27 
Iht RURAL NEW-YORKER 
Live Stock Matters 
Conducted By Prof. F. C. Minkler 
Close Inbreeding 
Through an accidental breaking of a 
line fence a yearling heifer was mated to 
a neighbor’s bull who is a half brother to 
her. Roth were sired by the same regis¬ 
tered Holstein bull. Their mothers were 
not related. What will be the I'esult of 
such a union? Please discuss the prin¬ 
ciples of breeding involved. .T. I#. n. 
Pennsylvania. 
It is not uncommon to find successful 
breeders mating their animals as closely 
as this accidental service records. In 
fact, it was Amos Cruickshank’s method 
to inbreed even more intensively than this 
mating represents. It has been observed 
that inbreeding has a tendency to per¬ 
petuate type, stabilize production, unify 
color, and more definitely perpetuate cer¬ 
tain qualities that seem to regulate per¬ 
sistent production. On the other hand, 
incestuous breeding, that is. the mating 
of animals very closely related, has been 
known to decrease size, weaken the con¬ 
stitutional vigor, and disturb the regular 
functions of mating, which results in ir¬ 
regular and irresponsible breeders. Often 
it is advisable to intensify blood lines 
and. in instances of this sort where the 
dams are not related, and provided both 
the sire and dam were not undersized, it 
is likely that no bad results will be in 
evidence. 
Trouble With Garbage-Fed Hogs 
I get about four tons of garbage from 
a Government reservation daily, and have 
been feeding it to the hogs. I always 
have the hogs treated with simultaneous 
treatment for cholera at the right time. 
I feed them on the ground and they have 
about 40 acres to run over. The last six 
months I have lost over 400 head. They 
seem to get all kinds of diseases. Would 
you continue raising them on the garbage, 
and if so, how? What do you think of 
feeding my chickens on the garbage? 
What chickens I have do fine on it. Will 
it hurt the land to spread it over it for 
fertilizer and turn it under? Kindly tell 
me the best thing. g. w. s. 
Maryland. 
There are a number of infectious dis¬ 
eases among hogs that so closely resemble 
hog cholera that it is difficult to establish 
a diagnosis that will guide one in taking 
the proper precautions to guard against 
such infections. The feeding of garbage 
is a particularly hazardous practice, for 
it. has been demonstrated convincingly 
only recently that infectious diseases 
among hogs are transmitted to a surpris¬ 
ing degree through the agency of meat 
scraps or cooked portions of the meats. 
In other words, if a hog is infected with 
hog cholera and, even though there may 
be no evidence in the carcass showing the 
presence of the infection, it is clearly pos¬ 
sible for the disease to be transmitted to 
animals that may be fed upon table 
scraps resulting from the use of portions 
of his carcass. There is another con¬ 
dition particularly discouraging so far as 
hog cholera and its related infections are 
concerned. When a pig becomes infected 
with hog cholera to such a degree that 
one can determine the presence of the 
disease from any one of the various sym- 
toms indicating its presence, the organs of 
the animal are so diseased and impover¬ 
ished that nothing can be done to restore 
the animal’s vigor. 
It is very probable that your hogs are 
dying from an infection other than hog 
cholera. It is possible that it is hem¬ 
orrhagic septicaemia, or infection com¬ 
monly called contagions pneumonia. Your 
State Bureau of Animal Industry or your 
State Veterinarian ought to be consulted, 
and, no doubt, he could direct you to a 
source of information that would make 
it possible by a microscopic examination 
to determine exactly the infection that 
is responsible for your loss. There is 
now being sold a mixed vaccine which, it 
is claimed, will control the infection so 
closely resembling hog cholera. Your 
veterinarian would be best qualified to 
give you this information. There is still 
a possibility that the serum or virus that 
you have been using to immunize against 
hog cholera is not potent, and. therefore, 
is not affording the protection. It ought 
to be comparatively easy for your veter¬ 
inarian to determine whether or not the 
animals are dying from hog cholera, and 
if it is determined that this disease is 
causing you loss. I would surely secure 
serum and virus that would protect 
against this particular infection. There 
is no reason why garbage cannot be used 
in feeding chickens. They are very fond 
of table scraps of all sorts, and there is 
nothing that I know of that will increase 
egg production as will the generous use 
of garbage. 
