1852. 
THE CULTIVATOR 
105 
ses, and fed all they will eat, and sometimes for a week 
at a time, are entirely off their feed. Cattle feeding in 
this section, is only a new business, and on some farms 
it is very injudiciously managed. Cattle cannot have too 
much of the open air, if they have good shelter to go to 
at pleasure—that, with good hay, and a dry, clean bed, 
and an average of six quarts of corn-meal per day, will 
make cattle very fat in from 80 to 100 days. If pretty 
well forward in condition, they may be fattened in 60 
days—but a great deal depends on the breed of cattle. 
Short-horn. Durhams, and their grades, feed best; the 
Devons and their grades also feed rapidly, but they don’t 
weigh enough when fat. We have a breed of red cattle, 
a brighter red than the Devons—longer horns and larger 
frames, that are excellent feeders. Then we have anoth¬ 
er breed of red, brindle and black cattle, with coarse, 
hard hair, thick skins, and noses black, which you may 
feed three months, and make little improvement. I 
have made cattle feeding pay for their feed every year, 
and some years I get great pay. This has been one of 
those years. True. I do not know, that this last lot I 
have commenced with, will pay, yet my prospect is 
equally as good as with the other lot; and although they 
paid me abundantly, it was readily seen that the pur¬ 
chaser was much pleased with his bargain. 
I notice also, in the Cultivator of this month, an Eng¬ 
lish writer wants his fattening cattle to be in a sweat, 
but not dropping off them. You see how we disagree; 
but in England they sweat their horse jockeys before great 
races, in order to lessen their weight, and sweat their cat¬ 
tle to make them heavier. Absurd! John John¬ 
ston. Near Geneva , Jan. 20, 1852. 
On Raising Horses. 
Editors Cultivator —The subject of breeding and 
managing horses, is one of so much importance, that I 
need make no apology for again presenting it to your 
readers. This, however, I would not have ventured to 
do, had not the little work now before me, awakened a 
new interest in the subject. 
The work refered to, is “ The Stud Farm, or Hints 
on Breeding, $c., by Cecil. It appeared in London 
during the year just closed, and is considered worthy of 
its popular author. Who that person is I am not inform¬ 
ed. The following passage from his preface, will show 
his claim to the confidence of his readers-. 
“For more than five-and-twenty years the author of 
this little work has been engaged in the management of 
horses—and, as during all that period, he has never neg. 
lected any opportunity of acquiring practical informa¬ 
tion on every point connected therewith, he is not without 
hope that he may be able to throw out a few hints on this 
subject, that may be worth the reader’s attention.” 
I propose, in the articles I am to send you, to quote 
very freely from this excellent work. It contains very 
many judicious observations, and is evidently the produc¬ 
tion of a man of good sense, and of practical experience. 
Ills opinion of the importance of the subject is given as 
follows: 
“ To the farmer, especially, the author desires to ad¬ 
dress himself, and would earnestly call his attention to a 
source of profit, which, if zealously pursued, will assur¬ 
edly exceed most, if not every other speculation, within 
his province. 
It is often said that farmers cannot obtain sufficiently 
remunerative prices for the horses which they rear. But 
the reason is obvious; they do not breed from the right 
sort, neither do they take sufficient care of their stock.” 
To the two last assertions, I would call the particular 
attention of your readers—1st. Get the right stock —2d.. 
Take care of your stock . 
These certainly are cardinal rules, and without their 
due observance, disappointment is inevitable. In the 
succeeding pages the author tells us what is the right sort, 
and what the care they need. Freviously to entering upon, 
the main business of the work, however, he discusses fur¬ 
ther the inducements offered to farmers for engaging in 
the business. He says: 
The apprehension of railway traveling superceding the 
use of stage coaches, led to the idea that there would be 
no market for the immense numbers heretofore required 
for that purpose, and hence, that a great number of the 
pleasure horses, or those used by private individuals, 
w'ould be dispensed with. The expectation that the stage 
coaches would be run off the road by the united powers 
of steam and fire, lias been fully realized. Nevertheless, 
when the immense number of horses now used to convey 
travellers from the railway stations, to the various towns 
and villages in the vicinity, are considered, it will he 
found that there are nearly as many kept as during the 
time of the stage coaches. There are infinitely more 
persons in private life, who employ horses for pleasure 
and convenience, than ever there were,” &c. 
11 One of the main points urged by the farmer against 
breeding horses, is, that he has to w : ait so long for a re¬ 
turn of his capital. That assertion is readily met. In 
the first place, if he cannot command an adequate capi¬ 
tal, he cannot embark in a more injudicious speculation 
than that of agriculture. In the next, how much longer 
has he to lie out of his money, by breeding horses than bul¬ 
locks? The latter are not fit for t he butcher till they have 
attained from three to four years. The cost of rearing a 
bullock, is nearly equal to that of rearing a horse, till they 
have respectively arrived at the age of three years. The cost 
of fattening a bullock, which requires six months or more 
to accomplish, is greater than is requisite for the keep of 
a horse during a similar term at any period of his life. 
A good bullock, when fat, is worth about twenty-five 
pounds. An inferior horse at the same age, is worth 
quite as much money; and a superior shaped hunter, or 
carriage horse, will fetch three or four times the sum, 
and higher.” 
On the next page the author recurs to the cardinal 
rules laid down in the preface, and utters them with even 
more emphasis—he says: 
“ A great number of farmers have abandoned the pur¬ 
suit of breeding horses, in consequence of what they de¬ 
nominate ill luck; but they have not set about it in the 
right way. They have made an injudicious selection of 
mares and stallions, the produce of which have been bad¬ 
ly kept. * * * * In the winter, the only asylum 
for shelter has been the farm-yard, where, in company 
with cows—the roughest food has been offered them. 
Few animals so treated, are worth a twenty pound note 
at four years old. Unless a farmer will determine oh 
keeping them well, he had better never attempt to breed 
horses, or in fact any other kind of stock.” 
The author here occupies several pages with his view's 
of the proper mode of keeping or stabling stock. He is 
decidedly in favor of keeping mares and colts, and also 
young horses, in small enclosures or paddocks, with 
hovels enclosed or contiguous, by which they can be per¬ 
fectly shielded from storms. He prefers the practice of 
soiling to pasturing. Undoubtedly a greater number 
may be kept on the same “ average” by this system 
than by pasturing, but our style of fanning is not suffi¬ 
ciently thorough to admit of its general adoption in this 
