42 THE PRICKLY PEaE AS FOOD FOE STOCK. 



parr- of tl i gion never thinks of doing his own hauling. So low is 

 the price charged by the Mexican freighters that the rancher can not 

 afford to do it himself. The rancher who feeds cotton-seed meal, for 

 instance, buys it of his local merchant, who delivers it at the ranch. 

 ::- d 50 miles distant, the merchant adding to the selling price what 

 he ha- to pay the local freighter, who hauls it either with oxen or 

 mules, bat usually with the former. Here we have the free-delivery 

 system of the city, enlarged to apply to an area of country possibly 

 miles square: but. instead of owning his own teams and hiring his 

 men by the month, the merchant contracts for the hauling with a class 

 of labor that will do it cheaper than he can afford to do it himself. 

 This class of labor has a very potent influence upon the utility of the 

 pear as a cattle feed. Where pear is chopped with a machine there 

 - lera r involved, the price of which, of course, governs 



the profit : feeding. If it is a-sumed that a crew of s men can teed 

 1,200 cattle — and this is a low e-timate — the cost where pear is con- 

 venient i- very -light with labor at the price that it is here. The 

 item:; as is ibout as follows: 



: - en men. at 50 cents a day - 



f one foreman 75 



1 of eight men 1.00 



a machine and engine per day. ^vhen operated four months pei ye . . 15 

 - line 



!oet 8.4C 



The a is probably the minimum cost of a full maintenance ration 



: pear. In practice, a much larger number of animals can be fed 



with one machine if the cattle are allowed the rim of pastures which 



contain some browse and dry g^ras-. when the feedings is done simply 



through a drought. 



To the above must be added the st : whatever meal is fed. As 

 stated on previo;> _ -. the majority : feeders who feed simply to 

 maintain their herds through a drought give each animal 1 pound of 



fcton-seed meal in addition to the pear. With such a ration, stock 

 make material gains in tlesh and strength. Those wh ~ 3 for the 

 market in closed pens aim to give the stock ail the pear they will eat. 

 with a ration of 3 pounds of cotton-seed meal, gradually increased to 

 6 poun - 



The average wage for a herder is |7 to £10 a month, and board. 

 1 rmerly the latter consisted of a ration approximately as follows: 

 Two -heep or goats. 40 pounds of corn meal, i pounds of coffee, 4 

 pounds of sugar, and 6 pounds of frijoles. At the present time wag - 

 a little higher, but still not over |>12 to $15, with possibly a more 

 ral bill of fare. A very common practice is to hire for a state 

 period, for instance, for one year, at il2 or -Si 5 per month, with a 

 forfeit i : $3 per month if the servant quits before the end of the 



