i89o 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
285 
The Farmers Club. 
ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
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see if it H not answered in our advertising columns. Ask only 
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of paper. 
Feeding Farrow Cows for Beef. 
D. C. S., Jasper, N. F.—How much butter can Secretary 
J. S. Woodward make his strippers average daily and how 
much did they sell for last year ? 
ANSWERED BY SECRETARY J. S. WOODWARD. 
Before answering these queries, it may he well to con¬ 
sider the great loss to the dairy districts by the slaughter 
of hundreds of cows that have done good service in the 
dairy: but which, for some reason failing to come in the 
following spring, become worthless to the average dairy¬ 
man. If it be possible by any system of feeding to make 
these cows pay for a sufficient amount of food to fatten 
them properly and thus double the net amount of money 
which the dairyman should receive from them, it would be 
of the greatest benefit to the dairy sections. When I 
started into this line of feeding I could get no information 
from any source and, as a matter of course, I had to feel my 
way, and, besides, I knew nothing of the value of properly 
balancing the rations, and for a few years I had 
a hard task to do any more than clear the 
manure I made as profit on the transaction. But 
I was perfectly satisfied to do this, although the 
manure made from feeding Timothy hay and 
corn-meal very largely, was of little value in comparison 
with that which I now make from clover hay, bran, cotton¬ 
seed meal and linseed meal. But as I have gained in ex¬ 
perience in purchasing and feeding, as well as in the knowl¬ 
edge of the proper combination of foods and the value of 
the silo, I am doing very nmch better than formerly and 
yearly increasing the margin of profit. 
To show what can be done, I will give a short descrip¬ 
tion pf the operations of the winter just over. On the 1st 
of November we put into our barns 46 cows, weighing, on 
an average, 950 pounds each, and costing, on an average, a 
few cents less than $20 apiece. At first it took 27 pounds of 
milk to make a pound of butter; but by high feeding and 
judicious compounding of rations we got them so that 
a little less than 23 pounds would do so. (In case of the lot 
we were feeding last year less than 19 pounds made a pound 
of butter). We have fed this year a ration of 40 pounds of 
silage, made from thinly-planted, well-matured corn, bear- 
ing plenty of ears ; five pounds of clover hay, and8)^ pounds 
of a mixture, consisting of corn-meal, wheat bran, cotton¬ 
seed meal and linseed meal. The 46 cows have made on an 
average 40 pounds of butter per day, which we have sold for 
30cent8 per pound, and the cows now weigh over 1,150 pounds 
each, and will certainly weigh 1,200 pounds by the middle 
of May when we shall deliver them, and we have a standing 
offer for them at 3)4 cents per pound, live weight, and 
more if the market will stand it, from a man who has had 
all we have fed for the last six years, and who says he 
would as soon have them as the ordinary Western steers. 
But the question all will ask is: “Have you made any 
money in the transactions.” Let us figure a little and see, 
taking the figures from our books. 
The cows were bought on November 1, and are sold to 
be delivered on May 15. They have eaten and are now 
eating a mixture made up and costing as follows, all hav¬ 
ing been bought last summer at car-load rates per ton, de¬ 
livered, except the corn-meal, and that has been made 
from corn bought by the car-load and ground at a local 
mill, the cost of grinding being included 
200 lbs. corn meal at $13 per ton. 
100 “ wheat bran at 12.75 per ton. 
100 ** N. P. linseed meal at $20 per ton. 
100 “ cotton seed meal at $22.50. 
500 pounds would cost. 
100 “ “ “ .. 
Of the cows eating silage, each had an average, 
854 lbs. of this mixture, costing. 
5 lbs. of clover hay at $6.50 per ton. 
40 lbs. of silage at $1.25 per ton. 
$4.0625 
.8125 
S .069 
.0164 
.025 
Tnus the cost of dally food per head was.g 
Our account with each of the cows will stand as fol¬ 
lows : 
First cost, November 1st. 
nterest to May 15. when sold.... 
