FEEDING STOCK. 



367 



as possible, (and that is the object of feeders in growing fancy 

 steers and growing them into great oxen ; for beef, we call it, 

 though it is not all beef, because some of it is fancy,) and to rear 

 fancy steers is to grow them as fast as possible and get all the 

 growth in the shortest time. Now here is a definite object in 

 view. You know what you want to do. The question arises, 

 making the best of hay the standard, does it require anything 

 more than the very best of hay? In the first place, bring your, 

 feed up to the standard of the very best hay. You have now got 

 pretty good fearl. But there are some feeders, the men who raise 

 these fancy steers, who are not satisfied there. And it can be 

 carried beyond that, with due defereuce to the gentleman who 

 preceded me, and. you want, in order to grow this animal most 

 rapidly, to give them all the food which goes to make up their 

 growth which they can be made to digest and assimilate. There 

 is where it comes. You want to make them eat the very greatest 

 amount of feed which rapid growth requires that they shall digest 

 and assimilate. Now grass or hay is of so bulky a nature that 

 they cannot do that on grass or hay alone, consequently some more 

 concentratedfood must be fed in connection with that to produce 

 this greatest possible growth. Is there danger in so doing of 

 spoiling your animals ? I answer, no, if your feed is the right 

 kind, but it is very different with a young animal from what is 

 required by a mature animal. There is no danger of spoiling an 

 animal by over-feeding if your feed is of the right kind. 



The writer of " Walks and Talks " in the American Agricultur- 

 ist, says he cooks food for pigs in order to make them eat more 

 and digest more. That is why he cooks food. His argument is 

 there is not much gained from cooking for pigs except by increas- 

 ing their powers of digestion and assimilation. For instance, if 

 you feed only a small quantity they can digest and assimilate that, 

 but if you want them to assimilate a great deal you must perform 

 part of the digestion by artificial cooking If you want any other 

 product besides growth, if you wish milk for instance, you must 

 feed for that, you must feed with that object in view ; and I fully 

 believe that the man who feeds the best receives the most for the 

 food given. 



This last winter I fought battles frequently in going among the 

 farmers, upon this matter. I heard the question very frequently, 

 " Did you see in the agricultural papers that surdi and such a 

 farmer had learned a lesson that was going to be of great value to 



