330 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE Off. Doc. 



beef trust, the railroad corporation, the butcher and all down the 

 line even to the livestock breeder, who is quite sure is getting rich 

 too quick. 



The condition is alarming; what is the remedy? Animal hus- 

 bandry and agriculture are indissolubly linked with national pros- 

 perity. We must replenish our herds from within our own borders. 

 No other source is available. In the beginning we must retain for 

 breeding purposes all suitable females, and use sires of good blood 

 and feed generously. Breed and feed are as inseparable as were 

 the Siamese twins. Our herds and flocks can only be replenished 

 by Nature's slow process, and an expert sent by the United States 

 Department reports that not before 10 years can beef production 

 become normal. Save the innocents and care for them until they 

 reach a reasonable degree of maturity, not selling pigs as roasters 

 but as more mature animals. A neighbor had a sow that produced 

 ten pigs; another had one which produced twenty -four at one birth, 

 but that is another story. The ten pigs were sold as roasters at 

 eight to ten weeks old for |30 or an average of |3.00 each. Had 

 these pigs been kept approximately one year old, either one of them 

 should have produced as much meat as the ten roasters and would 

 have sold for as much money, and would have paid a good profit 

 on the feed consumed. Lambs are sold, when weighing from forty 

 to eighty pounds. They should be ke])t one year longer and the best 

 ewe lambs retained as breeders. And the culls and wethers sold 

 furnishing a much greater quantity of meat, and having paid a good 

 profit on feed consumed. Calves of the beef breeds and their grades 

 should be kept until maturity, Avhen they will furnish many times as 

 much meat as will veals, and will pay a good profit on feed con- 

 sumed. I have not counted the labor for caring for the stock, as 

 any farmer who wishes to retain fertility on his farm will furnish 

 the labor for the manure for the feed consumed. 



It is essential to success that only pure bred males be used and 

 these should be of individual excellence coupled with a good pedi- 

 gree. The choice of a breed is a matter of individual preference and 

 environment. In many cases environment is the controlling factor. 

 There is no best breed. There is no battle of the breeds. There is 

 no conflict between breeders of the Jersey and Guernsey and Hol- 

 stein, of Angus and Hereford and Short-horn cattle. There is no 

 conflict between breeders of long wool, medium wool or merino 

 sheep. No conflict between breeders of black hogs and white hogs. 

 Let us then as breeders of livestock, not in conflict with one another, 

 but in solid phalanx, shoulder to shoulder, make one grand efl'ort 

 in a war of extermination against the scrubs. 



The future looks bright to the livestock breeders in Pennsylvania. 

 Success depends on his efforts. A vast population must be fed. Penn- 

 sylvania has, within her borders, resources sufficient to meet the 

 demand. May the farmers and livestock breeders of the Keystone 

 State seize this opportunity and secure for themselves millions in 

 money and largely increased fertility for their farms. 



