The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1889-07-05
ABOUT RATTLE-weED.
The True Properties of the Plant Describe'
by Man of Exuariance.


The True Properties of the Plant Described
by a Man of Experience.
/ have been reading, with some de-
gree of interest. the several articles
which have appeared of late in regard
to rattle-weed, and in some of them the
writer's seem TO be very skeptical as
regards its true properties, and al
though it may be a hopeless task to I'M
dertake to convince them to the con-
trary, | for one can say without hesita-
ton that l am positively certain as 10
its effects on stock. l have had more
or less experience with it for the last
twenty-eight years, with sheep, Gait
and horses, some of which | gave eight
or ten years since. l still have plenty
of it, but have learned by experience
how to manage it, and while we are at
it l will give you my rules for pastur-
ing where it abounds.
First--Do not turn stock in when
the feed is poor.
Second-Do not leave them in after
the feed begins to dry up in the spring.
Third Watch them closely during
the time when they are in, and when
you see an animal leaving the band and
feeding around alone, take him out
right away and you may save him it he
is not too far gone, as when they begin
to eat they will eat nothing else and
W the other stock to hunt for
the H. At first they fatten up, but
a reaction soon sets in, and then they
soon show the effects of the weed.
have theory in regard to the way
that stock get to eating it first, and
that is this: The stock, in feeding
among it while the feed is good, will
eat the grass all around it, and
when the feed begins to get a little
scarce or dry they will nibble the grass
that has been left untouched in among
the rattle-weed, and in so doing will
get stalk of rattle-weed now and then,
and as it remains green nearly all the
year they soon get to eating it and will
eat nothing else. / have not had an
animal hurt for several years, but it is
because. as / have said before, l have
found out how to manage it.
| would also like to state that the
water in my pasture is pure spring wa
ter and plenty of it, as | see some think
water the cause. Others say they are
overworked, starved, beat around and
in fact never had any sense in the first
place and were natural fools out and
out. Now this in my opinion is all a
mistake. Of course, there may be diff.
ferences in horses and they may not all
act just the same, but this much I will
say, that if you want to make horse.
cow or sheep crazy give them plenty of
rattle.weed.
l will now give you one case that
came under my notice. | turned my
colts into a pasture adjoining mine in
which there was one patch of rattle
weed The feed was not very good
generally, but along the gulches and
in places where it was sheltered it was
fair did not dream that they would
trouble the weed. and as I was busy ]
did not pay much attention to them.
Now, there was among the colts an old
American mare that had crossed the
plains. She was family nag; any one
could drive her and she would work
any time and anywhere, and | thought
she had plenty of good horse sense.
Well, | went over one day, and there
was the old mare and a two-year-old
colt up on that hill busy at work eating
the rattle-weed. They had even paved
up the ground and were trying to eat
up the roots, and they were good and
crazy, and no mistake. The other colts
were all right then took the colt
and old mare out and put the colt up
and fed him awhile, and then sent him
away to pasture where there was no
weed, and In the fall he seemed to have
recovered from the effects. I then
brought him home and turned him out
among the other horses in the stubble.
In this stubble-feld there was hill.
and on it some rattle-weed. / did not
think he would leave good feed and the
rest of the stock, so paid no attention
to him. then went away to work and
did not come home for two weeks, and
found my colt up on the hill busy at the
rattleweed and as crazy as a bedbug.
He was total wreck, he could not walk
straight nor go down hill without turn
ing round aid round. OF course l saw
he was done for. and let him die, which
he did in a short time. / have other
cases equally convincing, but think /
will not burden you with too much at
once.-Cor. Rr"al Press.