30 
THE PERCHERON RE\IEW 
grades. Purebred draft mares are not able to do 
any more work than grades of the same size and 
temperament. The difference in value is in the 
selhng price of their produce. 
Can the average farmer afford to keep purebred 
draft mares.? This question was asked of C. M. 
McConnell, Hamilton Co., Ind., and he replied: 
"Yes; there is no question in my mind but that the 
purebred draft mare on almost all of our medium- 
sized farms is the most economical and dependable 
source of power for the bulk of the farm work. The 
tractor when tried proves to be expensive and 
adapted only to a small portion of the work on the 
average farm. The purebred draft mare is the 
most satisfactory farm horse, providing the farmer 
knows how to raise colts or is willing to learn. Six 
good purebred draft mares can easily do the work 
of four big mules or geldings and they should pro- 
duce at least four foals per year. These at two 
years of age will bring S300 to $350 per head, and 
many times they will brmg much more if they have 
been well fed. Thus one has farm power which 
instead of being a constant source of expense pro- 
vides a good annual income." 
H. S. Griesemer, Tazewell Co., 111., says: "Twenty 
years ago I used fully one-third more horses of 
common grade stock to do the same work that my 
purebred Percheron mares do to-day. By using 
fewer horses I have reduced my feed costs a great 
deal. More horses mean more work in hitching, un- 
hitching, cleaning and harnessing. I believe that 
any farmer with from 160 to 200 acres of land can 
operate his farm with one less man by using pure- 
bred draft mares mstead of common horses weigh- 
ing around 1,200 or 1,300 pounds." 
"We keep purebred draft mares," says Emery 
Hemingway, Cedar Co., la., "because we can make 
more money operating our farms with them than 
with grades. We are not horse dealers, but farmers 
interested in raising hogs and purebred Percheron 
horses, feeding cattle, and in growing big crops for 
the money that we can make. We have 1,040 acres 
of land and operate it entirely with purebred 
Percheron mares. We are not raising purebred 
draft horses as a separate business. That is only 
a part of our farm operations, and one which we 
believe any farmer can handle successfully if he 
will only take good care of his mares. We keep 
about thirty-five mares of breeding age which in 
addition to the colts old enough to do some work 
constitute our entire source of farm power. We sell 
practically all of the horse colts for stallions. Our 
weanlings bring on an average of $150 per head. 
The bulk of our colts are sold from two to three 
years of age at $400 to $500 per head. We raise 
from twenty to twenty-five every year. The home 
farm of 160 acres is operated with six purebred 
Percheron mares. We put in 45 acres of corn this 
spring with these mares. They have five live colts, 
and the other mare is due to foal in a few days. 
Any farmer can duplicate what we are doing if he 
will select good mares that are producers and then 
take good care of them." Ellis McFarland. 
By courtesy Breeder s Gazette. 
Draft Horses for the Farm 
Man's ability to farm successfully lies largely in 
his equipment; horses, tools, etc. This is a day 
of intensive and extensive farming. We are plow- 
ing deeper, cultivating more thoroughly, bringing 
every acre into use, and making every man till as 
much land as three did a short time ago. 
Farming of that sort can't be done with a double 
shovel and a 900-pound mustang. We must use 
deep tilling machines, gangs, manure spreaders, etc., 
drawn by big active draft horses or mules. 
I am inclined to believe there is no easier way to 
keep the boy on the farm than to give him the 
best team you are able to get, harness them well, 
and let him care for them. If he doesn't take an 
interest in them, you had better educate him for 
something else besides farming, for it is usually 
natural for boys to love horses, and during what 
little time I spent in the agricultural college, I found 
that we all like our stock judging classes best. 
One of my neighbors paid six hundred dollars for 
a good pair of grade mares, and mated to our 2,200- 
Teams in an Iowa Corn Field 
