450 
THE AGRICULTURAL GAZETTE. 
[Jury 4, 
same number during winter.* 
do'this would .be'worth at least 20 dollars per 
The average price of sheep, immediately after s 
has. not been far from 1 dol..25 cts. per head ; 
the same time 75 cente. The average annus 
in lambs is probably not far from 80 per cent.; or 
where the number of lambs is less by reason of the 
number of wethers in the flock, the growth: of the latter 
would give-a corresponding profit. 
The profit and loss account, then, with 100 sheep, 
would stand thus :— 
aere.T 
ing, 
bs at 
dollars per acre 
5 acres of above 
y y two per ce 
value of pulled wool .. 
ur of foddering during winter 
TTossalt, tar, and summ 
To interest on winter shelter 
e x vs 
(worth, say 25 dols.) 
Dols 
On. 
pounds wool, at 31 1-16 cents. per pound 62 12 
By 80 lamb "bypefhdnd us. eMe 00$ 80 
By mauure ws a »* . el vert BOO! 
Balance Dols. 
Making a net profit of 1 dol. 79 17-30 cts, per acre 
on lands worth 20 dollars. 
Now, 100 acres of cleared land of above quality (and 
this would at least equal the average in the southern 
section of New York) would support 333 1-3 sheep, and 
give an income of 179 dol. 56 2-3 ets. On the average, 
atleast 30 acres of wood land will belong to every farm 
which contains 100 acres of cleared land. The interest 
on this would be.42dols. Deduct from this 11 dols. 
25 ets. for 30 cords.of wood, for use of family (worth not 
to exceed 37 1-2 cents. per cord, standing) ; leaving the 
account of an exclusively sheep farm of the above spe- 
cified size to stand thus :— 
Farm of 130 Acres. 
To inte pital .. . 
‘est o E 
To taxes an 'urance—sa; PE du 
"Torepairs to fences and buildings .. ee 
Dols. 214 00 
€n. 
ielding a profit of 
cents, per cord .. 
Dols. Cts, 
56 
e 338 1-5 sheep, 
0 cords of wood,at 37 
919 
Il 25 
Balance Dols. 116 81 
I will now give a profit and loss account of rearing 
neat stock ; selecting steers, which give a better return 
to.the breeder and grazier than cows. I shall here be 
under the necessity of abandoning estimates by acres, 
as mo farmer in the United States has, so far as Iam 
informed, made experiments to determine the average 
amount of land required to supply the summer feed of 
neat stock of the various ages, from which reliable data 
can be drawn. I shall, therefore, estimate by the ave- 
rage price of pasturage, hay, &c. 
Dols. Ots. 
4 00 
Cost of rearing a calf up.to first winter ... s 
Hay for first winter, } ton, at 6 dollars periton .. 3 00 
Dols. 7 00 
Sum 
, at 10 cts, per 
nter, 1 ton .. ae 
ws disbursements 
ay fc o; 
Interest on.first;y: 
Do 
Summer 
per we 
g a two-year old, 
ay for third 
Interest on pr 
26 weeks, at.16 cents. 
inter, 1} ton. 
us y 
rsements . , 
turing 8 weeks to ordinary time of sale 
cents, perweck — .. 3% 06 
Interest on previous disbursements, 8 week: 
Previous disbursements 
Total cost of raising a steer until three years and 
two months old ae vii à a" we, HOw: 48. 
Average price of Grass and hay-fed steers, at that 
age, not to exceed .. = ee ys. Dols.18 00 
I.have not estimated the pasturage as high as it will 
average in this (Cortland) and some of the better 
Southern counties; perhaps a trifle higher than the 
price in some of the more sparely settled and remote 
from markets, At allevents, I feel authorised in say- 
ing that no farmer ean rear neat stock on Grass and 
hay alone to “three years old past,” and obtain within 
10 dollars per head of the nominal prices of the Grass 
and hay consumed by them. In. the above estimate I 
have let manure offset against labour in feeding, &c. 
Dairying, though ‘sufficiently familiar with by the 
s ordinarily esti 
will keep three sheep a year. 
+ The grazing lands of the southern section are 
priced than the Wheat region, though they will produc 
ibly as much or-more Grass and hay. 
mated that, on the average, one acre 
year, 
it is attended with much more hard and confining 
labour. It also requires better soils and a larger in- 
vestment of eapital. 
Fattening pork beyond what is necessary for family 
use, is not generally considered so profitable as wool- 
growing or dairying. The same remark will apply to 
the rearing of horses. 
