228 



iNEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



Trom the Mass. Agriculliiral Repository for January. 



On raising, Jeediiig and Jutttning Cattle^ uho on 

 the iitili'.y and comparuli-cc \alue of the cobs of 

 Indian Corn tc/ie» used ttij/t, or iK^ithuut the 

 grain itself ground or broken. 

 To the Trustets of the Mass. Ajfricultaral Society. 

 Gentlemen, 



In the first place I select my earliest and best 

 calves to raise, 1 let them suck the cow tivelve 

 weeks, which is ray {general rule, eight weeks 

 twice a day and in sufficient quantity to keep 

 them in a growing state, but am careful not to 

 let them get fat. Four weeks longer, once a 

 day, the two last however are allowed to lake 

 but about half the quantity of the two first ; I 

 keep a supply of good hay at their command alt 

 the while, as they will begin to eat when only 

 a few days old, and then turn them out into 

 good feed, without giving them any grain or 

 meal. If i am raising a Bull, Cow or Ox, I 

 would avoid giving them meal or grain; especi- 

 ally the first or second years, as I would a pesti- 

 lence. I begin with a creature so as rise upon 

 the keeping.* In one instance, however, I 

 have followed opposite plan, which tends to 

 confirm me more in my belief In April 1820, 

 1 had an uncommon heifer calf, which 1 set 

 down for a premium calf ; I knew very well 

 what I had got to do to obtain it, viz. to let it 

 take what milk it would through the season 

 and learn it to cat meal, which I did and pre- 

 sented it at the Worcester Fair, and obtained 

 the finst premium. 1 then tried to sell the 

 calf, but could not ; I considered it fil for nothing 

 but the butcher's knife, and in fact not fit for 

 that, it was neither veal nor beef 1 then took 

 it from the cow and put it to better than my 

 usual keeping, but it lost its flesh and has ap- 



Eered rather ordinary ever since, it appears to 

 e crowded out of its natural shajic. If 1 had 

 reared the calf in my usual way I should have 

 expected something extra from her, but I now 

 do not. To return to my mode of increasing 

 their keeping, I give them a little better hay 

 the first winter than the second. I make it my 

 care and attenticm that my cattle do not lose in 

 the winter what they gained in the summer, 

 which is too apt to be the case with some. I 

 feed them as the weather varic?, that ii, in 

 moderate weather they will not require so much, 

 I endeavour to keep my barn tight and warm, 

 I have witnessed with regret, farmers too often 

 let their stocks of cattle remain out all day, 

 through tempestuous stormy days in the winter, 

 until they arc chilled through, which must be 

 ■very injurious, I lake care that my cattle are 

 sheltered from stormy days as much as po:^si- 

 ble. Fattening rattle is an employment which 

 I like. I invariably aim to fat a creature as 

 quick as I can. Every year since I commenced 

 business for myself, which is fifteen, I have 

 made one yoke of oxen good so as to command 

 generally the highest market price; with al- 

 most all those which I have fatted, 1 go through 

 ■with all my spring work then turn them to pas- 

 ture ; in the fall I lay a foundation for giving 

 them meal with green stalks small ears of corn 

 and vegetables of some kind, 1 begin to give 

 meal about the first of December and drive 

 them to market the latter part of January, they 

 generally weigh from 25 to 28 hundred the 



* We presume this mean.", so as to increase the 

 quantity and quality of the food. £J. 



yoke, and from 300 to 330 pound of tallow. 

 I would refer to Mr. Abijah White of Water- 

 town, and Messrs. Davis, Miles and Pierce of 

 Brighton who have generally purchased my 

 beef I give my cattle what meal they will 

 bear ; after I begin, they are allowed an aver- 

 age of three pecks per day for each yoke ; b3' 

 thus doing they will eat but little hay, I turn 

 them out into the yard to lie during the night 

 having a shed to go under at their pleasure 

 which I consider far better than to remain in 

 the barn. The kind of meal I have used for 

 seven years past, almost exclusively for proven- 

 der, is corn and cobs cracked and ground to- 

 gether, which is the best provender I have ev- 

 er made use of for fatting cattle.* The rea- 

 son I consider the cob useful, is, it swells in the 

 creature and keeps him in good order; in no 

 one instance since I have fed with this meal 

 have my cattle been out of order by being cloy- 

 ed or scouring, they are at all times regular, 

 but when I formerly fed with clear Indian or 

 oats and Indian, it was not unfrequent, that 

 their bowels would get out of order, and 1 have 

 had coiisiderable difficulty in regulating them 

 again, they lose two or three days, sometimes 

 a week. When this kind of provender was 

 first introduced in this vicinity it had its oppo- 

 sition like almost all new things, the second 

 year, if I mistake not, which I made use of it, 

 I thought I would try an experiment, as follows, 

 by feeding one ox with corn and oats ground, 

 the other with corn and cobs, having a yoke of 

 oxen so even matched that no one who viewed 

 the cattle appeared satisfied which was the 

 best, accordingly I fed them as above. The 

 cob is computed to make a little more than a 

 third, therefore I mixed the other with one 

 third oats which was my former mode, I gave 

 each ox an equal quantity at a time except that 

 the one that had the corn and oats, some days 

 became dainty, and would not eat his allowance, 

 while the other kept a regular course, the al- 

 lowance for both was little rising three pecks 

 per (lay. When 1 took the cattle to market Mr. 

