Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1902-05-20

With the coming back of old-fashioned
prices for beef something may be said in
favor of the old-fashioned method of
doing farm work with oxen instead of
horses exclusively. 1t is true that much
farm machinery has been fitted for horse
teams, but some farmers have used
oxen for drawing the mower and other
labor-saving machines with fairly good
success. When oxen were the chief
animal power on the farm some farmers
always trained one or more to work in
single yoke and used them for cultivat-
ing the corntields. have never trained
cattle to drive with bride and bit, but
know of no reason why it should be
more difficult than TO train colts to be
guided with lines. | should prefer a
tine stepping horse for pleasure driving
to steer or bull, but there is a good
deal of work that must be done on and
about the farm.
In my early farm experience there
were many more oxen than horses on all
the farms of my acquaintance, and oxen
did large part of the road work such
as hauling wood and lumber long dis
tances to market and hauling back store
goods. Thousands of cords of wood,
hops and boards were drawn by oxen To
markets dozen miles or more away dur
ing the fall and winter season when the
crops had been secured. Several farmers
of my acquaintance, who did large wood
and lumber business, used to purchase
several pairs of oxen every fall, feed fairly
well and work all winter, and then sell
them TO smaller farmers in the spring to
replace animals that had been fattened
during the winter. Many farmers made
it point TO turn for beef one or more
pairs of cattle every year, doing all their
farm work with them in the meantime,
thus getting their team work done at
little or no expense.
If cattle of suitable age are handled
with care and not overworked, it is
possible to keep them gaining in condi-
tion all the time from Steerhood TO meat
market age. 1t is claimed by men who
have been successful in the business that
steer will gain better with light work
than if kept in complete idleness, that
the appetite will be better and conse-
quently better digestion and assimilation.
In France and Germany horse meat is
not uncommon article of food, and
horses are doubtless disposed of very
differently than what they are in this
country, much to the advantage of the
animals as it would seem, but horse
meat is not popular with us as yet, and
when horse gets well into years it is of
little value, while the OK is becoming
more valuable with each pound of added
weight. The time may come when
animal food may be too costly for every
day use of common people, indeed it is
already SO in some of the older countries
in Europe. In America most of the
flesh eaten is raised especially for slaugh-
tering and no income is obtained from
an animal till it is killed. Cows, sheep
and hens are among the exceptions, and
steers to limited extent.
As conditions now are there might be
a large gain to the community by in
creaSing the number of working oxen on
farms. For plowing, hauling out ma
nure, drawing in the crops and for much
other work, we'll trained OK team is
scarcely inferior to the best horse teams,
and in some places the OK is superior.
| presume most people consider the
horse more intelligent animal than the
OK, but there are certainly exceptions.
The more oxen are handled and asso-
ciate with man the more intelligent they
become. l have never felt greater at
tachment to any horse than to certain
steers that trained and worked when a
boy. In trustfulness to stand without
hitching in ambition to pull every load
hitched TO them and in patience and
calmness under difficulties, some of my
oxen have shown character not excelled
by any horse teams | have ever driven.
Even ON farms where some horses seem
necessary, a pair of well trained oxen
come in handy for doing extra work.
For heavy plowing pair of oxen with
horses ahead makes team that will do
a large days work with comparative
ease. Too often farmers use teams for
ploughing that are too light for the
work expected. 1t costs considerably
less for tackling for oxen than for horses,
but the main advantage is in the capital
required for keeping horse team, for at
the end it is worthless, while the OK
team is increasing in value every year
till maturity.-N. Z. Farmer.