As to the fertility value of the garbage 
when spread over the laud, much would 
depend upon the character of the ma¬ 
terial. I doubt whether you can afford to 
pay very much either in actual money or 
for collecting and distributing garbage for 
fertilizer. I suppose it would be entirely 
out of the question for you to cook this 
material and standardize it, and mix with 
it a certain percentage of grain and mo¬ 
lasses. in order that the daily rations 
would not be subject to such a wide 
variation. It is the prevailing opinion 
among feeders of garbage to hogs that 
their best results follow the selection of 
pigs whose dams have been reared on 
garbage. In other words, if you under¬ 
take to assemble from stockyards or farms 
a large number of pigs for the purpose of 
feeding them on garbage, you will find 
that your loss will be considerably greater 
than in case you were producing pigs on 
your own farm, where garbage was fed 
to the breeding animals, and where they 
were developed on gai*bage conditions 
throughout their nursing and growing 
period. This principle holds true in the 
Secaucus (New Jersey) district, where 
thousands of pigs are fed annually. At a 
number of the cantonments, where gar¬ 
bage was fed exclusively to pigs, the 
losses were unusually high among th > 
pigs that had been assembled for garbage 
feeding. 
Live Stock for Europe 
Gan you give me any information about 
shipping pigs and cattle to Europe? I 
wish to know price paid, cost of shipping, 
what kind of animals (purebred or grade), 
to whom should I write in regard to the 
matter, and anything else in connection 
with it. h. E. D. 
New York. 
The French Government recently 
awarded a contract for 20.000 head of 
grade dairy cows to be exported to France 
for the purpose of re-establishing certain 
agricultural activities that were sus¬ 
pended during the war. Many of the 
flocks and herds in devastated districts 
were destroyed, and the officials appealed 
to America for aid. The exportation has 
practically ceased at the moment, how¬ 
ever. on account of the high exchange 
value of the franc. If we gather the 
facts correctly, the French officials con¬ 
tracted with an American buyer to sup¬ 
ply milch cows under six years of age 
that had passed the Federal tuberculin 
test. These cows were inspected by the 
delegated veterinarians at the point of 
assemblage and those found to meet the 
requirements, provided they were not far 
advanced in calf, were shipped to the 
east coast for export. Unfortunately, it 
was necessary for the contractor to sub¬ 
let his orders, and it is reported that a 
great many nondescript and inferior cows 
were included in the shipment. 
I am not aware that any concerted ef¬ 
fort was made toward the importation 
of swine for breeding purposes, and it is 
my belief that the dairy cattle export 
market is at a standstill for the moment. 
No doubt the Rureau of Animal Industry 
at Washington could give you rules and 
regulations, \. An department conditions 
of export. 
Improving Dairy Ration 
I have a small dairy of 12 cows, a large 
silo full of silage, plenty of corn, oats, 
hay and cornstalks, which I am feeding 
generously. My dairy is not producing 
what it should, and I am writing to you 
to find out what you would Suggest as a 
balanced ration, and what I should buy 
in addition to what I already have in the 
way of feed. I have also a good supply 
of buckwheat. C. w. N. 
New York. 
It is the common practice of many 
dairymen in this district to pay no atten¬ 
tion to their milch cows while on pasture 
during the Summer season, and when 
cold weather approaches they are brought 
into the stable and expected to produce 
milk as a result of being fed the prevail¬ 
ing grains that you mention, without suc¬ 
culence or roughage of known usefulness. 
