20 SUCCESSFUL FARMING 



keep them in herds of small units, not more than 20 or 30, as protection 

 against cholera. More recently, of course, methods of control have been 

 developed, which, if properly administered, hold the disease in check. 



Products Cannot be Indefinitely Held. The holding of livestock for 

 a considerable time after reaching the proper stage of fattening for the 

 market entails considerable loss. It may sometimes result in actual 

 decrease in quality with little or no increase in weight, and a loss of both 

 food and labor for maintenance. In this respect livestock for meat is 

 sharply contrasted with wheat and some other cereals that may be held 

 almost indefinitely with very little deterioration. It is true that the 

 development of better markets, systems of cold storage and methods of 

 preserving meat have lessened somewhat this .difficulty. 



Crop Failures may Cause Loss on Livestock. A low production for 

 the staple crops used largely for livestock food results in a marked advance 

 in price. This frequently causes a loss to the farmer on his livestock. 

 This is especially true in case of swine that depend so largely on concen- 

 trates for their production. A decrease of one-quarter in the yield of a 

 staple crop for the whole country often causes an increase in price so marked 

 that if the whole crop were sold it would bring more than a normal crop 

 or an extra large one. Since, however, so large a percentage of the crop 

 is fed, this does not mean much to the farmer unless there is a correspond- 

 ing increase in price of meat animals. A number of instances may be 

 cited whan a marked advance in price of corn without a corresponding 

 advance in hogs has induced farmers to sell their hogs before fully 

 ready for market, thus causing the hog market to decline in the face of 

 advancing prices on corn. This condition once under way will often con- 

 tinue for a full year before normal prices again prevail. 



The advantages and disadvantages of keeping livestock have been 

 presented without prejudice, and it must be apparent that the advantages 

 seem to outweigh the disadvantages, especially from the standpoint of 

 permanent systems of agriculture. It is, of course, recognized that with 

 increasing population there should be a tendency for people to depend 

 more and more upon the direct products of the soil in the form of cereals, 

 vegetables and fruits rather than to depend so largely upon animal prod- 

 ucts; and doubtless the increase in land values and high prices of animal 

 products will gradually tend in this direction. 



