Advantages of Soiling. 65 



feeding, fresh air, and kind attention. The skilful 

 feeder has here an opportunity to observe the wants 

 of each animal, and may always supply them. 



" There must be no standing still if a steer is to gain 

 two pounds for every day of its age up to 900 days. 

 German and French beef growers adopt largely a 

 strict soiling system, and produce a higher average 

 weight at a given age, than any pasturing people 

 has attained. 



" Soiling also offers the opportunity of doing the 

 principal fattening in warm weather, when not more 

 than seventy-five per cent, of the food is required to 

 make the same gain as in winter. We tested the 

 comparative effect of soiling and pasturing on the 

 same class of animals, by putting five two-year-old 

 steers and heifers, weighing 4,500 lb., into a good 

 pasture, while five of the same age and condition, 

 weighing 4,450 lb., were soiled, with exercise in a 

 small yard, and at the end of four months, while 

 those in pasture had gained 625 lb., the five soiled 

 had gained 75olb., with nothing but green soiling 

 food, making the two lots equal in kind of food. 

 The pasture, although good and abundant when 

 the experiment began, did not continue through- 

 out equally good on account of dry weather, while 

 the soiling food was given in equal abundance to the 

 end." 



Mr. Brown, of Mankle, Scotland, tried the com- 

 parative merits of soiling and pasturing in fattening 

 forty -eight steers equally divided. The twenty-four 

 soiled brought ^"377, and the twenty-four pastured 

 5 



