252 
On the Feeding of Stock. 
Cost i^er week in Spring Quarter. 
£. s. <.l. 
Average cost of corn or cake 3 17 G 
Turnips 4 0 0 
Cut chafi" (average) * 0 7 G 
4 stone of meal, &c., for lambs 18 0 
Average cost per week . . . . 9 13 0 
Or within 2s. of the estimated cost for 13 score ewes at 15s., viz. 9/. 15s. 
Having tlms to a certain extent substantiated Mr. Bond's esti- 
mate as a very liberal allowance for keep in the spring quarter, 
I will adopt his rate of charge for the three other quarters and 
compare my own balance-sheet with his. But I must first 
explain that I keep 265 ewes, breed all my own, selecting the 
best for my own use and valuing them at 10s. per head above 
the price made of the remainder when sold. We reckon the 
average value of the ewes kept to be 55s. ; this year (1860) 
they are worth G5s. They will breed 7 lambs, and be better 
mothers to the last than to the first of these ; they are then 
worth about 2Gs. as crones. The flock has been estimated at an 
average value of 45s. per head. The cost of rams is very vari- 
able. Sometimes we give 20 or 25 guineas for a lamb which 
does us hardly any service ; sometimes we buy one for 10 
guineas, which stands us in good stead for three seasons. The 
actual cost incurred for rams bought, hired, and bred during the 
last four years was 195/. 5s. The average loss of ewes is esti- 
mated at 10 a season, worth 45s. a head. More have been lost 
by a supply of over-succulent food after lambing than in the 
lambing-yard. 
The losses for these last six years, as well after as before 
weaning, have been :— 1854, 6 -f 3 = 9 ; 1855, 11 + 2 = 13 ; 
1856,7 ; 1857, 7 4- 1 = 8 ; 1858, 18; 1859, 15; giving an 
average of over 11a year, which excess is due to want of caution 
in 1858. 
About 50 lambs are left as ram-lambs, involving an extra cost 
for keep amounting to 10s. per head ; part are sold at the end 
of July, and all on sale are disposed of by the beginning of 
September. The old rams sold, together with the fleeces, pay 
for the keep of all the rams. 
The following is then my calculation of expenses : — 
* Varying from lOs., as above, to f>s., according to the coldness of tht- 
weather. 
