LIVE WEIGHT OF CATTLE. 
241 
to prove the most valuable race of animals ever known among us for 
dairy purposes, and equal to any of which we have any information.” 
TO ESTIMATE THE LIVE WEIGHT OF CATTLE, etc.— Drovers and butch- 
ers by long experience become very expert in estimating, by simple 
inspection, the weight of live cattle ; and in making purchases, they thus 
have a decided advantage over the less experienced seller. Hence, the 
importance to the latter of some means by which he can know , and not 
guess at the weight of his live animals. 
The following rules, the result of careful experiments, and which we 
take from The Valley Farmer , will enable any one to ascertain the 
weight of live animals with a close approach to accuracy : — take a 
string, put it around the breast, stand square just behind the shoulder- 
blade, measure on a rule the feet and inches the animal is in circum- 
fei ence , this is called the girth ; then, with the string, measure from 
the bone of the tail which plumbs the line with the hinder part of the 
buttock ; direct the line along the back to the fore part of the shoulder- 
blade ; take the dimensions on the foot-rule as before, which is the 
length ; and work the figures in the following manner : — girth of the 
animal, say six feet four inches, length five feet three inches, which mul- 
tip led together, makes thirty-one square superficial feet, and that mul- 
tiplied by twenty-three, the number of pounds allowed to each superficial 
foot of cattle measuring less than seven and more than five feet in girth 
makes seven hundred and thirteen pounds. When the animal measures 
less then nine and more than seven feet in girth, thirty-one is the number 
of pounds to each superficial foot. Again, suppose a pig or any small 
beast should measure two feet in girth and two along the back, which 
multiplied together makes four square feet, that multiplied by eleven, 
the number of pounds allowed to each square foot of cattle measuring 
less than three feet in girth, makes forty-four pounds. Again, suppose 
a calt, a sheep, etc, should measure four feet six inches in girth, and three 
feet nine inches in length, which multiplied together make fifteen and a 
quarter square feet ; that multiplied by sixteen, the number of pounds 
allowed to cattle measuring less than five feet and more than three in 
girth, makes two hundred and sixty-five pounds. The dimensions of 
girth and length of horned cattle, sheep, calves, and hogs, may be ex- 
act v taken in this way, as it is all that is necessary for any computation, 
or any valuation of stock, and will answer exactly to the four quarters 
sinking offal. ^ 
11 