Feeding 195 days at .110J4 per day 
Dr. 
$20.00 
.65 
21.50 
Whole cost when sold 
RJCCEIPTS. 
$42 15 
Cr. 
40 46 lbs. of butter dally from November 1st to March 15th, 136 days 
18M lbs., at 30c. per lb.’ $3111 
20 lbs. of skim milk dally for 136 days—2.720 lbs. worth for pig-feed- 
lng at least l-4c ... g „„ 
Beef sold, 1,200 lbs. at 8J4 c... . 
Whole return when sold. 
$80.27 
Profit ou each cow. ^ 12 
All this Is In addition to the value of the manure. If this be added.. 10.75 
We shall have a prollt of. ^ ^ 
So that It will not be a discouraging transaction. 
But lest any one should be misled by this showing, let 
me say that this has been an uncommonly favprable year ; 
all kinds of feeds have been remarkably low and beef is 
bringing an exceptionally good price, so much so that I 
am now reasonably sure of more than 3>£ cents per pound, 
live weight, for my stock. But in no year since we began 
to feed farrow cows have we failed to make a good profit, 
without counting the value of the manure which results 
from the feeding, and which is always of the best quality, 
and, as I have before said, will pay a very large profit on 
the operation. As will be seen, I have made no account 
of the cost of the labor. I have omitted this because, as a 
rule, we can hire men for a whole year for about the same 
wages they would get for eight months, commencing 
April 1. But certainly the manure made will be worth as 
much (yes ; twice as much) as the cost of the labor, and 
even then we should have a margin that would be satis¬ 
factory. 
But in order to make a success of this business we must 
follow it on business principles. We cannot do it by leav¬ 
ing our cows out in the cold every day or a part of the 
day. On the contrary, they must be closely housed in 
warm barbs. And, when I ssy “ closely housed,” I mean 
all the time, not being compelled to go out-of-doors even 
to drink, and the’stables must be warm and never allowed 
to get cold enough so that any part of the manure will 
freeze. We must make our cows comfortable, but we must 
not allow them to run around loose any of the time. Ex¬ 
ercise costs feed and prevents the secretion of milk and the 
laying on of fat, and we can’t afford any more than is ab¬ 
solutely necessary for the health of the animals, and all 
this they can get when tied by the neck and kept well 
bedded. We must have young, healthy cows, not old 
“ sojers ” that have been kept until their horns are too 
short to record their ages. This is the rule, although I 
have had a few of this class that havefmade me plenty of 
money. I prefer good, thrifty cows, of from four to seven 
years of age, and of all kinds I prefer Shorthorn grades, 
although these are not absolutely essential for profit. 
There is one thing more that is absolutely essential to suc¬ 
cess.: we must feed cows all they can eat and digest, every 
day from the time we put them in until'they are ready for 
market and sold. There is no profit in half feeding. It 
costs power to keep’the mill running even if we grind no 
grist, and it takes but a little more to have it do full 
work. It is the same with our cows. And we get profit 
only from the “ excess ” food eaten, so that the more we 
can get the cow to eat, digest and assimilate beyond the 
maintenance ration, the more product of butter we shall 
get and the larger gains in fat and the larger profit. But, 
above all and beyond all, this system of feeding enables us 
to get large piles of very rich manure, and this makes our 
fields merry and our granaries full. 
Manurlal Value and Use of Muck. 
H. W. S., Rochester, Minn. —A peat bog on our place 
has been plowed and the peat is about as fine as old black 
stable manure. For what crops on sandy soil will this be 
a special fertilizer ? It must contain much nitrogen, as 
crops planted on the edge of the bog grew to leaves—potato 
vines were six feet long and beets and turnip leaves 
almost two feet high. 
ANSWERED BY PROF. E. F. LADD. 