 A. White bought them, they weighed about 26 

 hundred aad a Iialf, the one fed on corn and 

 oats had 162 pounds of tallow, and weighed 

 about half a hundred more; the one fed on 

 corn and cobs had 163 pounds of tallow and Mr. 

 White pronounced his beef half a dollar on the 

 hundred belter than that of the other mostly 

 on account of the color of the beef. 



In another instance 1 took a yoke of oxen, 

 which had done all my work through the sea- 

 son up to the first of November 1818, on my 

 farm which contains over one hundred acres. 

 They were a good sort of cattle, about mid- 

 dling size, and no more than in good working- 

 order. I then put them to fatting upon the cob 

 and corn meal ; they were fed with nothing 

 but hay, and the corn meal, I turned them in 

 the month of February 1819. Mr. White pur- 

 chased them, their weight was about twenty- 

 four and a half hundred and had almost three 

 hundred pounds of tallow. I have however 

 fatted two creatures a little differently from 

 what I have above described, one was a steer 

 four years old the 10th of February 1821, the 

 first of March following I began to give him 

 this cob and com meal. He had not, previous 



* Wfc are by no means satisfied with the reasons as- 

 signed by Mr. Rice, The facts are what most concern 

 us. EditOT. 



to this, ever been fed with any kind of meal 

 grain or roots, of any kind whatever. 1 gavi 

 him from four to six quarts a day of this mea 

 and nothing else but good feed until the 27th o 

 September, which day I drove him to the Cat 

 tie Show at Worcester, and they awarded m( 

 the first premium on beef, I then drove him t( 

 the Brighton Fair the same year and thei 

 awarded me one of the premiums there on beef 

 I sold him, his weight was 1509 pounds, hac 

 one hundred and fifty-four pounds of tallow, i 

 have another steer four years old the 12th o 

 April last, which I have treated in the same 

 way the past season, I drove him to Worcester 

 the 251h of September of this year, and th( 

 trustees awarded me the second premium oi 

 beef It has been remarked by some well in 

 formed Agriculturalists in this vicinity, that i 

 is not on record at any other Cattle Show ii 

 this state, that the highest premium for bee 

 has been carried by four year old steers, sinc« 

 the Worcester Agricultural Society' was formed 

 There have been four anniversaries, in which 

 have taken the premiums for the best fatted ox 

 for the second best do. for the best milch cow 

 for the best two year old steer, for the bes 

 heifer from one to three years old, and for th< 

 best heifer calf, all of my own raising, and whol 

 lyofthe native breed except the heifer call 

 which is a cross with DejctOiV. I have nov 

 three creatures preparing for the Brightoi 

 market, which I contemplate driving the firs 

 of January, viz. the above mentioned steer 

 will weigh between fifteen and sixteen hun 

 dred slaughtered, as he weighed two thousani 

 alive in September last, and a cow that wi! 

 probably weigh between eleven and twelT 

 hundred slaughtered, and a three year old heil 

 er nearly nine hundred, all of my own raisin; 

 and fatting. Many of my friends are endeav 

 oring to persuade me to keep the above stee 

 anothei season for the Brighton Fair, at pre.' 

 ent I am undetermined. Before I close I woul 

 make a ftw remarks on corn and cobs. M 

 aged father who still survives, upwards c 

 eighty years sf age, who has formerly raise 

 considerable excellent beef from this farm fo 

 the Boston market, since he has witnessed th 

 saving of labor, ^nd seen the effects in fattin; 

 cattle, and hogs, bis ot'tea been heard to sa 

 if he had known this thing when he first con 

 menced business in '.he world, it would ha? 

 saved him two or thrfc<j hundred dollars. Fo 

 my hogs, I mix oats with it, and it answers 

 good purpose, it gets them along as fast as an 

 provender I ever made use of, I see no mate 

 rial difference. It makes excellent fodder fo 

 a horse and is coming very much in fashio 

 for that use. My faith is so great in the ihini 

 I would carry my corn six miles to mill to hi 

 ground in this manner even if I could get i 

 ground in the common way within half a mik 

 I submit these remarks for your disposal an> 

 consideration. ASA RICE, Jr. 



Shrewsbury, 20ih November, 1 822. 



* We conjecture Mr. Rice means the one ivhicl 

 obtained the premium at Worcester. 



On Raising Corn. 



To the Trustees of the Mass. Agricultural Society. 

 Gentlemen, 



There is a high barren hill on my farm, whicl 

 has been improved for a pasture ever since tb< 



