Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1877-03-14
Forcing Early Maturity.

High feeding is the basis of thorough
farming. This applies alike to the crop
in the field and the live stock in the
barnyard, and in both the oft repeated
injunction to feed high is more and
more needed. It is not always possible
to manure fields so thoroughly as
farmers wish; but stock may always be
restricted so that feed need never be
scant, and this farmers have generally
learned to do. The full feeding neces-
sary to continuous growth is the con-
condition necessary to securing profit.
1t never pays to half keep an animal
of any kind. The aim of skillful
breeders of the present day is to secure
breeds which will eat and digest the
largest amount of food. Under this
stimulus stock growing has become 8
continual forcing process. Even when
the flesh is secondary consideration
high feeding is maintained to force the
production of milk in COWS to the
utmost possible limit. Food is chang
ed; but the full quantity that the ami
NAL machine can dispose of is main
tanned.
The breeders of improved sheep pur-
sue the same system in maintaining Or
increasing the largest amount and best
quality of wool. There is no doubt
thatfthese improved methods of feeding
are vastly more profitable than the sys-
tenn, as old as nature herself, of letting
stock care mostly for themselves, and
get their food as best they may. But
it must not be forgotten that these vio-
lent changes from natures method will
be attended by others some of which
may be beneficial and others the
reverse. The law of compensation
holds here as everywhere else. We
cannot change the character of our
| domestic animals to better fit them for
some uses without at the same time
uniting them for others. We may
breed for both beef and milk; but if we
seek the highest excellence in either
the other must be sacrificed.
Allowing our domestic animals to eat
all that they can, we inevitably force
an early and unnatural maturity; or
rather we SO modify nature as to make
early maturity natural. For animals
which it is desirable to get ready fo1
the shambles as soon as possible, this
early maturity Is a decided advantage.
1t costs less to high-feed q hog eight OF
ten months than to half-feed him
eighteen or twenty months. The same
principle holds good with beeves o,
heep. Continuous high feeding OF
each and all produces not only cheap
: er meat, but meat of better quality
than that which is half-fattened an6
haf-starved. Forcing feeding so tina
animals are always fat, produces juicy
tender meat of the highest excellence
It also does something more. In thu
course of a few generations it estab
fishes q habit of early maturity ant
t creates breed whose chief value con
{ sists in it's fitness for the shambles. II
) England, most of the Short-Ho"n bu]
locks are brought to market at tw'
! years, while many are fattened a
. eighteen to twenty months. Butin &C
j.. complishing this result, the value o
g the animal in other directions is almos
necessarily impaired. Thoroughbre
e bulls and bears are generally not sur
: stock-getters, especially if they are Q
: breeds which put on fat rapidly an
Q are in high condition. That there ar
8 exceptions to this law does not disprov
: its correctness.
+: Our domestic animals are more liz
! BILE to disease than formerly, and it
: reasonably certain that high living
q the cause. A fast life produces the e
feet on the domestic animal in th