The advocate., 1897-10-27
FEEDING FODDER.


crop, including putting into shock and
afterwards hauling to the cutter, and
cost Of cutting and hauling out and
putting into feed boxes for cattle, in corn
yielding forty bushels per acre, was 3
cents per bushel for the corn and $187
a ton for the stover. l have formerly
thought that cattle relished hay rather
more than stOver, but we have definitely
concluded that they prefer good stOVer
to hay, which is confirmed by all our
observations the past season. There
fore, if an allowance for the stOver Is
made for higher value than $1.87
ton, which is reasonable enough, it ap-
pears that even with expensive culture
and the payment of rent we can raise
corn at about the market price, even in
years when the price is very low. There
is absolutely no room whatever to Ques-
ton the value of putting the corn crop
in shock, and it is not worth while for
upland farmers to own valley land for
hay, or at least to feel obliged to reserve
much land for that purpose. We begin
putting corn in the shocks just as it be-
gins to dent, from August 2S to about
September 3, and we begin using the
shocked corn a few days after we begin
cutting, as our cattle begin to arrive
from the range about that time. 1t is
hauled in low wagon from the field
TO the shed, where it is cut or shredded
by cutter or shredder run by steam
power. After passing through the cut
ter or shredder, the carrier delivers 1t
into a. large wagon, which is then
weighed over the scales and driven to
feed lot, where it is put in deep boxes.
We begin putting cattle on this feed at
once, as soon as they are weighed up
after arriving on the farm and driven
to their feed lot. AT first, with a few
cattle, the cutter is in operation only a
short time, but after while, when the
number of cattle are on full feed, it
takes at least one and then several
pieces of such machinery at different
points to cut the corn and deliver it to
the cattle fast enough to give them all
they will eat. The memorandum of the
performance of the cutter which was
made probably on day when the haul
Of shocked corn to the cutter and then
to the cattle was an average haul, shows
five men and teams hauling the fodder
to the cutter, two men loading in the
field, three men and teams hauling to
the cattle, two men operating the cutter,
and one engineer which, with coal, re-
pairs. ETC.. amounts to $23 day. The
original harvest of eight acres at $1.12
would be SO, having total of $32 for
eight acres, which was the amount har-
vested on that day, giving a cost of
S4 an acre for the original harvesting,
hauling, cutting and feeding to cattle.
Allowing $1.20 for harvesting forty
bushels Of corn per acre at 3 cents, we
have $3.50 for one and One-half tons of
stover or $l.S7 for one ton of stOver.
Therefore, we take the standing crop
and handle it in this manner, harvest
and feed cut the grain for 3 cents a
bushel and deliver to the cattle with
fodder as good OF better than hay at
S1.S7 ton. This of course, is economi-
cal, and in some years would be the
simple salvation of feeding operation.
This method of handling the crop is
plainly the most economical for any one
feeding as many as $50 or 1000 head of
cattle. 1t would take about as many
cattle as that to keep one machine in
continuous operation, which would be
necessary TO be thoroughly economical.
Cut fodder is much more easily handled
when it is rather fresh, and very diff
cult to handle late in the season and in
etremely dry weather. A machine will
prepare twice as much fodder in a rather
damp condition than of very dry fod-
der. We contemplate plan for steam
ing the fodder when it is too dry to work
we'll before passing it through the cutter
There are several machines invented for
husking the corn and cutting or shred