384 
No. 155 . 
AMERICAN AGHICULTUBIST. 
(Engraved for the American Agriculturist.) 
Winter has come again in earnest, and over 
much of the northern territory of our country the 
fields are clothed in a white mantle of snow. 
But Winter has its pleasant scenes, one of which 
is sketched above. The artist is not exactly a 
practical farmer, or he would doubtless have in¬ 
troduced a better style of buildings, and better 
feeding arrangements. But the picture is cheer¬ 
ful, and the contented look of the sleek animals, 
and of the feeders as well, will please every one. 
.. .How can we begin the work of the ensuing 
winter months better than by a word or two on 
THE CARE OF STOCK IN WINTER. 
“A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast; 
but the tender mercies of the wicked are cruel.” 
Every farmer knows that the health of his cattle 
next Spring will depend much upon their man¬ 
agement through the Winter. Their treatment 
for about six months to come, shut up, and fed on 
dried food, is an artificial one, and needs to be 
well conducted. It is said that more than 
$600,000,000 are invested in live stock in this 
country; is not that investment worth looking 
after 1 It is held too, that it costs about half the 
value of the stock to Winter it ; hence, there are 
some three hundred millions of dollars to be fed 
out, between this month (December) and next 
May. Now, if that sum can be reduced by good 
economy, would it not be a great benefit to the 
farming community 1 Wc believe that some of 
that money can be saved. How saved 1 
1 . By providing good shelter for stock. Every 
man knows that exposure to a cold wind in Win¬ 
ter (even though he does not exercise much) 
gives him an enormous appetite. The carbon in 
his system is expended in keeping up his vital 
heat, and he needs a new and large supply of food 
to restore the waste. So with animals. If they 
are kept out of doors, exposed to severe winds 
and frosts, they will be compelled to eat much 
more to keep themselves warm, than they 
would if well housed in sheds and stables. If 
they have only fodder enough to keep up their 
animal heat, they will decline in flesh, and of 
course in value. Farmers not at all given to ex¬ 
aggeration, assure us that they find it a loss 
of one third of their fodder to try to Winter 
their stock without adequate shelter. 
2. Consider, too, the waste of food by its be¬ 
ing trampled into the wet ground, by irregular 
feeding as to quantity and time, also the effect 
of lying on cold, wet ground, with little or no 
bedding, and other wasteful practices which gen¬ 
erally accompany the neglect of providing shel¬ 
ter. Do not cow's give more and better milk; 
do not horses and oxen work better; do not 
sheep improve more in flesh and wool; and do 
not pigs fatten quicker, if kept in comfortable 
quarters and well fed, than if treated with neg¬ 
lect 1 We have seen horses and cattle that bore, 
for several years, the marks of bad treatment for 
a single Winter. They were stinted in their 
growth, or they contracted diseases from which 
they never fully recovered. “ Penny wise and 
pound foolish,” as Dr. Franklin would say. 
Horses are not as apt to be neglected as other 
stock ; but even they sometimes suffer from being 
kept in too close and foul stables, and in being 
irregularly blanketed and curried. Their stalls 
should be cleaned twice every day, and supplied 
with good dry litter at night. Provision should 
be made for letting in fresh air on the least windy 
side of the barn, and the opening not very near 
to the horse-stalls. The curry-comb should not be 
allowed to rust for want of use, and this should 
be followed by a good wisp of pea-straw and the 
brush. If the horse is blanketed at all, it should 
be done the Winter through, by no means neglect¬ 
ing the times w'hen he is heated after working. 
Cows should have special care. Those with 
calf should have no sort of harsh treatment from 
men, or dogs, or other cattle. Their food should 
be plentiful and nutritious. Remember that their 
own future condition and that of the coming calf 
depends on their management at this critical time. 
By no means, deny them the comfort of a stable 
by night. Milch cows should have an abundance 
of food and pure water—that from a running 
spring being better than water from a well. 
They should be fed and milked at regular hours. 
Roots should form a stated part of their fodder, 
and if these give out, they should have messes of 
shorts, meal and flax-seed cake. If their hides 
get an occasional carding, it will do them no hurt. 
Cattle and sheep should not be neglected, either 
as to shelter or food, if you would have them re¬ 
turn a profit. And so endeth our first lesson. 
“ What becomes of old horses 1 ” asked a man 
of an investigating turn of mind of our friend 
George. “ Why,” said George, thoughtfully, 
“ the final end of’em is, that they get traded off” 