The value of peat or muck (peat is the proper term and 
includes all those products we call muck or deposits of 
organic matter), may be two fold—to supply nitrogen and 
to add organic matter or humus to the soil to serve valu¬ 
able physical purposes. As to what plants it would be a 
special fertilizer for, it would be difficult to decide with 
so little information at hand. Peat as taken from the 
ground is strongly acid in nature and needs to be exposed 
to the air for a time to allow it to become decomposed be¬ 
fore being used as a manure or an absorbent behind 
cattle. Good peat contains twice the amount of nitrogen 
contained in average yard manure, but there islin it'little 
phosphate or potash, so that these must be supplied in 
some other form, as in the shape of ashes, phosphates, etc. 
On good soils the application of peat manure might not 
benefit clover, alfalfa, peas, beans ’or corn so much as it 
would such grains as wheat, oats and rye, or potatoes, 
cabbage, etc., while the first class of plants use large 
amounts of nitrogen, they are able to gather their supply 
from sources from which it would be impossible for the 
second class to collect enough to make a fair growth. On 
sandy soil a good dressing of well composted and fine peat 
might serve a more useful purpose than furnishing nitro¬ 
gen. The peat well worked into the soil would retain the 
moisture better, in times of drought, and so enable the 
plants to make better growth ; for really the great ques¬ 
tion is how to manage the water in the soil, so that there 
will not be a superabundance at one season and a great lack 
at another. In dry times peat spread upon the surface 
serves as a mulch and prevents evaporation. How shall 
we apply peat to the soil ? For the most lasting effect I 
would plow it under; it would then serve its best purpose, 
both to furnish humus as a manure, and to make the soil 
more retentive of moisture. I would not apply it upon the 
surface except as a mulch. As peat comes from the ground, 
most of the nitrogen is in an insoluble form ; but on ex¬ 
posure to the air for a time, especially if it is composted 
with some easily putrefying matter like manure, fish, 
blood, etc., the uitrogen becomes more soluble and a 
liquid fertilizer made from this might prove valuable for 
house plants. This, however, is a matter for experimenta¬ 
tion. 
Weight of Colt: Cross of Trotting Stallion on 
Draft Mare. 
“Subscriber,” Aberdeen, S. D.—l. What is the average 
weight of a grade draft colt when born ? What would be 
a good weight for one when six months old ? At that age 
how muchd ifference would there be in the weight of colts 
of different sexes ? 2. What kind of an offspring would 
be likely to result if a mare one-quarter Norman, weighing 
1,500 pounds, is bred to a stallion half Coach and half Mes¬ 
senger, weighing about the same and having a record of 
three minutes or better ? 
ANSWERED BY SMITHS, POWELL & LAMB. 
I. We have never weighed our colts when born, and 
hence cannot answer. There would be little difference in 
the weight of the sexes at birth, or at six months. 2. We 
would expect a very excellent cross from a mare half or a 
quarter Norman and a half-bred Coach stallion, but we 
could give a more definite idea of the probable weight if 
we knew the size of the stallion and of his Messenger dam. 
The cross of the French Coach stallion on large, well-bred 
Hambletonian or Messenger stock has proven a very happy 
one. The size, general appearance, form and action of the 
French Coachhorse have been retained, and an increase in 
the road gait has been almost invariably the result, and 
therefore we consider the cross very desirable. By crossing 
such stock upon large grade Norman mares, we would 
anticipate very desirable business, and in many cases good 
Coach horses. 
Compounding- a Potato Fertilizer. 
A. S. H., Valley Falls, N. Y. —I want to mix a ton of 
hen manure with cotton-seed meal and ground bone so as 
to make a potato fertilizer containing 50 per cent, of nitro¬ 
gen, 10 per cent, of potash and eight per cent, of phosphoric 
acid. What is the analysis of the hen manure, and how 
much of the other substances should be mixed with it to 
make a fertilizer containing the above proportion of plant 
food ? 
ANSWERED BY PROF. I. P. ROBERTS. 
