The Bottineau pioneer. (Bottineau, N.D.) 1885-1895, 1894-02-17
WHEAT VERSUS HOGS.
HOW TO ESCAPE THE RESULTS OF
THE PAST BAD CROPS.
Necessity of q Diversity in the
Farmers ERorts - How Forty
Seven Cent Wheat Can BE Made to
Yield q Return.

VA ia a.
Farmers Efforts How Forty
Yield . Return.
The following article on the raising Of
hogs should be read by every farmer in the
Northwest, and especially by farmers In
Northern Minnesota and North Dakota. It
permanent prosperity of this section and is
from Gen. Mark u. Flower, who has given
a great deal of time to Investigating the
points mentioned: 1t is terse but compre-
The rapid decline In the market value Of
wheat throughout the world until the pres
ent ruinous prices have been reached leads
duced the result, and whether these causes
are Of a permanent or temporary nature.
A few years ago 1t would have been con-
sidered presumptuous to predict the present
conditions Of the wheat markets Of the
ing and capable business men are convinced
that the low prices have come to stay, with
exceptions now and then when the crops
The price of wheat, like other commodi-
ties, Is regulated by the supply and de-
mand, and while the demand has not and
is not likely to decrease, it is equally GER
tain that the supply is rapidly increasing
with the advent Of new competitors who
possess many advantages over the American
farmer. The United States with its vast
empire Of productive soil can easily supply
can it do so with profit? If we cannot ex-
port wheat and leave a margin Of profit for
the producer, the sooner we learn the fact
and change our methods OF agriculture, the
batter for all.
Let us briefly note who our chief COM
petitors are. India, Russia, Australia, and
some Of the South American countries, with
their recent advancement In modern meth
ol~ - md rrl%h %h4{p al
improved facilities for transporting their
surplus grain, must, from now on, be con-
sidered important factors in the worlds
markets, and he who does not heed this
c%ordingly will soon regret his lack Of dis
cernment. In all the countries named the
price of labor Is not more than so per cent
Of the American price, while in India a
alone, with its vast areas of wheat fields
and its recently improved transportation
facilities, can pour its almost unlimited
Surplus a. i9to The @d markets Ct Europe at p Sists
these conditions confronting us, is 1t not
time to call a halt in exclusive wheat rails
Ing? Have we not other and better re-
sources? Have we not other and more
promising farm products, natural alike to
soil and climate, to which we can turn with
profit in this hour Of wheat bankruptcy?
With wheat at Al cents at the home station,
the price is below the cost Of production,
and poverty Of soil and poverty OF purse
are the logical consequence. Like a ship
at sea without a rudder, the more sail we
carry the farther out Of our course we 60.
states. incIndine - southern out N M,unesota' eI have
all passed through the ':wheat period" un-
der very much more favorable conditions
than now exist, but with the same financial
sna 6 'amRSHe % II oar fesme sn1e @ii' not sG be-
guided by the experience. Of their brothers,
there still remains the advantage Of reach-
Ing the same ends by the same old route,
but IL they will change there will be Z
saving Of time and Of money.
Experience i'm Other States.
In nlin dis, Iowa, Wisconsin and Southern
Minnesota, when the farmers from sheer
exhaustion were driven to abandon exclN-
sive wheat production, their prosperity be-
gan; The farmer must not abandon wheat
de of the good sense he is usually supposed
to possess, and diversity according to the
peculiar circumstances Of his case, raising
30. 90 or perhaps 20 per cent Of his former
or nnes-tve stock, dairy products and other
things, according to circumstances. There
Ia an irrevocable economic law that he must
not violate with impunity and expect IA
ture to reward him; he must not continu-
ously, year by year, raise wheat upon the
anne soil, without rest or recuperation,
and expect good results. That immediate d.
yersity in farming ts urgent is conceded,
can the farmer IN the wheat belt substitute
Tor wheat? Without going into the consid-
Grafton Of the long list Of products that
name the hog: There is no product "e Of IT the
farm that universally commands a better
price. The hog Is q staple article that
always commands the market price IN cash.
warm pens and reasonably Facilities Miti sV csn
produce two crops Of hogs each year. With
tat merchantable hogs he can turn them
Into cash any month In the year. The hog
s MM! r cenSqm mo ene I fos +! pi io = wo OF the 3ea farm haa
ts the farmers friend, aud he only requires
reasonable care to trebly recompense him
Tor every outlay Of time or money. The
Be successfully produced outside Of the
''oopp belt" We say American opinion be-
cause hogs have been raised in Europe apd
Canada and other countries without corn
c~essfully fed and fattened on barley, rye
and peas. Within the past two years many
successful experiments have been had in
Northern Minnesota and North Dakota with
}ss TOP 5ee 81 tSe the %. e ; s s} f SSu fS@ Sc. fsSfi
and yielding q fraction over so per cent
Of choice meat, which is from 8 to 8 per
cent greater than results from corn feeding.
eases that infest the corn-fed hog never
attack the hog fed upon wheat, barley or
peas.
: Hogs raised in Scotland and fed upon
market. 1t is time the belief that hogs can
not be successfully produced on other than
corn is fully exploded. The farmers Of the
wheat belt have the advantage Of climate
and food with which to make hogs that will
as surely command a premium over the corn
hog as No. l hard Is at d premium over the
spring wheat Of Kansas and Nebraska.
How to Raise Hogs.
There are a few commop-sense things
that must be observed to make hog raising
profitable. First Of all secure q we'll bred
hog for breeding. There is as much or
more more q din ,e in the quality Of hogs as
!ong-legged, slab-sided hog is Of no account.
You cannot fatten such a hog. Besides he
Is a famine breeder-he eats everything
shun this kind Of an animal. There 10 no
money in him for anybody. For our eli.
mate the Poland China Is doubtless prefer
able to any other, as it grows rapidly, is
besides being a fairly good breeder: with
fair care it Is ready for the market in from
eight to eleven months, weighing from 200
to geo pounds and commanding always the
e,fHsss h psafe Or c dae hSsre K se1 9sasss.o to
provision should be made for shade in dog
i not elegant in any q his tastes, but he
Win repay IN hard cash for every outlay
Brood sow and Litter.
Above all things; during pregnancy don't
kill your brood SOW with Kindness. What
she wants is a warm, dry pen, with a
yard adjoining sufficiently large for reason
able exercise: Don't overfeed the brood
SOW. Remember this, as 1t is all import
ant. A brood SOW must be fed small ra-
tons Of nourishing food, but must never be
permitted to become fat. A fat SOW in
pregnancy win not raise 20 per cent Of
her young for numerous reasons not neces-
sary to detail.
II the young pigs come in the early spring
or fall 1t is absolutely necessary that the
good bedding. By a reasonable observance
0f thu ah0vo aimnlo nnloo tho Hornnon xuill