1898 
539 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
HORSE SHOE FARM NOTES. 
AN ESSAY ON SCRUB CARVES. 
Swamp Stock. —Some friends from Cor¬ 
nell University came to visit me, and 
collect botanical specimens. The num¬ 
ber and variety of plants to be found in 
a large stretch of swamp and marsh is 
astonishing to one who has never ob¬ 
served them. Among this wilderness of 
vegetation, individual specimens are 
crowded and dwarfed. We found a herd 
of young cattle. 
“ What large calves those are,” ex¬ 
claimed one professor. 
“ That's all you know about stock,” 
responded another; “they are year¬ 
lings.” 
The animals in question weighed about 
400 pounds, had horns, old hair, and a 
patient, long-drawn-out expression of 
suffering, old-before-their-time look 
which marks everything that has been 
starved, from the stunted East-side child 
of New York City, to a fly-bitten calf of 
Tompkins County. 
Half-Starved Yearlings. —“If that 
is a yearling, it will never be even an 
average cow. It is stunted. The stomach 
will not hold enough food to produce a 
large flow of milk. The udder will not 
develop.” 
“ But,” said 1, “ farmers claim that it 
won't make much difference about the 
first year’s growth, for the cattle grow 
and fill out amazingly the second Sum¬ 
mer.” 
“That is true; on good pasture, like 
this marsh where the grass is fresh all 
Summer, they will fill out so as to pro¬ 
duce young at two years of age. But 
they are no larger at three than they 
should be at two, and will never be what 
they might have been. No great cow 
was ever made by semi-starvation.” 
The stock had been turned out but a 
few weeks, and the lank, lean, small, 
half-wild specimens, nearly all horns 
and tail, seemed in harmony with the 
general wildness. Coarse grasses, sedges, 
cat tails, flies and gnats in Summer, oat 
straw, Timothy hay and plenty of cold 
weather, produce “ natural ” cows. Those 
who have no swamp for Summer feeding 
do not get an increased growth from 
their already crowded pastures, and gen¬ 
erally advocate breeding to calve at three 
years. Stock is too small, you see, for 
earlier breeding. 
How They Were Fed. —Those poor 
yearlings were fed milk from the dam 
two days, only because it was not fit to 
use sooner. Then skim-milk, often too 
cold, formed their only food for two or 
three months. Nothing was given to 
supply the fat taken from the milk, and 
several attacks of the scours, caused by 
the cold milk, were cured by starving 
the calf for a day or two. It existed, but 
did not enjoy life. At three months of 
age, the owner decided that the calf 
“ was not doing well ”, and must “ get 
to the ground ”, and the calf was turned 
out with the cows to pick a living. From 
the shade of the shed to the scalding 
July sun and swarms of flies, was quite 
a trying change, but no worse than the 
complete change of food—liquid to solid, 
poor milk to poorer, sunburnt grass, and 
not very plentiful at that. As one re¬ 
marked, “I do not believe that it is 
necessary to feed the calf, for it does not 
come up for it ”. From the looks of the 
calf, it, probably, thought the tramp too 
much for its strength. 
Such treatment produces scrub cows, 
instead of scrub breeding. It is possible 
to raise a very profitable dairy from 
“ Old Brindle ”, if the calves are given an 
extra chance, and the best bred stock in 
the world will fail with such treatment. 
I ought to know, because I have tried 
both ways. I can remember when, in 
debt, too much to see to, and ignorant, 
my calves were just like these. I thought 
they were “ just as good ”. 
A Good Calf. —A relative, who keeps 
one cow, bred her to mj’ Jersey bull and 
raised a heifer calf. It was fed fresh 
milk from the cow for two weeks. The 
stomach was extended, given tone and 
strengthened by the large quantity a 
calf can drink if warm from the dam. 
The change was made to skim-millc 
gradually, and clover hay kept before it. 
The organs of digestion were not weak¬ 
ened by improper feeding or scours. It 
was kept growing all Summer. In a 
shaded box-stall, it could exercise at 
will, but not by fighting flies. Wheat 
middlings, warm water, a little salt and 
clover hay from July till Fall, were not 
expensive. But what a calf he had 1 Big 
as a yearling. No fat, just lean flesh, 
store condition. I had to have it, and 
got it, but planked down $30 for the half- 
blood scrub. What a large, magnificent 
cow she proved to be. It was an expen¬ 
sive calf, but a cheap object lesson. Her 
descendants constitute nearly my whole 
dairy now, and I honestly believe that, 
with ordinary care, she would not have 
been any better than the rest, for milk 
or breeding. 
One large (overgrown if you will) calf 
is more profitable than six runts. Make 
the growth, not fat, the first year. Keep 
them in the barn the first year, or else 
give them a lot with grass, water, and 
shade in plenty. Feed some protein 
every day for a year. Keep off the flies. 
I find that pure kerosene, sprayed over 
the stock, will kill every horn fly it hits, 
and drive away the rest. When I say 
sprayed, I do not mean sprinkled, or 
rubbed, or brushed. We have a new 
machine for killing potato beetles, made 
on the principle of a barber’s atomizer. 
