STALL-FEEDING. 



take to il, and a great proportion of food is capable of 

 being raifed on the acre. It was found by Mr. Young, 

 in his trials with this root, that the confumption with 

 an ox of about fixty itone weight was per day about ten 

 ftone, giving in addition cut hay and chaff, or fome other 

 fiinilar dry material. The parfnip is aifo a root of equal, it 

 not fnperior, merit in this maHagement. An acre of either 

 of thefe roots would complete the fattening of two luch 

 beads as the above, if taken from the pallures in a half- 

 fattened condition. It has indeed been fuggelted, that 

 thefe two roots and the potatoe approach the neareft of any 

 to that of the oil-cake in their fattening properties, but are 

 certainly inferior to that lubftance in this intention. 



The white and red beets, and the fcarcity root, or mangel 

 wurzel, have alio been found highly beneficial in this appli- 

 cation. 



And there have been many trials made with potatoes in 

 the Itall-fattening of animals, in which it has been fully 

 ftieivn that, both in the raw and boiled or Iteamed Hates, 

 they are a root tljat occafioiially anfwer very well. It has 

 been found, that fmall cattle of the Wellh and Scotch runt 

 kind have been afcertained to confume about a bufhel each 

 in the courfe of the day, with from fourteen to fixteen 

 pounds of hay, or fome other cut dry food. In the raw 

 Itate, fome dry food of thefe forts is indifpenfibly neceflary, 

 in order to correft the purgative quality of the root ; and 

 when boiled or (learned, it has likewife a good effeft in af- 

 fording due diitention to the Itomach. When given to 

 milch-cows in a raw ftate, the milk is found to be greatly 

 increafed, but to be of a poor thin quality. There can be 

 no doubt, but that where the (teaming or baking of the root 

 can be accomphfhed at a cheap rate, and in a convenient 

 manner, the food will be much better fuited to the purpoles 

 of flail-feeding, as being much more nutrient and agreeable 

 to the animals. 



On this fubjeft it is flated by an excellent grazier, J. H. 

 Campell, efq. of Charlton, in Kent, in anfwer to queries 

 propofed to him by Mr. Young, that too bufhels of po- 

 tatoes and 700 weight of hay are generally fufficient to 

 fatten an ox that thrives tolerably well. And in giving 

 the roots, they (hould at firll be ufed in fmall quantities, 

 which fhould then be gradually increafed to one or two 

 bufliels^jfr day, dry food being always intermixed, and the 

 proportion of hay being uniformly regulated by the effeft 

 which the potatoes produce on the bowels. There ought 

 to be at leall four or five fervings in the courfe of a day, as 

 according to the quantity of roots which a beaft can be in- 

 duced to eat with appetite, he will fatten the fooner, and 

 of courfe with lefs expeace to the farmer, and confequently 

 more profit be obtained. The hay fhould be cut once, or, 

 if it be not very weighty, twice along and three times acrofs 

 the trufs, fo as to be in fquare pieces of eight or ten inches 

 III proportion ; in which Hate the cattle will eat it and digeft 

 it more readily, while their fattening is confiderably expe- 

 dited. But the potatoes need not, he thinks, be cut, ex- 

 cept at firlt, in order to entice the bealt to eat them ; but 

 they ought always to be frefh and clean. Corn or meal is 

 not abfolutely neceflary ; but when at a moderate price, it 

 may be employed with advantage. But in cafe a fcowering 

 (hould be brought on by the ufe of raw potatoes, which 

 often happens, the quantity of hay, meal, or other dry food 

 given with them, (hould be increafed confiderably, till the 

 bealU become accullomed to the roots, when this incon- 

 venience will be removed. 



Stall-feeding of bullocks with potatoes, given in different 

 Hates of preparation, has been for fome time extenfively prac- 

 tiled in Suflex, and is much approved of by many. They 



there find that a beaft of from one hundred and forty to one 

 hundred and fixty flone weight eats from one to two bufhels 

 of the roots in the courfe of the day, but confumes little 

 hay, as not much more than ten or twelve pounds, in that 

 fpace of time. This root has probably not yet been tried, 

 by giving it when artificially fprouted ; but it would per- 

 haps anfwer well in this way. Some have, however, lately 

 begun to queftion the merit of potatoes in this mode of 

 cattle-feeding, as not being fo valuable, when compared 

 with fome other forts of food. And a careful experimenter, 

 who was largely in the praiftice of fattening oxen with them, 

 it is faid, gave them up, from the convidlion that, with 

 every advantage of breed, attention, warmth, and clean- 

 linefs, in regard to the animals, they would not pay more 

 than four-pence the bufhel. 



Further, the Swedifh turnip, when it is cultivated in a 

 proper manner, is a moll valuable root, when ufed in this 

 intention, being very fweet and palatable to the animals, 

 and at the fame time poflefling more nourifhing power than 

 the common turnip ; of courle, going much farther. In 

 fome trials which we have lately attended to, it was found 

 to have the advantage nearly in the proportion of one- 

 fourth ; and in other experiments, it is faid to have gone 

 ilill farther in this ufe. 



Alfo cabbages, in combination with dry chaffy materials 

 of different kinds, have been long known to anfwer well in 

 keeping flore animals in the winter ; and, when made ufe of 

 with good hay, to be capable of fattening large cattle in an 

 expeditious manner. It has been found by correct trials, 

 that the daily confumption of this vegetable is moflly in the 

 proportion nearly of one-fifth the weight of the animal : of 

 courfe, an ox weighing about fixty Hone confumes about 

 twelve Hone/ii?r day. In fome experiments made long ago by 

 Mr. Turner, detailed in the fecond volume of Mr. Young's Six 

 Months' Tour, an ox of eighty Hone was found to confume 

 fifteen flone of this plant, with the addition of half a Hone 

 of hay. And that with regard to its properties of feeding 

 oxen put to it, when in low condition, in November, they 

 became in a ftate of fatnefs, and ready for the market, in 

 the March following, having the weight of eighty ilone ; 

 moftly increafing in value in the courfe of four months, 

 about five pounds ten lliillings. It is evident that, in this 

 proportion, an acre of this crop of thirty tons would be 

 fufRcient for ftall-fattening tliree beafts of the fame fize and 

 weight. 



And common turnips, according to Mr. Marlhall, are, 

 in Norfolk, given in different ways to cattle in fattening 

 them ; as by being drawn and thrown thinly and evenly 

 upon the grafs, ftubble, and other lands, in order that the 

 cattle may confume them in fuch fituations ; in which cafes, 

 they have not any allowance of hay during the whole pro- 

 cefs of fattening. 



But another mode of giving this root to fattening cattle 

 is, it is faid, by means of clofe bins, or fmall cribs, with 

 boards or bars nearly clofe at the bottom, while the beafts 

 are kept in a loofe ftraw-yard. Thefe bins are difperfed 

 over the yard, and the turnips are put into them whole ; the 

 tap-root, and alfo the tops, unlefs they are frefh and pa- 

 latable, being previoufly cut off, fo that the fattening ani- 

 mals receive only the bulbs; the tops, if eatable, being 

 confumed by Hore cattle. And that while the bullocks 

 are in the yard, they have the ftraw fometimes given them 

 in cribs, and at others it is fcattered in fmall heaps about 

 the yard, twice or thrice a day : the quantity thus eaten is 

 very trifling ; and with the laft mentioned management, the 

 yard becomes evenly littered without farther trouble. But 

 this mode of fattening is attended with fomewhat more 

 2 labour 



