Southern cultivator. (Augusta, Ga.) 1843-188?, December 01, 1870, Page 412, Image 2
412
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ing your hind to
or nothing on it, and work it just enough
to prevent it from recuperating, and thus
benefit neither you nor themselves, sow' it
down in small grain, grasses and clover—
these require little labor and yield handsome re
turns, and will, moreover, be the most efficient
means for stopping gullies and restoring (what
most of our lands need so badly,) a good supply
of vegetable matter to the soil.
► In another column will he found some siumcs
lions about the best kinds of crops to cultivate,
the amount of land to devote to each, and the
succession in which they should follow each
other. The views presented may not chime in
with thftse of our readers generally, but we ask
, for them an impartial and thoughtful examina
tion.
Vni::;N ( i ;if vroi; S >i;i:•
farmer offered us for sale what he
od, lottiidtl*Aqbe beef had not been stalled at
all, but frd • MjCci>\oually with a few potatoes and
torni^s—“ rmjybe jXlittle meal” As to the econ
omy V l ' feeding, he W neve * eflected, and of
course know 4n)lhln|; The ideavthat the pota
toes, turnips, etc., nqvo sold for more mo
ney than when in rued into-neat, had never en
tered his head, and the only of finding out
appeared to him most extraordinary. As others
may he as ignorant, while practieipg stall-feed
ing, we write* what we know about it, for the
general bom fit of the uninitiated; having expe
rimented some years since.
“The time required to-fattenati ox, will aver-
twelve to fourteen weeks. If judi
'"ciously managed, he w ill gain abuit twenty-four
pounds per w eek,; or some three hundred and
• twelve pounds, more or less. The question,
then, is how much food will it take to produce
three hundred and odd pounds of meat in three
months. If the produce required—roots, hay,
'etc.—is worth more in the market than the meat
gained, stall-feeding is a loss. When the dis
tance of hauling to market is an item, stall-feed
ing may pay. When begs is scarce, and pro
d|*<‘e bountiful, stall-feeding pays. These are
IIERN CULTIVATOR.
plain facts to thinking people, but some people
don’t think. We only ivrite fagppis class.
“For small cattle, weighing seventy-five
pounds to the quarter, eighty pounds of food
will be required. Generally an ox will consume
one-fifth of his weight per day, including wa
ter;” and the larger the ox the greater the con
sumption in proportion to bulk, and a greater ip
crease in flesh. Hence, the larger the ox, tlie
more profitable the practice.
In the practical management, cleanliness and
regularity in feeding, is of the greatest impor
tance. The ox should have a dry floor, clean
bedding and the soiled straw removed daily —the
stall Bxß feet at least under cover, and open on
ly on the South side. A chilled ox will not fat
ten. Fresh water given at least three times a
day, and the water removed as soon as thirst is
allayed. Feed at stated hours three times a day,
removing what food is left in the trough, as soon
as the animal turns away. If well managed, 1m?
will consume his food in proportion to the in
crease of bulk—more the last than the first week.
The appetite is preserved and fostered by exam
ining the dung, which should always be in a
healthy state —giving more or less hay, as may
be required. Steamed or cooked food is said to
he the most economical. There should be some
arrangement for weighing the beast, to ascertain
his rate of increase.
In putting up an ox, select those of good
points, for it is said the more perfect his form,
the more meat and fat in the best portions of the
animal. lie should be round in the barrel, full
chest and deep, straight in the back, broad at the
hips, and above all, a loose hide, known among
the skilled as “the feel.”/ If hide-hound—that
is, when the skin is hard to “ the feel,” close
and tight to the body—it is to feed him
on full allowance . untildoes become
This effected curry comb
«mcoa day, a small and a half
pint of syrup mixed once a day
for a week or longer, until is effect
ed. In the West Indies, with the
refuse of molasses tanks, than any
food not mixed—giving a sSjßlarly loose and
glossy hide. This practice lias been adopted
with marked success in the large feeding estab
lishments attached to the breweries in England,
in which scores of cattle—amounting in one in
stance to over three hundred head—are annually
fattened. Experience has proved that the fol
lowing roots should be rated in the order writ-