This throws kerosene in so fine a spray 
that it looks like smoke, and floats over 
several cows at once. I can kill and 
drive away the flies from 10 cows in three 
minutes, so that not a tail will switch 
during milking. The spraying machines 
for fruit may do, but the spray is hardly 
fine enough. c. E. chapman. 
THE MERINO SHEEP. 
ITS FUTURE PROSPECTS. 
As to the future of Merino sheep 
breeding, I believe that, with all other 
branches of farming, it will improve. 
Beyond this, there has been of late years, 
a belief founded upon facts of actual ex¬ 
perience, that there was no profit in 
breeding the Merino. The consequence 
following such belief has been the 
decimation of the purebred Merino 
flocks all over the country, and to-day, 
there are not near the numbers of such 
sheep that will be required to restore 
the losses sustained. The result is a 
fair or good demand for all surplus rams, 
unless it be for the tops for western and 
home trade, with near a certainty of a 
good and profitable demand for the best 
for Australia, South Africa, and perhaps, 
South America. 
Merino wools are scarce all over the 
world, and are in good demand at im¬ 
proving prices, even in the unsettled 
condition of the country. At prospective 
prices for such wool, the large amount 
the Merino shears compared with the 
mutton breeds, and the nearness of the 
prices received to those for other breeds, 
attention will be drawn to the wool¬ 
bearing sheep, and farmers will again do 
what has proved profitable in the past, 
and buy and breed Merino sheep, either 
grades or purebreds. Prices for sheep 
under such conditions will improve as 
the demand increases. 
For the reasons above given, I believe 
that the future of Merino sheep breed¬ 
ing is hopeful, and as in the past, after 
every depression in the business, there 
will come a time, and that quickly, when 
the Merino will again hold its proper 
place, the superior of any other sheep 
known to man. This is said without 
prejudice, as I have both coarse and fine 
wools on hand to-day. 
So far as improvements of late are con¬ 
cerned, there are, undoubtedly, differ¬ 
ences of opinions. Some believe that in¬ 
creasing the size of the carcass to a large 
extent, breeding off wrinkles, etc., are 
improvements. To quite an extent, this 
plan has been followed, and in my 
opinion, instead of improvement, a de¬ 
terioration is the result of such practice. 
Men, for the sake of the fashion, or in 
the hope that ready money could be ob¬ 
tained, have disregarded the principles 
of Merino improvement, and as a whole, 
perhaps the Merino is not much ahead of 
the standard of the last few years. The 
Merino sheep has a record of hundreds 
of years, and he is a careful and think¬ 
ing man who will not make mistakes if 
he undertakes to pattern after any other 
breed of sheep. Changes and improve¬ 
ment in sheep bred as long as the Me¬ 
rino, must be slowly and thoughtfully 
made, if the ends sought are obtained. 
The money consideration should be 
looked for in the real improvement, 
when demonstrated. WILLIAM ball. 
Michigan. 
Meat for Hoos. —One of my gilt sows (lied last 
night, trying to farrow, that, too, in spite of care¬ 
ful help. I cut her in small pieces, say 10 pounds, 
and buried them shallow so as to lake out a 
piece with a hook every day or two to feed the 
other hogs. I once fed a neighbor’s cow out that 
way, and a herd of 35 hogs would scarcely eat 
corn while it lasted. e. h. collins. 
Richer Milk. —To my mind, there is no doubt 
that quality is increasingly recognized by city 
dealers in milk. I sell a large amount of both 
milk and cream, and both dealers and creamery- 
men profess to have regard to the amount of 
butter fat in making up their payments to farm¬ 
ers. Even though there is no great advance in 
price, the man who has a good article can find 
ready sale, while an inferior grade drags. I find 
an increasing demand for Guernsey bulls, and 
this largely among farmers; also for good grade 
heifer calves, showing that they are realizing 
more and more that it pays to breed up. Most of 
our farmers take milk to creameries, where 
quality is generally appreciated and paid for. 
It seems plain all along the line, that quality 
pays, and the sooner farmers join the procession 
of advance, the better for them. 
Pennsylvania. w. b. harvet. 
CREAM SEPARATORS. 
Oe Laval “ Alpha ” and “ Baby " Separators. 
First—Best—Cheapest. All Styles—Sizes 
Prices, $50 to $800. 
Save $10 per cow per year. Send for Catalogue. 
THE DE LAVAL SEPARATOR CO., 
Randolph and Canal Streets, I 74 Cort.landt Street, 
CHICAGO. | NEW YORK. 
New York State 
Veterinary College. 
Established at Cornell University, Ithaca, N. Y., 
by Chapter /jy. Laws of 18Q4. 
The best equipment for scientific and practical in¬ 
struction for undergraduatesand postgraduates. Most 
varied practice for students in the free clinics. Regu¬ 
lar graded course, thiee years of nine months each. 
Highest requirements for matriculationand graduation. 
Entrance by Regents’ “Veterinary Student Certifi¬ 
cate," or by examination Sept. 13 , 1898 . Instruction 
begins Sept. 22 , 1898 . 
Tuition free to New York State students. 
For extended announcement address 
Professor JAMES LAW, F.R.C.V.S., Director. 
