The Tipton advertiser. [volume] (Tipton, Cedar Co., Iowa) 1856-1962, 1871-11-02
.offty OF Animals-Is it
Desirable.
By Z. W. STEW ART.

ject is of equal, ifnot higher Importance
to the stock breeder or feeder, than any
other. Opinions differ widely upon it;
some contending for the longest period
of natural growth, others for the short
est possible artificial attainment Of ma
turity.
To enable us to form safe opinion
upon this question, let us examine some
of the circumstances attending growth
and maturity. While the animal is
young and immature, its appetite, di-
gcstive and assimilativc, are most active
and these functions become less and less
after maturity. After the period of
perfect development the animal natu-
rally lays only 50 much as to supply the
waste of the tissues, and sometimes
even less, when loss of wei ht is the
result. This shows that all animals in
tended for hnman food should be dis
posed of, when in condition, at MATURE
ty, as they must, of necessity, be kept
ut loss aftcrward. The marks of
FULL DEVELOPMENT
are, that the permanent teeth are COM
plcte, the animal fully grown, and all
its physical qualities perfect. The ma
ycars-of sheep, four to four and half
years-of the OK, at four to FIVE years
of the pig, two to two and half years.
These are the times of dentition when
animals are in state of nature, or un-
der ordinary kind of management and
feeding, but the improved breeds are
known to complete their teeth in from
one to one and half years earlier.
This under what is called by some
the ''forcing SYSTEM
NJ. Renault was led, in 1S47, by the
occurrence of a remarkable case at a
cattle Fair, in France, where bull but
two years old had all his permanent
teeth, and all the points Of development
and maturity in perfection, to make an
investigation as to the effect of high
breeding and feeding in fastening the
maturity of animals. He says:
"ThanLs be to the better system of
management and feeding cattle, and to
judicious and advantageous crossings,
it is certain that many of our bovine
race have experienced in their form and
especially in precocity of de ,elopement
--unmistakablc changes for the bet,
ter.
Whatever may be the cause of this
remarkable aptitude of certain breeds
to acquire their growth carly, it is read
lily conceivable that such prococious de,
=, yelopmcnt can not be confined to any
particular organs. If every one has
not equally participated in it, at least
they are all more or less affected by it.
Above all, the digestive systematic
part called in to play such an important
, part in producing such an aptitude,
since all must essentially result from
the nature and action of alimentatOn-
must be one of the first to undergo mod
ifications.'
This change in the natural condition
? and aptitude of animals to prococious
growth and development, is strongly
opposed by some, and declared to be a
+ diseased condition Of the system, great
" affecting their health and stamina
They say that whatever is rapidly pro-
duced is by consequence wanting in
stability. That all things require
certain amount Of time to be devoted to
: their construction or growth; soon
t ripe, soon rOttcn,' etc, etc. They re-
, gard this as a demonstration, but it is
{ mcrcl Y an assumption, that the growth
must always take place under the same
circumstances, and be developed in the
: same time.
, All the processes Of digestion and as
similation are chemical processes. Com
{ hustion is also chemical process: but
will any one say that the slow combus-
, ton of wood by rot and decay in open
I air, is any more perfect combustion than
I its rapid reduction to ashes by fire In
Ga state Of nature, the animal gathers
J it's coarse ibrous food by long toilsome
czcrtion, and by mastication and the
: process ofdjgestion its small percentage
Of nutriment is extracted and assimila-
i ted into the tissues Of the body.
1 But suppose a more liberal amount
: of nutrimcnt, of the same quality, and
in more soluble and assimilablc CON
,dtion, which can be utilized by the an
imal in much less time, is given, is it
reasonable TO concludc--as matter Of
hcory---that it will be less beneficial?
The Bcssimcr process Of making steel
is much shorter than the old one: the
whole process Of making paper does
not now require more than one-ffth of
the former time to produce the same re-
salt. Are these new products less per-
feet than the old?
Our present varieties of wheat were
once only wild grasses with their thin
e.. ronlr