The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1882-08-04
Relative Value or Large and Small
Cows

Experiments to settle this question
have not been made in such man.
ners as to bring conviction TO the
minds of farmers generally, which it
LIS best to keep for dairy purposes,
large or small cows. 1t should not
be lost sight of, that the settlement of
This question depends largely upon
whether the COWS on the farm are
kept strictly for dairy purposes or not.
If so kept, then the calves are pre-
sumed to be raised, if preserved at all,
for use in the dairy, and not, as on
the ordinary stock farm, mainly for
future beef purposes. s,sl,
If it is the purpose TO keep set of
COWS during their entire period of
usefulness at the pail, say from the
age of two to twelve years, then the
important point TO be settled is,
whether the cost Of maintaining, say
400 lbs weight in the large COW, over
and above what the light weight dairy
COW is supposed to show on the scales,
during the ten years she is doing duty
at the pail, will overbalance the gain
in beef production, shown by the
large COW at the end of her service in
the dairy. The presumption is that
the dairyman is capable of breeding
or buying COWS of moderate size that
will yield as much milk during the
year as can be obtained from the
COW that will, in fair flesh, weigh
100 or 1900 lbs.
1t is said to require about lbs. OF
nutritious food day to sustain each
hundred pounds weight of the live
animal. In other words, it will re-
quire lbs. daily to maintain COW
Of 200 lbs, over and above that re-
quired to keep COW of 500 lbs.
weight. This amounts to 1000 lbs.
in round numbers, for the year. In
any kind of nutritious food, as good
timothy hay, oats, corn, or mill feed,
the cost Of maintaining the 400 los.
referred to, for the year, would be
rather over than under $40. Now
the amount would, during the useful
life of the COW, amount to from $50
to $Ioo-a sum, as will be readily
seen, considerably larger than the
entire carcass of the COW is likely to
be worth, if sold to the butcher.
But this estimate cuts no figure in
excluding the large wellbred COW
from the average farm for, on any
but the strictly dairy farm, the cows
usefulness comes largely from the
valuable increase she gives from year
to year, giving a good account of
herself meantime, at the pail. The
time was when we looked to the farm,
as the term is generally understood,
for all our butter and cheese and
while important innovations have been
made upon old-time practices. we
must not allow the farm proper, or
any industry upon it, to be over
whelmed by changes from any source.
1t is right to pattern after the
creamery, because perfection in
methods, brought out on the cream
cry and dairy farm, have revolution
lied the quality of our butter; and
what the farm proper requires is not
the 100 or 800 lbs. COW, to be used
for milk and butter purposes alone,
but the 100 or 1900 lbs. COW, SO
bred as to make her progeny worth
far more to rear than to kill, or sell to
the butcher at five or six weeks old.
Thus, with stock of good size and
fairly well-bred, rating as high grades,
the disparity in cost of keep during
the natural, useful life of the COW,
between the large and small beast,
will not make the showing on the
balance sheet that some suppose.
The question comes up, too, where
grade steers but to such dams as we
have described. The rough, plains
cattle will, it is true, supply some
steers, and the demand for that grade
of meat is not likely to fall off, as
cheap grades are wanted by those
who cannot afford to buy better, and
the large demands for packing and