Ull UTtn—Position as Manager of Dairy or 
WW HU I Lll Stock Farm. Understand care of 
cattle as to feeding, etc.; handling of milk in every 
form; farming in all its branches. No liquor or 
tobacco used. Single man. Best of references from 
largest Guernsey Stock Farm in the World. 
Address Box 52, Clinton Comers, N. Y. 
THE IX L HARNESS MENDER 
Best Ever Made. 
through agents only. Secure 
stenoy at once. Sample sent 
(1.00, express charges prepaid. 
Salem, Ohio. 
Mfrs. 
3 Ton 
$35 
TANDARD SCALES 
Full Descriptive Catalogue FREE 
OSGOOD SCALE CO., B &*w h $?£ n 
Good Agents Wanted in unoccupied territory. 
KNIVES 
FOR 
CUTTERS. 
Write for prices, it will pay you. 
S. E. LINCOLN, Springfield, O. 
True Economy— 
Dairy economy con¬ 
sists in getting the 
most out of your 
product. In g-etting 
the most cream in the 
purest and most 
churnable form from 
a given amount of 
milk. In making the 
most, salable, “sweet 
as a nut,” kind of 
butter. Such economy 
results from the use 
of Shabplks Crkam 
Separators 
either Safety Hand or Little Giant. 
P. M. SHARPLES, 
Branches: West Chester, Pa. 
Elgin, Ill. 
Omaha, Neb. 
Dubuque, Iowa. 
Perfect Milk 
Docs the milk have a bad taste; 
does It turn sour too quickly! 
THE PERFECTION 
Milk Cooler 
and Aerator.. _ 
will atop the trouble. It is a low priced machine 
and should be in every dairy. Send for circulars, t 
L. £?. LEWIS 0 Mfir. Garland, N. Y. 1 
““ ‘ ‘ ‘ ' * . ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦> 
Top Price Butter. 
The kind that a fancy private 
trade demands, is colored with 
Thatcher's cranye Butter Color — 
the color t--at does not contain 
any poison, it end for a sample. 
T HATCHER MFG.CO., Potsdam , N.Y. 
Caw Ca|a~CHEAP FOR CASH.—Cheese Hoops, 
■ VI WdlC Presses, Fillers, FoUowers and Uten¬ 
sils, Patents, Labels, etc., for making 160 5-lb. bricks 
of the famous “Thistle Cheese’’ per day in which 
there is an established trade. Address 
GRIFFIN & HOXIE, Utica, N. Y 
Silo Machinery 
aud Tread HOrSG POWCfSoperuUng 
No Dairy or Stock Farm can count itself in shape 
to compete in the manufacture of Vain/ Products or 
Beef , without the nid of the Silo. We make the 
largest line of Silo Machinery on Barth, and know that 
in consequence we can give you positively better value 
for your money than you oan get elsewhere. *98 SI 1 o 
II O O k I e tfree to any address. Contains ex- Gov. Hoard's 
latest view* on Ensilage as related to the Dairy Cote. 
“Smalley Goods" Agency I SMALLETMHFG. CO ’’ 
goes with first order. | sianitowoo^'wia. 
CORN 
HAY. 
1 his cylinder when used in 
THE ROSS 
FODDER GUTTERS 
[! ry •uhxtanre like liny. In 
Stter H ^K AU “t l,at itread.b-noUS 
Catalogue Xo.13. ‘■’E E. W. ROSS CO., Springfield, Ohio. 
THE CLIPPER 
HA || | O are guaranteed 
to be the best 
Grain and Seed Cleaners made. 
We use them in our warehouse 
(Power Sizes) for recleaning 
Clover, Timothy, Vida Villosa, 
Dwarf Essex Rape,Seed Wheat, 
. ____ and other Farm Seeds. Write 
for MILL CIRCULAR; also. Seed Price List. 
The Henry Philipps Seed and Implement Co., 
115 & 117 St. Clair Street, Toledo. Ohio. 
STAVE SILOS A 1is T T HE 
The Dairyman’s Fruit Jar.” For full particulars 
prices, etc., address A. M. D. IIOLOWAY. Phila¬ 
delphia, Pa., or H B. Severance, Lansing, Mich. 
N O MUDDY WATER! 
and consequent filth and 
disease can exist where 
Hall Steel Tanks are 
used. Pure milk and high 
flavored butter can only be produced with pure water. 
Healthy, wholesome beef and pork cannot be made 
without it. Our tanks are made of best galvanized 
steel, put together In the most substantial way. Ask 
for anything in the tank line; we will give you 
estimate. C3T Circulars avi> Prices Free. 
The HALL STEEL TANK CO. 63 N. Ashland Av. Chicago, 111. 
The Improved U, S. Cream Separators 
In thoroughness of separation take the lead. 
Incompleteness of design and ease of operation excel 
all others. 
Are more substantially made and are superior in all 
points to all others. , 
All Styles and Sizes. $ 75.00 to $ 625 . 00 . 
Agents in all dairy sections. 
Send for latest illustrated catalogues. 
VERMONT FARM MACHINE CO., - Bellows Falls, Vt. 
