Farmixg o:sr the Island of Jeksey. 223 



tethered out, beginning at one end of a field; each cow mows 

 her own swath across it. She is moved on once or twice a day 

 according to the size of the grass and makes a clean sweep of 

 everything within reach of her leather rope, which is about 

 twelve feet long. The growth of grass is something wonderful. 

 The cattle feed across these fields six or eight times during the 

 season, and even then portions of the field often gets the start 

 of them and is cut for hay. All the young things are kept in 

 the stables and fed on roots. Mangolds are also fed night and 

 morning to the milch cows that are usually housed during the 

 night. Eoots are probably 75 to 80 per cent, of a cow's feed dur- 

 ing her lifetime on the island. In the winter she gets in addi- 

 tion a little hay, possibly two pounds, night and morning. 

 Not only are these islanders the best and most scientific farmers, 

 but their system of selecting and breeding is also ahead of that 

 of any other community. It has brought to that little island 

 millions of dollars and is likely to continue to do so for genera- 

 tions to come. Nevertheless they are largely without books or 

 education. I doubt if there are over a dozen copies of agricultural 

 papers subscribed for by the farmers on the island. How can 

 their great skill as farmers, breeders and gardeners be accounted 

 for? Their methods in some respects are very primitive and have 

 doubtless been handed down to them from the teachings of pious 

 monks who were said to be very learned men and particularly 

 fond of agriculture. They experimented and taught it to the 

 young men and orphans who were brought under their influence. 

 The ruins of several Dervish temples of great antiquity still re- 

 main as evidence of these priestly orders. While their pupils 

 were kept purposely ignorant of all book learning they profited 

 by the lessons of their learned teachers. This probably is the 

 foundation of their agricultural training, but necessity has been 

 the great teacher. How to feed their ever increasing numbers 

 has been the problem, and this has been accomplished only by 

 keeping the greatest number of cattle making the greatest 

 amount of barnyard and liquid manure, which, as before stated, 

 is made possible by adopting a strict soiling system. 



