The herald., 1894-06-08
THK Hay FAMINE.

next two weeks, hay will be selling for
heavier figures than has been known in
Los Angeles since the greAt drouth OF
1864. The horrors of that season which
threw many good citizens into bank
ruptcy, can be but too painfully recalled
by our older residents. Sheep could be
bought for % cents per head and COWS
from IS to 81. Two msn chartered a
steamer and carried from San Pedro to
Crescent City load OF 800 cattle pur-
chased at 81 per head. They drove
them out in the hills OF Del Norte coun-
ty, having lost about 100 head on the
voyage and after arrival. But the resi-
due they got from $40 to $50 per head
for, in November of the same year. The
present spring, with its arid pastures,
recalls that year Of suffering and ia mine.
And yet the conditions OF Southern
California are wholly changed and in
vsriably for the better. In those days,
a man going from here to the Chino
ranch or to San Bernardino, would have
to carry a demijohn OF water in his
wagon; and it was safe to say that his
borses drank the better part OF it before
reaching the journeys end. Now q man
can go over the very same route and
find abundance of good water at short
intervals. Then the farmer had to have
acres of native grass or wild oats for his
stock, producing one crop annually.
Now he has alfalfa which brings in from
eight to twelve crops annually, accord
ing to location.
No one, OF course, contends that al
falfs hay is the equal of nay cured from
oats or barley, but for COWS with calves
or mares that are nursing colts it is
quite as good. With the exception OF
our native slfillerilla, or pin grass, it is
the best milk food obtainsble. As there
is an abundance OF alfalfa growing all
Though Southern California there is not
the slightest chance of the hsrdships and
disasters of 1864 being repeated, except
in isolated localities.
The tule hay, cured from salt grass
grown upon the marshes in the delta
formed by the confluence Of the San
Joaquin and Sacramento, had much to
do with averting disaster in 1864. Stock
ton and Antioch were the great hay ports
OF that year. Moving machines and
teams were taken into the trackless tulss
in every direction, and, when the hay
was cut off, there were herds OF cattle
sent in there to nibble away at the
M IN th hok ha cnfr
black soil. In that year the tule hay
sold for Sc per ton, against $40 for timo-
thy hay brought down from Oregon by
steamer, s25 for barley and $50 to $50 for
ost hay, according to quality. There
may be some hay cut in the tules this
year, but not in any great quantity. One
resson for this is the fact that large
bodies of lands on which the wild grass
was cut in 1884 have since been reclaimed
and converted into fruit orchards and
market gardens. Another ia that the
use OF alfalfa hay has become 90 general
that il it can be obtained at $40 nobody
would use tule hay at So. And a third
reason is that STRAW ia now saved in
much greater quantities than in the
years gone by; and hence the scarcity
OF fodder is not 80 great as might at first
be imagined.
The mild weather OF the past two
weeks and the sbsence of snow from the
high plateaux OF the Sierras has en-.
abled most of the sheep and cattle men
to drive out into the mountains with
their focks. In two weeks more they
will be in the high Sierras, to remain
until the October SHOWS shall drive
them out, and then they will return to
the plains. For winter food they can
use sugar beets, Ventura beans and
pumpkins. all OF which grow without
irrigation; and should the supply fall
short they can bring in corn from Ari-
IONA to make up the deficit.
There may be high prices for winter
food OF cattle and, in some isolated
cases, heavy Losses sustained by indi-
vidual owners of live stock. Blu. in q
general way the Losses will be insignif-
cant as compared with those OF thirty
years ago. The chief cause of this I'M
proved condition of things is the intro
duction OF alfalfa and its general cult.
walton by the smaller class of farmers.
Alfalfa will yet prove the poor mans
salvation in this state, and especially in
the southern counties.