INDUSTRY OF COUNTIES. 
471 
milk retained from tlie factory interferes with the profits of the manufac¬ 
ture, and with cheese at fourteen to eighteen cents a pound, the farmer cars 
figure the cost of raising his calves too well to give the calf much chance 
for his life. It is estimated that in this county fully five hundred young 
calves were slaughtered at three or four days old, last year. While our 
farmers are furnishing more beef than formerly, they use more animal life 
proportionately to the hundred pounds of beef. Four years ago, three and 
four year old beeves were quite common; in fact two year old beef, stall 
fed, was very uncommon. But now, most of the steers raised in the county 
are marketed before they are three years old, going into the stalls at two 
past; a full grown beef—except it be one brought into the county, or a su¬ 
perannuated or worthless cow—is rarely found. This questionable practice 
requires about fifteen to twenty per cent, more animal life to produce a 
given amount of beef than the former practice of our farmers, of feeding 
their steers at three or four years old. 
Hog raising and pork making have increased in a marked degree, and 
for the past ten years has given our farmers the fairest sum of net profit 
of any branch of their industries. In this branch of industry tliete is the 
most radical and noticable change. Up to 1860 a very large per cent, of 
pork raised in the county was slaughtered on the farm; now but a very 
small per cent, is, being mostly sold on foot and taken to the cities for 
slaughter. 
The advent of cheese factories is having a noticeable effect on the stock 
of the county, or in producing a condition of things that will soon produc 
a marked effect on our stock of cattle. As with those farmers who produce 
milk for the factories, the character of their cows is of very little conse¬ 
quence, so they produce a large quantity of milk, their interest is so little 
effected by the quality, other than mere milk producing, that they have 
lost, or will soon lose, all desire of improving the quality of the stock of 
cattle. And it is believed that not as much interest is felt in improving the 
neat stock of the county as was manifest three years ago. Another rea¬ 
son is found in the fact, that, some of our improved stock-breeders seek 
perfection in form and beef producing qualities, and in not a few stock of 
blooded cattle the milking qualities are bred out. And until our high bred 
stock raisers shall have succeeded in producing a strain of stock with as 
good a reputation for milk as for beef producing qualities, there is but 
small hope that our farmers will be re-awakened to their former efforts to 
improve their stock of cattle. 
In horses there is a noticeable improvement. The slender shanked, ner¬ 
vous and vicious tempered descendant of some remotely connected thor¬ 
ough-bred English race horse, is not as popular as in days (it is to be hoped 
forever) gone by; and the heavy, strong limbed and kind tempered 
draught horse is by far more popular, and is more highly prized than form¬ 
erly, We have a few farmers who do not think it either desirable or profi- 
