The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1886-07-16
FARM MANAGEMENT.
Why Farmers Who Have Flocks
OF Sheep Would Do Well
to Keep them.
Arranging Trees So that They Will 0rna-
ment Farms to the Best
Advantage
A Poor Time to Ston.

Farmers throughout the northwest
appear to think that the present is q
poor time to engage in the business oil
keeping sheep. We hear of many who
contemplate making additions to their
stock of hroodmares, with view of
raising fine draught or carriage horses
for market. They state that there is n
more active demand for horses than for
any kind of stock raised on farms, and
that the prices offered for them are
higher than can be realized for other
ANIMALS that cost an equal sum to raise
They believe that the demand. for
horses will continue for an indeiinate
period, and that prices will not decline.
They acknowledge that considerable
capital is required to breed good
horses. especially if a stallion is kept
on the place, that the risks are con-
siderable, and that it is necessary to
"ait three or tour wears
before there are any returns on
the capital invested. Many farmers
are also turning their attention
to dairyng. The erection of cream
! eries and cheese factories within easy
reach of their places offers cash mar
ket for the milk they can produce, and
they are anxious to engage in a bust
ness that affords them money at stated
periods. They think that they can
combine the production of pork and
beef with dairying to good advantage,
as skim milk can be fed to growing
pigs and calves. In every part of the
northwest there is a strong desire on the
part OF farmers to keep more and better
cattle, In many places, not only sum
mcr but winter feed for them can be OBJ
tanned on land that is not occupied.
The cost of herding the cattle during
the summer is small and only labor is
required to secure hay to keep them
over the winter In places where there
is no vacant land farmers are endeav-
orlng 10 keep more cattle. They are
improving their pastures and meadows.
raising roots, building and filling silos,
so as to insure cheap food during the
winter.
But scarcely any farmer is laying his
plans for engaging in keeping sheep.
There are no advertisements for tlocks
in the newspapers, as there were
twenty years ago. At the stockyards
near this city there are many farmers
constantly looking after young cattle
and lean pigs to take their places
TO iced. None come, however, for the
purpose of buyirg sheep to take to
their farms to breed from or to fatten.
Hardly any agricultural writer is a,lvo-
eating sheep husbandry us profitable
branch of stock-ralsing for Young
farmer to engage in. They advise him
to devote his land, time. and money to
cattle, horses, or hogs in preference to
sheep. Many state that there is more
to be made in keeping fowls than sheep
foultry-raisers are much more enthus-
lastlc and hopeful than shcep-raisers
They refer to the fact that foreign eggs
are required to meet the demand in all
our great eastern cities, and that fine
chickens, turkeys, and ducks ALWAYS
bring good prices Lately we have
been informed that money can be made
IN raising turkeys and geese for export.
1t Is certain that there is more demand
for fine fowls than for fine sheep for
breeding purposes. At present there
are many amateur cattle, horse, and
poultry raisers, but there appear to be
no amateur shecp-breeders. Many APP
pear to think there is more pleasure in
raising carp than sheep. With
little doubt, more farmers in the
northwest have stocked carp-ponds
than shecp-pastures during the past
few years. Wool is low. and the pros
pcct for better prices appears to be
very poor. The consumption of NUT
ton is probably increasing, but the in
crease is very slow. Beef is the meat
chiefly consumed in cities and pork CON
tinues to be the meat most used IN the
country. In several states mutton is
scarcely known as an article of food.
Even spring lamb is Il luxury rarely
seen in most houses.
This is admitted to 4 be poor time
for engaging i'll sheep-raising on farms.
But 1t IS also very poor time to go
out of the business OF keeping sheep.
The price of sheep is low. the sellers
are many and the buyers are few. The
best thing that the owner Of flock of
sheep can do is to keep them. With
rare exceptions. he VIII lose by the op-
Grafton if he attempts to dispose OF his
sheep and to invest the money he derives
iAEiii 'iiti III III lloIStS w Ctttlit. Atll-
mails for which there is 4 brisk demand
bring good prices. while only very poor
prices can be realized for those which
there is little demand MANY farmers
who have disposed of their sheep since
the decline in wool founc that thev
were better property than they consid-
cred them to be. If their wool brought
no large sum of money, it came at a
time of the year when it was greatly
needed. Ii helped meet Obligations or
bought goods when there was nothing
else on the farm that could be convert
ed into money. The farmers who sold
off their sheep because wool was so
low now see how valuable sheep are
rs meat producers. They miss the
lambs that once afforded fine
dinners during the season of
haying and harvesting. They find that
lamb is only sold by butchers at very
high prices. They also miss the fat
wethers they once had ready to slaugh-
ter during the fall and winter They
think how little it cost to keep the sheep
that they disposed of for very small
sum. They find that the buildings they
erected for protecting sheep are of
very little value for other purposes.
They see that their sheep ate many
things in the pasture and fcedlng-vard
that cattle and horses reject. They
come to the conclusion. when it is too
late 10 profit by it, that sheep are
profitable to their owners in various
ways. Ii they had sheep on their
places again. they would not be anxious
to dispose of them at a sacrifice.
Trees in Groups.
Many farmers seem to think that they
have ornamentcd their places by the
use of trees when they have planted q
row of some one kind alonp the side of