1899 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
IOI 
Live Stock and Dairy 
l THE PASSING OF THE OX. 
OXEN AS MOTIVE POWER. 
Bln this age of steam and electricity, 
we seldom see an ox team on the village 
or city street; even in the farming dis¬ 
tricts, we do not find one pair of oxen 
where 10 could be found 25 years ago. 
The ox as a motive power has almost 
ceased to mote. His great strength and 
docile disposition are discounted by his 
slow, plodding gait, and that the major¬ 
ity of farmers cannot tolerate; they 
must travel fast nowadays to keep up 
with the procession. In the lumbering 
sections of the country, however, a good 
many ox teams are still employed. 
Every time I pass an ox team on the 
road, I feel like lifting my hat in vener¬ 
ation of the noble work performed by 
the pioneer ox in helping the pioneer 
he showed me cultivators, weeders and 
various other tools of his own make, 
that were a step in advance of anything 
I have seen on the market, for practical 
work. c. w. SCARFF. 
Vermont. 
A FARMER'S FLOCK OF SHEEP. 
WHAT THEY EARNED FOR HIM. 
Mutton Wanted. —Stewart says, “ To 
breed and feed sheep simply for the 
wool is little better than to raise wheat 
for the straw, the more valuable half is 
wasted.” It is equally true that profit¬ 
able feeding must be done early, before 
maturity, and the feeding process must 
be crowded as fast as possible, for the 
reason that the appetite and digestive 
and assimilative functions of the young 
and immature animal are most active, 
A PAIR OF VERMONT JERSEY OXEN. Fig. 35. 
woodsman to transform the virgin forest 
into well-tilled farms. 
It was my privilege, a few weeks ago, 
to call at the house of a R, N.-Y. sub¬ 
scriber, Mr. S. K. Vaughn, of Hyde Park, 
Vt. I found Mr. Vaughn hauling in a 
load of corn fodder from the field with 
a pair of oxen. The high load of 
fodder held down by the two sturdy sons, 
typical Green Mountain boys ; the pair 
of snug Jersey oxen ; the background 
of rugged mountains, all combined to 
AN OX COLLAR. Fig. 36. 
make a picture worthy of the artist’s 
pencil. The feature that impressed me 
most, however, was the ease with which 
the oxen drew their heavy load. Each 
ox had a separate yoke, and seemed to 
work as easily in it as a horse in his col¬ 
lar. See Fig. 35. 
The yoke is one of Mr. Vaughn’s own 
contriving ; Fig. 36 shows how it is made, 
and any one at all familiar with ox 
yokes can see from the draft of it how 
a much heavier load can be drawn with 
less discomfort to the beast, than when 
the old rigid yoke is used. Mr. Vaughn 
evidently uses his head as well as his 
hands in providing ways and means of 
making labor lighter on the farm, for 
and the percentage of waste in the sys¬ 
tem of the young animal is much less It 
is almost impossible to get back the cost 
of feed when fed to a fully-matured ani¬ 
mal for market. 
Hreeding and Care.— Fig. 33, on the 
first page, shows a flock of lambs which 
netted their owner a handsome profit. 
They were raised on an average farm by 
a man who would call himself an average 
farmer (though I suspect that he studies 
his business more than some), and were 
from good common sheep. They are not 
purebred, though some are grade Shrop- 
shires, and even the male was not a pure¬ 
bred, though a well-bred animal. Good 
care was taken, and good judgment used 
in feeding the flock, and getting them 
ready for market early. The lambs were 
raised by Mr. H. G. Phelps, of Delaware 
County, N. Y. They were mostly dropped 
between April 5 and 20, and were sold 
November 11, consequently were about 
seven months old when sold. From the 
entire 140 ewes, 207 lambs were raised 
and sent to market. The weight of the 
lambs ranged from 90 to 110 pounds be¬ 
fore shipping, and in the New York mar¬ 
ket, from 80 to 100 pounds, or an average 
of 90 pounds for the entire flock. As 
they sold at seven cents per pound, they 
brought $6 30 each, or $1,304.10. 