The expense ‘of preparing the soils for the cereal 
ins (with the exception of Indian Corn is not far 
from the same. In the following Table all expenses 
are included :— 
2g E Sai) bl 
a ad Baer qd $8 a 
oa 25 Som B 
Bi CES P D E 
; EE! PE ecd E 
Cost per acre, ici. Lad 8 ops E 
&3 Ez "882 s 
$8 (gees a 
ge | Shas 3 
n 4 [e a 
dol dols. cts. | dols dols. cts 
Indian Corn 15 5 00 | 2 D 00 
Spring Wheat.. 9 
Barley "B 
Oats '.. 
which appears most profitable under favourable cireum- 
stances, and “pursue it to the exclusion of all others, 
There are lands and Grasses on most farms adapted to 
one kind of auimals.and not to another; andthe same 
is true in relation to grains. Wet lands and coarse 
irasses are unsuitable for sheep; they must be de- 
pastured by grosser feeding animals. High poor lands 
and steep deelivities, on the other hand, could not be 
as profitably grazed by neat catile as by sheep. He 
who has lands adapted to the cultivation of Indian corn 
will always find it a highly profitable crop ; but there 
is rarely a farm in New York where the whole, or even 
a half, is suitable for Indian corn. If it were, it would 
be impracticable to obtain the necessary manure. If 
that was obtained it is out of the power of any ordinary 
farmer ito raise force enough to get in, hoe, and finally 
harvest such.a disproportioned crop. If we cultivate 
Indian corn, we must have cattle or horses to consume 
the stalks, and swine to eat the soft or unmarketable 
corn. To crop our lands with any reference to an 
economical preservation of their fertility, we must 
resort to a rotation of crops, requiring at least three 
kinds of grain, or two kinds of grain and one kind of 
roots ; and so on through the whole circle of husbandry, 
Whatever theoretical reasons there may be in favour 
ofa division of labour on the farm, as well as in me- 
chanical occupations, and however well the theory 
might work on favourable soils and near large markets, 
where every product can be sold, without converting 
itinto\another product, it is a reasoning which will not 
apply in the inland agricultural regions of the United 
States. Ihave already stated that, although in those 
inland positions all products bear a nominal price, many 
of them, such as hay, Potatoes, and even the coarse 
grains, find a cash market only to a very limited extent. 
On the whole, it is my opinion that 10 per centum is 
realised on agrieultural investments only by farmers of 
skill and under favourable circumstances ; that from 
6 to 7 per cent. is not far from the average profit from 
and including the year 1842. 
ON GORSE AS FOOD FOR CATTLE. 
(Concluded from p. 415.) 
14. As regards the Mode of. Feeding with Furze, it 
is difficult to lay down a rule that shall be applicable in 
all cases, or be generally approved. The great art of 
feeding with any particular kind of food does not con- 
sist so much in the quantity which may be given ata 
time asin the regularity with which it is supplied at 
stated periods of the day. Much, therefore, depends 
on the person who may be entrusted with the manage- 
ment, as it is to his care and discriminating judgment 
that the success or failure which may attend the use of 
this or that sort of food are mainly to be attributed 
From habit and observation he becomes acquainted 
with the quantity which ought to he given to each in- 
dividual horse or cow, and regulates the proportions 
aecordingly, so that no more is thrown before them 
than it is thought they can properly consume. This is 
very important, and when neglected is the cause of 
much waste and extravagance. It is well known that 
the same weight or quantity of food which may be 
enough for one animal at a time may on the contrary 
be too much or too little for another of a different 
nature and constitution. Hence arises the difficulty of 
fixing a standard, and of giving directions which may be 
referred to as a guide under such circumstances. What I 
should recommend to those who may be induced -to 
make trial of Furze, is to be rather sparing in the 
supply of it at first ; not that there is any fear of its 
being disliked ; for cattle and horses are both remark- 
ably fond of it, and will prefer it even to hay. In 
giving it to horses, the best way isto let them have a 
small portion at noon and night along with their hay 
and corn, and as they become accustomed ito it the 
quantity may be inereased, and the hay.and corn dimi- 
nished in like proportion. A horse will consume from 
14 to 2 bushels a day, and may be kept in excellent 
| condition for about one-fourth less than the usual cost, 
| estimates of others, I have not had sufficient personal|1t is not to be expected, however, that horses fed on 
green food can perform the same amount of work as 
others that are fed on such nutritious substances as hay 
and corn ; but for the common purposes of husbandry, 
I have reason to know they can be kept in excellent 
working order when partially fed on Furze, and have 
coats as soft and silky as if they had been fed on Car- 
rots, and kept'in a warm stable. One great advantage 
to be derived from the feeding with Furze is that it 
becomes fit for use at the time the horses are housed in 
autumn, and by occasionally using it during winter, it 
enables the farmer to dispense with a larger proportion 
of hay until the spring, when the horses are harder 
worked, and, of course, require to be better fed. 
