LIVE STOCK. 239 



mits of many exceptions. It is of c^reat importance, in tating a farm, 

 to calculate the extent of the arable land, so that it can be properly 

 cultivated by a certain number of pairs of horses or oxen. It is an old 

 measure of land to divide it into so many plows, that is, so many por- 

 tions which can be tilled with one plow each. When there are sev- 

 eral of these, it is useful to have an odd horse over the usual number 

 required for two or three plows, to relieve the others occasionally. 

 The work is thus done more regularly and with greater ease. Where 

 there are two plows with two horses each, a fifth horse should be 

 kept, and so in proportion for a greater number. The odd horse will 

 always be found extremely useful, if not indispensable, and the expense 

 of his keep will be amply repaid by the regularity and ease with which 

 the whole work of the farm will be done, and the relief which occasional 

 rest will give to the other horses. 



The other part of the live-stock kept on a farm must'depend on va- 

 rious circumstances. Where there is good grazing land, the profit on 

 the improvement of the live-stock, or their produce, is evident and easily 

 ascertained. But where animals are kept upon artificial food or fatted 

 in stalls, it is often a difficult question to answer, whether there is a 

 profit on their keep or not. In most cases the manure which their dung 

 and litter aff"ord is the chief object for which they are kept. If manure 

 could be obtained in sufficient quantities to recruit the land, at a rea- 

 sonable price, it might often be more advantageous to sell off all the 

 hay and straw of a farm, and to keep only the cattle necessary to till 

 the ground or supply the farmer's family. But this can only be the 

 case in the immediate neighborhood of large towns. In the country at 

 a greater distance no manure can be purchased ; it must consequently 

 be produced on the farm; and for this purpose live-stock must be kept, 

 even at a loss. The management and feeding of live-stock is therefore 

 an important part of husbandry. The object of the farmer is princi- 

 pally to obtain manure for his land, and if he can do this, and at tlie 

 same time gain something on the stock by which it is obtained, he 

 greatly increases his profits. Hence much more skill has been dis- 

 played in the selection of profitable stock than in the improvement of 

 tillage. Some men have made great profits by improving the breed of 

 cattle and sheep, by selecting the animals which will fatten most readi- 

 ly, and by feeding them economically. It requires much experience and 

 nice calculations to ascertain what stock is most profitable on different 

 kinds of land and in various situations. Unless very minute accounts 

 be kept, the result can never be exactly known. It is not always the 

 beast which brings most money in the market that has been most profit- 

 able ; and many an animal which has been praised and admired has 

 caused a heavy loss to the feeder. Unless a man breeds the animals 

 which are to be fatted, he must frequently buy and sell; and an accu- 

 rate knowledge of the qualities of live-stock and their value, both lean 

 and fat, is indispensable. However honest may be the salesman he 

 may employ, he cannot expect him to feel the same interest in a pur- 

 chase or sale, for which he is paid his commission, as the person whose 

 profit or loss depends on a judicious selection and a good bargain. 

 Every farmer therefore should endeavor to acquire a thorough knowl- 



