Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1911-12-30

of that under cultivation and the rest
is seeded to grass. They are now at
work on the rest Of the ninety acres
have cut and fenced.
am not so anxious to destroy the
brush now, for the goats bring me the
easiest money / make They work for
nothing, largely board themselves the
entire year, and return a handsome
profit in kids and mohair.
I do not know how much the mohair
has brought me, for sometimes it has
brought 21 cents and sometimes 80
cents. When 1t was low we pooled
and then the buyers pooled and agreed
on price, and until this year our clip
did not hardly average 81 per fleece;
but since the growers have organized
things are coming our way again, and
the industry looks very encouraging
once more.
started with pretty good goats, for
my Aeighbors said they got the best
they could find. l am quite sure mine
were good, for l sent some mohair
down to the Lewis and Clark Fair
and got goIr medal.
Shortly after that fair one of my
neighbors brought a buck from VIM.
Riddells of Monmouth, Oregon, home
with him, and l watched for results.
l had been told that kids from full
bloOds were hard to raise, but when
1 saw that my neighbor got along as
well as did, l bought the buck when
he was through with him, and l raised
46 kids in the two years 1 had him.
/ had been getting from one and one
half to three pounds per fleece from
my kids, and when got five pounds
from some of the earliest l was in
deed surprised.
then got registered buck from
the Craig brothers at Macleay, Ore
gon, and the animals Of the second
cross are beauties.
Fearing my neighbor was getting
the better of me, l thought l would
go him one better, so / purchased
some registered does. My neighbor
has sold his goats, but not because
got ahead, but on account of so much
loss from coyotes also lost my first
full-blood buck kid that way, but am
not discouraged, for it is the mohair
l am after principally, and find that
at the price of mohair this year only
have to get one pound extra on SO
fleeces to pay for $40 buck.
find that they eat everything that
grows on my place and it takes from
three to five years to kill out any
kind of brush if the goats are confined
to the one pasture.
A year or two after I got my first
goats bought some Shropshire sheep
and kept them two or three year, until
/ saw they would kill out what grass
l had, and then sold them. The sheep
had their noses on the ground all the
time and the goats had theirs up in
the air after leaves on the brush. My
COWS could not get along with the
sheep, but did and are still doing we'll
with the goats. was sorry 1 could
not keep sheep, as value them highly
for their wool and mutton.
have sold over 500 worth of mo-
hair and goats this year and have SO
head left Of my youngest and best.
| have also had experience with
early kids and l do not like them. l
don't like to get out of a warm bed
at one or two o'clock (and the colder,
the more sure one is to have to get
out) and go to the goat shed and
bring in half dozen half frozen kids
and build up fire and warm them
| have an improved method for
raising large kids without their being
born. so early in the season. l SOW
vetch and oats early in the fall, and
along about the first of April it is
large enough to turn in the kids. This
gives them a start so they catch up
with those born earlier.
find that goats will not do well
In the mud, but will get sore feet. If
any do get footsore in winter, keep
bottle handy with crease in the
cork) with a strong solution of blue
vitriol to put between their hoofs and
that corrects the trouble.
For a feed rack | put a 12-inch
board on the ground and leave 7-jnch
space for them to put their heads
through to eat and so prevent waste
They are a very clean animal and
will not eat anything that has been
mussed over.
They make about the same round
every day and return home at night
They take a little from each bush each
day and finally the bush gives 1t up
and dies for the lack of leaves.
They eat thistles, dog-fennel, flag,
ferns of a half dozen kinds, Oregon
grape, sal-al, buck brush, wild rose,
land they are the only animal or any
thing else that will kill the dewberry,
commonly called wild blackberry,
Chlnkapu, hazel, alder, elder, vine-
maple, horehound and catnip, and in
fact any living shrub or tree and grass
will grow up with them The fact
is that when the brush Is gone it is
time to get rid of your goats, and |
will say in conclusion that any one