Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1909-03-09

Il
BOTH IN ONE.
A farmer, presumably subscriber,
writes from Alton, Iowa. He seems TO
be in the very common dilemma of hav-
ing to choose between raising cattle for
beef or for milk and butter. In fact, he
seems to want to do both. he thinks
that /, being practically out of the cat
tie business, can give advice that is free
from self-interest or prejudice.
l doubt whether any man can write
upon this subject without being some
what influenced by his former likes and
dislikes, but / can give our Iowa friend
an opinion based upon observation and
some experience, and free from all hope
of gain from booming any particular
breed Now, / am not intending to say
one word against the dual purpose cat
tie or any other breed. l will simply
tell him and any other interested reader
what l think of the situation as 1t is
to-day.
The demand of the times is for special
plants for special work. You can't
dodge that fact. The man who does
business now has to meet all kinds of
competition. Prices are high for the
things he must buy, and he must so run
his business that every acre of land and
every head Of stock must pay profit.
These cold blooded facts put sentiment
right out of business.
No one likes fine herd of Shorthorns
more than like them. Were l a rich
man / would keep herd of the best;
no, / mean Galloways; no, not that, l
mean Polled Angus; no, guess, maybe,
mean Herefords. Any kind Of good
pure blooded beef animals would suit
me. like to see them grow. like to
feed them and to study their good
points. shall never get over the liking
that l have always had for bunch of
good feeders. From the time the little
fellow first stands alone and begins to
smell around for something to make
into beef to the run upon grass, the
yearling form, the feeder-yes, to the
station and even TO the stockyards-the
we'll bred beef animal always interested
me. | know how 1t makes a man feel
to hear the salesman say: "Sold them
to-; he bought them for export"
A man feels good when he can go back
home and repeat those words to his
neighbors.
But, nv friend, we never knew buy
or to ask our salesman the question,
-"How much milk did the mothers OF
these steers producer" Breeding, quail
ity, style, weight and condition we're the
points involved in that transaction. So
much for the beef end of this discussion.
During the last ten years have visit
ed at least two hundred first class prac-
ticsl dairy farms. Often it has been my
experience to have some dairyman point
to an undersized i'll favored COW and
say: "Thst is the best money maker In
the barn" He said nothing about sell
ing or killing her for beef; but he prob
ably did tell me that she, that same
little, beef1ess COW, had netted him over
and above all expenses some sum rang
ing from S25 to $50 that year. What
ever the sum, it was usually large
enough to buy a pretty good feeder.
The care and management OF the two
types are quite unlike. The methods OF
marketing are different. The kind OF
help that you need to manage dairy
herd must, as a rule, be different. On
beef ranch or feeding farm there must
be difference in feeds, in pasture and
in yards and buildings The outfit or
equipments for these two different lines
of animal industry must be different.
Hence, in most cases, the man who tries
to run a dual plant must be at an in
creased expense. To be sure, there
have been and are yet some exceptions to
all these statements, but as years go on
the exceptions will be less numerous.
In my opinion the man with large
acreage will always be able to make
money raising beef; but it Is also likely
that the time is close at hand when the
forty acre farmer will not be able to
raise beef at profit.
Such farmer will find that the beef
steer is in the way; he takes up as much
room as does the COW, whose milk Will
buy more beef than any steer, even OF
the best beef breed, can grow any day In
the wear when said COW is at work.
Now comes the argument that there are
what are called milking strains OF beef
cattle. Yes, and have seen some good
herds of them. admit that one Short
horn herd in California and also another
in Minnesota have made wonderful rec
ords for milk and butter, but let me
sound this warning; this cannot go on
forever. These cows may make great
dairy records, but the time will come
when their steers will no longer go In
the export class. | dislike to write this,
for | have had some of these foolish
dreams myself; but it is the truth my
correspondent wants, and l think it is
the truth that am giving him.
Now, 1 wish this correspondent would
ask himself these questions: "Why
should divide nv business? Why do
want TO name one of my cows DR.. Jekyl
and another Mr.. Hyde9 Why do l want
two strings to my bow when can shoot
better with one?" The answer may Dc.
because / was raised to that KIND OF
farming" Or, because l want TO DO
lust what see my neighbors do" fos-
sibly the real answer will be, because
am so greedy that when l see a man
selling beef | want to sell beef, and
when see my neighbours wife and chill
dren milking cows and making butter L
get the notion that my folks ought 10
HELM me the same way. One man re-
piled to an argument of this kind a few
days ago by saying frankly: II had not
looked at the matter that way"
do not say to this inquirer that the
dairy business is better for him than the
beef business. I cannot so advise MIN,
but do advise him to decide in favor of
one or the other, and say 1t will be
both easier for him and his family, and
more profitable all around for him to
either raise beef for profit and milk for
home use as a side line or to keep a
dairy for profit and raise only an occa-
sional bit of beef for home consumption.
Richard Fl. Wood, Chase, Mich In
Tribune Farmer.
A Dry Pen.