The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1881-01-21
SOiling and Pasturing,

A good many careful experiments in soiling
stock, or cows more particularly, have been
made in this country and Europe, and the
result. 1believe, has almost invariably shown
that soiing is more profitable system than
pasturing. And yet our old-fashioned, fence
making farmers cling to the latter with
most discreditable tenacity.
| PAsTURING NOT PROFITABLE.
There may be some reasons in pasturing
land which for some cause is unfit for the
pillow, and yet will produce more or less of
natural grass; but why the COW, or a herd
of COWS, to which the owner looks for profits,
should be turned into wood-lot, big mead
| ow, "stubble" or cornfeld, or even intoa
fine field of clover, under the impression that
there is profit in it, is more than can be
easily fathomed. In none of these are the
COWS likely to satisfy their appetites excerpts
in the clover, and there they waste much
more than they eat. When farmer feeds
his stock in winter, he is careful to guard
against waste, feeding with such precaution
and in such quantities as will avoid this
danger. They hay he gives his COWS is fed
| in racks or managers, SO that they will not
tread upon or befonl it; and still greater care
is exercised in feeding grain in the barn. He
never thinks of inviting his cows to his corn
| crib or bin of bran, nor of lettering them
where they can reach his hay-mow. But this
| judicious rule he neglects as to his clover
| field. There his COWS may eat and waste all
| they please-and itpleases them TO waste a
good deal, much more than they eat The
| increase of milk at first shows the admira-
BILE effect of full feeding, which in itself
| should be lesson to be followed during the
whole year. But after few weeks of pas
turing the great bulk ofthe clover Is eaten
off, or otherwise destroyed, and the milk yield
falls off rapidly. There is no physiological
reason, except that of poor or short feed,
why COW should not maintain full flow of
milk for many months after calving, and yet
| farmers see the milk yield decreasing daily
| after the flush of pasture is over, and rarely
make any attempt to guard against it. They
| seem to think that ifanybody is to blame, it
is the cow. She is at liberty to eat all day
If she chooses and if she doesn't "let her 90
| hungry" To supplement her short pasture
by a nice feed Of bran and meal at the barn
| each night and morning rarely occurs to this
| class of farmers, and much less the other
| idea that the pasture of the clover field might
have been greatly prolonged by moving as
needed, and giving it to the cows in their
stalls. Pasturing is an an ancestral habit,
| and that, with, them, is reason enough for
clinging to it.
A FOOLISH OBJECT.
Selling is opposed by these men because it
involves too much trouble" The idea of
| taking cows food to her every day in the
year, when, under fence restrictions, she can
hunt it for herself Is preposterous But If
soiling makes some trouble" it also saves
some-a great deal, in fact 1t does away
with the enormous expense of building and
| maintaining fences-a voluntary tax greater
iii the aggregate than our national debt, and
as useless as it is great. 1t saves the time
required to drive the herd back and forth to
pasture each night and morning. which is a
good deal during seven or eight months of
the year. 1t saves a very large quantity of
manure, solid and fluid, now lost on the road
or in the field during the day. 1t saves
very large amount of pasture which the cows
destroy in walking about, lying down, and
fouling by their eXcrement. 1t saves the soil
from deterioration to some extent, by not
allowing it to be eaten nearly bare, and then
kept bare and exposed to the hot sun and
drying winds until nearly all vegetation is
killed out. 1t gives the land better pre-
paration for winter, by an autumn growth
which mulches roots and gives them vigor
for an early spring growth. 1t insures
to the farmer regular and full feeding to his
herd in their stalls at all seasons. in comfort
able quarters, and q measurable freedom
from the torments of insects, which prey
upon them in the open pasture. 1t insures
better treatment of the land on which the
crops grow, because the farmers manure pile
is greatly increased. And all these gains and
savings are met by the statement that "soil-
ing is too much trouble ?"
WHAT soILING WILL DO.
Selling, with full and regular feeding, is,
without any kind of doubt, the one sure and
speedy method for improving the common
breed of cows. In other words, the breed is
of far less importance in dairying than is full
feeding and systematic care. In The Eadmi-
ner and Chronicle of October 81, DIR. Hoskins
quotes Mr.. Amasa Scott, of Craftsbury, VT,
as declaring that thousands of native cows
by systematic feeding would develop but
ter producing capacities not eXcelled by any
breed in the world" No man who has given
this subject proper attention can doubt the
truth Of the statement. The COWS which
average but two or two and a half pounds
of butter per week for a year after calvng
tell their own story as to treatment. fla COW
is thin in flesh, hungry at all times of the day
or night, and never gets square meal" ex-
cept perhaps during a few days of spring pas
ture, how is it possible for her to equal those
which are always fed? The fancy" breeds
do well largely because they are petted and
wel-cared for Treat our common stock"
in the same way and we shall soon see as
tonishing results. Mr., Scott, as we learn
from IT, 11OSklnS, several common
cows to yield of over 800 pounds of butter
per year, and in one instance exceeded 600
pounds,
BIT OF EXPERIENCE.
| never made but one experiment of this
sort, but that was with common" COW
so upposed-wiihout any pedigree or re-
cord, and in one instance made her average
n pound of butter per day during 542 consecu-
tive days, and on second trial 550t pounds
in 522 days She was stabbed soiled-winter
and summer and all her feed was urchased
except perhaps few dollars worth oflawn
grass, green rye, &c and the cost during one
year was exactly 1902 while during that
year the cash sales of her products were
S1374T, and the butter and milk used in the
family and the milk fed to pigs and poultry
were worth $9510 more. Un this figuring
estimated the butter and milk used at home
at the same rate as that sold, and the sour
and skim milk fed TO pigs, &c, at only Il
cents per quartz This made the cow show
n clear profit of $13037 over her cash cost
for q full year, The actual yield of milk for
this time was II ,002 pounds, or 1929 quarts,
as her quart weighed 35 ounces. Professor X.
A Willare, ofLittle Falls, well known as
dairy authority, assured me some years ago
that the average yield of cows the country
over was only about 1,S00quarts. Ofcourse
the vast majority ofdary cows are pastured,
and rs long rs this system is maintained the
average yield will be low, in spite of such
"judicious crossing" as dealers in fancy
breeds may suggest Pineldnd Nv. J.) Erd'ni-
ner and Chronicle
Farm Nofas