FROVEEDiyoS OF THE FARMERS' i'hVB. 738 



desire to ascertain wliether tlie object can be snceessf'r.llj accom- 

 plished witlicnit prejudice to tlie healtlifidness and hardiness of the 

 herd. AVhat breeds shonkl be nsed in crossinji;, Avhen lierds of one 

 or two tlionsand are ke})t '. From tlie limited ex})erience I have 

 had in this country, I think there is no State east of the Mississippi 

 river that can successfully compete with this territory in growing 

 wool. Our climate for such purposes I regard as unsurpassed ; our 

 grasses are line and nutritious, and make iirst quality hay, which can 

 be put in stack at one dollar and lifty cents per ton, and the range 

 for stoek is practically ludimited. 



Mr. F. D. Curtis. — Span-ish Merino sheep are the best for lai-ge 

 flocks. The coarse wool varieties require cover in winter, and will 

 not do well in large numbers confined in close quarters. A cross of 

 the Merino with South Down will improve the mutton but not the 

 wool. These sheep would be comparatively hardy. Combing wool, 

 the highest priced wool now-a-days, can be obtained by crossing 

 Merino ewes with a pure bred Leicester or Cotswold ram, graded \\\> 

 to three-fourths blood ; but I very much doubt if such sliee^) would 

 be profitable (a\ tlie western plains, as they would not 1)0 so hardy 

 and as easy kept as the pure Merinoes. They would do well in sum- 

 mer, but I should 1)0 afraid of the winter. 



Mu.CH Cows. 



Mr. John W. Temple, Lionville, Pa., wrote to say that during the 

 past season his cows (common) l)rought on an average something more 

 than a net income of $100 each, and lie added: •' We feed about 

 four (piarts meal per day before turning out to i)asture, and then 

 slack ofi" gradually. During the winter we have our milk room 

 heated to a regular, moderate heat by a wood stove, into wliich we 

 put large cliuid<p, wliich cannot be split for other stoves. On one 

 occasion, in this room, I churned a hjt (.>f butter in a common old 

 dasher churn in three and a half minutes, and had excellent butter. 

 We are ])articular to ])ut nothing but cream in cream cans, /. e.^ no 

 milk. Wheat screenings (clean) and rye, mixed with corn and oats, 

 I i)elieve to be the best feed. I am trying potatoes now."' 



Mr. A\^. S. Smedley, Lionville. Ta.. wrote as follows; Aubrey 

 IIotFman, living in an adjoining town>liij), has two cows, great, huge 

 Durhams, from whicii he is making now twenty-tw«,) pounds of butter 

 per week, and from one of wliich, in the summer season, when in 

 her iiush of milk, he has made twenty-one pounds of Initter in seven 



