Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-01-01
HORSES AND MULES.
VITAL TOFARMERS
Figures Refute Claim Autos
and Tractors Are Doing
Most of Work.
By j. c. ROYIE.

SPECIAL Dispatch to The Star.
NEW YORK, January 1.-The quart
OF oats is going 10 be just as important
factor in the transportation prob
lens Of the United States in this year
q 1926 as the gallon Of gasoline. That
is the conclusion drawn today by Prof.
Ellsworth Huntington of Yale Univer-
sity
If horses and mules and all other
dr<ft animals, such as oxen. should
) Aieulv he taken away" said Prof.
Huntington, mankind would be in
Morse state than if all animal food
6Ecre eliminated. The introduction of
motor transportation is sometimes sup
posed 10 have eliminated the horse as
necessity. This is not true. The
United States has five out of six OF
the total Of motor vehicles in the world
and a still larger proportion of the
farm tractors. but the 100. 100000
people iii the other countries Of the
world still depend almost entirely for
their farm work on horses, mules, don
keys. oxen. Camels, elephants ana
offger animals.
The total Of horses, mules and asses
I'll the United states is lower than at
any time since 1917. But the conges-
ton of traffic in cities the consequent
sloWnesS of trucks and the high cost
81 fuel and maintenance are bringing
the horse back in some localities.
Animals Now on Farms.
: - 1926 starts there are approxi-
rnqtely IS .000 600 horses and mules in
this country. On the ma joritv of
farms the removal of draft animals
would reduce production Of food to
such an extent that many farmers
would be hard put to it to feed their
own families. The construction OF
more tractors, according to Prot.
Huntington, would not solve the prob
lem, since vast number OF farms are
loo small too rough or are otherwise
untitled for cultivation by machinery,
While the increased demand for gaSo-
line and motors would put prices
beyond the means Of impoverished
farmers.
~ The loss Of all our beasts of
burden he concluded, might reduce
even 80 rich a country as the United
States TO a scale Of living approximate
ing that Of China"
r. According to the Horse Association
o. America there are in harness on
farms 1000 900 horses and mules,
while 5000, 900 are on farms but not
iii work There are some 2.000, 600
horses and mules at work in non
AGRICULTURAL lines and 900 under
saddle. OF this amount some 30, 600
are pure-bred animals.
Finds Horses Cheaper
In discussing the situation in New
York and other large centerS of popu-
lation. Harry \. Taylor, president of
the United States Distributing Cor
poration, declares that it costs cents
a minute to keep a seven-ton motor
truck on the streets Of such cities. as
compared with , cents "a minute for
large horse-drawn truck.
aWhen auto trucks came into use,
hevsai6. the inference was they would
solve the congestion problem, but il
soon became evident that there was
little to be gained by rushing to save
q few minutes in getting to a. destina-
ton if the point where the freight
was 10 he unloaded was 50 congested
that hours would be lost through wait
ing.
1T became apparent that under GER
tain conditions there was no economy
III operating a motor truck in congeS-
ton. where an hours delay cost $3.50,
when the same load could be moved
ly Il horse drawn truck with a delay
cost Of S120. Therefore. large truck
ing companies are returning to the
horse Grawn vehicle for delivery in
districts where congestion IS ineV
Fable The auto will always be the
superior Of the horse on long haul
The horse will always be superior to
the auto on short hauIs in congestion.
wsak The class of horse best suited to
leaning conditions in New York is
the Western horse, weighing 1900 to
$50 pounds"
Copyright 1920