The water content of hen manure varies greatly. When 
fresh or undried it is not so valuable as has generally been 
supposed. I imagine that that A. S. H. has on hand contains 
about 1.63 per cent, of nitrogen, .85 per cent, of potash and 
1.54 per cent, of phosphoric acid. If we compute nitrogen at 
15 cents, potash four cents, and phosphoric acid at seven 
cents per pound, a ton of hen manure would be worth 
$7.73. In order to get the percentage of nitrogen, etc., 
which is desired, A. S. H. would have to mix with the ton 
of hen manure two tons of cotton-seed meal, 2)4 tons of 
cotton-seed-hull ashes and one ton of bone meal. This 
would give approximately what he desires. I believe it is 
too rich in nitrogen for potatoes. I suggest that he should 
mix the manure with equal parts of cotton-seed-hull ashes 
and cotton-seed meal. He would then get about 2.8 per 
cent, of nitrogen, 8.57 per cent, of phospheric acid and 8.71 
per cent, of potash. 
The Rural Trench System, etc. 
H. W., Schoharie County, New York.— What is the 
Rural New-Yorker’s trench method of planting pota¬ 
toes ? How are the trenches made ? How are the potatoes 
harrowed, as described in a late Rural ? How does Mr. 
Terry stop the leaks in his stables ? 
Ans.—O ur trenches are made with a shovel plow, bought 
from the Syracuse Plow Co. An ordinary plow run both 
ways in the same furrow would answer. The pieces of 
potato are simply dropped into the furrow and covered 
with soil. Quite a number of farmers harrow potatoes 
until they are three inches high. A light smoothing har¬ 
row is dragged on the field, up and down the rows. This 
keeps the soil loose and mellow, pulls up the weeds, and 
does very little injury to the potatoes. Mr. Terry has con¬ 
crete floors for his stable and barnyard, so that it is impos¬ 
sible for the manure to wash away. 
Drilling Alfalfa. 
J. 3. C., Chappaqua, N. Y .—Would it not be just as 
well to sow Alfalfa broadcast as in drills ? 
Ans.—T he labor entailed in drilling the Alfalfa is un¬ 
doubtedly greater than where it is sown broadcast, but the 
drilling is considered by far the more profitable plan. 
There is a greater assurance of securing a good “catch,” 
the crop can be more easily fertilized and cultivated, and 
if sown broadcast but little if any crop may be expected 
the first year. 
MISCELLANEOUS. 
J. W. B., Moreland, N. Y .—There are few Suffolk horses 
in this country. Galbraith Brothers, of Janesville, Wis., 
have some and their catalogue contains a description of 
the breed. 
T. R. W., Roselle, N. J .—What is the name of the in¬ 
closed grass, which is very hardy and hard to get rid of in 
the garden ? 
-Ans. Poa annua—Spear Grass, Goose Grass. It is a 
very nutritious grass, but so small that it is deficient in 
quantity. It dies at the approach of hot weather, and can 
not be considered a desirable lawn grass. It is an annual, 
maturing and sowing its seeds early. 
H.N., Newark, N. J.-Will a pure White Leghorn hen 
sit ? I have heard of some hatching, but do not think they 
are pure stock. 
Ans.— Certainly, the hens of any breed will become 
broody if they are too fat. The hens of the non-sitting 
breeds, however, are not so persistent in their attempts at 
incubation, and many times will not sit so steadily, if 
given the opportunity, as the hens of some of the other 
breeds. We have known them to give up the job in dis¬ 
gust after sitting a few days, and return to their former 
occupation of laying eggs. 
C. W. G„ Waynesboro, N. Y .—The cities and towns 
have extraordinary advantages in comparison with the 
country; should they not help to support the roads by 
State and county appropriations? 
Ans.— It would seem, at first thought, as though the 
money needed to keep our roads in repair should be raised 
as the school funds are now raised. Governor Hill of this 
State devoted a large part of his recent message to an argu¬ 
ment in favor of State roads to be built by the State ; a 
portion of the funds needed to be derived from taxes 
levied on the adjacent property and the balance from the 
State fund. Farmers generally object to this bill for two 
reasons: They oppose the heavy expense and are unwill¬ 
ing to let the work of road-making go out of their own hands 