It has been my observation that in order 
to produce milk effectually during the 
Winter months the cows must come into 
Winter quarters in good flesh and in good 
mettle. With plenty of buckwheat, corn 
and oats, hay, cornstalks and silage, you 
liave the basis for a fine combination; yet 
you must make sure that your cows will 
consume increased amounts of feed and 
convert them into milk economically. For 
a dairy cow yielding 40 lbs. of 3 per cent 
milk I would feed the following combina¬ 
tion : 35 lbs. silage. 3 lbs. ground corn, 
2 lbs. ground oats. 3 lbs. buckwheat mid¬ 
dlings. 3 lbs. gluten. 1 lb. oilmeal. In 
addition I would give her all of the hay 
and cornstalks that she would clean up 
with relish. You must bear in mind that 
it is necessary to buy some gluten, oil- 
meal. or cottonseed meal to supplement 
a mixture consisting of ground oats, 
buckwheat and silage, if you are to pro¬ 
vide a ration that will result in generous 
amounts of milk. It might be necessary 
to feed more than this amount of corn 
at the outset if the cows are not for¬ 
tunate enough to go into Winter quarters 
in good flesh. 
Molasses Feeds 
You state that molasses feed cannot be 
fed in large quantities, because it is very 
apt to derange the digestive system. 
What kind of molasses do you refer to, 
beet molasses or black strap molasses? 
In reference to molasses as a feed for 
the dairy cow, you mention there is some- 
question as to its usefulness and economy 
in the I’ation. You mention that 1 lb. of 
molasses diluted with 5 lbs. of warm 
water would be a suitable mixture. You 
also mention a combination of 5 lbs. of 
cornmeal, 3 lbs. of gluten, 1 lb. of oil- 
meal, and 2 lb«. of molasses. Is this the 
usual amount of molasses fed to a dairy 
cow ? s. E. P. 
Illinois. 
The reference to molasses in a recent 
issue of The R. -N.-Y. applied to black 
strap molasses. It has been our experi¬ 
ence that when black strap molasses was 
used in a ration for feeding pigs great 
care must be exercised to avoid undue 
laxativeness of the bowels. In South 
Jersey there is a group of farmers w’ho 
feed this material extensively in combi¬ 
nation with rye and corn, but it requires 
a rather extended preliminary feeding 
period in order to place the pigs on full 
feed when molasses constitutes any ap¬ 
preciable amount of the combination. So 
fas as its use for cows is concerned, it 
serves its best purpose in combination 
with beet pulp, as it can be diluted with 
warm water and spread i*ather easily over 
this material. By starting with half a 
pound of molasses per day for dairy cows 
it would be possible to increase the 
amount up to three or four pounds, pro¬ 
vided it was fed in combination with 
such materials as ground barley, ground 
oats, corn-and-cob meal, and gluten meal. 
I should prefer, however, to limit the 
amount of molasses to 2 lbs. per cow 
per day, and feel that this amount would 
give the best results. Molasses serves 
another purpose in feeding live stock, 
particularly with horses that are intended 
for market. It will put life into their 
coat as nothing else will do, but the 
long continued use of any material con¬ 
taining as much free sugar as molasses 
contains is believed to produce injurious 
results. 
EVENTS OF THE WEEK 
DOMESTIC*.—Victor L. Berger, the 
left wing Socialist whom the House of 
Representatives refused to seat because 
he had been found guilty of violating the 
espionage law. was re-elected to Congress 
from the Fifth Congress District of Wis¬ 
consin at the special election December IS. 
Carbon monoxide gas generating as a 
result of burning a gas heater in an un- 
ventilated room caused the deaths of 
Mrs. Olga Berbom. her two children and 
Miss Alice Sheridan, her nurse, Decem¬ 
ber IS, in the bedroom of their bungalow 
in Sheepshead Bay. N. Y. 
Forty-three members of the crew of 
the British steamer Manxman drowned 
December 19, when their ship foundered 
in midocean, and other lives are believed 
to have been lost on ships reported miss¬ 
ing and damaged. Thousands of dollars 
worth of waterfront improvements have 
been destroyed in various ports, as a re¬ 
sult of the severe storms along the North 
Atlantic Ocean, December 14-19. 