For cattle, but more particularly milch cows, E 
do not know a better description of winter food, or one 
that is relished by them with a keener appetite, than 
Furze after it has been properly bruised. It is a sin- 
gular fact that they prefer it when pounded with a 
wooden mallet, or crushed by the stone mill, to that 
which has been cut and bruised by iron, The latter 
appears as if it were acted on in some way by the juice 
of the plant, and communicated a peculiar taste, which 
cattle are not very fond of, but which is effectually 
overcome by mixing a little salt with the food previous 
to using. 
The average quantity given to working cattle is 
about 24 bushels a day, with a due allowance of straw. 
On this meagre fare, it is astonishing how much labour 
they will perform and continue to look well. Mileh 
cows will thrive on Furze, and yield nearly as much 
milk as when fed on Clover. A moderate-sized cow 
will-consume from 3 to 34 bushels a day; but 2 or 23 
bushels, with a few Turnips and about 3 lbs. of hay, 
may be considered a fair allowance. I have taken 
some pains to ascertain the relative cost of keeping & 
cow on Furze, and one in the common way ; and I be- 
lieve I am correct in stating that the differenee amounts. 
to nearly a third in favour of the former. 
15. Notwithstanding all that has been advanced in 
favour of Furze, I believe the general feeling of those 
who are most interested in this matter and likely tobe 
most benefited by it in a pecuniary point of view, will 
be found to be against the use of it, on account of the 
extra labour which the cutting and grinding occasion, aS 
compared with hay and Turnips, and it is only when 
there happens to be a scarcity of these that Furze will 
be resorted to. On large farms where there is no want 
of capital, and a supply of produce always equal to the 
demand, it will probably not be considered worth while 
to try the feeding with Furze; but on farms of mode- 
rate extent it will prove a valuable auxiliary, and amply 
compensate for what may have been expended on its 
culture. It is to this class of farmers—by far the most 
numerous—that I wish my remarks may be of service. 
Their prosperity mainly depends on pursuing a rigid 
system of economy in the feeding and management of 
their stock, and I feel confident if they could only be 
induced to make the feeding with Furze form a part of 
that system, they would be gratified with the result, not 
only in the saving it would effect in their expenditure, 
but in the improved condition and healthy appearance 
of their eattle.— JV 
E. 
ON MEASURE WORK. 
MawaaEMENT or Manure.—This is for the most part 
very properly measure work. Manure is cither allowed 
to accumulate in the yard till spring, and then turned 
over there, once or perhaps twice, and then taken to 
land and spread or ploughed in, or, which is the better 
plan, it is removed during the winter at convenient (say 
monthly) intervals from the yards to heaps round the 
liquid manure tanks, where it can be conveniently 
sonked; or to heaps in the fields on which it is ulti- 
mately to be applied where beds of mould have been 
prepared for its reception. In these latter cases it ig 
turned generally twice, once in January or February, 
when the earth on which it lies is mingled with it ; an 
the whole heap thrown up and well broken to pieces and 
commingled ; again in April about three weeks before 
itis carted on the land. Let us suppose that the latter 
is the practice adopted ; the expenses connected with if 
are, 1st the loading the carts in the yard, and carting 
to the heap; 2d, the first turning ; 3d, the secon 
turning; 4th, the loading the carts at the heap, am 
carting a distance of say 500 yards to the field ; bth, 
emptying the carts in the field ; 6th, spreading the dung 
broadcast or in rows. Some of theseitems, for instance 
the carting, for reasons already given, and the emptying 
in the field, because of the care required to do it evenly» 
are done at day's wages; but all the rest is properly 
piece-work, and it is even well to let it all to the same 
party of men ; and further if all manure sank equally 
in bulk during its decomposition, and if the earth were 
equally supplied for mixing with it, the whole of this work 
might be advantageously bargained for at so much pe 
cubic yard, measured just before it is"applied to the 
land. "As an illustration of the mode in which manure 
sinks in bulk we may mention, as borne out by Hees 
observed here, that 4000 cubic yards of straw, measure? 
af er it has settled in the ricks, or to speak by weight, 
perhaps 200 tons of straw used as litter for beasts ani 
horses, sheep and pigs, which during the winter months 
consume about 1400 tons of roots, will turn out about 
3500 cubic yards of made manure, in the managemen 
of which the ordinary quantity of earth (say 6 ine es 
deep under each manure heap), has been used. 
Of the itemsalready enumerated, the first (filling carts) 
will cost 2d. a yard, measured in the heap as soon as m: 
(the carts are-made to go overit, if it be early inthe season, 
