The Farm.

Western Star, Issue 787, 27 October 1883, Page 5 (Supplement)

The Farm.

STOCK BREEDING AS IT AFFECTS 'MODERN FARMING.

Concluded from last week) SHORTHORNS.

Being, as I am a Shorthorn breeder, no doubt you will be prepared to hear that I do not believe there is any race of cattle for general farm purposes at all comparable to them, and therefore, even at the risk of being suspected of partizanship, I must state my convictions, based as they are on observation, or whatever has gone before and on the following reasons, with others In the first place the breed adapts itself more readily than any other to the v»*ious localities ; it is at home on , the prairies of Texas or in the nobleman’s park; its breed has been used more extensively than any other for improving inferior animals ; it can be moulded and converted into a “ milk machine ” or a ' “ beef-maker,” or, as near as may be, into a perfect combination of both; it matures earlier than any other breed, and feeds as rapidly and as economically as any other; and its (quality is equal to any and superior to most, and its prepotent power of transmitting its excellencies to its offspring is unrivalled. For a confirmation of these opinions, I ’ refer to the much-respected name of the , late Mr Carrington, whose daily of graded Shorthorns could not be surpassed; and to Mr. Hutchinson and Mr Turnbull (the winners of the-Ist prizes for dairy farms at the recent Royal Agricultural Show at •York), to the prize takers at the show itself —lor, out of nineteen entries of dairy stock, the Ist, 2nd, and 3rd prizes, were taken by Shorthorns; and in the next class, for heifers, the only prize awarded for a Shorthorn. Then I appeal for : further confirmation of this to the great London dairyman, Mr. Tisdall, and others, who look first to the dairy qualities and then to their marketable carcases. The -Galloways, Herefords, Devons, and the Sussex cattle are all good beef-makers, but they lack to a large extent the other requisite qualities of dairy stock, and pre.potency; the Ayrshires, Jerseys, and Guernseys are excellent for dairy purposes alone, but as beef-makers they are out of the running, to say nothing of the delicacy of constitution and the difficulty of acclimatising, in our colder and damper counties, the Channel Islanders.

It is not claimed that every Shorthorn cow is good at the pail, or' as a butter cow, or that there is never a “ screw,” but what I do claim for them is that they have nearly always one or the other of these two distinguishing qualities—either dairy cows of the highest merit, or flesh-formers of the foremost rank, and generally they have a combination of both. The history of the Shorthorn fully shows that from the earliest period, as a rule, they were large milkers, and when cultivated with a view exclusively to dairy purposes no animal of any breed excelled them, and very few equalled them, in large yields of milk and butter. I am fully aware that, as thoroughbred cows, from their much higher value for breeding purposes than for dairy use, the lacteal qualities have been to some extent neglected, but the quality is inherent in their organisation, and with intelligent management is rapidly developed when that quality is a desideratum. A writer on Shorthorns has said—“ The Shorthorn may be called the maximum or minimum of milkers, as the parties’ need may determine; ” and my own experience enables me to confirm this statement. I do not mean to say that every farmer Should be the owner of a herd of pedigree Shorthorns. Not at all j that is not the point. But, beginning with their stock as it now stands, instead of using mongrel-bred scrub bulls, they should go or pure-bred pedigree ones, of such a type and conformation as is best calculated to improve and strengthen the weaker points and character of their respective females, and of that each farmer must judge for himself. Three of four generations bred oh’ these lines would alter in a marked degree the appearance of the stock one meets with in travelling through the country by. rail or otherwise; and while adding thereto a large percentage of produce from individual animals, the increase of multiplication would in a short time correct the amazing anomaly, that in this country there is only one bovine to every - acres of cultivatable land, while in Ireland there is one in every 4, and in Jersey one in every j so that if our land will yield an increase equal to the Irish average, there would be no need to import live stock of any kind. What an enormous advantage this would be to the country ! Instead of sending out of the country the millions of money to pay for these imports of meat and dairy produce, it would find its way into the pockets of the farmers for redistribution, besides another most important fact that the manurial deposit of the increased number of animals would go to the additional fertilisation of the land. Gentlemen, I must apologise for having kept you.too long already, and yet I have been only able to touch the fringe of the subject. In the beginning I said the topic was a broad one, and it grows as one proceeds in its consideration. I have not said a word about sheep, notwithstanding my enthusiastic admiration for them (specially tue Shropshire breed) nor of swine, which 1 think, from what 1 know of American competition, can never grow into a profitable Jjvfemess; nor have I said anything of poultrpthe raising of which is woefully neglected, and for the products of whion we send in payment out of the country added millions of money every year, which, to a large extent, might be saved to us if the art'of poultry-raising were made a part of th# serious business of the farmer’s wife and of the cottager. A cordial vote of thanks to Mr. Fox Was agreed to with acclamation. discussion. Sir John Swineburn asked how could farmers breed stock satisfactorily when they were so subject to the ravages of foot-ancl-mouth disease He held that breeders were just as much entitled to protection from disease among their stock as the public were entitled to protection from cholera, fever, aud other diseases. With rare exceptions, he agreed that farmers could not make a fair living out ot wheal growing, and with good grass they could raise really good stock. This entailed, of course, proper drainage, liming, and manuring, which were questions for the landlord as well as the tenant. But farmers ajad their wives roust devote their

