The Potter journal. [volume] (Coudersport, Pa.) 1857-1872, 1862-04-09
Cattle and sheep Fee ding.

lately met ID exchange opinions as to the
comparative profit in feeding different anil
mails.
1t was admitted all round that owing
to the great facilities for bringing cattle
from the far west at low price and in
great quantities, at all times in the year,
cattle which had roamed on the pIalres,
costing Government price, SI25 per acre,
and fattened upon corn worth ten cents
per bushel, or distillery slops made at the
same rate-we here could not compete on
pastures worth $50 per acre, and corn 75
cents.
The general impression was that sheep
feeding vas the most profitable, though
some farmers, with good feed and great
skill in buying and feeding, made cattle
feeding TO a limited extent j paying bust
ness
| In the conversation there was, as there
must always be. an uncertainty in the
Statements made. FROM want of convent
euces to weighing aud measuring. But
one farmer knew anything by weight of
the amount Of hay fed out, and in chat
instance he bought four tons and moved
! it, which all admitted caused loss Uf
from 10 to y per cent.
But one farmer present had fed sheep
much, aud bis experience was several
years since he thought he got 81 per
buShel for his corn, while IN feeding eat
tie he got but so cents. lie fed one lot
Of Mernoes averaging about 100 pounds
which more than doubled in value. In
mid-winter he found that 100 skeep ate
ton of hay and seven bushels Of grain
(corn aud oats) weekly. He considers
sheep manure to be worth twice as much
as that from cattle
One or our must sagacious farmers and
best feeders said he had often made $50
advance on pair of steers fed from Feo
ruary to May or June lst. a calculation
being made Of the feed however, would
only give him at that S. per ton for his
hay. and 70 cents per bushel foy corn.
leaving half a dollar a head over for a
margin of profit, besides making better
manure.
Several instances of great gain and re-
turns of feeding cattle were mentioned -
of 700 pounds aud 900 pounds in the win
ter, and OF 500 TO $3.50 advance on one
winters feeding, but these seemed to be
exceptional cases. One farmer had a
pair of six. years old cattle gain in two
years feeding 1900 pounds in growth
and fat
! The Sectary observed that it was shown
by chemical analysis that the manu- e
I from shecp was much more valuable than
that Of cattle, So pounds of sheep dung
being equal to 100 pound, of that from
cattle lie noticed that not much had
been said of the value of the manure
made from high feed, as compared with
that from common dry food. The care
4 F,,i ~ &C nd
the best agricultural chemist in the king
dom, showed that the manure made from
a Ton of cotton seed meal was worth as
much as that made from 4 3.5 tons of
meadow hay; linsecd meal next, then
whcat-tndian corn and turnips last
Some exceedingly interesting 4periments
of Hon. John Brooks, of Princeton, made
in 1852, showed that COWS fed with hay
alorc made 2 A 100 pounds of solid ma
nure to each ponnd Of hay eaten, drink
ing from two TO three times as much
weight of water as they ate OF hay. Far
mGrs do not sufficiently appreciate the
money value Of the liquid manure a
COW voids annually about lG,300 pounds
of urine, which contains 96l pounds Of
solid matter, worth just as much as Pc
ruvian guauo, which at $50 pei ton makes
the annual value of the urine of one cow
S2S,S3, which might all be saved. and
would be large percentage of her worth.