ON THE LAND.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLV, Issue 13779, 18 June 1908, Page 9

ON THE LAND.

■;. BACK TO THE FARM. • In an address to a body of prominent teachers recently President Roosevelt said: "I trust that more and moro of our people will see to it that the schools train more toward and not away from the farm and workshop. We have ■ spoken a great deal about the dignity of labour of this country; but wo have not acted up to our spoken words; for in our; education wc have tended to proceed upon the assumption that the educated man was to be educated away from and not toward labour. The great nations of mediseval times who left such marvellous works of architecture and art behind them were able to do so becauso they educated aliko, the brain and the hand of the craftsman. We, too, in our turn must show that we understand tho law which decrees that a people which loses physical address invariably deteriorates; so that people shall understand that tho good carpenter, the good blacksmith, the good mechanic, the good farmer, really do fill tbo most important positions in our land, and that it is an evil thing for them and tho nation to have their sons and daughters forsake"- tho work which, if well and efficiently performed, means snore than any other work for our people as a whole." SQUANDERING FERTILITY. An American agricultural journal says : — Every considerate man realises that a truefanner feeds his soil as well as his cattle. Tho soil feeds the plants which are grown for tho stock, and, of course, it cannot give up its elements year after year without receiving something in return, any moro than tho dairy cow can give milk day after day without feed. Land can go longer without food than the cow, but it will sooner or later require some sort of food, just as tho tow needs to be fed if she lives and remains productive. The good farmer realises this, and is doing everything in his power to carefully save all the manure that is produced on the farm and to grow crops that will help to improve tho soil. Ho puts back each year on his land as much fertility as his crops take from it, A, man that can grow crops year after year from tho soil and still keep tho laud as fertile and productive as it .was when he took it, is a true farmer and a benefit to the world. Wo condemn tho rich man's son for carelessly squandering the fortune his father has loft him, but ho is infinitely better than tho man who squanders the fertility of the land. Spending money that has been accumulated by another docs not take that which belongs to coming generations as much as it belongs to him. LEASES. Is the Scottish 19-year lease a good system or a bad one, is a matter that has come up for discussion in view of the new Agricultural Holdings Act, says the Farmer and Stockbreeder. The answer is, of course, that it is both or neither according to circumstances. In bygone years tho long lease was held to bo ono of tho chief causes which led to the development of Scottish farming; a farmer at the beginning of his term was encouraged to lay out capital in improving his farm, because he was assured that ho would reap some of the benefit beforo the expiry of ms term, and thus in tho course of generations an improving type of farmer was developed. But when the slump came in prices then a long lease was a millstone round a man's neck, and in many, cases meant ruin where tho landlord did not release the tenant from his contract. This moans, in other words, that the long lease was only possible when prices kept at a steady lovel over a long series of years. It also meant that during tho last years of the term a tenant's best policy was to let his farm run down considerably, because if he kept it in good condition he would either have to give a rise of rent on his own outlay or see his farm taken "over his head" by somebody else. In England the yearly tenancy lias been the rule, and though in theory it might have led, to a frequent change of tenants, in practice the same family bus often held the same farm for centuries. - On. tho other hand, the fear of a notice to quit litis debarred initiative, and we find the yearly tenancy has not developed an improving race of farmers. All I this, however, will ' bo altered by tho new • Act, and a fanner can improve in future in J spite of his landlord, and claim the unexhausted value at tho end. He must, of course, bo able to prove that his outlay rea'iy is an improvement to the farm, .Jul that it has a residue value, but tho point that matters now is that in future, with uneasy and irregular markets, the yearly tenancy wiJi be the best. Tho writer has tried both the long and the short methods, and prefers the latter. SKIM-MILK AND WHEY. The value of milk as a pig food is indisputable, but it can be made more valuable by the addition of other food in accordance with the age and condition of the animal. A. sow's milk is very strong in nitrogenous matter, the albuminoid ratio being .as 1 is to 2.2 of carbonaceous matter burnlied in the milk sugar and fat. This ratio of albuminoids required by a pig decreases gradually until at from eight to twelve months old, when tho animal is in fat condition. Barley meal and a small quantity of skim-milk will give this. Wolff's tablo shows that the most suitable proportions are:— When a pig is two or three months old, weighing 501b, the ratio is as 1 is to 4; three to five months, weighing 1001b, 1 to 5; five to six months, weighing 1251b, 1 to 5.5; six to eight months, weighing 1701b, 1 to 6; eight to twelve months, 2501b, 1 to 6.5. Skim-milk has an average ratio of 1 to 2.4, and whey 1 to 7.2. In butter-making the nitrogenous portion is left in the skimmilk; whereas in, cheese-making the nitrogenous portion mainly goes into the cheese, the carbonaceous matter being largely milk sugar. The two articles are, therefore, very dissimilar in strength, though the original nature is not wholly destroyed, and both act, beneficially on the pig at its several stages, of coarse, always provided the additional food is properly selected. When tlio dietary of the pig is widely different to the ratios given, above as -suitable at various ages, there is loss, because the animal has to waste a 'considerable' portion of the ono given in excess; profitable feeding, of course, being-most probable where the greatest increase in meat is obtained from a given quantity of food. There is, however, a serious aspect to be regarded beyond this, for with a decidedly large excess of nitrogenous matter the pigs arc liable to become unhealthy and a ready prey to the many ailments to which pigs are prone. Tho illeffects are most noticeable when the pigs are voting and constitutionally not bo well able to stand against irregularities. There is no doubt that the greatest loss of life in pigkeeping comes from the time when the little pigs commence to take other food than their mother's milk, and for a little time after weaning. It is also the time when they are most liable to become stunted. There are other conditions which tend to their ill-thriving at this period, such as wet, badly-ventilated, or filthy styes; but it is equally certain that when the feeding is injudicious the ill-effect of these causes,, is far more marked. Colds, rheumatism, and skin diseases,„which healthily-managed pigs would pass by, seize them; for an unhealthy state of blood renders them susceptible to such ailments. Little pigs fed on too strong food, that is, with food containing too : much nitrogencous matter, become un- > healthy, because an excessive amount of nitrogen enters into the composition of the blood, - rendering, them liable' to that form '-'f paralysis or apoplexy which is known in 'many districts as ''going off their feet," 'Hon they become listless and, unless bled , '"i - otherwise treated,- die. As a preventive , » dose of wilts' is found ..useful, from the fact Kit the purging lowers the condition of the blood. The practice of giving -skim-milk while the little pigs are sucking their,mother '»« diU's-jwou i, because tho ratio of skhn-milk « Sp|f »?Ai-ly. that of tho now, wad. in ftj

