The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1917-06-01
PIGS AND POULTRY

a peuuy Sd'eu ID d peuHS Cdi ueu.
says the proverb; but in a year of food
scarcity like the present it is worth
while to ask whether the penny sa-
we'd upon the farm may not be better
used there as capital to earn another
penny.
1he secret of farm economy is not
merely in avoiding waste but in the
profitable use Of by-products. With
that fact in view county agents are
urging farmers to keep more and bet
ter pigs and poultry. Swine and hens
together may be made to turn to pro-
ftable account all the waste of the
kitchen and of the garden, even many
of the weeds that infest it-for exam
pie, purslane. Pigs and poultry will
thrive on vegetables that are too
small to market-especially if the
vegetables are well cooked; and they
vii eat other field produce that is
cften quite disregarded. When the
sweet corn is thinned out in the hill,
or when, later, stalk refuses to bear
ears, instead of pulling it and leaving
it to dry upon the ground, let the
gardener try the experiment of cut
ting it up and offering it to the hens.
He may be surprised to see the eager
ness with which it is attacked, even
where the fowls have a "grass rum"
Meanwhile, the pigs, if they are
putting on fat from farm produce fed
to them, are returning at present
prices very substantial dividend
upon their owners investment, and
can often be made to earn a consider
able part of their own living. Tne
day is coming when the sty with its
filth will be abolished, and the Eas-
tern like the Western farmer will
realize the worth of range and pasture
for swine. From the pig that is al
lowed to feast on the acorns of the
oak grove are derived haml and ba-
con of the finest flavor, and the pig
is delighted to gather them for him
self if he has the chance He is /
equally glad to work over a forage
crop like dwarf rape sown early foc
summer az iaJe for fall feeding, and
in the process he will profit not only
himself but the field in which he
pastures. Geese, for similar reason
are likely this year to be highly pro-
fttable to such farmers as have pas
ture for them and foresight enough
to provide a little green forage for
their use The residue of these green
crops, after affording pasture to swine
or poultry in the fall, may be plough
ed in when winter is over, to the
profit Of the soil.
But it must be repeated that true
economy always dictates the keeping
of good instead of poor stock. We'll
proportioned and well-bred pigs are
the cheapest in the long run. They
eat no more than scrub stock, and they
command far better market.
Moreover, when neighbors cooperate
and an intelligent county agent ad-
vises, they are not difficult to procure:
The same thing holds true of fowls.
The farmer cannot afford to keep un-
productive hens; and in these days
of trap nests the hen that pays for
herself can readily be separated from
her sister that ought to be hurried
to market.
The manufacture long ago learned
that the use of waste OF by-products
often determines his surplus or def
cit at TIE end of the year. There is
a lesson ,lere for the farmer; and In
time when both labor and supplies
cost so much it is imperative that it
be diligently studied.-The Youths
Companion.