December 21 the transport Buford left 
New York under sealed orders taking 249 
deported anarchists, including Emma 
Goldman and Alexander Berkman. Emma 
Goldman has for years been regarded by 
many as the real instigator of the assassi¬ 
nation of President McKinley, for Czol- 
gosz, the murderer, confessed that it was 
her writings that had driven him to the 
deed. Berkman has served a long term 
in jail for attempting to murder the late 
H. C. Frick. Berkman and Goldman 
have been in the United States for about 
30 years, and have been generally suc¬ 
cessful in capitalizing anarchy; in gath¬ 
ering about them a band that could be 
counted upon for liberal subscriptions. It 
was from Petrograd. where she is now go¬ 
ing. that Emma Goldman originally came. 
The Chicago Federation of Labor 
unanimously adopted a resolution Decem¬ 
ber 21 protesting against the deportation 
of aliens who are members of any union 
affiliated with the American Federation of 
Labor. The resolution also calls for the 
appointment of two delegate* 1 from each 
trade group in the Chicago federation to 
confer on means to protect any union 
man of Chicago “from banishment and 
exile.” The plan is to prevent the de¬ 
portation of any alien on whatever charge 
if he belongs to a union. William Z. 
Foster, secretary of the national com¬ 
mittee, who with John Fitzpatrick, presi¬ 
dent of the Chicago federation, organized 
the recent steel strike, announced that 
when Chicago is thoroughly unionized the 
plan will be extended to cover the entire 
United States. 
Wiliam A. Stringer, superintendent of 
the United States aviation supply depot 
at Marsh Run, Fa., is in the Dauphin 
County jail ehraged with implication in 
thefts which are said by Department of 
Justice officials to total between $75,000 
and $100,000. Secret sei-vice men say 
that other arrests will follow. Alleged 
disappearance of army stores of all sorts 
that has been under investigation by some 
special agents of the Department of Jus¬ 
tice and War Departments for several 
months. 
William Rochfort. agel 30, a chauffeur, 
and William Cunningham, a clerk, were 
sentenced December 22 in New York 
General Sessions by Judge Mulqueen after 
each had pleaded guilty to taking part 
in the daylight robbery on November 28 
of George Alexander, a Washington Mar¬ 
ket poultry dealer. Rochfort, who was 
Mr. Alexander’s chauffeur, got from five 
to 14 years in Sing Sing, and Cunning¬ 
ham 14 years in State’s prison. The 
$48,000 stolen from Mr. Alexander rep¬ 
resented the receipts of the poulterer’s 
Thanksgiving pre-holiday business. 
William II. Edwards, Collector of In¬ 
ternal Revenue, received from Washing¬ 
ton and made public December 21 a state¬ 
ment warning the public against persons 
and concerns advertising income tax in¬ 
formation in such a way as to give the 
impression that the Government is back 
of them. The statement notes that a 
Federal Grand Jury at Toledo, Ohio, has 
indicted John W. and Chester Compton 
of Findlay, Ohio, doing business as “The 
U. S. Audit Bureau, Washington, D. C.,” 
and as “The Income Tax Record Bureau, 
Washington, D. C., following an inquiry 
which revealed that many of the agents 
represented themselves to be officers or 
employees of the United States Govern¬ 
ment. and by reason of pretended of¬ 
ficial character effected sales of books to 
farmers. Many other indictments in 
similar eases have been handed down by 
grand juries in various parts of the coun¬ 
try. 
WASHINGTON. — The “Big Five” 
meat packers of the country. Armour, 
Swift. Cudahy, Morris & Co. and Wilson 
& Co., have consented to the issuance of 
a court decree in favor of the Govern¬ 
ment forever separating them from all 
interests in and control of retail stores 
and the manufacture and marketing of 
foods other than the wholesale distribution 
of their meat products and substitutes, 
such as butter, cheese and eggs. 
