The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1885-07-11
AoRSES WITHOUT GRAIN.
no" Understandings Improves the Nutri-
ent Qualities of Hay.

nutritious enough to keep work horses
on without grain.
hints have been thrown out from
time TO time as to how managed. The
SOIL is deep, mellow and rich, so that
large crops grow, and | consider the
hay grown on such land, that will pro-
duce some four tons to the acre in two
or three cuttings, as superior in quality
TO that grown on poor, thin land, that
VIII produce but one ton, or less. A
good Trend once asserted that his fine
hay was better than my coarse hay.
He had old meadow which yielded about
three-quarters of ton to the acre, and
then little fall feed We agreed to
leave it to the cattle, and a sample of
each was placed before them, when,
much to his disgust, mine was eaten
first, and noses thrust out plainly asking
for more.
There is as much difference in hay as
IN butter, in my estimation. Fancy
creamery can not be compared with
"store-packed. " And then there is
difference in the making and time of
cutting. have often urged farmers,
through your columns, to cut their
grass early, when at its best, and cure
it NICELY; in short, to have dried grass
and not hay. Again, to feed work
horses, two-thirds at least should be
clover, and the rest timothy. Such hay,
properly cut and cured, is Just about as
good as very much hay made on farms,
and grain; at least, after some ten
years experience, it seems so to me.
Not long since some writer in your
paper spoke of the loss in weight from
cutting hay so early. Did it not occur
to him that what was lost by not letting
the first crop stand few days longer,
was gained in the second crop-that
that had Just 50 much the better chance?
Still do not believe in going to ex-
tremes. l would let the grass stand
till the first clover blossoms were be-
ginning to fade. With me, this time
comes about the 18th Or Goth of June.
Again, it makes a difference, as
wrote you lately, how team is driven
whether they are over-wOrked or over
driven, and whether they are pretty
good, solid-built horses. Or of the small
stomach. race-horse style. | have one
pretty solid team that has been kept on
early-cut hay alone, summer and win
ter, for nearly four years, except that
when idle in the winter they are fed
part straw to keep them from getting
too fat. No man could ask for a better
team to work. They are active, and
always ready for business. We have
just finished citing in our crop of pota-
toes. For four weeks they have had
solid work, such as blowing eight to ten
inches deep, drawing subsoil pillow,
Acme harrow, Thomas harrow loaded,
and the potato planter running five
inches deep. 1t has been mostly pleas
ant weather, and it has been all work
and no play, as the season was so late
we felt compelled to push things. After
this hard pull, made extra hard because
they were idle most of the winter, and
not accustomed to work, they are as fat
and sleek as any one could ask for, anC
if you should drive them to town, where
there was a chance to show off, yor
your hands to hold them. Now | dc
not say this to brag, but simply to show
what can be done, and | will give any
man the team who will prove that have
fed them any grain for the last three
years.
But the point l particularly wished
to speak of in this letter occurred to me
a few days ago. 1t is, that underdrain-
ing helps the horses very much. II
Will puzzle you, no doubt, to see how ]
make that out. This is the way: We
can get on the land to do the heaviest
blowing and working early in the season
when it is cold. l have plowed many {
day on my land, drained by nature OF
with tile, when the temperature was
but little above freezing, and a colo
northwest wind blowing, when the
team would turn over two acres or more
in day, and not seem to feel it at all
When our undrained clays get dry
enough to wGlk, the thermometer is apt
to be up to seventy or eighty degrees {
good deal of the time. Men told me
this year that they had not plowed a
furrow after my own blowing was al
DONE Now this may seem like small
matter, but it is great saving of horse
strength and flesh, and it is attention tc
such little points that makes farming
profitable. 1t puts one ahead with his
work, so he does not feel compelled te
work his horses when it is excessively
warm. at heavy work, but can take
some lighter job till a cooler day comes
If were a horse, should feel good
every time my owner got load of tiles
1t may be well to say that many
horses are fed too much hay. A horse
may eat himself poor, with hay before
him all the time. particularly if he is
idle. | would have the hay choice, and
feed only what they will eat up clean in
two hours in the morning, and one hour
or one and half at noon, and two
at night, ordinarily. When worked
very hard, we give them all they
will eat up clean during the night. The
best horseman | ever knew once TOLD
me; IF you want to work horse hare
the best time to feed him is the night
before" Your correspondent will see
by this time, perhaps, that the quality
of the hay. although important, is moi
the only thing necessary.
Twill close by quoting a remark made
to me by tirst-clasS veterinary sur
geon. He said in substance: "If al
farmers would feed their work horses
and care for them as YOU do, nv bust