Feeding. —Through the Winter, the 
sheep are allowed considerable freedom, 
and are fed, as Mr. Phelps expresses it, 
“ Just what good hay they will eat with¬ 
out a particle of waste, one bushel coarse 
wheat bran, and bushel corn meal 
per day to each 100 sheep,” After lamb¬ 
ing, the grain feed is increased a little 
for two or three weeks, or till they are 
turned out to pasture. During the Sum¬ 
mer, sheep, lambs, and cattle are pas¬ 
tured together, care being taken not to 
have too many in one flock, the number 
being from 25 to 40 sheep with their 
lambs. As good pasture is afforded by 
a wide range, all get fat before Fall. 
The lambs are always taken from the 
sheep August 1. Mr. Phelps has made 
accurate tests, and finds the cost of win¬ 
tering his sheep to be about $2.50 per 
head, and it costs him $2 to summer 
them. He says, characteristically, “Of 
course, they can be kept for less money, 
but you can’t raise $5 lambs unless they 
have good care and good feed.” 
Other Experience. —Last Winter, Mr. 
Phelps wintered 100 ewes, from which he 
raised 137 lambs, which he sold in August 
for $5.25 per head in the pasture. For 
the second time in 35 years, he lost lambs 
with scours—about 30 died. He at¬ 
tributes the cause to keeping them too 
closely confined in the yard, and thinks 
they ought to have exercise. The lambs 
illustrated were very nice, and sold at a 
good price, but they were put on the 
general market, and sold by a commis¬ 
sion house; no fancy or retail prices 
were obtained. Just what the flock 
netted Mr. Phelps I am unable to say, 
but no very great amount of mathe¬ 
matics will be needed to see that, with 
the addition of the wool, a good profit 
resulted. 
A few miles from Mr. Phelps is a farm 
where a small number of sheep are kept 
with less profit. The lambs were dropped 
in May and June, consequently they had 
to be kept late. They were not so well 
kept, and late in the Fall, were sold at 
from $2 to $3 per head. h. h. l. 
SOME CATTLE CONUNDRUMS. 
What Makes Mi Ik Strong ? 
I have three Jersey cows giving milk, two of 
them nine years old and one five years old. They 
average three gallons a day. Their milk seems 
to be very strong, and the butter is strong as 
scon as churned. I take good care of cows and 
milk vessels. I have been feeding wheat bran, 
crushed corn and a few sweet potatoes. What is 
the cause of this strong milk and butter? t c. 
Kentucky. 
A ns. —In the North, we have had no 
experience with feeding sweet potatoes, 
so I could not say whether they would 
have anything to do with the trouble or 
not. The sources of bad flavor in milk 
are many. One source may be strong- 
flavored food like cabbage or turnips, 
and after the milk is drawn, there is 
danger of contamination with several 
Eources bringing in bacteria, which 
causes various kinds of fermentation 
and flavor. Just what particular one 
is brought about here cannot be stated 
from the question. Tne main factor in 
preventing contamination of milk is 
cleanliness, and this cleanliness should 
begin with the cow and the stable, and 
continue in all the handling of the milk 
until it is made into butter, and con¬ 
sumed. Often little things are over¬ 
looked when one thinks he is very 
particular about being clean, and may 
cause all the trouble. Recently a trou¬ 
ble with ropy cream came to the atten¬ 
tion of the Cornell Experiment Station, 
and on investigation, it was found that 
the sources of contamination came from 
a dirty strainer. All other things about 
the cream were in fairly good condition. 
In the majority of cases, bad flavors are 
not traceable to the food of the cow, but 
to some lack of care in handling the 
milk. l. A. 
Feeding the Heifer Calf. 
I wish to raise heifer calves for dairy purposes. 
How, and what, shall I feed to produce a healthy 
and thrifty growth, using skim-milk from the 
creamery as the drink ? j. i. s. 
Baldwinsvtlle, N. Y. 
Ans. —In deciding what is best to feed 
with skim-milk to young calves, it is 
well to consider what has been taken 
from the milk. The natural food for 
young calves is the whole milk from the 
cow. In skimming milk, only the fat is 
removed, thus the solid portions left are 
largely nitrogenous. Then the foods to 
be added to make up a complete ration 
with the skim-milk should contain a fair 
proportion of fat to supply that which 
has been removed. Often linseed meal 
is recommended, but this is not satisfac¬ 
tory, because the fat has been removed 
from it. One of the best foods is ground 
flaxseed, which contains a large percent¬ 
age of fat or oil, which is easily digested 
This may be fed in small quantities with 
good results. It would be better to keep 
the calf for about a week from the time 
of its birth, on new milk, as it takes only 
a small quantity, and the calf will do 
enough better to pay for the cost. After 
this time, skim-milk may be given, and 
with it a mixture of equal parts of corn 
meal and ground flaxseed. This must at 
first be mixed with the milk, but as soon 
as the calf can be taught to eat dry 
grain, it should be made to eat it dry 
and the skim-milk be fed clear. 
