Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1886-05-13

fed couple of years or more, and then shippe
/ east through this city to a market. When b
viii be so heavily stocked that none will fattel
/ on the range. which time have heard yariousl
estimated ny the ranchmen at from two TO nv
years distant Montana will not ship beeves bu
the frame-the buue and muscle which must b
/ tattened elsewhere to make beef Now the ques
/ tion occurs, how can this stream of animals b
4 proftably stopped here, bought from The ranch
men, and sold to the consumer or otherwise
/ That would be a market. The incentive to buy
ing and selling Is profit. In this case the ranch
/ men would esteem IL profit to them If the
/ could sell here so as to net them as much none,
! as in Chicago. thus saving he time and troubl
/ of going to Chicago. But the man or men VIII
| buy here must make profit.
LARGE CAPITAL NEEDED.
To make a profit by Strengthening and distrib
\ uting dressed beef over the country requires al
I enormous capital and organization, numerous
cold storage warehouses, refrigerator cars, etc
As beef dressed can ONLY be preserved a compar-
atively few days. il follows that these concerns
/ must slaughter every day and must have beeve,
/ to slaughter every day. For about three MONTH
only fat cattle come from the ranges, beginning
say in August and ending in November TIT
farms of Illinois, Ohio, Indiana, Iowa and othe
corn growing states furnish the slaughterhouses
the other nine months. Now, while have esti
mated from the best data at my command thai
our local consumption and that of the country
west and aorth of here Is fully equivalent to tbs
present annual product OF Montana and our owl
state, can see no reason why we should moi
be able to at least kill beef for our own con.
sumption except the difficulty of holding the
animals here so as to give the slaughter.
done by feeding. II the resources o.
our state are such that cattle can be probably
fed here during the winter months and fattened
believe it Is practicable to establish market
here, otherwise am unable to see any basis for
such market. lt Is upon this point that intor-
nation is desired by our friends from Montana
and it is upon this point we as citizens of Min.
nesota would desire to hear an expression from
them. Demonstrate that range cattle can bt
bought in the fall, fed by our farmers other
wise during the winter, and increase theil
weight sufficiently that the increased weight
added to the increased price usually obtainablC
in the winter and spring will be Sufficient &c
make satisfactory profit to the feeder and
market will follow easily and naturally
OUR LOCAL CONSUMPTION.
II 1t is true that the local consumption Is equal
to the surplus of Montana and our own farms to-
gether, by Strengthening here this market would
have the advantage of the Chicago market equiv
alent TO the freight both ways viz, from here "a
Chicago and from Chicago back here, amounting
to hundreds of thousands of dollars, which could
be divided between the Montana producer, the
feeder and the consumer Statistics show that
Minnesota can raise corn. In 1879, the last re-
port which have seen, shows production OF
5000, 900 bushels II we can raise !, 900, 600
bushels of corn, we eau raise 30,000,0O0 OF
l0o,0OO,000. The census tables show that the
average corn production of Minnesota in 1879
was thirtY-tour bushels per acre. while in
Indiana it only thirty-one. Ohio thirty -four,
Illinois thirty-si1, and only seven states in the
them being ia New England, where the
fields are small and highly cultivated
The same census shows that tine average per
acre In !, Minnesota was W;.,, Corn. 81 bushels
bushel, as it was then, and corn at % cents, an
acre of wheat would br ng Sl2 and an acre of
corn $3.50. Notwithstanding the increased cost
OF raising an acre of wheat, IL was probably a
slightly more profitable crop: but as now wheat
Is worth say 60 cents, and the average produc-
ten is reduced to s or 10 bushels, an acre of
,rrt,A IHfV
of corn at p cents will bring IS So and even
at 20 cents corn crop is undoubtedly more
profitable than wheat.
TIE FEEDING QUESTION.
As have said, have hal no experience In
feeding but within the last few months have
seen figures. said to be accurate. which seemed
TO prove that the farmers OF Minnesota can
feed cattle" say for four winter months during
the fattening process at a net profit of say $40
to 81 per head. If this is correct, and we could
by any means place It within the reach OF the
farmers OF this state that each could care for say
thirty head and make profit of SO per head or
$500 for the winter, do YOU realize what boon
It would be- to the farmer? Three han-
dred dollars net profit to each of
the 100000 farmers OF Minnesota means
S3a00000O net profit to the state
Do you realize how much the average farmer of
this state needs additional industry which will
give him an additional income2 Take the United
States census tables OF 1850 and you will find
the statistics of the crop of 1879 You will find
in that year that Minnesota farmers produced
1000, 900 bushels of wheat, 2l5,oo0 bushels
of rye. 23, 000, 900 bushels of oats, IL, 100000
bushels of corn, 900, 900 bushels of barley, Al
COO bushels of buckwheat, little flax, little
sorghum, poultry, eggs. butter. cheese, garden
truck, potatoes etc, ETC. that the whole value
of all these products, except live stock. on the
farms before it had paid any freight, including all
sold and consumed by the farmer and his fam
lily, amounted to $i9.469,60 This was the
gross value, without deducting the cost TO raise
it, Now divide this gross sum, SIS, 469, 900, be-
tween 81, 400 farms then in the state and am
sure Won will be astonished, as was, to find il
amounts to only 1888 to each farm. Mind this
is not profit or what the crop brought over and
above the cost OF production. Applying the same
test to our neighboring state of Iowa, we find the
average farm produces 1874, about 40 per cent
more.
