St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1900-11-03
FARMER DPLANTER.
BEEF CATTLE in TIE SOUTH.
One Of the Lines Of Diversity that
VIII Keep Money Flowing to
the Southern Farmer.

the Southern Farmer
The following is the substance OF IN
impromptu talk by the editor of the
Southern Cultivator before the Geor-
gia State Agricultural society at its
late session at Dublin, Ga. The sub
ject is of general Importance, and
there has been considerable inquiry
for the talk, hence, we give the sub
stance as we recall it.
1t is time southern farmers should
look to the blood of the cattle they
are feeding:
The needs of the southern farmer
are quite numerous and varied. We
shall confine ourselves, for the pres
ent, to the consideration of one of
these, and how it shall be supplied.
Why are the southern farmers
wants peculiar? Because of the mis-
takes of his father and the errors of
his education. Blessed by Providence
with a genial cline and a generous
soil his lot should be a pleasant one.
But he was blessed by Providence
also with a monopoly of one of the
greatest crops Of the world. He could
grow better cotton than anyone else.
The world needed his cotton. So he
devoted himself to its growth. But
he failed to study it's sale. He left it
to others to fix the price. He made
the further mistake of selling his
cotton in its crudest shape, and thus
getting the least money for it.
He failed to recognize that the
world wanted his cotton, not in lint.
but in thread and cloth. Hence, sell
ing in the cheapest form he realized
q small amount of money, and all OF
that came at one period of the year.
His income was annual; his expenses
were constant; he sold cotton but
once a year; his table had to be set
three times per day, 365 days in the
year; his clothes did not wait until
October to wear out; his family did
not wait till October to get sick; his
children could not wait for October
to go to school, and books must be
had.
So his thousand and one wants kept
coming all the while; day-by-day, the
clamor fell; but his cotton ripened
but once a year. So he was in troub-
lie three-fourths Of his time. His
money income was spasmodic; his
want-flow was continuous. So we
concluded that one of the pressing
needs of southern farmers is . con-
tinuous flow of money for daily needs.
How can he secure this? The answer
is clear. He must have something to
sell all along through the year. Di-
versity then becomes necessity.
There are many lines Of diversity
fruit-growing, melon-growing, hay
growing, manufacturing, and many
other lines of labor are open. We
desire to call attention to one special
line that offers relief to very many.
There is constantly increasing de-
mand for cattle. The hungry world
cries beef, beef-give me beef, more
and better beef. Responding to this
cry the farmers of the great north
west are growing rich-so may we
they have no exceptional advantages.
We can grow grass as well as they;
we can grow cotton seed meal and
hulls, the best feeds, which they can
not grow. Herein we have great adj
vantage over them. Feed is the main
expense. Hence, having. the cheaper
cattle. Our climate helps us also. The
consumer cares not whether his beef
grows north or south. The quality Of
his steak or roast is what he does care
for. If the quality is good it matters
not with him whether the beef grew
in Montana or Georgia; whether it
was slaughtered in Kansas City or At
lanta. But many say we can not grow
as fine beef as the northwest and the
clover and bluegrass regions. Is this
true? 1t is Motive can if we will.
Two things determine the quality
OF the beef. These two are the breed
and the feed. We can get as good
breeds as any, but we can not make
short horn beef out of long horn cat
tie. 1t costs no more 10 feed a short
horn than a scrub, but the difference
in growth, weight and quality is ev-
erything.. This has been conclusively
demonstrated in Atlanta by Mr.. 7.
r. Sawtell. He has herd of short
horns less than three years old that
weigh from 1,5OO to 1000 pounds each.
Right beside them he has Georgia
scrubs, fed the same, that weigh from
500 to 500 pounds.
! There is as much difference in the
quality as in the weight. The short
horns are worth on the Atlanta mar
ket to-day six cent per pound, gross.
From 500 to s12O each. The Georgia
scrubs are worth 3h to 4 cents per
pound, gross, upon the same market,
that is from $3.50 to $35 each. Thus
you see there is a difference of from
S72.50 to sss per head in favor Of the
short-horns. In = herd of 100 steers
this is $4,000 difference in the value,
or about 5000 difference in the clear
profit. This particular herd of short
horns was not grown in Georgia, but
they might have been. Mr.. Sawtell
sold q Georgia-bred steer less than
three years old for $3.50 few weeks
since. This strain or breed of cattle
do Just as well in the south as in the
These cattle grow in Ten
nessee.
The point is this, we need to get
better breeds for beef cattle. We can
do it. Mr.. Sawtell has given great
study to this question and is SO thor
oughly convinced that he proposes to
offer, this fall, about five carloads of
Young males at cost to the farmers
of the south. He would have pre-
ferred to pay out the $4,000 on a re-
cent purchase in Georgia, or Carolina,
or Alabama than to have paid it out
in Tennessee and Kentucky. If yon
doubt this try him. Offer the cattle
and you will see whether he will buy.
What does he feed upon. Cotton
seed meal and hulls. He has been
feeding these steer upon this feed
since October last, and will continue
to feed them until November next.
They will cost him about $50 to
$35 each to feed one year and bring
him net profit of about $50 each.
He is making this experiment to con-
vince southern farmers that they can
grow and feed fine beef cattle as sue
cessfully and profitably as anybody