time and patience to the improvement of their dairies. If they made good butter they would get a goodprice for it. Mr. Wiggin, M.P., felt somewhat disappointed that Mr. Fox had not given them more of his personal experience, concurred in the view that the future of English farmers must depend upon the raising of stock rather than the growing of corn. He could not imagine a more miserable position than that of the man who depended for his living on cultivating poor, undrained land. The sooner such holdings were seeded down for grass the better for the landlord, the tenant, and the country. Mr. Hutchinson, one of the judges, was glad to be present to hear such a valuable contribution to agriculture as the paper which had been read. If tenantfarmers were to succeed in cattle breeding, the landlords must come to their assistance and erect suitable buildings for the proper housing of the stock, charging a reasonable percentage upon the outlay. It was necessary to grow a certain proportion of corn for straw and other purposes. He strongly advised that bulls should be firstrate animals, though, if a man kept a fairly good animal, he might, by a judicious selection of stock, improve his herd—many of the best herds had been raised in this way. Mr. Randall said that no one could concur more heartily than he did in all that had been said by Mr. Fox in praise of S horthorns, nor condemn more earnestly the indifference which had been shown by the Legislature to the grievance which all farmers felt more or less by the present system ofimportation of foreign animals. He was sorry Mr. Fox had not touched more largely upon the subject of sheep-raising, which, speaking generally, might do more to maintain the position of the farmer than any other form of breeding. He approved of the system of laying down farms partly for tillage and partly for rearing, and his theory was that sheep-keeping should be combined with the rearing of horned stock, on the principle that sheep should be the scavengers of food and the carriers of manure. If it were not presumptuous in him to quote his own experience, he might say that he kept 350 breeding ewes on a farm of stiff clay arable land which was unfitted for growing turnips. He was able to do this, he believed, only because the sheep were never out of hurdles. They had their daily allowance of food regularly, and he had mananed to raise his stock of breeding ewes from 90 to 350. When he took his farm it was a notorious place for the rot, but by giving his sheep plenty of dry food, keeping them between hurdles, and suppiping them freely with salt, he had never lost a sheep by the rot. Mr. Hill said the cattle he bred were Herefords, or white-faces, and he had found that they had stamped then’ image on their progeny quite as effectually as the Shorthorn breed, which found such an admirer in Mr. Fox. But it was folly for the Hereford breeder and the Shorthorn enthusiast to go against each other. There was room for both and work for both to discharge. They could scarcely breed sufficient Hereford cattle to supply the foreign demand for them. Since January morethan 1000 head had been exported from his district alone, because it was found that the breed was the best to rough it the soil was favourable, and he held it to be the duty of landowners to provide facilities for the nurturing of their stock. Mr. Carrington Smith advocated the laying down of that land for grass which was not profitable for ploughing. He believed that considerable wealth was lost to the nation oy the ploughing of land which was not suitable for tillage. If they to the Shorthorns.

Mr. Parsons, who was next called upon, said that the opinion had been expressed that corn could be better grown in England than abroad. He lived in the centre of the country, and lie differed from that view. Corn could not be grown in North* amptonshire to pay the farmers. He quite agreed with the breeding of cattle wnere in the ranches of the Western States of America to make flesh, and to adapt them selves to new climates. He thought more beef was made by the Herefords than by any other breed. [A voice : Except Shorthorns.] Well, he tuought they were equal could accommodate the laying down of land with the rearing of stock, as he believed they could, they would accomplish two good things. By the use of linseed and other oilcakes for cattle food, he con* sidered they might economically turn into productive grass land what had been otherwise unprodvotive under the plough. He believed they had no choice in the matter. It no longer paid to grow oorujin England, though it was desirable to grow a certain proportion for the purpose of getting the straw ; and, of course, if they could get some corn with the straw, so much the better. Speaking for his own part of the county, he believed the production of corn had not paid for the last twelve years, and the future prospects were no better than in the past. As to the rearing of cattle, he should plump for Shorthorns ; but he quite agreed with Mr. Hill that there were dis* riotst where Herefords throve well. They all could not, especially in that district, manage to rear useful stock; but if they could not breed sires, they could breed dams, and use their progeny as heifers and bullocks. He considered that in past generations the land had been worn out by the production of wheat; they had killed the goose which laid the golden eggs. They must not now lay down land recklessly, and expect it to rear sheep and young ; but by the generous use of foreign food, especially of cakes full of oil, tliey would be able to bring back some of the fertility they had expended in past years, and make tiie country less dependent for its supply of fresh meat. Farmers nadmade up their mind to submit to free trade in corn, but they had made up their minds, also, to have protection from infected cattle from abroad.

Mr. Game thought that farmers did not use sufficient artificials during the summer months. Ha was sure it would pay to do this well. He did not like the breeding of inferior animals. He agreed with the keeping of mixed stock rather than only one class of animals. The President (Gol. Hyott) expressed the gratification he felt in listening to the observations made on that most important subject to the farmer. He entirely concurred with the view taken as to the duty of the landlords in providing the requisite accommodation to enable their tenants to pursue tneir calling to the greatest advantage. He hoped that he might be allowed to say that ne had practised that himself. As to the importation of disease through the foreign cattle trade, he agreed

that it was of the utmost importance to home breeders that this question should be put upon ajsatisfaetory basis. It, however, required assistance from the Legislature to effect this, and further, a proper and faithful administration of the law when it was made. He considered that sufficient attention was not paid to the examination of stock when it came into the wholesale markets. Any animals ever suspected of disease should not be allowed to leave the markets to be taken by dealers through the country, and thus spread disease.