260 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE Off. Doc. 



they were not all heifers, a few cows among them. A good fat heifer 

 weighs from 800 to 1,000 pounds as a rule, sometimes they weigh 

 more, but that is the kind Ihey like. I saw three averaging around 

 850 pounds sell the other day for |7.50 per cwt., good and fat. Cow 

 buyers like them to weigh from 1,000 to 1,200 pounds. A really good 

 young smooth cow is worth now around fO.50. If older and full of 

 tallow they don't bring so much money, some of the older ones Avith 

 more fat on them |5.50 @ 5.75, 



Bulls sell well now. Any man who is a good feeder I would be 

 willing to keep in bulls if he would give me his old ones when he is 

 done with them. What excuse is there for not breeding good cattle 

 under those terms? You take an old bull and you can sell him 

 any time between the 1st of January and 1st of June for enough 

 to replace him with a young one. I am talking about those bull 

 calves you can buy for .$75 to !?125 to use on good grade herds. The 

 breeder can sell you a yearling calf to take the place of your old 

 bull for what you get on the market for your old one if you talie 

 care of him. Why are bulls so high? The pure food law has some- 

 thing to do with it, by forbidding the use of coloring matter in 

 bologna. High-colored bull meat is used to get the color into the 

 bologna. I have seen a few bulls sell this winter for $7.25, a whole 

 lot a $6.75 @ 7.00 per cwt. It takes a pretty good steer to bring 

 $8.00. What excuse is there for not having better cattle when we 

 lose nothing on our bulls? 



In regard to the hog market we have another thing in this State 

 ihat is advantageous to the producer. It used to be we had to feed 

 a hog a long time to get him heavy. You don't have to do that now. 

 Y''esterday light hogs sold at the top — $10 a hundred pounds. The 

 hog does not have to be fed so long to get the money out of him. 

 The hogs in the Pittsburg market are graded thus: Heavy hogs, 

 anything of 250 pounds or over and sometimes of 225 pounds or over. 

 Medium weights, hogs of 180 to 200 pounds. Heavy Yorkers, hogs 

 of 160 to 175 pounds, and light Yorkers, 125 to 150 pounds. These 

 hogs are called Yorkers because New Y''ork buyers used to take 

 these weights while Philadelphia buyers took heavy hogs, which 

 were then called Philadelphias. That name has passed away now, 

 as Philadelphia takes light hogs too. Heavy hogs are still taken 

 by Boston and Providence. Then we have pigs, 90 to 110 pounds, 

 which along with light Y''orkers now top the market. One year with 

 another the heavy Yorker or medium-weight hog sells here as well 

 or better than any other. Considering cost of production these 

 lighter hogs make the feeder most money — the younger the hog 

 the cheaper the gain. Another point where the market favors the 

 producer. "Roughs" are fat sows and sell well. Stags are not 

 docked in weight but in price. 



A Member: Why did we run out of hogs? 



MR. BAY^ARD: I think one reason we ran out of hogs is that 

 two years ago the hogs sold below the cost of production and 

 farmers did like all manufacturers do — quit producing them. 



In the sheep market we used to have a big fat wether at the top. 

 Now we are handicapped if we have heavy sheep. In Pittsburg 

 they don't like a sheep of over 100 pounds. I believe we ought to 



