Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1922-01-10
FALSE ECONOMY.
The Farmer Cheats Himself When
He Tries to Save on His Feed Bill.
(From the Chicago Produce.)

=
He Tries to Save on His Feed Bill.
(From the Chicago Produce.
The stockkeeper who would save
on his feed bill is quite likely to
cheat himself. When we consider
that the value of an animal is
largely determined by its ability to
handle large quantities of feed,
turning them into a higher priced
commodity, we can understand why
the above statement is true. / am
anclined to believe that go per cent
OF Improbable production in the
dairy is caused by the lack of proper
feeding.
Farmers are confronted this year
with the problem of what is best
to do with their large crops of grain
and forage. Especially is this true
OF corn, which is undoubtedly the
largest crop we have ever grown.
We find the market not only falling,
but with poor chance of improve
ment. Why not feed some of this
good corn to dairy cows?
In reviewing some of the bulletins
issued at the Nebraska Experiment
Station, find record of a herd for
series of years, together with
figures determining the cost of but
terfat production. Using the prices
given at that time for both feed and
butterfat, and transferring them to
conditions such as we have now, |
find that with such herd corn can
be made to produce $2.40 a bushel
when fed to good dairy cows. This
is basing the butterfat at SO cents a
pound 1t would indeed be a fine
thing if we could market our corn
! for $40, and that is just what can
be done if we have good milking and
give them good care. This does not
call for high grain ration, but just
for an average ration of from four
to twelve pounds of ground corn a
day, with plenty of alfalfa hay and
some corn silage and little oil meal
| We are now confronted with con-
ditions very different from those OF
the war period, and we must adapt
ourselves to the change. 1t is false
economy to figure that corn or grain
is wasted when fed to good produc-
ing animals. The fact is that the
chief use of corn and other grain
should be on the farm where it is
grown, and where it can be turned
into a high priced finished product
If the Danish farmer can buy our oil
meal, corn and other grain, pay the
freight to the seaboard and the high
priced shipping charges, pay the
costs of distributing to farmers and
then of feeding to cows, which are
no better than ours, if as good, and
then have the product of his cows
made into butter and sold on ou1
1 New York and Chicago markets : in
competition with ours, it simply
means that we are not making the
best use of what we grow on our
farms, or else that We are not willing
to pay the price of profitable pro-
ductlon. This very day Danish but
ter is being sold in New York and
Chicago in competition with our
product. By cutting out this false
economy in depriving the good dairy
cows of proper feed, we can drive
every competitor out of our market
in three months; and, more than
that, we would be able to sell but
ter in any foreign country and at a
profit. We are in a position to pro-
duce butter in this country with the
greatest economy:
! Returning again to the subject of
giving the cows plenty of feed; the
average dairy COW consumes about
fifteen pounds of feed per day OF
what we call maintenance ration
that is, the food required to keer
the COW alive, warm and to replace
waste. We might say it is the board
bill of the COW. Now if the COW car
consume thirty pounds of feed, Their
we are interested in the fifteer
pounds which is not used for main.
tenance but rather for production
Ii the COW consumes forty-five
pounds, then we are interested in the
thirty pounds that she consumes anC
uses for production. Such a COW
as rule, will make twice the profit
of the one that consumes thirty
pounds, so it is very plain to see thai
what we need is an animal that will
consume large quantities of feed anc
turn it to profitable use.
If corn can be marketed at S2.4C
per bushel through a good dairy COW
land l have every reason to believe
that it can be-basing the figures or
six years work by herd of cows in
Nebraska-then certainly it seems to
me that is not wasted corn when it is
fed to dairy cows. Another view.
point: would it not be wise to market
more of our corn by feeding it on
the farm and retaining the valuable
prduct of fertilizer, thus equalizine
farm labor and altogether making a
more economic and dependable line
OF production? With the present
high value of land, strict economy in
production must be studied carefully
if the land is made to return a fair
earning on its value.
A. L. HACKER.