The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-02-28
LIVE STOCK IS
 FARMS HOPE Annual Meeting Comes
 to an End. MUCH INTEREST MANIFESTED Alabama Farms Have Small Per
 eentage of Stock. Ne system of Faf,ning Can Be Brought to Its Maximum Fruitfulness
 Without Presence of Do-
 nestle Animals.

| You can not escape the fact that
 livestock is the beginning and the
 ending of success on the farm" de.
 the second session of the thirteenth | annual meeting of the Alabama Live
 Stock Association, yesterday. And ir
 this brief sentence he struck the key
 note of the conference.
 | That there Is a broad field for grow. | ing more live stock in Alabama is ob yious when we look over the figures l for the State." he continued.
 1 "On the 223,000 farms in the State | there is only one head of cattle for every twenty-five acres. one horse to l every l2s acres, one mule to every eigh ty mine acres. one sheep to every
 1lS acres and one hog to every 16.7
 acres. and when we take into consid- ,eration the average size of the farm | which Is 92.7 acres, we see how lone-
 some 1t must be for the few animals
 that do exist. The figures given here | were taken from Battens Agricultural | Directory for 1908, and I think they
 are sufficiently correct to show not on- | ly the lack of motive power on the
 farm but to give us an insight to the
 insufficient supply of meat that is pro- duced by the farmers"
 The live stock conference was held
 
 was even more largely attended than during the first session on Friday. In | all there were six addresses yesterday, carefully reviewing the experiences of the year and making suggestions for 1 improved methods. All were emphatic in their appeal. that the campaign for more livestock in this state, be under taken most vigorously.
 The same officers were reelected. rxytf Drn Ta as Chairman, went out to the stock yards in the morning and saw several head of cattle which had been con demned by the city bacteriologist, slaughtered. Seven or eight were tu- bercular and the disease was shown to
 be marked from slight infection, to a jcondition of actual rottenness.
 In comprehensive address on the possibilities in live stock, Mir. Kirk = patrick said in part:
 ''The logical source of all permanent
 improvement in soil fertility reverts itself to the live stock produced upon the farm. If we take this solution of the question, and I think we safely can.
 the deduction Is that live stock is the Alpha and Omega of successful farn-
 ing. I fear no contradiction when I state that no system of farming can he brought to its maximum fruitful hooS WitHOot pEcbcuCe UL tdFke numbers of domestic animals. Agri- culture in many places ip Alabama. Is almost impossible of profitable pursuit unless 1t includes as an important ele- | ment the feeding and marketing of an- imals.
 50 this brings up another question.
 with which we will have to deal in the development of this important indus try. To successfully feed bunch of
 naft hnr .A and market them to the best ~of ad- vantage. requires one of sound busi- ness acumen and a knowledge of the relative value of the clements com posing a well balanced ration. This Is the most important point of all to consider, unless perhaps 1t Is that of the selection of foundation stock for breeding purposes, but as these are so inseparably knit together we can with profit include them both under the same head. In addition to the fact that scientific investigation into the causes and remedies of animal diseases has resulted in an immense pecuniary prof 1t to the farmer. a lasting benefit has been accomplished by this same scien- tiic research in showing us the differ ence in a well balanced ration when intelligently fed to- the hap-hazzard mannep/in which feed was wasted fifty, yedTS ago. UT cN6u pTdSIlCtQ lOudy Tn many places.
 Must Select Own Kind.
 What kind of stock is best suited to the individual farm, and what breed sh ould we attempt to grow? This must be determined by the individual him self. after first giving careful and thorough study of the merits and hab- its of the different breeds, together with the environments surrounding lat,. a-Yx l0t4 I.~ L1 opment of their chief characteristics as a breed After having done this. compare what he has learned with his own surroundings and see which breed will come the nearest to meeting his requirements as they exist on his own farm. But whatever breed Is finally decided upon, let the foundation stock be that of pure bred animals. Ami mals that for generations have been bred in their purity. If he wants to engage in raising cattle, first deter mipe whether he will devote his time and energy in the production of beef, or whether milk and butter Is his chief aim. Never make the mistake of trying to make beef out of the milk ing breeds of the cattle, or to let his hopes of successful dairyman be blasted upon the choice of selecting the beef type as dairy herd. for dis dWdllb HlHl.
 We have several breeds of highly developed cattle suited to the produc- ton of milk and butter. either one of which if persevered in will bring both pleasure and profit to their owner. We have several breeds of cattle, also, that for generations back have been bred to digest and assimilate the great | est amount of food and to convert 1t into beef within the shortest possible time. that if taken and properly han dled will not only be a thing of beauty and joy forever but will place in tn e | pockets of the farmers of Alabama dol | lars where they now have cents. if they will but only, give them a chance. |
 We also have what we call the dual I purpose COW, COW that has been bred | to produce both milk and butter. a | COW that can be fattened at any time | when the flow of milk is not satisfact- ory and profitable, then to be sold to the butcher in as economical condition | almost as the beef type can be fitted. | In the beef type of cattle to my mind, | there are no special points of excel | 1ence that one breed may possess to | greater extent over the others. neith CT am I aware that 1t has been proven | that one has any marked superiority | over the other as to the rate flesh may | be laid on or the cheapness of gain. | the fact of the lead | taken by the Angus at the two last Fat | Stock shows, the victory for that breed | in this instance Is attributed more to the skill exercised in the hand of the feeder than to any other factor in the am not so certain in declaring the quality of the breeds of the dairy type. For we all know the butter fat in the Jersey to be greater than that in the