The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-14
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the demand for tho cattle of pe=O;Sf the Argentine Republic. Meat kAezsS4l prices are rising, and in some
 places horse flesh is sold All of the chilled meat factories at and near Buenos Aires are running at their full est capacity and steamers loaded with beef and mutton are leaving almost daily for England. Some millions of pounds are now weekly exported. and of this about one-fourth is going north ward to the United States. The rise in prices is bringing in the young cattle, and in some places COWS are ping slaughtered for the local supply. The latter condition is alarming to all in arrested in Argentina as the worlds -=sar basket of the future The country has vast areas of land. but it has to keep its breeding animals if it would increase its cattle supply, and laws may eventually be passed providing a severe penalty for the killing of cows. Already laws have been enacted against the killing of calves.
 There are now about 30,O0O, 900 cattle in the Argentine Republic. This is half as many as we have in the United States, and it is within 2,000,000 or S,000,o00 of the number in Russia in Europe the only other countries, ex- cepting British India, that lead the world in stock of this kind. It seems strange to me that the British Indies should have more cattle than any other land on the globe. We all know the sacred cows of Hindustan, but we do not know that that country has more than twice as many cattle as we have and three or four times as many as any other on earth. According to the figures given me by the Argentine department of agri- culture. India has 119, 9,oOOoo0 cattle ana buffaloes. It's beef stock alone numbers sS, ,00O 900, and it easily leads the world as cattle producer. Next In rank comes the United States, next Russia, and then Argentina. In round numbers Ger many has 10000, 900 beef cattle. France 14O00, 900 and the United Kingdom H. 900, 900. Australia has about as many as Great Britain, and Ireland and the oth- CT countries of the world have much less, ranging from S,000,000 in Uruguay down to a million or so in Japan, Switz- erland, Chile and Holland. Of all the cattle countries. the possibilities of in crease are chiefly with those of South America. The United States is close to its maximum, and the product of Flu rope, owing to the slaughter now going on to feed the armies in the field, will be on the decline.
  great meat basket of the world is as bright as the sun of the tropics. There are tens of millions of acres of pastures in Bolivia, on the eastern slope of the Andes where cattle are now running wild, and where fat beeves can Le bought for a few dollars a head. Brazil has high lands that will feed other millions, and Uruguay and Argentina, if their lands were intensively used, could support 10 head of stock where they ow support one. Paraguay, just north of here, is one vast pasture field and almost the whole of this Parana basin is fitted for raising alfalfa None of the beef here is corn fed, and until lately most of the cattle ? were raised on the native grasses. Now they are brought up on grass and fat tened on alfalfa. The latter crop Is be- ing sown by the tens of thousands of acres. There are single fields of alfalfa in Argentina that contain more than 1o0t acres, and I know men who have 1O,OoC anu 2O000 acres of alfalfa in one patch Coming across to Buenos Aires from the foothills of the Andes I rode through 8 tract of country which few years ago fn hp of the Italian wheat farmers from the east moved out and broke ihe land ur for grain. However the soil was found to be so light that it could not be farmed Then alfalfa was tried, and the deep roots of that plant went down to the water and they now have there one of the best alfalfa lands on the globe I rode through great fields where hundreds of cattle were feeding and saw many others where tho crop had been cut and put up in huge stacks.
 The cattle of the Argentine are allowed to feed out of doors all the year round and when the stock is taken off the na tive grasses and put on alfalfa to rat ten it is turned into one of the grea fenced enclosures and allowed to feed an alfalfa stack just as our cattle ar fed upon straw. In this way large mum Der of head can be cared for by yer few men and the cost of stock farmin le reduced to the minimum. ~-s 1t IS nov the best lands are fenced with wire, an the cattle feed in these great fields with out need of barns or sheds. The winter sre so mild that there is plenty of gras all the year round
 The value of alfalfa in the making beef has grown upon the Argentinos, an the alfalfa area is increasing enormous ly. As soon as the land is in alfalfa
 Jumps in value. Steers raised on tha grass can be marketed fl year youngt than if grown on the native grasses, an the use of alfalfa doubles the carryin capacity of the estancia. In souther Cordoba and Santa l'e 3l0o cattle al no<y being fed all the year round to ever square league of alfalfa, This mear about one head to every two acres. an If is said that another 1000 head could ! added if all were breeding cattle. Finel bred stock does not thrive on the natiN grasses, and there are many millions acres in Argentina that will have to put into alfalfa in order to nave if vie
 it's full value, Lands which lave bet
 carryina s000 sheep to the league-that