HOW TO DO IT
What can we do to encourage the adding Of
live stock raising to the agricultural industries
of Minnesota In my judgment nothing would
do so much as an established market. As il is
now, II the farmer raises wheat he can turn it
into cfsh by hauling il to the nearest railway
station any day in the year at its market value.
II he raises steers, he must wait till some itin-
Grant purchaser happens along and makes him
an offer perchance, he may sell it to the local
butcher on sixty days time ard take his chances
OF getting paid. For the average farmer to ship
directly to Chicago Is evidently impracticable:
and il he can't sell stock what is the
use of raising it? l have demonstrated,
to my satisfaction, at least, that
can feed stock, and that the farmers can't keep
stock until there is a market. The farmers have
no money to buy stock with. The most of
them think they can't feed cattle because they
can't raise corn" The question is what TO do
about it. NV own Judgment Is that some of us
who have the courage of our convictions must
build a big barn like they have near Omaha, and
fill 1t this fall with say 1000 head OF steers and
feed them during the winter on the available
products of the country, and demonstrate that a
profit can be made in fattening cattle here the
same the bonanza farmers demonstrated that
wheat could be raised ins the Red river valley
Once demonstrate by actual figures that it is
profitable, the farmers will take hold of it. Men
of capital and our banks will furnish money to
carry the cattle while being fed by the farmers
THE RESULT.
A steady daily supply of beeves win be pro-
duced the whole year through; then follow
Strengthening houses and their accompanying in
dustries in their natural sequence, adding di-
rectly to the wealth, population and retail trade
of our cities. and by adding TO the wealth of the
farming community indirectly adding largely to
the wholesale commerce and the manufacturing
industries embarrassing the demand for lumber;
and by better cultivation of the land while de-
creasng the acreage cultivated in wheat will
actually increase the quantity raised. Thus all
classes will be benefited. 1t seems to me to be
matter of 50 much importance that it should
claim the best thought of our best men
Looking to the future the question of proper
location for yards, feeding and Strengthening es-
Establishments may be proper one to consider,
though consider this of secondary importance.
Upon this matter i have tried to consider the
question fairly and upon its merits. 1t has oc-
CURED to me that the location should be out
side the city proper easily accessible to the city,
with good drainage and plenty of water. Such
a location l have secured, located about four
miles down the river from the city. 1t does not
follow, of course, because have purchased this
land for this purpose, IL is the best location, or
that such establishments should be located
there. In whatever we may do in this matter 1
want the hearty corporation of every business
man and cttizen-and all these matters must be
decided on their merits
J. J. HILLS REMARKS
Mr.. Stickney introduced President James
of tha ha
stock feeder who was qualified TO speak from
experience on the subject of the cost and
profit of feeding stock. Mr. Hill was re-
cetyed with applause, and stoke substan-
TALLY as follows:
Mr.. Stickney spoke about the corn crop of
in 1879. If he had taken the figures
for lSs5he would have found that Iowa-and
Iowa l consider in the front rank Of agricultural
states--ln 1850 raised thirty five bushels of corn
to the acre, while Minnesota raised thirty-seven
and half bushels. tApplausel. We have a
county - Kandiyohi-where it was said
no one ns,.o could raise Use o corn But that
land too. and didn't ship bushel, and fed 1t to
cattle. had l3S acres in corn and raised an
average OF hfty-three and one-half bushels to
the acre 1t was not touched with frost and l
it. A few years ago it was said
q man was pretty far frUm home when
be was where they could not raise
aud finds he can raise corn. It's hard to say
what YOU can and what you cannot raise There
Is one thing the people lose sight of when they
undertake. to feed caCtle-that they can do It
without corn. The highest price paid in he world
Tor cattle sold on the hooI is in a country where
they never raise ear OF corn and don't feed it,
That Is in the northeast Gf Scotland, in the
county of Aberdeen. They send their
to market in better condition
and get one cent or three-quarters OF .
cent pound a. least more from them than any
other cattle in the market, and they cant raise
corn. Now can't afford to be wastefnI In nv
aiming llanghterl and so / imported man
rom that country just to feed my stock We
nave an agricultural university in Minnesota
Win WIN large endowment but no place where a
man tan learn to feed cattle Now I nav nv
farmer S2oOo a year "a voice-"Don' q he striker
anu ne doa,t strike. Now tue difference between
lhteuigsnt farming and farming as carried on in
our state, is the difference between nnvert, apd
wealth Nowhere where there is a civilized state
OF Things Is the soil cultivated with as little in
,.ellgence as IN Minnesota. IL there is left