The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1869-01-15

TIE herd Law.

THE herd Law
Because an effort has been made at each Of
the last two sessions Of our Legislature, and
will doubtless be renewed during the present
term, to pass law requiring owners Of stock
to herd the same, and dispensing with fences
as protection Of crops, have been at some
pains to ascertain the true sentiment Of the
farmers In this vicinity upon the subject. and
find that nearly all in this township are
strenuously opposed to the measure. In an
swer TO the argument that the system now in
use is more advantageous to the stOek-raiser
than to the gTain-grower, because it affords
the farmer the free use of the public domain,
without mourning the expense Of fencing it,
while the tiller of the s0il must go to such ex-
pense, it is claimed that the farmers are the
st0ck-Tafsers, and that the two branches of
business are more probably conducted to-
gether than separately. One Of the great adj
vantages that the Kansas farmer enjoys over
those of the other States Is that he has q wider
range 20 operate in-he can grow more kinds
of produce than in almost any other State, and
is therefore less affected by fluctuations of the
markets. He can without scarcely any
additional expense, raise stock enough to net
him as much money as his fields will net him.
Scarcely a farmer in this country but owns
more or less stock. I have collected from
their owners the statistics Of twelve of
the largest farms in this neighborhood, all
within three miles Of Americas, and find they
are composed Of 3,315 acres, or an average of
1858 acres each. 1923 acres, or 1857 to each
farm, are under the plow. These twelve
farmers ownon average 48 head of cattle
each, or 576 head in all, and I04 head Of horses.
The straw and fodder grown upon these
twelve farms, each year, Is nearly sufficient to
sustain all OF this stock through the winter.
These farmers have but little trouble with
their stock during the summe; season, and in
the winter they have plenty of time to look
after them, and thus the two branches furnish
profitable employment the year round. 1t is
claimed that without fences it would require
nearly double the number OF hands to manage
the same amount OF business that-it does now
an extra force being required to herd the
cattle Go out upon our prairfes to-day, and
you will find thousands of cattle obtaining a
large portion OF their subsistence on the old
grass. If we had no fences around our fields
of fall wheat, these cattle would have either
TO be kept UP and fed, or else herded on the
prairie. And during the summer, the grow
ing crops would afford n temptation so great
that no reasonable number CT hands would be
able to keep the stock from destroying them
iAO" II NC poS-tDie 70 uTtNS our c2IlIe
from one of our divides down through the
wide belt of farms along the streams, to get
them to water. And then every farmer would
be compelled to go out and meet the herd at
might in order to get his cows to his corral,
and go out with them in the morning. The
amount of labor that would necessarily be
added would soon pay for fence around a
farm. The idea of making the la,o protect
mans crops is considered by all practical
farmers here simply ridiculous. 1t would
bring endless litigation, and completely place
every farmer at the mercy of his neighbors.
1t would be unjust, too, because if this law
were adopted, man could settle upon a
quarter section right in any of our Tricky
settled localities and compel all those who
have good fences to herd their stock to keep
them out of his crops. The measure will be
sternly opposed in this part of the State