BEEF FATTENING. 83 



enough in the cities who are always willing to pay extra for 

 their beef, as there are some who are willing to pay eighty 

 cents a pound for their butter. The gentleman last up says 

 he believes in keeping oxen. This is considered rather a 

 slow team up in our section. We have two or three pairs, 

 and keep them ; but I should not advise a man to keep oxen 

 to do all his farm work, because the condition of things has 

 changed from what it was twenty or thirty years ago. We 

 have got our mowing machines, and we must have horses. 

 If a man can get twenty-five or thirty cents a pound for his 

 butter, there is an assured income ; if he can get a higher 

 price, so much the better. If a man can get a dollar a pound 

 for lambs dressed, such a man wants to raise lambs, if he can. 

 There are such men. Of course if they can get fifteen cents 

 a pound for their beef, as some of them do for their pork, 

 where they have an extra thing, or make people think it is 

 extra, then they can feed beef; but as to trying to do it on 

 these hills here, or by any co-operative plan, I have my 

 doubts about it. But I do not like to see these milk cans 

 standing by the depot, three or four miles away ; I don't 

 believe the milk raisers get over three cents a quart for their 

 milk. They had better turn their attention to making but- 

 ter, and get thirty-five, forty or eighty cents a pound for it, 

 if they can. That is a better way, in my opinion. 



Mr. Smith, of Colerain. There was one remark in the 

 essay which I think needs a little explanation, which I forgot 

 to make before dinner. The essayist made the statement that 

 there was a butcher in Worcester who came up into this pai-t 

 of the county and bought as many fat oxen as he could ; and 

 if he could find a sufficient quantity, he would supply his 

 market with that kind, rather than to use Western or refrige- 

 rator beef. Now, Worcester County people are not a peculiar 

 people, and I do not believe but what they are as selfish as 

 they are in other counties, — particularly butchers. I under- 

 stand they come up here, and they base the price they ofler 

 for this well-fattened, grass-fed or meal-fed beef upon the 

 price for which they can procure the refrigerator beef, and 

 they buy it at that price, or they will not buy it at all. 

 What encouragement is there for the farmer to raise it, 

 admitting that it is much superior ? The butchers buy it as 



