12 THE PEICKLY PEAE AS FOOD FOE STOCK. 



where some of the various species occur in great profusion, giving a 

 reserve food supply which under intelligent use can be made immensely 

 valuable, even if the plants will not respond readily when planted. 

 The experience of a few ranchers in the vicinity of Magdalena, N. 

 Mex., the Pinal Mountains and Colorado River Valley of Arizona, 

 and in southeastern Colorado testifies to the value of the various spe- 

 cies of cactus as emergency rations in the general region south of the 

 thirty-ninth degree of north latitude and west of eastern Texas. 



METHODS OF FEEDING. 



In Australia, so far as the literature of the subject indicates, steam- 

 ing is the principal method of utilizing the prickly pear, which has 

 been introduced and widely disseminated in that country. In this 

 country various methods have been developed independently in the 

 several cactus regions, and apparently, at least, without knowledge of 

 the practices in vogue in other sections. The greatest progress in 

 this line, however, is exhibited in the vicinity of San Antonio, Tex. 



SINGEING THE SPINES. 



The most prevalent practice in southeastern Colorado consists in 

 singeing the spines over a brush fire. (PI. I, fig. 1.) This operation 

 is practicable where there is considerable brush or wood conveniently 

 situated, but it has many disadvantages. The plants are collected and 

 hauled to some convenient place, where a fire is built. A brisk fire 

 will remove the spines from one side of the joints almost instantly. 

 It is then necessary to turn the plants over and burn them again on 

 the other side. Some careful feeders often leave the plant on the fire 

 until much of the outside has turned black from the heat, in order to 

 insure the removal of the short as well as the long spines. Others 

 exercise less care, and simply allow the flames to pass over the plant, 

 burning off only the distal half or more of the long spines and leaving 

 practically all of the short ones for the cattle to contend with. It 

 often happens that the fuel used is greasewood (Sarcobatus vermi- 

 culatus) or shad scale (Atriplex canescens), the young shoots of which 

 are of greater nutritive value than the pear itself. On the arro}^os 

 and washes dead cottonwood timber is used, while in many localities 

 juniper furnishes the fuel. 



This is the most primitive method of feeding and one which has 

 been practiced in Texas since before the civil war, and is still very 

 extensively employed not only in Texas but also in old Mexico, where 

 singeing the thorns with brush is about the only method employed in 

 feeding prickly pear and other species of cacti. 