In the face of a growing scarcity of 
sugar, more than a billion and a quarter 
pounds of sugar, valued at nearly $97.- 
000.000. were exported from the United 
States during the first 10 months of the 
present year, a Department of Commerce 
report issued December 21 shows. Ex¬ 
ports. which went lai’gely to the L T nited 
Kingdom and France, exceeded in 339 
per cent in quantity, the amount sent out 
of the country during the same period last 
year. While the sugar was being shipped 
out of the country American importers 
brought in more than eight and a quarter 
billion pounds, valued at $481,424,000. 
The imports increased only 27 per cent, 
which, in comparison wth the much 
larger export increase, accounts for do¬ 
mestic scarcity. 
FARM AND GARDEN.—Agricultural 
■Week at Harrisburg, Pa., is scheduled for 
January 20-23. There will be an edu¬ 
cational program under the direction of 
the Pennsylvania State College. The 
program at this meetiing wll be similar 
to that of Farmers’ "Week, which was 
held at the Pennsy’vania College during 
the Christmas ’mention for a number of 
years. 
The annual metllng of the Connecticut 
Pomological Society will be held at Hart¬ 
ford. February 12-13. 
The Ulster County. N. Y., Farm and 
Home Bureau held its annual meeting 
December 6, and in order to demonstrate 
the work and the accomplishments of the 
farmers, an exhibit was held in the Ar¬ 
mory at Kingston. There was an inter¬ 
esting exhibit of fruit, farm crops and 
poultry. The Accord Grange made a 
tasteful exhibit, and the Home Bureau 
had an instructive display. In the even¬ 
ing about 150 farmers gathered at the 
Y. M. C. A. to partake of a banquet, fol¬ 
lowed by talks by Miss Frear, State 
Leader of Home Bureaus; Mrs. Smith, 
committeeman of Ellen Mills; Mr. S. L. 
Strivings, president of State Federation, 
and F. C. Smith, extension specialist in 
farm crops. 
Coming Farmers’ Meetings 
Winter course State School of Agricul¬ 
ture. Cobleskill, N. Y., Jan. 5-Feb. 27, 
1920. 
Winter courses. Ohio State College, 
Columbus, Jan. 5-Feb. 27. 1920. 
Peninsula Horticultural Society, thirty- 
fourth annual meeting, Chestertown. Md.. 
Jan. 6-8. 1920. 
Vermont State Poultry Association, an¬ 
nual show, St. Albans, Jan. 6-9, 1920; 
B. P. Greene, secretary. 
New York State Horticultural Society. 
Rochester, Jan. 14-16, 1920. 
Agricultural Week. Trenton, N. J., 
Jan. 12-17, 1920. 
Massachusetts, Union Farmers’ meet¬ 
ing. Horticultural Hall, Boston. Jan. 
19-23. 1920. 
Farm Products Show, Harrisburg, Pa., 
Jan. 20-23, 1920. 
Agricultural Week, Harrisburg, Pa., 
Jan. 20-23. 
Madison Square Garden Poultry Show. 
New York. Jan. 20-24. 1920. 
New York State Agricultural Society, 
Albany. Jan. 21-22, 1920. 
Farmers’ Week. Ohio State University. 
Columbus, Jan. 26-30. 
Ohio State Horticultural Society, fifty- 
third annual iueetng, Jan. 27-28, 1920, 
Ohio State University, Columbus; secre¬ 
tary, R. B. Cruickshank, Columbus. 
Farmers’ Week, Michigan Agricultural 
College, East Lansing, Mich., Feb. 2-6, 
1920. 
New York State Grange, annual meet¬ 
ing. Rochester, Feb. 9-12, 1920. 
Connecticut Farmers’ Week, agricul¬ 
tural and industrial exhibit. State Ar¬ 
mory, Hartford, Feb. 9-14, 1920. 
Farmers’ Week, New York State Col¬ 
lege of Agriculture, Ithaca, N. Y., Feb. 
9-13, 1920. 
Connecticut Pomological Society, an¬ 
nual meeting. Hartford, Feb. 12-13, 
1920. 
