The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-10-14
THE OK AND THE MULE.
which is Best and Most Economical
For Farm Work.

In most new and frontier countries many
of the settlers use oxen as a matter Of
economy in buying to begin with. Then
the less amount required to feed oxen
causes them to do it. Now if it is economy
for new settlers, why not. for everybody
else in these hard times, so-called? Let's
look into it. team of two good horses
or mules is worth $500; harness, $40; the
cheapest double and single trees, 2; total,
s212 Now it takes about as much to take
care of one horse as to keep a yoke of oxen
in good condition. Here we have saving
of SIS per year in feed alone-it is even
more than that. A yoke of oxen will cost
$50; yoke and chains, 50. Here's saving
in fixtures of IS; in feed, $25; total, $50
Here is the table, according to book
keepers style:
Horses and fixtures ....................$2l2 %
Feed-one year acknowledgements. % 20
Interest on investment -............... II ~
Total ...................................S278 20
Yoke of oxen ............................$ 90 70
FIXTURES '-....'' '.....--.'..-'..-...'..' . ~
interest on investment ................ 90
Total .......,...........................sse %
Balance in favor of oXen............$17 20
Now these figures are not overdrawn
They are in fact underdrawn. 1 have tried
both. If ! were going to farm again
would take oxen as matter OF economy
/ know many are prejudiced and won't
work oxen. But prejudice is not business
Oxen will eat cotton seed, shucks, sor-
ghum, peas, potato vines, oat straw Corn
nubbins are good for them, and the 500
horse is in danger if he eats them. Oxen
when trained as they should be, are more
docile and bidable than mules. A good
yoke and chain will last for many years.
Harness for horses soon has to be re-
placed and often repaired. The horse is
more subject to mishaps and diseases than
oxen. Then when your oxen are fifteen
years old you can fatten them and get $50
or $50 a yoke for them as beef. Hence
there is no depreciation in values / must
confess never made this calculation soon
enough. Never did IL until l established
the Hugo farm. Now it Is with me no ex-
pertinent. l am always willing to tell what
knoW-and a good deal don't know. But
one thing l do know; If my farmer friends
in Texas will study this question from
strictly business standpoint as / have
they can gain from $50 to $50 per annum
on every team they work compared with
what they have been getting 1 could tell
more about the OK and in his favor, too,
compared with the mule. The manure that
will accumulate for instance from the OK
where cotton seed and such are fed is
more valuable if taken care of. Try oxen
in these hard times.
A 2-year-old steer will do good blowing
and they can be bought for $50 each.
woke of oxen will break and cultivate so
acres and keep fat. They. make one, of
the best teams to cultivator They
rarely ever fail to pull load on the
wagon. Then l have seen them plow
single. An OK broken to it makes an Al
single team. / have seen one OK and one
mule pulling a cultivator, and they made
a great team. Worked this way the OK
must also have harness. If had one OK
and one mule and had a cultivator l
could pillow without lending or borrow
ing. These are facts that should help
and encourage the poor man more than
the rich.
The above advice given by a practical
Texas farmer is worthy of profound con-
sideration. For the past fifteen years we
have regarded this question in the same
oh q
and again brought it to the attention of
farmers of small means who were strug-
Cling along with broken down mules that
they had paid two prices for. At this
writing we can recall dozen small
farmers who have adopted the plan to-
their very great advantage. But there
are thousands yet to take advantage of
it. Every small farmer should have a
yoke of oxen. AS single teams we have
seen the OK doing the work of cultivating
lust as well as any $500 horse or mule.
Read the above and ponder it.