Vol. LX VIII. 
Published Weekly by The Rural Publishing Co., 
3'"! W. 30th St., Now York. Price One Dollar a Year. 
NEW YORK, FEBRUARY 15, 1010. 
entered as Second-Class Matter. .Tune 26. l?7tr. at the Post 
Office at New York. N. Y., under the Act of March 3. 1870. 
No. 4521. 
The Percheron Horse as Farm Power 
How He Stabilizes the Tractor 
POPULAR BREED.—The Percheron horse is 
probably the most popular draft breed in Amer¬ 
ica. In numbers, representatives of this breed per¬ 
haps equal the total of till other breeds of work 
horses, which is a convincing argument illustrating 
their popularity. They reach maturity at an early 
age, possess excellent feeding and fattening qualities, 
although many users have reason to fault their 
stubby pasterns, their tendency toward round spongy 
and until mechanical power can he more generally 
depended upon and until mechanical imperfections 
and breakage of the tractor have been outwitted, or 
reduced, the progressive farther whose income de¬ 
pends upon the production and timely harvesting of 
his crops, will still cling to the work horse whose ser¬ 
vices are always available. 
WINTERING IDLE HORSES.—The wintering of 
idle horses is a serious problem on many farms. In 
this connection let it be-said that the use of oat and 
pea hay 1ms given excellent results when used as a 
grain and roughage for such animals. This feed is 
GENERAL CONDITION.—For this reason, and 
many others, it is desirable to winter the idle horse 
as economically as possible and to defer the feeding 
of the horses for Spring work until the field work 
opens. Care should be exercised in making sure that 
tiie horse’s teeth are not piercing the gums, thus 
preventing proper mastication and inviting waste 
and indigestion; also, that the horse’s digestive sys¬ 
tem is not infested with worms. Either of these 
conditions will be responsible for a ravenuous appe¬ 
tite. and result in the excessive consumption of food 
and eventual waste and extravagance in feeding. 
Turnin'/ Over the Corn Stubble on a Large Farm. Fig. 62 
bone and the prevalence of soft hocks. The Percheron 
horse, perhaps more than any other animal, is 
stabilizing the tractor craze, for it has been pointed 
out on so many occasions that a tractor's usefulness 
is confined to a very limited number of tasks, while 
the horse’s usefulness knows no limitations; and 
even with the tractor to do certain plowing and pre¬ 
paration of the ground, it is absolutely essential to 
keep a certain number of horses and teams available 
for doing the other work that a tractor cannot touch. 
It is clear, therefore, that the tractor may supple¬ 
ment the work horse, but it will never replace him, 
lalatable and nourishing. It is bulky and satisfac¬ 
tory. and it does not fatten up the horses, as often 
prevails when idle horses are fed corn, oats and 
hay exclusively. The only flesh that is worth while 
on a work horse is that which lias been put on while 
the horse is doing regular work. If he is fattened 
when idle the flesh is soft and watery; the muscles, 
being inactive, cannot respond without great fatigue 
when service is demanded of them, consequently the 
horse becomes excited and nervous, and. actually, the 
flesh must be worked off before the horse can render 
depend able work on the farm. 
Another precaution that might properly be sounded 
at this season of the year relates to the care of the 
horse’s feet. Nothing is more ruinous than the use 
of “never-slip” shoes that are nailed on the horse’s 
feet at the beginning of the Winter season and not 
removed until they loosen from use in the mud dur¬ 
ing the late Spring. The heels contract, the walls 
are unable to extend, and malformation of many 
sorts result. It is the draft horse’s' business to do 
farm work in season and out of season, and careful 
management of this type of animal during the Win¬ 
ter months is quite as important as are the feeding 
