SIXTH ANNUAL YEAR BOOK — PART YIII. 579 



GOOD CATTLE ON GOOD LAND. 



JOHN MEHMKEX, DEs MoixEs, lA., in Breeders" Gazette. 



Somebody started the cry, and editors of certain farm and market 

 papers keep on like so many parrots telling us, that land is getting too 

 high to keep cows for the purpose of raising market cattle in the Corn- 

 belt, and it is refreshing to read such editorials as appeared in The Gaz- 

 ette Nov. 30. "A Money-making Herd on the Farm" and "Good Cattle and 

 High priced Land" in your issue of Dec. 14. In my opinion it is just as 

 safe as ever to keep good breeding cattle, providing they are managed 

 right and calves are fattened to be marketed as yearlings. 



In 1903 a neighbor fed a load of Hereford calves and one day I went 

 to look at them; coming back I was aslted by another neighbor what the 

 cattle would weigh and my answer was eleven hundred pounds . He look- 

 ed surprised and said: "I don't mean his two-year-olds; I mean the 

 calves." "Well, that was what I meant, too." They went to market a 

 few days later averaging not quite 18 months in age, crossing the scales 

 at a little over 1,100 pounds, and sold in Chicago for Gi/. cents per pound 

 In November, when thousands of older cattle with little or no more weight 

 sold from 4 to 5 cents. 



If every breeder of pedigreed cattle would encourage breeding more 

 and better calves in his own neighborhood by selling his young bulls at 

 living prices rather than keep looking for somebody to come and take a 

 few at a long price and steer the rest, if must be, he would not only help 

 his neighbors but the trade of the rangeman also, who brings his calves to 

 the Corn-belt, and m turn will take good bulls with him, and so help the 

 breeder. It may sound odd to advise breeding of more calves in the Corn- 

 belt in order to help the trade of the rangeman but neverthless it will 

 have that effect. Panhandle calves find their way into the Corn-belt 

 more and more, slow perhaps but sure, and If buyers will take the fat 

 yearling as readily at good prices in future as they did last season pro- 

 gress will be made much faster. 



Reading your article about "Panhandle Calves in the Corn-belt" in your 

 issue of Nov. 16, last and reports of sales of such calves, it appears to me 

 that Frank Hastings, Judge Nelson and others, while thankful for what 

 progress they are making in gaining new territory for their calves, are 

 not quite satisfied with the result of their late sales and seem to be won- 

 dering why feeders are discriminating against heifers and small steer 

 calves. 



I have studied the situation a good deal and argued with many a feed- 

 er on the merit of fattening calves from a herd of over 60 head of breed- 

 nig cows and heifers as well as feeding a bunch of Hereford calves at pre- 

 sent, together with some yearlings, and have learned many details, which 

 in the nature of things are not easily discovered b^ a rangeman, even if he 

 visits the Corn-belt farms with open eye and ear in order to learn how to 

 improve the trade. I shall be glad that if what I am going to say may 



