-producing 



herds, resulting from the careful selection of bulls 



and cows; but more attention might be given to 



the selection of calves, and the possibilities before 



'baby beef. The points of a good feeding calf 



should be looked for — length of back, breadth over 



'oin, deep chest, full eye; ar"" every endeavour made 



■JD see that the most proraieing stock are given 



ths best opportunities. The well-known system of 



'baby beef, of course, consists in forcing from the first 



with the idea of turning out cattle which may be ready 



for the butcher at any age from twelve to eighteen 



months. With proper feeding and attention this 



system allows of a quick turnover of capital and there 



is also a large daily increase in weight. For baby beef 



a special demand can be created depending upon the 



request for small rather than large joints, which ia 

 a hot country, especially, ought to be easily established. 

 But of course this system requires animals of an early 

 maturing strain. In Trinidad and Jamaica, the Bed 

 Polls have shown signs of answering this purpose satis- 

 factorily, though in England, the Shorthorns have been 

 found best. 



Reference has princip.^lly been made to this system 

 of baby beef production to show to what extent feeding 

 and selection can enter into meat production. It is 

 not held that it is necessarily suited to all local 

 conditions, but the idea that something profitable can 

 be achieved through systematic care and attention is 

 worthy of consideration, and, we think, of guarded 

 application. 



Afcer the estate animal is ready for sale, the 

 planter's part in the business of meat production is 

 nearly over. But there is the second phase— the 

 marketing and retailing of the animal, which is of no 

 little concern to the consumer. For a fair price he 

 expects to receive wholesome meat of good qualitj'. 

 To ensure the consumer's rights in this respect there 

 are in most public markets and slaughterhouses 

 well- framed and well-executed regulations for his 

 protection. But this is by no means universal, and 

 even in some of the well-established islands in the 

 West Indies, improvements could be effected in regard 

 to meat inspeciion that would be productive of much 

 benefit. There is first of all the slaughtering of the 

 animals. The old-fashioned and cruel method of 

 'pithing' — driving a knive between the base of the skull 



and the atlas until the spinal cord is severed should 



be abolished and the more humane system of shooting 

 with one of the several patent pistols specially made 

 for this purpose now- on the market, adopted. Then 

 scavengers — dogs, and boys and women in filthy 

 rags — should be debarred from slaughterhouses, and 

 the butchers should be licensed and perfect order and 

 cleanliness enforced. 



In the market itself an efficient s^'stem of meat 

 control is essential. Every market should be under 

 the inspection of a veterinary ofticer. It is true that the 

 more obvious symptoms of diseased carcases induced 

 by the better known diseases can be detected by the 

 trained layman, for example tuberculous lesions, the 

 unclotted blood of anthrax, and tapeworm cvsts. But 

 a professional man is required for diagnosing the 

 doubtful, and for investigating the extreme cases, 

 which in a general way are the commonest and 

 certainly the most important ones. 