When the calf begins to eat dry food 
the flaxseed may be discontinued and a 
mixture of equal parts by weight of 
ground corn and oats may be given, or 
wheat bran may be fed instead of the 
oats. Then, too, the calf should have 
hay as soon as it shows any desire to eat 
it. The calf should be put on to dry 
grain as soon as possible, so that it will 
form the habit early of chewing the 
cud, and the grain fed in this way will 
be more digestible than when fed in the 
milk. The amount of grain to ba fed 
needs to be governed largely by the 
feeder. In several experiments which 
have been conducted in feeding calves, 
it has been found that they have made 
a nice growth on the ratio of 30 pounds 
of grain to one calf for 90 days. This 
would be an average of one-third pound 
of grain per day, but of course, the lat¬ 
ter part of the 90 days the calf would 
eat much more corn than at the begin¬ 
ning. Just a small handful in the milk 
is enough to begin with. The longer 
the calf can be kept on skim-milk the 
better growth it would be expected to 
make. But when the calf is from three 
to four months old, the milk may be 
gradually withheld. This will necessi¬ 
tate a change in the grain ration, ani as 
the quantity of milk decreases, the pro¬ 
portion of corn fed should also decrease 
until, when the milk is withdrawn en¬ 
tirely, the corn does not form more than 
one-fourth of the grain ration, the re¬ 
mainder consisting of bran, middlings, 
oats and the like. L . a. 
Truck-Horse Rivals. —Probably the hardest 
blow that has yet been struck at the draught 
horse is the introduction of “ auto-trucks”. In 
New York, a company has been formed to manu¬ 
facture and use these trucks. Compressed air 
is to be used as motive power, and it is claimed 
that they will, within a few years, handle nine- 
tenths of the trucking business. This will mean 
a change from stone pavement to either asphalt 
or iron, and will throw heavy horses out of a job 
It will be a more serious blow to the horse indus¬ 
try than the use of cable or electric cars, or of 
the bicycle. An express truck Is now in service 
in Chicago, which weighs 9,000 pounds, and can 
carry between five and six tons. This truck has 
carried a load of three tons up and down the 
steepest inclines of that city. 
Breeders’ Directory. 
This column Is reserved for small cards of live 
stock, Including poultry, breeders. No cuts. Rates 
on application. 
Another Good Offer M^Tn 
March, at $15. Just the kind you are looking for. Also 
Fall Pigs. F. II. Gates St Sons, Chittonango, N. Y. 
IMPROVED CHESTER WHITES 
of the best breeding and all ages for sale at reason 
able prloes. Pamphlets and prices free. 
CHA8. K. RECORD, Peterboro, N. Y 
Fifty Registered Ayrshires. 
Continuous milkers of good quality, with strong 
constitutions. MAPLE ROW STOCK FARM, 
F H. COOKINGIIAM, Cherry Creek, N. Y. 
For Sale —Registered Jersey Heifer, 
Isabella’s Flossie 131231, Stoke Pogs-Farmer’s Glory 
breeding. Solid cream fawn, black points. Two 
years old; due in April; correct dairy form; nice 
udder and teats. A very fancy heifer. Price $100. 
Pedigree on application. J. GRANT MORSE, 
PoolviUe, N. Y. 
FOR SALE OR EXCHANGE. 
One Imported and one half-bred bay French Coaoh 
Mare; Keg. Ayrshire Bulls of all ages, and Cocker 
Spaniel puppies. WANTED.—Dark Chestnut Hack¬ 
ney Stallion or Mare; Angora Goats; White Mam¬ 
moth Turkeys, Embdeu Geese and Shade Trees. 
B. LUTHER SHIMER, B. Sc., Mount Airy Park 
Farm, Bethlehem. Pa. 
Fac-Simile 
Signature 
TRY THEM FOR 
Coughs, Colds, 
Asthma, Bronchitis, 
Hoarseness 
and Sore Throat. 
on every 
box. 