natural condition the food the young pigs would got would be much richer in starchy matter, giving a ; very different balance to the diet. It is for this reason that pollard, which contains more starchy matter than bran, is found to be a preferential mixture to bo given at this time. There is much greater safety in giving whey, jus with its ratio of as 1 is to 7.2, the ratio of as 1 is to 4 is approximately, obtained under ordinary conditions of feeding. It may, therefore, be said that whey as an additional food at this period requires practically little or no rectifying, whereas skim-milk does require starchy additions. When the pig is weaned there is far less danger with skim-milk, even with bran, though it is better to give pollard. Practice bears this out, and when it is known to such a wido v extent it is strange that there are those, and many of them, who feed the little pigs with so little discretion.—Live Stock Journal. • BREVITIES. To be overstocked at any time is a losing game. If a horse's legs are scarred, look out for a kicker or a stumbler. Attention to the feet of young horse stock is of the utmost importance. If a horse's knees are bent or tremble, lie has been permanently injured by heavy pulling. Straw when dirty throws out quantities of ammonia, which is one great cause of blindness in horses. In Nova Scotia there is a flourishing foxfarm. It. is not the brushes of the animals, but the skins, that arc wanted. A young sow is easily injured by being bred too soon after she has farrowed her first litter, not having time to recuperate. In Belgium breeders are obliged to keep a record of all cattle raised by them, and each animal has a registered trade number, which is engraved on a ring fastened to its ear. Where fallowed land has been well w irked, and most of it is nowadays, a; reserve of moisture is conserved in the soil, 'and tlio seed ran be put in with a reasonable amount of safety. A hundred tons of dung spread on a macadamised road would be worthless for promoting plant growth, and if applied to land which has been imperfectly tilled its value would bo greatly diminished. Nitrate of potash is, perhaps, the most ancient of all artificial fertilisers. Virgil mentions it, and in Eastern countries in tits palmy days of Egypt and India it was out ployed as a stimulant to the cereal crops Use only thai best rams that can be obtained and tlio continuous and discriminating culling of the ewe flock. When this is kept up for a number of years good results will be quite evident. It, is calculated that in Germany 240,000 tons of potash, and still more phosphate of lime, are extracted annually from the soil in the crops, tho oxen, sheep, milk, and wool. When twin females arc born they usually both breed, or when twin males are born When twins are born one male and ono female, the maid usually is a breeder, but the female rarely ever i?, and she is known as a free martin. Hog manure is wet and cold and ferments slowly. Its composition varies considerably, depending upon tho food consumed. It is much like cow manure in general character, but is usually much richer. The pig produces 10 to 15 pounds manure- daily. The canning industry in a largo region in the United States, reaching from St. Louis to Brownville, Texas, is becoming a most important one. The motto of every successfid fruitgrower there is. Sell all you can, and can what you can't." Accidental wounds, barb wire cuts, and similar injuries to horses have nothing to do with hereditary characteristics, but spavins, splints, ringbones, sideboncs, any form of lameness, incorrect position of the leg should not be tolerated in the stallion or tho breeding marc. These defects or the tendency to develop them may be inherited in the progeny. Thus an American exchange:—"lt is the charcoal of the wood and the potash in tho ashes which do the intestine work for the pig. Tlig charcoal corrocts the acidity in the stomach, and the potash in tho ashes mingles with the gastric juices anch sets up soars factory enough, in a ho:;',", stomach in make a worm hump up his back and leave for earth when he gets that kind of gastric juice to live upon. According to the ! statistics collected in 1900 by 31. Comevin twin foals are thrown in about one case in a thousand. A curious instance of twins was recorded by M. Forcherel. A cart-mare getting loose after service by a stallion was covered the same day by a donkey. The mare went her full period and produced twins, both females, one a filly, the other a mule. Tho two were healthy, well-formed animals.