Straw as Food for Stock. 
145 
"But if clay-land will not grow turnips, it will grow mangolds, cabbages, 
tares, clover; and these crops, eaten by sheep, will give a more satisfactory 
return than can bo obtained from cattle. In my case the clover, with at first 
pulped mangolds, chaff, and cake, or corn, and tares, carry the 300 breeding 
ewes with their lambs until the latter are fit to wean, and the early cabbages 
are ready for them ; and these, succeeded by later kinds, all fed off where 
grown, last till October, when the sheep should be off the land and wheat sown. 
They then go into yards having sheds, the floors of which are covered with 
burnt soil as often as necessary. This accumulates until, in the spring, it is 
often 3 feet deep — a valuable manure. Their food there is pulped mangolds, 
wheat-chaff, and malt-dust, one mixture; clover, chaff, Indian corn, and 
cotton-cake, another. It is not often that this burnt soil can be had for the 
spaces outside the sheds — straw does very well ; but if neither can be spared, 
we use tan. When straw is sufficiently abundant, sheep will do without any 
other litter, and make very good manure ; but only enough to keep them 
clean should be used daily, so that the whole may be compressed by treading, 
and fermentation preveuted. The feet of the sheep should be pared every six 
weeks — if these two precautions are observed they will not be lame. The 
ewes are wintered by hurdling off the grass-land that had been mown or 
grazed by dairy-cows, and have an allowance of cut chaff, Indian corn, and 
decorticated cotton-cake." 
Mr. Randell also pronounces the opinion very decidedly that, 
by the employment of more straw in conjunction with artificial 
food for feeding purposes, which the provision of covered yards 
would save from littering purposes, double the number of cattle 
might be kept. The subjoined remarks of his likewise bear on 
other ways of economising litter. He says : — 
" With the aid of purchased food, combined with straw, the stock of cattle 
might be doubled, provided that litter were economised by covered yards — 
this does not apply to sheep. With the increased stock so kept, as much hay 
as is now grown would still be required, or might be sold to pay for food 
purchased. Hay is the dearest of all food. No doubt littering cattle in 
boxes with cut straw is right ; it is only a question between boxes and covered 
yards. I do not believe in sparred floors or pavements. Sawdust or tan may 
supplement straw — not be entirely a substitute for it." 
Mr. Finlay Dun, Weston Park, Shipston-on-Stour, remarks : — 
" Twenty years ago 30s. per ton was the ordinary price throughout Warwick- 
shire for wheat-straw, which during the present season is procurable with diffi- 
culty at 80s., whilst in the neighbourhood of Leamington many sales have been 
made as high as 100s. 
" This increased value of straw during the last few years, and the quantities 
forwarded to the larger towns, have induced farmers to be greatly more careful 
than formerly of straw, which is now economised for litter — fern, leaves, sawdust 
and burnt earth being occasionally substituted for the expensive wheat-straw. 
For the same object, yards have been reduced in size, spouted, and in some 
cases covered over. Double the amount of straw is now cut into chaff that was 
used in this way ten years ago ; the straw is sometimes mixed with about one- 
fourth of hay ; but where roots are grown they are pulped, or cut fine and mixed 
with the straw-chaff. This is the chief food of cattle on most well-managed 
holdings, supplemented by cake or corn, more liberally supplied as feeding 
advances. Older cattle receive less and less of the costly hay, which is 
reserved chiefly for calves and milking-covvs. Many flockmasters also use 
VOL. XIII.— S. S. L 
