184 THE COMPLETE GRAZIER. BOOK i. 



analyses are given of the mixtures, and of their separate constituents, 

 with several remarks of practical value worthy of being attended to. 

 The opinion of this eminent authority is wholly in favour of the plan 

 introduced by Mr. Jonas, and he expresses the hope that that plan 

 will be used " throughout the length and breadth of the land." As 

 we have already stated, much can be done by the farmer in making the 

 most of the materials he has at command by judicious mixing. 



The system known as " Ensilage," adapted and improved from 

 methods stretching back into dim antiquity in Eastern and Southern 

 Europe, is the latest development in the economy of live-stock 

 management in this country. It consists in storing grass and other 

 green food, in its succulent state, in silos, pits, or stacks, under 

 powerful pressure, to the exclusion of the atmosphere. The system 

 has received a great deal of attention in recent years, not only because 

 it is an alternative to hay-making in wet seasons, but on account of its 

 alleged intrinsic merits. It is to be feared, however, that certain 

 claims have been advanced which cannot well be substantiated, for 

 instance, that well-made silage is superior to the grass or other green 

 food from which it is made, and that rank, inferior grasses, and even 

 various plants spurrey, for example which in an agricultural sense 

 are regarded as weeds, are greatly improved and converted into good 

 food in a silo. Admitting that good silage is a good winter food for 

 stock, when used in moderation, and chiefly because it remains in a 

 soft and easily-digestible condition, it must be borne in mind that both 

 skill and care are required to make the system a success. Those who 

 wish to study the subject may consult Mr. George Fry's book on " Sweet 

 Ensilage," and the Ensilage Society's publications (see, too, page 842). 



The " Live Stock Journal " published a series of reports from 

 representative men embodying some account of their practice, not 

 so much as regards animals intended for show purposes, but rather 

 with reference to the breeding, feeding, and management of cattle of 

 the choicer sorts intended for the butcher. This appears to be an 

 appropriate stage at which to give extracts from some of these, and we 

 select for the purpose the opinions of reliable representatives of half a 

 dozen different counties. 



Mr. Eichard Stratton, The Duffryn, Newport, Monmouthshire, says : 

 " As my business is chiefly Shorthorn breeding and bull selling, com- 

 bined with a large milk trade, I do not make beef to any very large extent, 

 but usually make steers of bad coloured or inferior bull-calves, and 

 occasionally I buy whatever I think likely to pay most money, without 

 regard to breed. In the case of my own bull-calves, they are usually 

 kept on the cow a month or so, then weaned on skim-milk, and occa- 

 sionally with the help of calf meal, kept in a nice growing, healthy 

 state, with a little cake or meal, green food, or hay according to the 

 season, for one year : then good grass for six months, again with cake, 

 roots, &c., to finish off at two years old, when they would weigh about 

 forty scores 800 Ib. I would prefer to have a calf in February or 

 March. Keep it in during the first summer, eating cut grass, &c. ; out 

 next summer on good grass, roots, straw, and 4 Ib. cake. During the 



