THE GEK"ESEE FARMER. 



47 



AN INTEKESTING LETTER FKOM COL. WAEE, OF 

 VniGINIA. 



Messrs. Editors : — In your Apri] number, page 

 106, you say, "The editor of the Southern Planter 

 states that several instaHces have been brought to 

 bis notice where cattle have died from eating corn 

 stalks that had been chewed by hogs. Have any 

 of our readers observed the sftme effect?" This, 

 the Valley of Virginia, is a stock-growing country, 

 and it is usual to cut up oitr corn green, (after the 

 stubble is exhausted, toward seeding time,) to feed 

 to hogs to keep them growing and fattening until 

 penned. They not only consume the corn, but 

 ■chew up all the stalks, extraet the substance, and 

 drop the balance. It has been known, ever since 

 we adopted this plan, that if the cattle swallow this 

 refuse of the chewed stalks, it would certainly 

 cause their death, and therefore put it beyond their 

 reach. 



Again, page 131 : "The duty of kindness to do- 

 mestic animals." There is no diversity of opinion, 

 among humane persons, on that subject ; but is not 

 kindness to animals the interest of their owners ? 

 As to the horse, I presume all tamers of wild 

 horses accomplish their purpose as effectually (if 

 not more so) by kindness as by any other course. 

 Ton can not tame them properly by the lash. 

 Whip a horse into submission, and whenever any- 

 thing unusual occurs he looks for the whip, and is 

 at once for clearing himself of danger by the use 

 of his heels, and many times lives are endangered 

 if not lost by it. On the contrary, a horse broken 

 by uniform and patient kindness, gives his owner 

 his confidence ; and when anything unusual occurs, 

 he quietly and patiently awaits his owner's voice. 

 I have proved this very effectually with the high- 

 mettled blooded horse. "With all animals, the 

 ■tamer yon keep them the faster they will thrive. 

 You can not get them tame without obtaining 

 their confidence, end that you can not get without 

 kindness. Cattle, all graziers know, will travel 

 less and ruminate more, if so tame that you can 

 approach and handle them without disturbing their 

 repose, and consequently will thrive faster on the 

 same food than if wild. "Wish hogs, who, among 

 their raisers and feeders, does not know that such 

 as he can approach and rub and handle, and that 

 quietly fill themselves and lie down and rest, will 

 fatten infinitely faster than hogs wild with fear, 

 that run at the approach of man. Sheep, it is well 

 known, thrive infinitely faster when so tame that 

 they can be approached and handled in the open 

 field, and will lose the habit of jumping up and 

 running when dogs come into the field, and be in- 

 finitely more safe from their destructive tendency, 

 and do better in every way. 



Again : " Are sheep or hogs the roost profitable 

 Bto&k to fatten ?" I am inclined to think neither 

 are profitable, if not of the right kind. If both are, 

 I say sheep. They both can be brought to maturity 

 in early life. All must agree that the hog is the 

 most troublesome animal on the farm, and requires, 

 I contend, incalculably more grain to mature and 

 and prepare him for slaughter. The grain required 

 fco fatten one hog would be sufficient to raise and 

 atten several sheep. But in selecting the kind of 

 heep to fatten^ a judicious farmer would hardly 

 jk)ok for any other than the mutton sheep — would 



rdly look for the fine-wooled sheep to fatten for 



market by way of profit. Of all sheep, I prefer tbe 

 Cotswold, from experience. They mature early, 

 are large, hardy, and take on fat easy. During the 

 summer and fall that they are one year old, (not 

 fed on grain,) no mutton can be more delicately 

 flavored, juicy, and tender. Over two years old, 

 many muttons are better, as they then tallow too 

 heavily for the appetite ; but the butcher will then 

 give almost any price for them ; and Vhat prudent 

 man wishes to keep muttons to four years old, 

 when he can sell them at one year old at much 

 better prices than any other sheep at four ? I have 

 rarely, if ever, sold ray muttons of this breed, tbe 

 fall after one year old, under $10 each, and hav* 

 sold older ones much higher ; and never sold them, 

 at the same age, under $8 each without having fed 

 grain at all ; and the fleece amply pays the keep. 

 Can any breed of hogs show such cUar profit and 

 in so short time ? and they have no wool to pay 

 cost of keep. To meet any objection as to the 

 danger of their loss by dogs, I will say I have had 

 this breed some years in its purity, having always 

 imported the sheep that won the high prizes of th* 

 Royal Agricultural Society of England, and har* 

 never lost a thoroi7gh-bed by dogs. They ar« 

 large, heavy, sluggish sheep, with great aptitud>e to 

 take on fat ; they fill themselves and lie down and 

 ruminate like cattle, and do not jump up and run 

 when anything comes into the field. It is to this 

 1 ascribe their safety from dogs, as dogs are not apt 

 to seize anything that does not run from them. 

 But I believe that if common sheep were in the 

 same ■pasture, their running would induce Cots- 

 wolds to do so too; and being bad runners, fro» 

 their weight and sluggishness, the dogs would >>© 

 most likely to kill the Ootswolds first. 



"Pasturing sheep in orchards." I think this 

 would be hazardous, if they trees were of any value, 

 they are -so apt to bark them, unless the bark was 

 always coated with something offensive to tbe 

 sheep. josiAH wm. wake. 



Near B^rryviUe, Cla/rk Co., Va., Dae, 186.S. 



PROGRESS OF AGRICTILTURE AND HORTICTILTURB. 



Editors Genesee Farmer: — It is now eighteen 

 years since I came to this country, and during that 

 time I have watched the progress of agriculture 

 and horticulture, and notice a vast improvement in 

 both. The farmers are finding that deep plowing; 

 and thorough draining are most essential to good 

 husbandry. There is also more attention paid to 

 the accumulation of the manure heap. Root crops 

 and green food are also receiving some attention. 



I would like to see more attention paid to the 

 cultivation of carrots and mangel wurzel for feed- 

 ing to cattle. I have grown carrots for &event-e«n 

 years, and find that they pay well at twenty cents 

 per bushel. I have cultivated the mangel wurz<>l 

 for four years, with good success. This year I 

 tried a portion of the ground with the Yellow GUhe 

 mangel, and they turned out v«i"y fine. Six of th« 

 largest weighed over 62 lbs. I had over 900 bush- 

 els per acre. They were grown on ground that was 

 considered worthless a few years since, being a j>or- 

 tion of land from which clay and sand for making 

 bricks had been taken. When I commenced level- 

 ing and draining it, my employer said " it woixld 

 not pay ;" but now it is the best land we have. 



Tray, N. Y. JOSEPH CALDWELL. 



